Pol Espargaro and Bradley Smith keenly await the 18th round of the 2016 MotoGP World Championship at Valencia where they aim to achieve two flying finishes in what will be their last appearances in Monster Yamaha Tech3 colours. The season-ending battle will commence at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo, which has produced many memorable and spectacular duels over the years. The fight in the championship standings is still ongoing, and therefore both riders fully intend to clinch top tier results aboard their Yamaha YZR-M1 MotoGP bikes to conclude the year positively.

Pol Espargaro will seek to close his three-year partnership with Yamaha by powering to an impressive finish in front of his loyal fans. The Spaniard plans to continue attacking to complete the Grand Prix as close as possible to the factory MotoGP riders in Sunday’s 30 lap sprint after coming off the back of three impressive displays at the overseas Grand Prix’s.

Meanwhile, Bradley Smith targets speeding to a solid result in the race in order to close his sixth year with the team in a notable way. The joint longest serving Tech3 rider produced three heroic point scoring performances in the flyaway races, where he returned to the grid after sustaining a knee injury, and he will aim to undertake another determined effort to close his fourth season in the premier class strongly.

Pol Espargaro -  Championship: 8th Points: 124

"Valencia is always important because it is where we end the season and it is also another home race. However, this year is going to be a bit more special, and I am going to compete at this event with the grandstands full of fans! It will be my last track appearance with Yamaha and the Monster Tech3 team after three really incredible years, with some great and some not so good moments, but I have learnt a lot in this period with a big group of professionals that have been like a family to me. I'm really looking forward to enjoying this weekend where I will try to complete this adventure with a highly satisfying result. I like the track and I am happy about how I have performed there in the past, such as in 2015, which was a difficult year but I was still able to end up in the top 5. Obviously, it's going to be difficult to repeat this, because the factory bikes such as Ducati and Suzuki, are much more competitive, and we are struggling a bit in a few areas. We will see how I feel with the Michelin tyres and if the weather does not interfere, then I want to have the best possible conclusion, but whatever happens, I will give my best as always."
 

Bradley Smith - Championship: 18th Points: 55

"After a long time together, this week will be my final outing with Tech3. This season is my sixth year in this team and it goes without saying that it will be hard to say ‘Au Revoir’ to the crew on Sunday afternoon. The guys who I have worked with have always done a great job, which gives me full motivation for Valencia where I really hope to end on a high. The back-to-back events went well and I scored some valuable points despite my recovering knee, therefore in Spain, I will fight to be as close as I can to the leading satellite position. 2016 has not gone exactly to plan and it’s a pity to be finishing the year much further back from where I wanted to be in the rankings. However, we never gave up and after achieving sixth in the Grand Prix 12 months ago, I am confident of a positive conclusion. I won the 125cc race in 2010 at Valencia, the year before I joined Tech3, 

Hervé Poncharal - Team manager:

“The next GP will be our last with Pol and Bradley but we will give them both everything they need to close the weekend strongly on Sunday, and we know they are fully fired up for the fight, and we all are too. The guys performed well in the previous three rounds, which certainly were tricky, but they stayed firm and can positively look back on what they achieved. No doubt, Pol will be gunning all out for a top six on Sunday in order to wrap up his time with his team in a positive way and also keep his placement above two factory riders in the standings. He has worked hard all year and we are sure that he is excited for this GP. As for Bradley, his season has been tough due to some bad luck and his knee injury. Yet, he remained resolute and impressed us all by producing three well-fought performances in the flyaway GP’s, and no doubt, he will try to go one step further as soon as the action gets underway in Spain. In addition, we hope that the guys can clinch some valuable points so that the Tech3 team can win the top independent team battle for the fifth year in succession, which is obviously very important for us. The Valencia event is always amazing and it is worthy of hosting the final showdown, therefore, we aim to put on a great show for everyone and give Brad and Pol the best send off that we can.”