Darryn closes tricky #PortugueseGP weekend with solid seventeenth place finish

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Following a wet Friday and Saturday, race day at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve has been dry and cloudy. Therefore, all MotoGP riders had to try to get a feeling on slicks at the rollercoaster circuit in the Algarve in Warm Up this morning, a challenge for the entire field.

Darryn Binder had a tough time getting used to the circuit aboard his Yamaha YZR-M1 in wet conditions and suddenly having to adapt to the layout on slicks. Yet, he did well keeping it up with his fellow MotoGP newcomers throughout all the race.

He kept his 22nd place from the start in the first few laps and made up positions due to contenders crashing, but still managed to keep his pace until the end of the race, crossing the line in a solid 17th. At the end of the first five races, the South African is still second in the rookies’ standings with six points on his account.

DARRYN BINDER

“It was an ok race. Unfortunately, it has been a difficult weekend with all the rain and this morning we only had Warm Up as a dry session and I was really struggling in Warm Up. I was very slow. In the race, luckily I managed to find a bit of feeling. I went from doing 1:44s in Warm Up to doing 1:41s in the race, so I improved like three seconds. I managed to do all the race at a quite ok pace. Unfortunately, I really needed more dry laps on the big bike here to be able to make a step forward to stay with the other guys. I was with Di Giannantonio and we were catching Bezzecchi towards the end of the race, but when Di Giannantonio had a problem, I wasn’t able to close the gap to Bezzecchi on my own. I felt my references haven’t been good on my own. Overall, I made a good step forward from the Warm Up to the Race, but another session in the dry would have definitely helped.”