Joan Mir made a significant step towards MotoGP title glory when he clinched a debut podium at the 2020 inaugural race in Austria.
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The Suzuki star finished the newly started race 1.377 seconds behind Ducati’s Andrea Dovizioso and was in the running to go one step further and take the lead the following weekend … until another interruption.
I was left with a disappointed fourth on the restart, just 0.641 seconds to go, but it had proven he had the speed to win, which he eventually achieved at Valencia.
The 23-year-old returns this season with three podiums at the Red Bull Ring but is still aiming for his first win of the 2021 season.
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The Spaniard’s hopes could be bolstered by the long-awaited debut of Suzuki’s ride height device, estimated to be as short as 0.4 seconds on some tracks, but either way Austria is a venue that has fond memories for the # 36.
“The course in Spielberg brings me very good memories, as I won my first World Championship race there [in Moto3],” he said.
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“This year I’ll try to qualify well and stay in the top group from the first lap. After training, we’ll see which bikes and riders are the strongest, and then we’ll try to find the best strategy possible.
“I hope to be able to fight for the podium. We had two good races there last year and I hope that we are as competitive this year as we were then. “
I’m going into the second half of the season as fourth in the world championship, but already 55 points behind Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha).
But if Mir’s championship challenge has to be revived, teammate Alex Rins’ hopes will be long gone.
Five non-points in a row due to accidents and an unusual cycling injury have given Rins a massive 123 points ahead of Quartararo, but are still on the podium and only in 15th place in the overall standings.
Rins was also quick in Austria last season, falling for the lead in the opening race before saving sixth place in the second race.
“I have trained all the different cycling disciplines in these five weeks, but nothing is comparable to riding in MotoGP!” Said Rins in order to leave my bad luck behind me and achieve good results.
“Personally, I really want to ride my bike again, so a double [back-to-back] Racing is great for me. We have to be ready and, above all, think about how we should cope with the second race, in the time difference [between the riders] becomes even smaller.
“Austria is not an easy track, but it is nice to drive. I had a podium in the first season we were here and I also had other good placings. Let’s go racing again!”