Trackhouse eager to ‘re-build’ in Austria after Silverstone disaster

Trackhouse Aprilia’s first weekend with both riders on 2024 Aprilia RS-GP machinery ended in disaster at Silverstone when Raul Fernandez fell on the opening lap and his sliding machine took out team-mate Miguel Oliveira.

It was a frustrating end to a MotoGP event that also saw both riders debut the latest Aprilia aero update, ‘designed to offer greater ground-effect stability at lean angle’, alongside the factory team.

“We cannot wait to be back on the track and re-build after what happened at the British Grand Prix,” team principal Davide Brivio said ahead of this weekend’s Austrian round.

“Miguel has had great results on this circuit - Red Bull Ring - and of course we will try to use his experience and his talent there to give us an edge.

“For Raul, it is a continuation of the job to adapt himself onto the 2024 bike which he did well in Silverstone. So, we go to Austria aiming to put a strong weekend together and take a step in preparing for a good second half of the season.”

Oliveira made history with his and Tech3’s first MotoGP victory during a last corner showdown at the 2020 Red Bull ‘Styrian’ round.

“After Silverstone the overall feeling was that on Sunday we had a more competitive bike than in the Sprint race [10th] and for that reason we believed a good race result was possible on the Sunday,” Oliveira said.

“Regardless of how it ended last time out, I’m really looking forward to Austria as it is a track that I really like. I won my first MotoGP race at the Red Bull Ring so, let’s start the weekend in the right direction and build the rest from there.”

While Oliveira’s 2025 MotoGP plans are yet to be confirmed - a switch to Pramac Yamaha is predicted - Fernandez looks set to be the only Aprilia rider to remain on an RS-GP, with his new Trackhouse deal announced in the summer break.

The young Spaniard starts the second half of the season just five points behind Oliveira in the world championship.

“I’m very enthusiastic to get going again after Silverstone because it was a bit disappointing for us,” said Fernandez.

“Anyway, the Red Bull Ring is a very good track for us as I’m quite strong in hard braking points and this circuit has got a lot of these so, maybe that can help us.

“At the same time, I have to say that in the past, I haven’t been at my best there so far in MotoGP but, we need to continue working on the new bike to understand a lot more about it.

“We have two or three different ideas in mind to try and therefore we come to Austria with realistic expectations - I just want to work, to improve and understand which way to go with the bike.”