Efren Vazquez ended his stint with Team Mahindra with a fifth place finish at Valencia Grand Prix while Miguel Oliveira was tenth as Team Mahindra ended the MotoGP season in Moto3 class on a high, here today.
It was vazquez's last race for the team as he has been replaced by 18-year-old Australian Arthur Sissis. Vazquez finished sixth in the World Championship.
He had qualified on the third row of the grid, started strongly, and had a race-long battle with Japanese GP winner Alex Marquez.
Oliveira, who scored the first podium for an Indian manufacturer at the Malaysian GP, had a difficult weekend. Testing components for 2014, he was still looking for the right set-up and qualified 17th.
An engine swap in the morning complicated matters, but even so he gained seven places to secure tenth.
"I fought a lot for fourth place with Marquez, but in the end he was a little faster to the line. All race I could make a good rhythm, staying constant. On the last lap I attacked Marquez again and I made a perfect last corner, but he beat me by a fraction of a second. It's a good result for my last race with the team, and I want to say thank you to Mahindra Racing, and all the mechanics - especially my chief mechanic Massimo," Vazquez said.
"Today was very difficult. We changed the engine this morning, and couldn't set up the bike well. We tried a lot of new things this weekend, but in the end ran out of time to make me fully comfortable. We made some good progress this year, and also a couple of mistakes - but it was a good year. Next season we need to work a lot to stay competitive. I will forget this weekend and look forward to the first tests in the coming week.
Sissis said he was looking forward to a good stint with the team. "I'm really happy to join Mahindra - it's a very good team and great to be riding for an Indian manufacturer. I've spoken to the guys and like them a lot. It's a good time for me to change bikes, and I think I can do well," he said.
