With Fabio Di Giannantonio absent, Franco Morbidelli took the lead in continuing the work in VR46 at Barcelona. The Pertamina rider seemed revitalized after the weekend just concluded and was exuding great confidence.
Morbidelli and the team are, in fact, gradually addressing the limitations that emerged in the first part of the season, and the hope is that they will soon reap the rewards of their efforts.
“I’m happy with how this test went,” he said. “We tried some solutions we hadn’t been able to test over the weekend, and I liked certain things—they gave me a good feeling. I hope to bring them to Mugello as well.”
And what are your hopes as you head to Mugello?
"This was a great weekend for us. The front-row start we secured here is different from the podium at Jerez, because there were special conditions there. On Saturday , however, the conditions were the same for everyone in qualifying. First and foremost, I hope the performance and speed we demonstrated over the weekend will be repeated in the upcoming races. And I also hope that, as I believe, we’ve gained a deep understanding of the problems we face and how to solve them. I hope the approach we’re using works at Mugello too. I’m not saying my issues have completely disappeared, but we’re working so well that sometimes we don’t even notice them. I hope it will be the same in the future.”
Uccio said that something came from Ducati this weekend that helped you. Not so much what it was, because you can’t say, but how did it help you?
“As he said, we worked closely with Ducati. They were a huge help. The engineers were super helpful in analyzing all our data and figuring out what was going on with my bike. There’s definitely been a step forward—a big step forward. I was on the front row on Saturday, and I’m very happy.”
Valentino said there’s a sort of battle between you, Bulega, Marini, and Vietti for that spot. What’s the situation?
“No, we haven’t talked about it yet. If it comes down to who’s the fastest, right now I’m the fastest because I race in MotoGP. Luca races in MotoGP too, but at the moment he’s ahead of me in the championship. If we look at speed, then maybe it’s a challenge between us MotoGP riders. I don’t want to get into the details of the market because I have no say in that matter. The only thing I can influence is my work on the track, and that’s what I’m trying to do to the best of my ability.”