Nakagami: I thought we could win…

Takaaki Nakagami felt he was not only on course for a debut MotoGP podium in Sunday's Styrian Grand Prix, but also possibly the race win.

After overtaking Jack Miller for second position, the LCR Honda rider should have had 12 laps left to try and bridge a 2.3s gap to race leader Joan Mir.

But he never got the chance.

The race was halted after brake failure for Maverick Vinales and Nakagami, like Mir, lost out during the restart.

Seventh at the end of lap one, the Japanese could only gain one place, before slipping back to seventh by the finish.

“Of course we’re a little disappointed to end up in P7," said Nakagami, who also started in second place on the original grid.

"It was a real shame there was a red flag, but this is racing. As you saw, in race one we had everything under control and were on the podium and I even thought we could win the race in the first one.

"Unfortunately, the race was stopped and restarted again with 12 laps.

"Anyway, I did my best during both races, it was a fantastic weekend overall and we’re looking forward to the next one.

"In Misano we can fight at the front again. I want to thank my team, all the guys did a really great job this weekend and let’s see how we do in the next one.”

Despite his disappointment, Nakagami - riding the 2019 spec bike - was the only Honda rider to finish in the top 15.

One of only three riders (alongside Fabio Quartararo and Andrea Dovizioso) to have scored points in all five rounds, Nakagami holds sixth in the world championship, 24 points behind Quartararo.