Milwaukee Aprilia scored a double points finish in Race 1 at the Misano World Circuit on Saturday. Coming home in 6th and 9th positions respectively, riders Eugene and Lorenzo recorded the highest finish for the team so far in 2017.

Conditions were hot on Saturday as the race got underway. Starting P10 after making the cut into Superpole 2, Eugene quickly made up places on the first lap, a frequent occurrence in his fast race starts. Maintaining a good pace, he was engaged in a hard-fought battle with Camier and Torres for a majority of the race. After incidents ahead promoted him to 6th, Eugene held on to his position to bring home 10 valuable points.

Lorenzo started P13, unable to join Eugene in Superpole 2 after a difficult Superpole 1 session. He lost places at the start, but was quickly back in the hunt for points. Fighting with Ramos and de Rosa, he maintained his race pace and despite a technical problem was able to take 9th place and 7 points.

Under the reverse grid rules Eugene and Lorenzo will start Sunday’s Race 2 in P3 and P6 respectively, which will give them a good opportunity to score more big points.



Eugene Laverty #50 - Grid - P10  -  Race - P6, 10 points
 
“The race started well for me, but it was tough overall. I made up some places on the first lap and was in the fight with the leaders, but after 6 laps I had problems with the front tyre and then the rear. After that it was a matter of nursing it home, and I was really riding on the edge.

In the test we ran well here on race runs, so it’s been disappointing to see that we couldn’t manage that in the race.

We can make some chassis changes tonight and some other things, we have to stay optimistic because we’ve got a bike with a strong engine and electronics; we just need to make the chassis work around it."


Lorenzo Savadori #32 - Grid - P13  -  Race - P9,  7points

 “It was a shame we didn’t make Superpole 2 today, but it was a tough session. In the race, I made a small mistake at turn 9 on the first lap and I lost some places there. My pace was OK and I could push quite hard.

Around halfway in the race I was gaining on the middle group quickly, but then and towards the end it was really difficult for me to push hard. I didn’t have a strong feel for the front, and I didn’t feel comfortable.

Tonight we know some things that we can change and improve; the front for sure, and some other areas that we tried in the test. I hope tomorrow we will have a better race, and I know that the SMR and Aprilia guys will work very hard as always.”