Crutchlow: Raul Fernandez Had More Balls at Silverstone MotoGP

Raul Fernandez defied expectations of careful tyre conservation by bolting into an early lead at the Silverstone MotoGP, then managing his pace to secure a comfortable victory.

The Trackhouse rider pulled away from fellow Aprilia rider Marco Bezzecchi by an average of half a second per lap for the opening nine laps. His advantage peaked at 4.460s just as Bezzecchi lost second place to factory Aprilia team-mate Jorge Martin.

Fears that Fernandez had overworked his rear tyre by pushing too hard too early proved unfounded. Although Martin initially cut the gap, Fernandez responded on laps 13 and 14, pushing the margin back above four seconds. He then managed his advantage to claim a 2.5s victory.

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Cal Crutchlow, standing in for the injured Johann Zarco at LCR Honda and racing in front of his home fans, praised Fernandez's boldness. "What you have to realise is [that happens when] someone is willing to take the gamble," he said. "Somebody is willing to push, and the others probably weren't willing to push. Raul had more balls in those first five laps than everyone else to say, 'I'm OK with the rear tyre [wear], I'm going.' Where the others may have thought, 'OK, he's going to come back to us in ten laps' and he didn't."

Crutchlow also credited the Aprilia RS-GP for allowing Fernandez to maintain his pace. "The Aprilias were the only ones without any problem with the tyre [wear], let's say, over the whole weekend," he explained. "Everyone else was trying to manage [the tyre]. Maybe [Aprilia] just weren't generating the same heat [in the rear tyre] as the rest of the manufacturers and riders for some reason."

This victory is a statement from Fernandez and Trackhouse, showing that aggressive early racing can pay off. If he can replicate this performance, the MotoGP title fight could get even more interesting.