It was another difficult Saturday for Toprak Razgatlioglu, who at Barcelona, more than struggling with his own M1, had to deal with tarmac that literally "shocked" him with the Michelins from the very first session.
That the Turk has difficulties adapting to the MotoGP tyres is nothing new, but the Barcelona circuit, also challenging for the Pirellis in terms of wear, seems to have surprised the Superbike champion beyond all expectations. A lap behind Quartararo was not enough to change the outcome of the day, with a crash in qualifying that literally extinguished the #07's confidence, forcing him to a race after which he saw everything in black. After all, even a champion's patience has its limits, and failing to interpret the Michelins after five races into the championship stirs up anger and frustration.
"In this race, I battled with Augusto; he is very strong entering corners - said the Turk - I don't understand why I wasn't able to be incisive in braking, but in the end, I managed the tyres better and had an advantage in acceleration, so then I passed him at the chicane. Overall, I'm not happy, after the crash I lost motivation because I couldn't accept it. I tried to give it my all, but even the start wasn't the best, I forgot to activate the launch control. It's hard to accept, it was the first time I rode with higher temperatures, the bike doesn't turn and I can't stop, the only thing I managed to do was manage the tyres. We'll see what happens tomorrow, we'll analyze the data, but I've understood the problem at the start. It promises to be a difficult race, and tyre management here isn't easy with the Michelins."
Was this your most difficult weekend since you joined MotoGP?
"Along with Brazil, yes, especially after FP1 I was shocked, the grip isn't there, it's really strange. Then I improved, without the crash in qualifying maybe the feelings would have improved, but after the crash, the feedback disappeared. In the race, I can't accept it, I tried to follow Fernandez and Vinales, but I saw that all the Yamahas dropped a lot. Tomorrow we'll try to manage the tyres, already with half the distance the drop was notable, but in the race, the laps will be 24, that’s quite a lot."
How can you react to this situation?
"Yesterday afternoon I improved a lot by following Fabio, I made a one-second step forward which made me very happy. It motivated me, but then in qualifying during the second outing I made a mistake, I almost crashed at the fourth corner and it was strange. I tried to do a lap to warm up the tyre, but it wasn't enough because I crashed at the fifth. That’s how I am, and after the crash, I lost confidence."
Are you surprised you have to work so hard on the data to be fast rather than relying on your natural talent?
"I'm trying, but it doesn't work with this tyre, it slides, and it doesn't stop, it's difficult to manage. Fabio and the other Yamahas know the tyres, I'm trying to understand them, but we've done five races, and I still don't understand them, I'm angry about it. But the first session really surprised me, I know with the Pirellis that there is a significant drop here, it's the worst race for those tyres, but here there’s no grip. With the Pirellis, if you manage the initial part, you then have more grip. Here, however, at the start, you have no grip and at the end, it's even more difficult."