ELIAS AND XAUS PICK UP VALUABLE POINTS IN AUSTRALIA
FORTUNA YAMAHA riders Toni Elías and Ruben Xaus finished
the Australian Grand Prix in ninth and twelfth position respectively.
Toni Elias was just a thousandth off 8th place in Phillip
Island, thus unable to improve his result from two weeks ago
in Qatar, whilst Rubén Xaus suffered during the early
laps, but finished 12th and picked up important points to
boost his confidence. Toni was unhappy with being overtaken
by two riders across the line, but his team was happy with
it also being Rubén’s best weekend of the year.
TONI ELIAS
Race: 9th
Overall standing: 14th with 58 points
“We had a traction problem throughout practice which
stopped us from being any higher up. In the race the problem
hadn’t been solved and I had to fight really hard during
the race to try and hang on. We have to still keep looking
forward though, and continue working to improve every time
we go out. Next week we go to Turkey and I hope that we can
improve our results.”
RUBEN XAUS
Race: 12th
Overall standing: 16th with 49 points
“I had a lot of problems in the first five laps, because
the bike felt heavy and I couldn’t get it onto the right
line easily, I had to run wide and I couldn’t finish
the corners well. I suffered a lot over those 5 laps, and
I lost touch with the group ahead of me, but I gradually fought
my way back. In races though, you have to be fast from the
first to the last lap. I’ve picked up points though,
and my pace at the end was pretty good.”
HERVE PONCHARAL, Fortuna Yamaha motogp Team Director
“Toni did a good race today, although he lost seventh
to Nakano and Tamada on the finish line, Tamada by just a
thousandth. I think that Toni has a right to be disappointed
but the most important thing is that his whole weekend went
well, improving in every session. He wanted to get into the
top 5, but that will come. We need to be happy, because since
Malaysia, Toni is improving in every race. Turkey is new for
everybody and we can get even closer then. As for Rubén,
he had a good weekend, perhaps his best so far this year,
although his position doesn’t stand out. It’s
clear that he’s going much quicker than in previous
races and I think he is beginning to enjoy the M1, which is
important and we have to stay optimistic.”
|
