Raul Fernandez concerned despite second place: “I’m lacking precision under braking”

MotoGP Friday at Phillip Island saw Raúl Fernández suffer a heavy crash on his 25th birthday, followed by second place in qualifying. The Trackhouse Aprilia rider thus secured direct entry into Q2. Physically, however, the day took its toll – on top of the two broken fingers that have been hampering him since Mandalika.

When asked whether he felt older because of his birthday or because of the crash, the Spaniard initially responded with humour. “Because of both. So it’s as if I’ve had two birthdays,” joked Fernández. The defending Australian GP champion then became much more serious.

“It was a difficult day. I had a heavy crash this morning. Now I feel stiff and my body is aching. That means I’ll probably feel even worse tomorrow,” explained the Aprilia rider.

Fernandez physically battered

After FP1, Fernandez adjusted his approach. Given his limited physical reserves and the forecast change in weather, he focused on avoiding having to go through Q1. “The plan was to stay focused after how FP1 went and make it through to Q2. Tomorrow the weather will be completely different. With a wet track, rain, more wind and lower temperatures, today’s findings will be of limited help. So in FP2, it’ll all be a fresh start,” said Fernandez.

Finishing second behind his team-mate Marco Bezzecchi, he achieved his goal for the day. He wanted to use his energy as sparingly as possible. “I also tried to save a bit of energy. My reserves are limited at the moment, so I have to decide where to use them wisely. I’d rather save them for tomorrow’s qualifying and the sprint, as well as for Sunday’s race,” emphasised the Spaniard.

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Why rain is no help

Rain would not, however, be a relief for Fernandez. Due to his injury, he has to use a different finger when braking. This means he lacks precisely the accuracy that is particularly important on a wet track. “It means I’m not really precise. In the wet, you have to be very calm and very precise. That’s why I don’t think it will help me. On the other hand, the movements on the motorbike are easier and not as aggressive,” explained Fernández.

It remains to be seen how well he’ll cope under these conditions. “We’ll see. It would also be the first time this year that we’ve ridden on a wet track. We’ll also have to see how the bike’s set-up works,” added the Trackhouse rider.

Major concerns ahead of Sepang

Beyond the Australian weekend, his thoughts are already turning to the next challenge in Sepang. At Phillip Island, the hard braking manoeuvres are manageable. In Malaysia, however, he expects the strain on his injured hand to be significantly greater. Fernandez does not yet expect to be able to brake with his usual finger there.

“I’m focusing on this weekend. But in Sepang it will be very difficult to perform at a good level. The biggest problem for me is hard braking. Here we have two braking zones that don’t put too much strain on the finger. In Sepang, there are a great many hard braking manoeuvres. You have to be able to use the brakes very effectively there,” he explained.

Fernandez is hoping for some improvement by then, but not a full recovery. “It will certainly be a bit better than it is now, but not 100 per cent. To be honest, I’m a bit worried about Sepang,” the Spaniard admitted.

In sporting terms at least, Friday confirmed Aprilia’s strong form: four RS-GPs finished in the top five, with only Ducati rider Marc Marquez slipping in between them in third place. When asked whether there were further discussions within the Aprilia camp about a possible team order or other instructions, Fernandez replied diplomatically. “I try to be a gentleman to everyone,” remarked the birthday boy.