The home circuit is always a source of great excitement for a rider, but it is even more so when that rider is about to leave racing to embark on a new path. Such is the case with Nakagami, who at Motegi at his home circuit had declared that he wanted to give it his all to leave without any regrets. So he did, and so little does it matter the 13th place in the standings, behind the Yamaha of Quartararo, if after the checkered flag there is a crowd ready to "hug" you at every turn.
The all-or-nothing strategy of the rest implied risks but sometimes it pays off, and that was the Japanese rider's reasoning when he showed up on the grid with a soft rear, the only rider to do so. "I had nothing to lose anyway," he would later declare to reporters, finally admitting that, underneath, in his helmet, the tears came when he returned to the pits.
At the end of the race, the fans' embrace was incredibly warm.
"It was really nice," Nakagami began at the end of his home GP in Motegi , "the race was not bad, the feeling was good and I gave my all until the last lap. Maybe if I had had a couple more I would have been able to catch up with the group. In the last laps I expected some battles but both Miller and Quartararo and Zarco, who are normally there to fight, were all quiet for some reason today."
The Japanese rider is satisfied with the race strategy.
"Overall I am proud of the race, I had fun. Of course I knew the choice to use the soft on the rear was a risk, but I think I handled it well and made it to the end of the race. I had tried the medium this morning and it was a good option, but today I thought I wanted to take risks because I had nothing to lose. It was like I was left with only two cards in my hand and I wanted to play the best one. I was aware of the risk of getting to the end of the race and losing positions because of too much wear, but I wanted to have fun today. I took the risk but in the end it was a good decision, I was able to keep a good pace and on the final part of the race I even managed to recover a few tenths."
So many emotions at the end of his last home GP as a MotoGP rider.
"Today was a day full of emotions, after the checkered flag that final lap before going back to the pits was really nice. At every corner I saw the fans and there maybe I realized that it would be the last time. I gave it my all, it was a special Sunday for me."
It was therefore difficult to contain the tears in his helmet for the Japanese rider.
"In the circuit lap after the race it was not yet the time, but when I came back to the pits and saw the guys from the team ... the feeling was intense - Taka finally admits not without a dose of embarrassment - there I was moved and some tears were there."
Automatic Translation by DeepL