The podium slipped away by half a second. In fact, Franco Morbidelli had to settle for fourth place in the Malaysian GP, but his mind was on something else, namely the accident in Moto3 between Rueda and Dettwiler.
For this very reason, the Pertamina VR46 rider didn't want to say a word about the race, but instead talk about the condition of his colleagues.
"It was a good and solid race after the difficulties in Australia," he said, "right now the only thing I'm thinking about are the riders involved in the Moto3 crash, hoping that everything is OK."
What are your thoughts on what happened?
"There is nothing to say in the face of the health of these two guys, I hope everything turns out for the best. The fact is that we have no news, that's the worst thing. I am waiting for updates because I would like to know their condition."
In the meantime, however, an update arrives regarding Rueda's condition. Franco is asked, however, whether it was okay to race or not.
"Our job is to race and as a result we race the moment they tell us to race. My concern now is for the two guys. I am happy about Jose, we're now waiting for updates from Dettwiler."
The word then went to Fabio Di Giannantonio, who finished the Sepang GP in sixth position behind Quartararo's Yamaha.
"I'm happy with the race because we made a big change, which you don't usually do and is risky, but it worked. We were able to fight today, in fact we had a good pace. It's too bad it took us a long time to get up to speed, but that's what we've lacked this season. Unfortunately it takes us a long time to get to the ideal setup, although the glass is half full."
Do you think this change can also come in handy in the season finale?
"I leave it to the team to analyze, as predicting every condition that will come is difficult. Unfortunately when you don't have the right balance you struggle, we worked on the rear and then with the front."
What can you tell us about the tyre choice?
"We ruled out the medium, since we had never tried it. In the end we opted for the soft."
What do you expect for the last two races in Europe?
"I'd like to regain the same confidence as when we get to the track, trying to have fun and improve, aiming to put on a show."