Bo Bendsneyder And Gabriel Rodrigo Targeted To Win Podium At MotoGP Mandalika 2022

JAKARTA – Bo Bendsneyder and Gabriel Rodrigo are expected to get the best results at the 2022 Mandalika MotoGP Grand Prix. The Mandalika Racing Team racer is targeting to get points.

Bo and Rodrigo failed to pocket points when they went down in the first series in Qatar, 6 March. They finished the race in 19th and 21st position respectively.

Director of Mandalika Racing Team Kemal Nasution said that he hoped the minus results in Qatar could be improved by the two riders while racing at "home". He hopes they can lock up a place on the podium.

"Our target is actually a podium. Seeing the performance of Bo last year was good. With Rodrigo I think the middle of the year has been maximized. So we hope Rodrigo can give his best,” Kemal said at a press conference at Epiwalk on Thursday, March 10.

While in Qatar, only Rodrigo got better results if he saw his position at the start. The Argentine started the race from P22 and could have poked one place up at the finish, while Bo, starting from P17, slumped to two positions.

Rodrigo himself is currently still adapting after joining the Mandalika Racing Team at the end of last year. Previously, he consistently won the podium while still strengthening Indonesian Racing Team Gresini in Moto3.

Meanwhile, Bendsneyder moved up to Moto2 in 2018 by strengthening Tech 3 Racing after two seasons in Moto3. In his first season, Bendsneyder could not do much because he could only collect two points and finished 29th in the drivers' standings.

"For Gabriel himself, the adjustment in Moto3 I saw including the rookie, his performance was very good, in Moto2 before the middle of the year it had shown maximum results because it was a technical shift from Moto3 which had 250 CC to 765 Cc that needed adaptation," said Nasution.

The Mandalika Grand Prix will take place on March 18-20. Mandalika is now ready to hold a race after completing the re-paving process.