Gaviota GASGAS Aspar Team rider Sergio Garcia rockets to dominant French GP victory
Awesome lights-to-flag performance from Sergio Garcia; securing Gaviota GASGAS Aspar Team’s maiden Moto3™ Grand Prix Win
- 18 year old Sergio Garcia wins the French GP with a near lights-to-flag race performance
- Gaviota GASGAS Aspar Team are Moto3 Grand Prix winners in only their fifth race in ‘red’
- Garcia secures 25 points and surges to second place in the championship standings
- Teammate Izan Guevara finishes 14th grabbing two vital championship points
Gaviota GASGAS Aspar Team Rider Sergio Garcia overcame ever-changing conditions to rocket through to a dominant win starting from 8th place on the grid. The 18 year old Spanish rider from Castellón treated onlookers to a true champion’s performance during the 22 lap race at Le Mans.
A rain soaked warm up meant the race was started in wet conditions, and on wet tires, however as the lights went green the sun cracked through the clouds and rapidly started to dry the 4.1km circuit. Garcia made a lightning start jumping up to third place on the opening lap, and then into the lead by the early part of lap two.
Consistently setting the on-track pace, Garcia pulled a five second gap on his rivals by lap seven, which increased to 7.1 seconds by the final flag. Garcia’s sole race rival Filip Salac - who eventually finished second - was unable to keep pace with the Gaviota GASGAS Aspar Team rider on his GASGAS RC 250 GP bike, meaning the Czech rider also dropped away by 2.3 seconds by the end of the race.
#28 and Gaviota GASGAS Aspar Team rider Izan Guevara rode a determined race, starting from an uncharacteristically lowly 24th on the grid. The 16 year old, former FIM CEV Moto3 Junior World Champion, struggled initially with the changing conditions, but settled into a good rhythm by the midpoint of the 22 laps.
While avoiding the numerous on-track spills - which tallied over 100 in the Moto3 class as a whole during the French Grand Prix weekend - Guevara crossed the line in 14th securing two valuable championship points.
Next up the Moto3 championship moves to Tuscany in the heart of Italy, on the 30th May, for the Gran Premio d'Italia Oakley at Mugello.
#11 - Sergio Garcia: “I’m so happy to get the win. The race for me was actually very difficult because the track conditions were changing lap by lap. There was a drying line quite quickly, but parts of the track still remained more wet than others. I had to manage the tires as best as I could but still push hard. Overall, I am just very happy with my ride - pushed hard to the limit every lap. This victory is for all my family and my team, we have worked very hard to get here. I’m so happy!”
#28 - Izan Guevara: “The start of the race was not great. There was a lot of water and it took me a while to get going, because the feeling on track was pretty complicated. The bike was moving a lot and I lost a few seconds each lap but after that I was able to find my way and get faster. In the end our rhythm was better than the lead group but the distances were too big. It’s good to take some points, and in the end I’m content with the race and setting the third fastest lap. We turned it around to at least take something.”
Jorge Martinez (GASGAS Aspar Team Manager): “It’s a very special day: the first victory with GASGAS and for us being a Spanish team with a Spanish brand and a Spanish rider we’re even happier! We made a big step today and now we’re up to 2nd in the championship even if there is a long season ahead. This was the team’s 140th win so it’s even more satisfying.”
Results - 2021 Moto3 World Championship, Round 5:
1. Sergio Garcia (GASGAS) 22 laps; 2. Filip Salac (Honda) +2.349, 3. Riccardo Rossi (KTM) +5.589, 14. Izan Guevara (GASGAS), +50.891
Championship Standings - After Round 5:
1. Pedro Acosta (KTM) 103pts; 2. Sergio Garcia (GASGAS) 49; 3. Andrea Migno (Honda) 47; 11. Izan Guevara (GASGAS) 26