The Australian charged from 18th⛄ to 12th during some ‘sketchy’ openi🌊ng laps and believed he was being held up by riders ahead.

But Gardner then joined a number of riders to suffer high front🍌-tyre pressure on Sunday, not helped by the total lack of any prior wet running, costing him place🔯s just before the midway stage of the 25 laps.

Worse was to follow when the front-locking🌳 caught Gardner out and he became the only DNFജ of the race on lap 12.

Gardner: ‘I nearly ran into the back of Morbidelli… Scary, but fun’

“I had a good time in the first few laps. It was pretty ske💃tchy though, going down the straight💞, not seeing absolutely anything,” said the Tech3 KTM rookie.

“There were a few guys who were just shutting off in the middle of the straight and you're flat-out [behind them]. I nearly ran into the back of Morbidelli. I think Alex as well. I had a few close calls, so it was pret𒆙ty gnarly. Scary, but fun!

“The bike was feeling really good for the first few laps, but unfortunately the guys miscalculated a bit the front tyre pressure and the thing just spiked 💃to the moon.

“So after quite fast lap times at the beginning the front tyre pressure went to the moon and the thing was locking in a straight line. Then as the guys started to go [away] I was pushing harder and harder to keep u✤p and the thing just [crashed].

“We haven't had too much experience in the w🍬et and personally it's not something I'm really on top of the tyre pressures… But it was a shame. If we had the feeling at the beginning of the race, I think we could have had a top ten easily.

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“I felt su🏅per strong. I do🍎n’t know where Aleix finished [11th, after a long lap penalty] but in the first few laps I was like ‘alright, get this guy out of my way!’ And then lap by lap [the tyre pressure issue got worse]. I was pushing harder, tucking the front, just trying to catch up and the thing [went down]. A shame!”

Gardner now heads for his home event at Phillip Island and the last ⛦three races of his rookie MotoGP career, before joining WorldSBK in 2023.

“Hopefully we don't get any mishaps there, I can ride well and we can ge🐼t a good result,” Gardner said.

Team-mate Ra🍌ul Fernandez, who ﷽battled sickness over the Buriram weekend, took the final point in 15th place.

“I had wis𒅌hed for the rain to come because I was not at my maximum physically, so I was pretty happy when the rain came,” Fernandez said. “I felt good at the beginning of the race but then our pace started to drop and I started losing confidence lap after lap.

“For this I am frustrated because I think that I could have finished in theꦑ Top 10.

“The track was getting worse so I had to analyse and decide how to behave to try to at least finish in the points. Anyway, it was good having some battles with Brad Binder, Aprilia riders and🧸 we grab one poᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚint, which is very positive.”

Fernandez, moving to RNF Aprilia in 2🐻023, is now tied with Gardner o🅰n 9 points.