Rins proved to be an early threat for the victory as he worked his way up from seventh on the grid to the podium places by the third lap, before engaging with Pramac’s Johann Zarco over second.
Zarco was able to use the brute power of the Ducati to keep Rins at bay, with the Suzuki rider forced to make up time through the twisty sections of the Losail track.
One of these places was the Turn 9 right-hander, but the Suzuki rider went over the limit and almost crashed out of the race – somehow staying upright and holding onto third.
“It was super scary,” he said afterwards.
“The next two or three laps I passed like one or two metres away from that line.
“It was one corner that I was able to do fast to recover a little bit the gap to the Ducatis in front.
“It was one moment that I pushed a lot with the body and I went on the white line, it was so scary on the bike.
“I don’t know [what it looked like] on the outside, but on the bike it was scary.”
Alex Rins, Team Suzuki MotoGP
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
Rins ultimately missed out on a podium after a late tussle with Yamaha’s Maverick Vinales, the Suzuki rider prevailing to finish fourth.
But given the unstoppable speed of the Ducatis on the straight, Rins admits fourth was “my best result”.
“It was good, I was able to do a good race,” he added.
“I managed the tyres quite well. At one point in the race when I saw it was impossible to lead the race and go, I tried to manage the tyres, I tried to study the other guys.
“But in the end I gave my maximum, which was P4. It was impossible, and I say impossible because it’s so difficult to overtake the Ducatis on the straight.
“For me, this was my best result. I pushed al pre-season to get more points, to get on the podium.
“But making a balance of the races, I think we go to Europe in a good way, fifth position [in the championship].
“So, let’s keep pushing. First race we did one mistake forgetting to put on the launch control and I pay it all the race.
“Let’s see if they [Suzuki] bring this rear device to get more speed on the straight that we need.”
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