He sailed between 13th and 15th position in Spain but, nevertheless, Alex Rins approaches the weekend in France with some confidence, primarily for two reasons: the recent second place obtained in the GP from his pit neighbor and the progress that emerged last Monday when the innovations were included on the M1.
"We come from a very good test in Jerez in which we tried several things that, fortunately, we'll have available here, such as the engine and chassis. Besides the increased power that has actually been provided, the bike hasn't been ruined by making it more aggressive. I've also noticed improvements in terms of set-up, especially when braking. We'll see how it goes on this track, and onward like this," he said.
However, critical issues remain. "I still find it difficult to brake hard and lean. In Jerez, I made comparisons with Quartararo's data. He had been very competitive, and the only area where he was faster than me was in braking, such as at turns one, six, and thirteen. I hope I can make progress in this respect and get closer," he added.
Asked about Fabio's podium finish at the Angel Nieto, he replied: "For Yamaha, it's absolutely a stimulus to keep working and, for me as a rider, it's the same. An unwritten rule requires you to beat your teammate first, reasoning that, if he's fast, it leads you to be fast yourself. In this way, the level of the team grows. I notice a good potential in the M1, and this newfound competitiveness is spurring me on."
Some blamed the accident that occurred to Marc Marquez in Jerez on a substantial difference between the great power of the current bikes and the small size of the tracks where they race, something that could change in 2027 with the new rules. "I don't think it'll improve from a safety point of view. The absence of the holeshotwill help, but not the engines. We have the proof in the Moto3. When I was there, we had 500 more laps available. In 2016, they took them away, and the bikes were faster than the Moto2s. In general, if the speeds increase, the tracks seem smaller, so it's not a track problem. Actually, in the area of the fall, the wall is very close, and I pointed that out to Loris Capirossi. He told me that, after redoing the first two corners, the ride-off areas at turn four will be improved for 2026."