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The disappointment over the two consecutive crashes, in Misano and Barcelona, has not yet disappeared for Valentino Rossi. Uncommon mistakes for a rider of his experience, which now weigh down like a boulder in a championship that still has a compact classification when there are still six races to go.
“I see it very difficult for me to fight for the title - the Doctor admitted - Morbidelli and Dovizioso are still fighting, but I'm in worse shape. In the last two races I have thrown away a lot of points that would have been important and now I'm behind in the standings. The crash in Barcelona made everything very difficult, the last resort for me has already been and gone, it won't be Le Mans. "
But the French track could still be the right place for a good result.
"Historically Yamaha has always done well here - he continued - This makes me optimistic, but this year we have to wait until we get out on the track. Last season it wasn't a great race, I was the best Yamaha rider but I finished 5th, even if not very far from the podium. I lost too much in acceleration, I hope this year goes better ".
If the championship is little more than a pipedream, Valentino now wants to focus on the results of each race.
“The goal is to try to be competitive on all tracks, to have good races until the end - he confirmed - Above all it will be important to be fast at Aragon and Valencia, two circuits that I look forward to, because they are more difficult for me and I want to see how I will go after the changes made in the team and on the bike. Right now you have to live a bit day by day, there are still 6 races left and anything can happen ".
The last round will be at Portimao, a track that the Doctor was able to get to know yesterday, albeit only with the R1 road bike, together with the other MotoGP riders.
“It's a fantastic circuit, much better than I expected - he said - Seeing it on TV I thought it was more difficult, I think it's one of the best tracks to ride on. Yesterday it was 25° and a beautiful sunny day, perfect conditions, but they told me that there should be a good temperature in November as well. I hope it will remain on the calendar in the next seasons as well, it is a good track in a nice place ”.
Rossi now knows what to expect for the Portuguese GP…
"Yesterday's test was fundamental, with the current level of MotoGP you can't afford to do a race without knowing a track - he underlined - I did 50 laps, not too many because this weekend we are racing, but they allow me to have a better idea ".
Jorge Lorenzo was also in Portimao, on the M1, but in the 2019 version…
“I don't think it's a big problem that he rode with last year's bike - commented the Doctor – it hasn’t changed much from the 2020 bike and for what he had to try it's okay. The important thing was that Jorge was there to collect data that will help us for the GP. "
Many observers think that the championship will be decided in Portugal; in that case would Valentino be willing to help Quartararo…
“You mean team orders? Fabio is not in my team so I don't expect them to ask me - he laughed - We'll see ”.
