Having failed to catch up in Q1 by 4 hundredths of a second, Valentino Rossi will start from 13th position on the starting grid for this Catalan Grand Prix.
Obviously excluded from the official post-qualifying press conference, he answered questions from journalists in Yamaha hospitality.
As usual, in order to avoid any abusive journalistic interpretation, we offer you a “raw” translation of all of Valentino Rossi's comments, without any formatting.
Valentino Rossi : “so of course it was a difficult day. Honestly, I expected to struggle less because yesterday I wasn't fantastic but I had a good feeling with the bike. We had to sort out a few more details but from this morning it looked like today the asphalt had less grip and for us that was a big problem. We struggled a lot this morning and had a lot of problems with the tires. It seems like we can't get the tires to work the right way. All the tires are difficult, some do more revs but have less grip, so we don't have a good choice front and rear.
But anyway, I was also a bit unlucky because I didn't make it to Q2 by just a few hundredths, and starting 13th will be very hard tomorrow, and very difficult, because our pace is not fantastic. But we have tomorrow's warm up to try and we must at least try to improve the pace a little to be able to recover some positions during the race. »
There was already no grip last year. What changed ?
“For us, motorcycling has changed a lot. It seems that in these conditions, when the grip is very low, last year's bike is much easier to be at the limit. »
Last year in Australia you started 15th and finished second. Is it possible to do something similar here?
“I think first of all it's more difficult here than at Phillip Island, because at Phillip Island I wasn't so bad during the tests. I started 15th because during qualifying it was half dry and half wet. But our potential was not that bad under normal conditions. These are not normal conditions here and our pace is also not fantastic. »
What do you think of the many falls, and in particular those of Marc Márquez?
“About the falls, everyone fell a lot because the asphalt has a very, very low level of grip, and whatever the reason, even less today than yesterday. And at the same time you have to use the hard tire to try to get to the end. So honestly, riding the bike is really very difficult, it's like a nightmare because, also, if you go slow, everything is unnatural. Every time you enter a corner you feel very much on the limit. »
It is forecast to be warmer tomorrow. Can this help with tires?
“If it’s hotter, it’s more difficult. We see it, as also in Jerez, and here too: in the morning it's a little easier. In the afternoon, when the temperature of the track exceeds 50 degrees, it is more difficult. Tomorrow will be difficult for everyone. »
You say that you have the same pace as many drivers, with the exception of Dani Pedrosa…
“Our pace is nothing fantastic, because there are a lot of similar riders, except Pedrosa who is faster, but I'm not too bad, yes. The problem is that with the medium tire we are not so bad for six laps, but the race is 25. With the hard tire we are never good (laughs). The choice is therefore to do 5 laps and slow down, or to do the whole race slowly! We will decide (laughs)!
In such conditions, why is the 2016 bike easier?
“It seems that, especially with low grip, it made the tires work better, and the bike is also easier to ride, in the corners, in the entrances. Everything happens more naturally. So also for this reason I think the tire stress is lower. »
You won't go back?
" I think not. »
