MotoGP: Crutchlow delighted with podium return

Cal Crutchlow has finally retuned to the podium for the first time since he won the Australian Grand Prix at the tail end of the 2016 season, taking a strong third place in yesterday’s Argentinian Grand Prix.

And despite being hunted down and passed by Valentino Rossi in the closing stages of the race, he says that he could have done even better had it not been for a technical problem that plagued him all race long.

Candid afterwards about the cause of the problem, Crutchlow reckoned that without it to could even have challenged Maverick Viñales and Valentino Rossi for a higher position come the end of the race.

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“It was nice to take a podium place for the LCR Honda team after what happened in Qatar, I’m very happy to take a third place to be honest. I had to manage the race right from the very start as I had a warning light on the dash, but I didn’t panic and when Maverick came past I just decided to follow and see if I could control the situation – which I did.

“Once Vale came on to me I decided to try and push again, but the light came back on so I had to slow down and try to manage the rest of the race as best I could. Vale came past me as he seemed to have a bit more grip than me, but we know the Honda bike is quite difficult to ride at the moment.

“I think we did a good job to manage things and bring the bike home in a podium position. Qatar was a disaster for me and the team as I felt strong there and believed I could get a good result, but to get a podium in the first two races is good. I’m really pleased for the team.”

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