JapaneseGP: Intact GP Boss on Gonzalez's bike grid failure "Very bitter for all of us"

Intact GP Team Boss Praises Gonzalez's Pace Despite Grid Mechanical Failure, Vows Full Commitment From Both Riders in Indonesia

Intact GP team boss Jürgen Lingg offered a candid and ultimately resolute assessment of Manuel Gonzalez's dramatic Japanese Grand Prix, after a mechanical failure seconds before the start transformed what should have been a championship showdown into a 22nd-place finish for his title-leading rider.

Lingg walked through the sequence of events that derailed Gonzalez's race before it had even begun, noting that nothing in the build-up had suggested trouble was coming. "Everything was fine during the reconnaissance lap, and there were no problems with the bike during the warm-up lap either. But when Manu pulled the clutch to engage first gear for the start, the motorbike cut out," he explained on Speedweek.com.

Despite the result sheet showing a distant 22nd place, Lingg was adamant that the underlying pace throughout the weekend had been genuinely championship-worthy, with Gonzalez's fastest laps of the race underlining the point. "The pace was certainly right. We did a good job and were competitive enough to be right up there at the front," he said.

The team boss did not shy away from expressing his frustration at a result that denied his rider a genuine shot at extending his championship advantage, while drawing on experience to process the setback. "It's extremely frustrating. At first I couldn't believe it, but we've been in this long enough to know that things like this can happen," Lingg reflected. "It was very bitter for all of us."

Rather than dwelling on the disappointment, Lingg struck a forward-looking tone, pointing to the team's championship standing and the commitment of both riders heading into the next round. "But the team has everything it needs to deal with it. We're at the top of the World Championship, and in Indonesia, both riders will once again give their all for our project."

Lingg's comments capped a day of contrasting fortunes for Intact GP, who had celebrated victory in the Moto3 session just an hour before Gonzalez's Moto2 misfortune struck — a swing from triumph to heartbreak that the team boss ultimately framed as part of the unpredictable nature of racing, rather than cause for lasting concern about his team's title credentials.

Credit Photo : MotoGP