Although in poor shape following his accident during motocross training, Vale nevertheless courageously saved the points for fourth place at Mugello. He thus finished ahead of Marc Marquez, which could prove decisive during the final countdown at the end of the year. He is currently third in the provisional standings, 30 points behind his teammate Maverick Vinales.
Montmelo is a circuit that works well for Rossi, as it is where he took his last victory. He has an impressive streak of podiums there spread over 13 years, which lasted from 1997 to 2009 (in MotoGP, 500 cc, 3 cc and 250 cc). Additionally, he scored seven victories in 3, 125, 3, 2001, 2002, 2004 and 2005 in Catalunya, and he only missed the podium four times in 2006 races (not counting the 2009 race, when he did not did not race due to injury).
According to Valentino Rossi, « I would have liked a week of rest between Mugello and Barcelona, to recover more. Anyway, I'm happy with the race I had last weekend, the bike was working very well and I hope to be on the podium in Barcelona.
“It’s a circuit that I really like, even if the grip is less. We will have to find good settings in order to obtain the best performance from the tires.
“On Monday we will also have a test day, which we will use to experiment with some solutions. It’s also another Grand Prix with a great atmosphere. We are ready to do our best »
For the Team Director Massimo Meregalli, « We had a difficult but rewarding weekend at Mugello, which motivated us to tackle the next GP in Catalonia. Montmeló is generally a good circuit for us, and for the fans too.
“This weekend we will again aim for the best results. The race of Mugello asked a lot of Valentino, but he never gave in. The few days of rest between the last race and the one to come give him little time to recover, but his condition is improving and I'm sure he will have the pace again this weekend, because he is still a force to take into account in Catalonia.
“It is important that we start the Grand Prix weekend strong on Friday, so that we are ready to compete in qualifying and the race. »
Photos © Yamaha
