2017 marked Alex Rins’ Debut season in the reigning class. When the Spaniard arrived from Moto2 he was struggling to find the right confidence in the Suzuki early in the season and couldn’t find the right path. On the team’s blog, the driver gets to the point: “It was not an easy year for me. I had to deal with some sensitive moments that were hard to digest, especially when you don’t really know what is happening and keep seeing new obstacles ahead of you”.
As if the injuries he had suffered weren’t enough to make it an uphill battle: “Things started to go wrong from the second day of testing in Valencia. The broken vertebrae meant I was in pain for several months and couldn’t get the best start to the championship. “Rins has not forgotten what happened back then in Argentina and Texas:” I broke my foot in Rio Hondo before I broke my wrist in Texas. That was really complicated, which should have been a dream season for me”.
It is definitely never easy to watch others run when you are sitting at home: “Nobody understands what it’s like when you can’t ride a bike – explains the Suzuki driver – unable to train or be forced to watch the races on TV ”. In Holland, Rins returned to the tracks and began sharpening his weapons before the second part of the championshipHe finished fifth in Japan and fourth in Valencia. Not bad for a rookie: “Fortunately, I didn’t crash again. I think my performance in the last race closed the circle that started with various problems”.
He is therefore looking ahead to 2018 with optimism and some clear ideas: “I hope to repay the trust that the team has placed in me. The goal is to fight for the podium in every race, I should be ready. Racing in MotoGP is every rider’s dream and I am proud to do so with a team that has historically counted on champions like Sheen, Schwantz and Roberts. “