The signing of the new contract was followed by a presentation of the award for best Grand Prix in 2015 – an honour the Aragon venue is no stranger to in recent years having won it three times out of the last six – with the circuit taking the prize for its exceptional paddock, facilities and organization; once again at the forefront of motorsport and MotoGP™.
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“Now I also say that if I win the title without winning more races, for me it’s OK”, he said at Aragon on Thursday.
Marquez won in Aragon during his debut world championship winning season in 2013, but has suffered crashes in each of the past two years.
Rossi was turned over by Pedrosa in the race previous year after having a hard time in practice and qualifying and says he is thinking more about the championship now where he needs to gain nine points over Marquez at every race, starting on Sunday.
Eugene has fond memories of the Aragon circuit where he celebrated an Open class victory last season.
Past year the Colombian recorded one of the best results of his season with a 10th place finish that he is keen to repeat as he targets a run of top-15 finishes between now and the end of the season. “Even if the chances are minimal” the Doctor takes on a fighting spirit.
“We will see. It depends how I feel on the bike, how we can manage”.
“Also I have a small advantage that if I do some mistakes, I am still there in the championship. If the other riders make some mistakes then will lose many points and then they will be even further”.
Hernandez said: “I hope to be able to give my very best in the next round of the championship in Aragon and find a good set-up from the start that will allow me to run close to the front and fight for points”. We know that both Yamaha riders are in a good level but I’m happy with the situation so we will try to keep the same way.
“With the tyres, the feeling with the bike and the electronics side, you can win by 10 seconds or you can finish 10 seconds behind the leader. Here we want to be on the podium as a minimum”. My team-mate helped me a little bit because he won the race and in the end I was happy with the result. I earned some points and I need to keep that up.
Marquez and team-mate Dani Pedrosa tested a new Honda engine at Misano following the race, but the Spanish rider was staying tight-lipped on the 2017 motor. “I was strong and I enjoyed a lot the battle”, said Rossi, speaking at the track. He spoke of how MotorLand Aragon is a “track I like” and that is is somewhere he has “gone well in the past”.
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“We know that Phillip Island and Valencia [are too]”.
