Martin: “I was more clever than him”, Espargaro ‘too clean’ in fight for podium
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Struggling with illness and ing twice in Q2, Martin looked set for a very difficult Sprint race at the American MotoGP. But that was far from the case as Martin made a brilliant start from 12th before moving into third following a mistake from Espargaro with a few laps remaining.Alex Marquez vomited in his helmet before ing: “As if the body collapsed” Bagnaia, Rins, Martin private chat revealed: “I almost took you out!””I was struggling a lot in qualifying,” said Martin after the race. “In FP3 I felt super confident and had a really good pace to the top guys and was feeling great. “But I think the antibiotics did the work and in the race I was struggling a lot with my physical condition. Anyway, the team did a great job repairing both bikes and we were ready to race. “We chose a bike that I thought was the good one but I had some issues in the race. Coming from 12th to third is not easy and I gave my 100%. Yesterday I was feeling worse so Sunday I should be feeling better to battle more.”In terms of the last-lap fight with Espargaro, Martin held on after managing to defend his position superbly. Espargaro seemed to have greater speed mid-corner, but Martin remained unfazed by the Aprilia rider climbing all over the back of his GP-23. Related Bagnaia, Rins, Martin private chat revealed: “I almost took you out!” Jorge Martin goes fastest but reveals sickness: “I feel bad, really weak”Martin added: “As soon as I overtook him I felt so weak. I just waited for his manoeuvre. I was just going slow and braking hard and I could use that to beat him. “I was super slow. But I was taking my time to understand how to manage the battle. It wasn’t easy but I was more clever than him.”Espargaro did attempt a move in the final sector but ran wide as a result of Martin position his Ducati in the middle of the circuit on the approach to turn 19.Espargaro confessed he was ‘too clean’ when speaking to MotoGP.com: “I tried everything but I was too clean. He closed the line too much to avoid any contact and I was not able to go inside the corner. “I lost the front and I knew that he would pass me again on the inside. But you have to try, you have to try until the end.”
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