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A race of many parts. This is a good way to describe Jorge Lorenzo's race in Catalunya today, given that he stood out in the early stages, leading the race (just like at Mugello), before struggling mid-race, falling back to seventh, and then working his way back up in the final laps to finish fourth. Before talking about himself though, Jorge is quick to congratulate his team-mate.
“This second win in a row for Ducati is another fantastic result for the team. As for me, it’s the first time that I have finished the race less than ten seconds away from the winner, as well as being the first time that I have started from the front row and have been in the lead for a few laps: this means that we are constantly improving. Pity that today I lost a bit of pace from lap 6 onwards and I was passed under braking a few times, losing a lot of time at the mid-race point when my pace was slower than the leading group’s, but towards the end I managed to gain a few places to finish the GP in fourth. Now we have to continue to work to be more consistent in the race and try and improve soon on my third place at Jerez.”
Those who thought the Spaniard had pushed too hard early on had to rethink their opinions: “I don't think I exaggerated in the early stages, also because although I started faster than the riders in the second group, in the end I was able to catch up and pass. Early on, I didn't push to the max like the others, managing to stay up front comfortably. Then they slowed a little and I picked up the pace, before being passed. When Marc got by I was forced to pick up the bike, meaning that Dani and others also passed me. The tyre wasn't the same over the next laps and so I lost ground, before catching back up to the second group”.
Step by step the Lorenzo – Ducati pairing continue to improve, but the road is still long, as the Majorcan himself states.
"I can't yet ride totally naturally. Each race is better but if I can't ride comfortably, it's not easy to complete really great races. The tyre choice? I went with the hard because I thought I would feel better, especially in the early laps, and the level of wear was very similar to that of the medium chosen by the majority of riders”.
