Laurent Fellon is so closely linked to Johann Zarco that we like to think that, of the two titles obtained by the French driver, there is one that belongs to him... It does not appear on the helmet of #5 by chance!
Flowery language and southern accent cannot hide the fact that the man is as demanding with himself as with Johann.
We took advantage of the well-deserved euphoria to look back at a more tense moment of the season, where the mentality of both men was put to the test...
1/ Now that everything has ended well with the second World Champion title, what do you think caused Johann's slump after Germany? Was it more of a technical or mental origin?
“It wasn’t of technical origin, that’s the first thing. The second thing is that he was playing the second song. It put a little pressure on him and a little doubt. At one point, it made him lose control. Then Johann did well in Japan. For Australia, we knew with Aki Ajo that Johann had never been well since the start of his career at Phillip Island. But on the other hand, he was going quickly to Malaysia.
This is somewhat normal in second year. The first year was the discovery of having the title with a good team. During the winter, you rest a little. You're re-attacking the season. And the second season is even more difficult than the first. It's human, there's no problem. If it were easy, everyone could do it.
2/ How did you manage to reverse the trend?
“We concentrated. We returned to Alès. We went for a ride with the R6, we tried to cheer Johann up. One Sunday he went to train with the 300 Yamaha in Calafat. When we returned to Alès, following the usual method, we took the bike down, fitted new tires, and on the fourth lap he set the track record. He got off the bike, I shook his hand and said “you have never ridden so well, your position was perfect, everything is fine, and you set the track record”. We had found Johann Zarco! It cheered him up and I told him “ don't put pressure on yourself, don't ask yourself questions, and you are the best of the best ».
3/ At any time during the year, did you doubt whether you would obtain the title? When, in particular? At that point, did you regret your decision to put the title back on the line?
" No. Me and Johann, when we make a decision, we don't regret it. We couldn't regret this decision because it was very important to have a second title, to have a second year and to win before arriving in MotoGP. We had a contract with Suzuki, so the certainty of having a good bike. They let us go and we were lucky that there was a good Yamaha at Tech 3 next year, the one that Valentino Rossi has this year. So the road was good, there was no doubt. If we start to doubt, it’s because we are weak.
4/ Johann said he wanted to be a role model for young people. What's new at your flight school?
“We met Eric de Seynes in August. He reassured us that our school will represent Yamaha Europe next year. There is a new 150 coming with a Yamaha engine and we will be using it soon. Still so many students want to ride in our school. Our championship, which includes eight races in France, will be joined with a foreign country whose level is very high, but I cannot yet say which one.
We're just growing. Our school is a bit like a pilot. We want to give young French drivers the chance to arrive in Grands Prix in good conditions. With all the experience we have in Grand Prix, we can only open the right doors for a young driver, put him on the right road. Afterwards, it's more complicated and you need the right method. It's like in life in general: To be a champion, you have to be an exception. You have to make sacrifices. You have to know what exactly the kid wants (and especially not the parents). And then, you have to go! »
