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It was an uphill sprint race for Marco Bezzecchi, who over the Sepang weekend again encountered the problems he has had to deal with all season in an attempt to tame a GP23 that has given him little satisfaction this year.
A difficult qualifying session that saw him 14th at the start forced him into a battle in the mix, but the VR46 rider managed to come out positively by doing a few overtakes before the front temperature did not allow him to push any better than 10th position. All eyes are now on the long race, where theoretically strategy and tire management should change the balance on the track.
"It's a weekend in which we are struggling a lot, so I'm not very satisfied," explained Bezzecchi, "although in the sprint we improved despite the start not being the easiest. I made a few overtakes, there was a bit of a scrap with Acosta and Miller although then the temperature of the front did not allow me to attack them, but for tomorrow I hope to take another step forward."
You are close to making that step forward, even in qualifying you missed out on Q2 by a few thousandths.
"The podium clearly will be very difficult, although you have to keep believing in it, but realistically it's not easy. However, I think that in the long race the general approach will be different. This morning on the pace I did well even though something is still missing. I seem to struggle mostly on the dry lap rather than in the pace. In qualifying I'm going strong but I feel more on the limit doing 57'8 than with used tires lapping in 1'59. With the new tires I struggle a lot, I'm hanging on the bike 6 or 7 times trying to do something that I don't always succeed. In the long race things will be different, and in tire management I manage."
What are the issues with that turn 9, where Pecco crashed today?
"It's a very difficult corner, in my opinion the most difficult braking on the circuit, not the one where you arrive the fastest. Maybe even more difficult than the last corner, which is really difficult. Turn 9 has some bastard characteristics, it's a shitty corner, the only shitty corner on the circuit" Bez sentenced. "It has a lot of dips on the straight, so the bike tends to have a lot of vibrations. Then when you lean to enter the left-hand corner the asphalt is very bad because it's uphill and when cars go around it they scrape it a lot. There are two patches, the problem is that the perfect line would be to cut the big one but there it is very ruined and you try to stay more on the inside. So by doing that though you go close to the curb on the white lines, which are slippery as well."
You know Pecco well, how do you think he will react after this mistake?
"Definitely Pecco is a very strong rider, he has already proved it a lot in the past first of all to himself but also to us. I think he will be in the game tomorrow, he did an incredible pole this morning and he doesn't lack speed. For the race itself so it won't be a problem, but obviously now it's more difficult for the classification, you have to be realistic but I think he will have a good race."
