We are in Misano for the San Marino Grand Prix, the GP… “it feels like home”. Good weather and warm temperatures greeted us as early as Friday, along with a good number of fans in the stands.
The track does not suit Aleix’s characteristics, but we hope for Maverik. Said and done: already from the first free practice you can see the Aprilia number 41 struggling while Vinales’ 12 is flying on the track and at the end of the day he has the second-best time. T oo bad for Aleix, who suffers a nasty blow to the neck as a result of a slip.
The Lifenet team is also hard at work, making several interventions to help the Aprilia team. In the evening, perhaps abetted by a bit of healthy euphoria, a mechanic suffers a minor knee sprain. On Saturday we create a functional bandage to allow the mechanic to work on Maverik’s bike without too much pain and, in the meantime, we try to assess Aleix’s condition. Despite the neck pain, he manages to set the second-best time in Q1, as well as qualifying for Q2.
A good result for the whole team, but some mechanics begin to experience back pain… it is a signal to bring the Lifenet doctors back into play, who start conducting examinations while trying not to disrupt the preparations of the bikes for the Sprint Race.
A Sprint Race in which Aprilia places 3 bikes in the top ten positions! And in hospitality the celebrations begin… Easy there, guys, we can’t fix all of you!
Sunday begins with a true invasion of fans. And there is no shortage of opportunity to intervene: in the excitement of the moment, we even risk losing Aleix’s parasol, which fell to the ground in the hustle and bustle of the Pit Lane.
It is now 2 p.m. and the race begins after the Navy planes fly over the circuit. In the end, there are three Aprilias finishing in the top 8 positions… Not bad, considering the circuit’s not-so-favorable characteristics!”
