MotoGP, Rossi: engine? It's always a small, cheap piece to blame

“When we talk about engine failure, it always comes down to a piece costing just a few euro”, Valentino Rossi laughs about the issues with his and his teammate's M1 during the Mugello GP. Yamaha has provided its version of the facts, but this doesn't cancel out all his doubts.

“Of course I'm joking, but I was worried that both Jorge and I had the same problem on the same day - he explains - It's true that we have 7 engines, two more than last year, but the worry remains. In Yamaha they're relaxed though”.

What happened?
“The problem is that crest at the end of the straight, you arrive there in sixth gear and this year the engine rev a little higher. The back wheel lifted and the engine over-revved”.

Shouldn't the limiter prevent that?
“Yes, if it's working properly but we found that with the electronics this year it's not so precise. In practice I had no problems, maybe conditions were different in the race”.

Are you convinced by Yamaha's explanation?
“Something strange happend, but it can't be coincidence if both Lorenzo and I had failures in the same place. I was hoping for an assembly problem or something with the material from a supplier. I can't be 100% calm but it's also true that the other two engines have covered more miles and, looking at the data, there's nothing wrong with them”.

Could Yamaha limit the revs to obtain greater reliability?
"That's a possibility, but they've assured me that performance shouldn't change anyway".

The regret lives on though…
“I was really disappointed, especially because it was the Mugello GP and it would have been great to have a three-way fight at the end. It took me a while to get over it, I was down for a few days”.

Now you're down 37 points…
“And I don't have to catch just one rider, but two, and they're Lorenzo and Marquez. They're always on the podium and make few mistakes”.

What's the plan?
“It's better to take it race by race, with two DNFs in 6 GPs the gap is understandably significant. But there are still many races to go and, I hope, many battles”.

Already at Barcellona?
“It's one of my favourite track, it's great to ride but also very difficult. The asphalt is old and the F1 races there too, there's little grip and you need to be sorted with the set-up. Last year I struggled in practice to be competitive in the race, I'll try to start further forward”.