The MotoGP riders who reached the podium, Jorge Lorenzo, Marc Marquez and Andrea Iannone, were invited to this post-race press conference of the 2016 Italian Grand Prix.
In order to avoid any abusive journalistic interpretation, we offer here a “raw” translation of the entirety of Jorge Lorenzo’s remarks.
This being particularly long to read, we will publish the second part tomorrow at noon.
What a day, what a race, and what a finale...
“During the warm up, things were better because we made some changes to the bike's settings which slightly improved my feeling, particularly when braking but also in the corners where I had a little more grip. Unfortunately, after the Moto2 race, I saw that the surface was a little more slippery, so the pace was not very high.
But I was lucky to make a good start, to lead the race from the first lap and to find my rhythm. I didn't expect Marc to be so strong and so consistent. With him behind, I tried to escape and I spent a lot of physical energy and finally, in the last part of the race, I didn't have much energy left and that's why I thought that maybe he could overtake me, because he had more energy staying behind me, and maybe I wouldn't be able to win. So when he overtook me on the last lap, I said to myself “ok, stay behind him and see what happens.” Maybe he'll make a mistake and you'll take advantage of it."
So I was behind and, when we arrived at the last chicane, the memory of 2005 came back to my mind, when I overtook De Angelis in the 250cc. So I had this crazy idea to do the same thing and I said to myself " Why not try? ». So I put on a lot of gas, I came back very quickly, perhaps too quickly because Marquez overtook me, and I thought that I had lost the race because, normally, it is impossible to overtake the rider in front of the aspiration, in MotoGP. But we were lucky that today our rival was Marc with his Honda which is struggling this year with its engine. So I came out of the last corner a little quickly, I made up a lot of meters, I came back very close, and I won this unexpected victory. »
You had to defend yourself against Rossi and then against Marquez; was it different?
“To be honest, I didn't feel very comfortable during the race. In the middle of the corner, the front was pushing a lot because we had a setup with a lot of weight on the rear and not on the front. So from the middle of the race, the front was taking over me and I couldn't stay within 47′, as I hoped. But you know, Marc had a very good race, with a very good pace and based on the practice times, I didn't expect him to be so consistent during the race. But they took a big step, while Iannone and Vinales, who were expected with us, were not able to follow us. So finally, with still (a gap of) 0.3, 0.3, and when Marc overtook me, I thought that as he was a great fighter and that he closed the doors very well, maybe it was better finish the race second, take the points, and see you next time.
But you know, I had this memory, I tried, and today I was lucky my engine was fast. »
10 points ahead of Barcelona. It's perfect?
" Yes Perfect. Perfect because today we were very lucky with the engine, because with one lap less during the warm up and we would not have broken during the warm up but in the race with the same engine. We were very lucky and, on the other hand, Rossi was unlucky and he is now quite far away in the championship.
And also lucky to have won the aspiration race, because it's not the same thing to arrive at Montmelo with the same points as Marc or with 10 points (ahead). This gives you confidence and peace of mind. »
Do your results count double because you obtained them in a place that is not very welcoming for you, and they create a gap with Valentino Rossi who is also very, very fast this year?
“For me, I don’t care what these people’s reactions are. They have these reactions because of Rossi's theory last year. They buy that and they see us as enemies. But you know, I get similar reactions every year, and I come here and just stay focused and have a good race every year. Obviously today, as I said, we were lucky to break the engine in the warm-up and not in the race, and on the other hand Rossi was very unlucky. It's a worrying situation because in a few hours we broke two engines. We don't know the reason, we don't know what happened and we have to investigate to find out what happened and if it is possible to do something about the future. (grimace) We will see and I will have more information at the next races. »
And for the gap with Rossi?
“Yes, he was very unlucky because today he looked good and on TV you could see that he was still on my wheel, so today he could maybe be there and fight for the victory. So (sign of helplessness) he was unlucky and we were lucky on our side because now the gap in the championship is very big. »
