Twenty-one-year-old Salač was supposed to start the race for the fourth time in a row from eighteenth place. After problems with the gearbox on Saturday, the mechanics replaced the engine on his motorcycle, but it failed before the start. In the introduction lap, Salač’s machine started to smoke and he had to shut it down. Instead of being on the starting grid, the only Czech participant of the WC ended up in the pit with tears in his eyes. He last missed the Dutch Grand Prix two years ago.
“After yesterday, when we had a problem with the gearbox, we decided to replace the engine with a spare one. It was an engine that someone had already ridden in Malaysia, so it was tested. As soon as I left the pit lane, I felt that the engine did not have enough power. Unfortunately, I didn’t even manage to get to the pits with it, because right after the exit from the second or third turn it started to smell terribly,” Salač told Nova TV.
“What we found out from the data was that it was only running on two cylinders, which means one cylinder wasn’t going. It was lucky that it didn’t catch, because a lot of oil started flying from the exhaust and from the bottom. So I’m glad that the bike didn’t catch fire and that nothing happened to me either, because as soon as oil splashes from the bike, it’s usually the worst crashes,” said Salač.
It is not yet clear whether the engine supplier or the mechanics of his Gresini team were to blame. “We can’t say anything for sure at the moment, we can’t blame anyone until it’s properly resolved,” added the Czech driver, who also lost the running tenth place in the championship due to his absence.
Spain’s Fermín Aldeguer claimed his third victory in a row. Pedro Acosta, already a certain world champion, finished eighth.
In Moto3, Masiá secured the first world title of his career with today’s victory. Before the final Grand Prix of the season in Valencia, the 23-year-old Honda competitor has an unattainable lead of 28 points over the Japanese Ajumue Sasaki, who finished sixth.
Masiá won four Grand Prix in the season of his life and reached the podium in another six. He is in his eighth year in the World Championship, his best finish so far was fourth in 2021.
From 18:00 CET, the Royal MotoGP race will take place in Qatar.
Qatar Grand Prix, Losail World Motorcycle Championship race:Moto3:1. Masiá (Sp./Honda) 33:50.6942. Alonso (Col./GasGas) -0.0683. Öncü (Tur./KTM) -0.1634. Rossi (It./Honda) -0.2855. Pérez (Spain/KTM) -1.5536. Sasaki (Jap./Husqvarna) -1,566 World standings (after 19 out of 20 races): 1. Masiá 2712. Sasaki 2433. Alonso 2254. Holgado (Sp./KTM) 2125. Öncü 2126. Ortolá (Sp./KTM) 171Moto2:1. Aldeguer (Sp./Boscoscuro) 35:32.1172. González -2.6433. Canet (both Sp./Kalex) -2.6524. Ogura (Japan/Kalex) -4.5855. Dixon (Brit./Kalex) -4.6456. Vietti (It./Kalex) -5,936 World standings (after 19 of 20 races): 1. Acosta (Sp./Kalex) 328.52. Arbolino (It./Kalex) 249.53. Dixon 1944. Aldeguer 1875. Canet 1756. Chantra (Thai./Kalex) 162,511. Salač (Czech Republic/Kalex) 110
2023-11-19 16:08:09
#Spaniard #Masiá #won #Qatar #Grand #Prix #Moto3 #world #champion #time #Salač #didnt #start
