BRITISH Grand Prix pole man Cal Crutchlow has spoken of his pride as the LCR Honda rider delighted his home fans with an magnificent ride to second place at Silverstone.
Crutchlow, who followed up his maiden MotoGP triumph at Brno in the Czech Republic in the previous round with a pole position and stunning runner-up finish on home soil, showed his tenacity in a thrilling climax to the race as he battled with Yamaha's Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez on the factory Honda, eventually coming out on top to seal second place after championship leader Marquez ran off the track.
The 30-year-old was denied an historic success by runaway winner Maverick Vinales on the Suzuki, but Crutchlow sent thousands of fans home happy on a memorable day for the British star.
“It was great to be part of that battle and entertain the crowd and I have to say thanks to my team and Honda – they worked really hard for me in these past races. We started the year quite difficult and I had some crashes; I had a bad feeling with the bike and the front tyre, but obviously it worked and all the hard work is paying off,” he said.
“In the battle I gave as good as what I got – sure, it was a good battle with Marc and Valentino and I have to say congratulations to Maverick because he rode fantastic today and completely controlled the race and did a superb job. It's nice for MotoGP to have four [different] winners in the last four races I think and it's something unique and special. To be standing on the podium in front of my home fans is a really nice feeling.”
After a tumultuous beginning to the 2016 season, Crutchlow has hit a purple patch on the LCR Honda, although the Coventry rider isn't quite able to put his finger on the exact reasons for his welcome turnaround in form.
“I have no idea why. Honestly speaking I feel good on the bike, I'm able to push to my limit and I know my limit was always better than what I was able to show at the start of the year. We're struggling still a little bit in the qualifying and I know I qualified on pole here, but in the dry we're struggling that little bit to do those one-off laps,” said Crutchlow.
“We struggle to be in the top 10 on a Friday or on a Saturday morning sometimes to get to the Q2, but we know that this is [because] a lot of the other riders are ripping the arse out of other riders, so it is difficult when they get such a slipstream.
“I feel in great shape at the moment, in good form, and I'm pleased and proud to be stood on the podium at my home Grand Prix and hopefully Misano will be another good race – I know it's a really difficult race for Honda and also for myself because I haven't had the best results there over the years, but it doesn't stop me trying: I haven't had very good results here and it hasn't stopped me trying, so I'll try again next week.”
Crutchlow has now climbed to eighth in the championship table and is only three points behind factory Ducati rider Andrea Dovizioso in seventh position.
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