Gonzalez` Relentless Attack in British GP Race Rewarded With Fifth Place

06-08-2023

Gonzalez` Relentless Attack in British GP Race Rewarded With Fifth Place

Correos Prepago Yamaha VR46 Master Camp‘s Manuel Gonzalez showed incredible pace in today‘s Monster Energy British Grand Prix Moto2 race. The Spaniard was on the attack from P17 on the grid and collected valuable championship points with a P5 finish. Kohta Nozane had never raced at the Silverstone circuit before, nor had he competed in a 2023 Moto2 race, but he did what was needed to gain experience and took 22nd place.

Correos Prepago Yamaha VR46 Master Camp‘s Manuel Gonzalez gained 12 positions in today‘s Monster Energy British Grand Prix Moto2 race, taking fifth across the finish line. Kohta Nozane was excited to complete his first race of the 2023 season and took the chequered flag in 22nd place.

Gonzalez had a stunning first lap. Whilst chaos unfolded further down in the field, the number-18 rider was on a charge. He had started the 17-lap race from 17th on the grid but completed the opening lap in 10th. Feeling confident in the dry conditions, the Spaniard wrestled himself into eighth but then had to close a gap of almost 1.5s. It looked a daunting task, but Manugasss was determined. Carrying serious speed, he overtook Tony Arbolino on lap 9. As Alonso Lopez had crashed out that same lap, the Correos Prepago Yamaha VR46 Master Camp rider was up to sixth place. Soon a four-rider group fighting for fourth started to form. Gonzalez was in the middle of the action and rallied to fifth place. He kept the pressure on Joe Roberts until the very end, but ultimately held fifth across the finish line.

Nozane started from P27 and was lucky to avoid the on-track collision in the opening sector. With a total of five riders out on the first lap, the Japanese settled into 23rd place. Though it was a rather lonely experience for the number-5 rider, he was pushing 100% and got into a rhythm at the, for him new, Silverstone track. With two riders retiring from the race in the first eight laps and having passed Izan Guevara, Nozane was in 21st place for a large part of the race but finished 22nd as the Spaniard retaliated in the final stages.

Today‘s result means Gonzalez now has 63 points and is in 10th place in the championship standings. Correos Prepago Yamaha VR46 stays in 8th in the team championship, also with 63 points.

Correos Prepago Yamaha VR46 Master Camp will be back in action at the Silverstone track tomorrow for a one-day IRTA Moto2 & Moto3 Test.

Manuel Gonzalez

Correos Prepago Yamaha VR46 Master Camp

"It was an amazing Sunday; my race was almost perfect! I could recover from P17 to P5 with a pace similar to the winner. I‘m very happy with the result obtained and with the race, but I want more, and the podium was close. The bike was very fast, and tomorrow we have a test day to improve more for the next races. I thank the team for their great job during the weekend."

Kohta Nozane

Correos Prepago Yamaha VR46 Master Camp

"It hasn‘t been an easy race. It‘s the first one of the year for me, and everyone else is really fast! The rider level is high. For the first four laps, I had a good feeling, but then I had some problems while braking, and I couldn‘t keep a good pace. I was constant, but I needed to be faster. Tomorrow we have a test here in Silverstone. It will be important for me, so I can make more kilometres on the bike. The Austrian GP in two weeks will be better!"

Gelete Nieto

Correos Prepago Yamaha VR46 Master Camp, Sports Director

"It‘s been a very positive race for Manu and for his self-confidence. He did a good start. He was very confident. He made a great comeback starting from 17th and recovering 12 positions! When he reached the front group, he lost some time with trying to overtake Baltus, who is a strong rider, especially on braking. But Manu‘s race was almost perfect, and it‘s been the best one for him so far. We are all already looking forward to the Austrian GP to do even better. Tomorrow‘s test will be important, in particular because during the race weekend we don‘t have much time to try new things. For sure, we will get important information.

Kohta did his first race of the season. It‘s not been easy, because all the other riders of course matured more and gained more experience than him throughout these nine races. But he‘s been able to finish it, and that was the objective. Tomorrow‘s test will be very important for him: it will help to find a good setting, to gain confidence aboard his bike, and to make more kilometres."