Aprilia denied 1-2-3-4 in Silverstone sprint as Fernandez owns up to error

Raul Fernandez has admitted his crash in the MotoGP British Grand Prix sprint was “100% my mistake,” but insisted it was also “a consequence of a bad start.”

The Trackhouse rider came close to a maiden MotoGP pole on Saturday, only to be beaten by Aprilia stablemate Jorge Martin.

Expected to be a contender for the win, Fernandez suffered a poor start that dropped him to sixth, forcing a recovery ride. But he crashed on lap four at the Loop while trying to pass Marco Bezzecchi.

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“It was quite disastrous,” he said. “The crash was 100% my mistake. I was behind Marco, and I saw he had some issues on the left corner. So I decided to prepare Turn 5. I opened the line more in Turn 4 and was a bit aggressive on entry, and I crashed.”

Despite taking the blame, Fernandez pointed to a clutch issue that ruined his launch. “I will take 100% the mistake because it was my fault. But the situation was a consequence of a really bad start. We need to understand what's happening with the clutch – I didn't feel well since this morning. Our numbers were good, but the sprint was disastrous. I felt vibrations when releasing the clutch, and that was the key.”

The crash likely cost Aprilia a 1-2-3-4 in the sprint, as the brand locked out the podium. Team-mate Ai Ogura finished second and admitted surprise at how much his soft rear tyre grained.

“I think we all knew the soft rear would drop, but not that much,” said the Japanese rider. “Jorge managed the tyre really well. I dropped more than him, and there was no way I could do anything today. But second is good, so I'm happy.”