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At Marquez's track, the Yamahas haven't done badly. Vinales and Valentino, in this order, are right behind Marc and the M1 seems to be back on track. It's still too soon to think about winning, but at least the Doctor can breathe a sigh of relief.
“It was a positive day, I was 2nd this morning, on a fresh tyre, and 4th in the afternoon. We're worked a lot on the bike to improve acceleration and we've found things that are not bad, I also have good balance”.
How's your pace?
“Not bad, but there are three or four guys at my level and some who are even faster. There's still a lot to do, especially with the tyre because we have various options for the race, both front and back. It's important to have time to test them but it looks like it will rain, so we'll have to see”.
Are the electronics still the key?
“We're working hard but started late, it takes time and so we have to use what we have. we're talking about settings now. In Argentina we went in the wrong direction and the bike was too slow in acceleration, here we've changed everything and I'm getting on better”.
How are your rivals looking after day one?
“Marquez never actually did a real ‘time attack’, so he hasn't shown his full potential. He's the fastest I think, then Vinales and I are doing ok, as are Iannone and Crutchlow, while the others are a little further back right now”.
Do you agree with those who say it's a dangerous track?
“The track is in quite a worrying state. It was so dirty this morning, it was like riding at the Ranch with all that dust. It improved in the afternoon though. There are also some big potholes, like at Laguna Seca, in this respect it's the worst of the entire championship. We had asked them to sort it and they've carried out work but it doesn't seem to have worked”.
How big a problem is this?
“I like the track and I enjoy riding here. But there are 3 or 4 holes that we're not used to, our bikes don't behave well in certain situations. I'm thinking about turns 2 and 10, but the worst is 18, like riding MX. There are also some along the straight and the bike starts moving at more than 300 km/h, it's a critical situation. We hope they can do something to fix it for the future”.
Returning to the Argentina GP, there was a podium of 'new faces', what do you think about that?
“In recent years, especially 2016 onwards, the situation's really changed. Prior to that season, it was always the same 4 riders winning - me Marquez, Pedrosa and Lorenzo. In 2016 there were 9 different winners and I think it's good for MotoGP to have races like Argentina with riders like Miller, Zarco and Crutchlow fighting for the win”.
