Dalla Porta ready for his home race at Mugello: A Mahindra Aspar team preview
Mugello, 30 May 2017: The MotoGP World Championship reaches a third distance this weekend as it arrives in the Tuscan hills that host the stunning Mugello circuit. The Italian track, which traditionally provides incredibly close finishes in the Moto3 class, like the one in 2016 that saw just 0.069 seconds covering the top three, has seen a limited amount of Spanish success in recent seasons. Since Luis Salom’s victory in 2013, Romano Fenati, Miguel Oliveira and Brad Binder have taken the top step of the podium but so far this season four out of fives wins have gone to Spanish riders – three for series leader Joan Mir and one to third-placed Aron Canet – with only Fenati able to break their dominance. Even if Fenati scores another home win at Mugello, the Italian will remain in second position overall as Mir already boasts an enviable lead of 34 points after only five races.
This sixth round of the season will be even more special for Mahindra Aspar rider Lorenzo dalla Porta. The Italian lives just fifty kilometres down the road from the circuit so this is very much a home race for him. Dalla Porta already raced at Mugello in 2016, when he took the place of Philipp Ottl and managed to lead the race before he finally finished fifteenth, picking up one point despite finishing just two seconds behind the winner. This year at Mugello he hopes to follow the positive recent trend that took him to the points positions at Le Mans. For his team-mate Albert Arenas this will be a first visit to Mugello and the last unknown quantity for him as he raced on all of the rest of the circuits in 2016. The Spaniard arrives in Italy after achieving his best grid position in France, where after two exceptional starts he was running in the top ten before a crash ended his weekend.
Lorenzo Dalla Porta: “For me, Mugello is my home race and the most important Grand Prix of the season. Last year, when I replaced Ottl, I managed to lead it for a lap. I’m looking forward to the race because I feel ready, but also all my fans will be there, so I’ll be even more motivated. With the bike we have been taking steps forward, so we hope we can adapt it well to this circuit.”
Albert Arenas: “Mugello is a fast circuit, which looks a lot like Jerez. We will see how it goes but from Friday it will be important to give one hundred percent to adapt as quickly as possible and to work towards a good grid position and a good race. I am feeling very motivated after Le Mans, where we achieved our best grid and we were up at the front in both races. The crash was a pity, but it is about learning from the mistakes and continuing to enjoy ourselves at Mugello.”
eom/Mahindra Aspar team release
