English
Italiano
Seventh place time complete with a crash and almost a half a second behind the leader – these are the less than thrilling spoils of Marc Marquez after the qualifiers at the Grand Prix of Malaysia.
It is an even more disappointing result for the World Champion when you consider the pole position his teammate Pedrosa earned, astride the twin to his Honda RC213 V: “Today we were not on one of the best tracks if you consider the conditions - Marc begins - and everything went wrong for me. Every change we made to the bike was wrong. We tried to make a few changes but it was too late. When I began to have a good feeling on the bike, I crashed and then with the other bike I did not have the same confidence. I did not turn a good lap and, to be honest, we do not have the pace to win the race. Right now we have the potential for a podium finish.”
Pedrosa will start from the pole tomorrow. What will you do to maintain his pace?
“It is very hot here and you have to ride cleanly. I tried to be as clean as possible. I was aggressive and focused, but my Honda was not the fastest on the straights, where I lost a lot of time. Dani has the same bike. On some tracks he has more trouble than I do, but this track suits his riding style well. Here at Sepang Pedrosa has always taken excellent results and I will try to learn from him.”
What will your strategy be in the race tomorrow?
“It will depend on the weather conditions and my feeling with the RC 213V. Every time I leave pit lane the sensations are different. Here you have to choose the right front tyre. Ducati has the soft and other riders have the hard. I tried the medium and the feeling wasn’t bad, but I’ll need to see how it deteriorates after several fast laps. I think that I will opt for the hard front tyre. This morning it felt good. Right now, Pedrosa and Dovizioso have the best pace, but there are several of us who will be able to battle for the podium.”
What do you usually do to have a good pace and improve from the first lap?
“The team changes a few details on the bike in order to improve. I always try to figure out what the situation is and how to go faster, giving 100%. Tomorrow I will be focused on my race. On some weekends I knew that I could attack. This weekend I know that I will need to defend myself, so in the warm up we’ll see where we stand.”
What fond memories do you have on this track?
“On this track I don’t have any fond memories (he laughs). If I really have to think of a good moment, maybe the win in 2014. You always have to fight here and fortunately we have always been in the top 5.”
You crashed once and risked a second crash…
“Yes. In fact, when I got back to the garage, my mechanics asked me how my knee was (as you can see in one of the two photographs, Marc’s right slider moved, dragging his leathers against the asphalt) I told them I was find, even if I don’t know why.”
If Dovizioso doesn’t win tomorrow, will you be happy to see Pedrosa there at the front?
“I race for myself and I will try to push. If I don’t find the right path, I’ll root for my teammate.”
