Raul Fernandez: “Phillip Island was in tears and didn’t want us to leave”

For Raul Fernandez, the cancellation of the MotoGP race at Phillip Island held special significance. As last year’s winner, he would not have been allowed to compete on Sunday anyway due to his finger injury. With the Grand Prix called off, he was at least spared a sporting disadvantage compared to his rivals. Nevertheless, the Trackhouse Aprilia rider had not wanted to bid farewell to the Australian circuit in this way.

Fernandez had already retired from Saturday’s sprint race after 9 of 13 laps. The after-effects of his crash at Mandalika, in which he broke his right index finger, meant he was unable to continue. As he normally uses that finger to brake, he had to alter the way he rode his Aprilia.

“I had to completely adapt my riding style. There are lots of quick changes of direction on this circuit, and I could no longer cope with them,” Fernandez explained to DAZN Spain.

Yet the weekend had started promisingly from a sporting perspective. Despite a heavy crash in FP1, the Spaniard set the second-fastest time in qualifying on Friday. Over the race distance, however, the strain proved too great. After withdrawing from the sprint race, he was examined by the MotoGP Medical Director.

The fracture was stable, but inflammation of the surrounding soft tissue was detected. Fernandez was subsequently declared unfit to start in Sunday’s race. A course of rehabilitation is intended to reduce the inflammation. He will undergo a further examination in Malaysia on Thursday before a decision is made on his participation in the following race weekend.

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His own assessment is cautious. “It will be difficult for me to race at Sepang,” the Spaniard admitted. Even before the sprint, he had pointed out that the numerous hard braking zones in Malaysia were likely to put particular strain on his injured hand.

Fernandez had mixed feelings about the cancellation of the Australian Grand Prix due to restricted visibility, which hampered the operation of the rescue helicopter. On the circuit where he had won the previous year, Sunday saw nothing more than a joint farewell lap by the riders behind the safety car.

For the Spaniard, the rain-soaked end to the last MotoGP weekend at Phillip Island took on an almost symbolic significance. “I believe in certain signs. And that was a sign that we should return to this wonderful circuit in the future. Because it was crying and didn’t want us to leave,” said Fernandez.