Remy Gardner ended his Friday on borrowed time and with a smile in the MotoGP, in spite of a result that could be rated as uninspiring. At the start of the day, he was at the back of the pack but reached the 20th position in pre-qualifying. Summoned on the fly by Yamaha to replace Alex Rins, the Australian rider performed well, avoiding errors and falls.
"It went pretty well," he said at the end of the first day at the Sachsenring. "The truth is that I didn't feel as lost as I thought I would and, even if I ended free practice last, the gap with the leaders wasn't as big. Meanwhile, we worked on the telemetry, trying to get the bike closer to my riding style and, in the afternoon, I progressed. The first time attack went well, then I lost a bit. I wanted to stick to Acosta to mark the time, but the two HRCs got in the way and, from there, it was really difficult, since I had to also overtake Zarco. The critical issues I encountered? Adapting to the M1 and the tires."
Then Remy made a comparison with the KTM he rode in 2022: "The M1's front is more stable and turns more. It lacks some grip, but we'll see if we can fix that tomorrow. Overall, I think it's a fairly easy bike with good balance."
Asked to identify the peculiar elements of the Japanese bike, the 26-year-old stated: "What struck me is that, if you're in a slipstream, the bike doesn't slow down, and you have to use the brakes a lot. Consequently, the front tends to lock up and overheat the tires. Compared to when I was racing, there's less horsepower and downforce."
Finally, a surprise comment by a rider involved with SBKs. "With the SBK, the cornering pace is the same but, with qualifying tires, it's even faster, because you can open the throttle sooner and manage the corners better. In this regard, it's harder with the Michelin," he concluded.