This MotoGP post-qualifying press conference for the Czech Republic Grand Prix in Brno brought together Andrea Dovizioso, Valentino Rossi, Marc Marquez, Luca Marini and Jakub Kornfeil.
As usual, we report here our translation of the entirety of the words of Valentino Rossi, without journalistic formatting or distortion.
Valentino Rossi : “during the tests, I always struggled because unfortunately, my pace is not very good. So we set out to understand different things about the bike, and in particular the different front and rear tire combinations. We've done a lot of testing, but generally speaking we're not very fast regardless of the tires. But already since yesterday, and even more since this morning, I knew that I could do a good lap with a new tire. You must therefore try to stay focused and be in the right position at the right time. I did it and my time is good: 54.9. I was able to improve my time from last year and also that of this morning when it was a little cooler. So it was a really good ride. I drove really at the limit, without making any mistakes, and that's good. And considering we're not fantastic at race pace, it's also important to start from the front row. Because I'm between Dovi and Marc who are 2 guys with better pace, and so it will be very important to try to stay with them at the start, then see what happens during the race.
In 1996, when you won your first race here, Luca (Marini) wasn't born. 22 years later, he is at this conference and you must be very proud of it…
“Yes, it’s a very beautiful moment for us, for our family, and I think also for our mother. That's great ! I am extremely happy for Luca, because in the last 2 or 3 races he has improved a lot. I think he did a very good job and he drives very well, and it will be very important that he is competitive tomorrow to fight for the podium during the race.”
You didn't test the hard rear tire yesterday. You did it this morning, but you say that your choice is not yet very clear. If there isn't much difference between the tires, are you going to take a gamble?
" Yes. As you say, for me it was a mistake not to have tried the hard tire yesterday, because maybe with more laps we could have understood it better. But anyway, I tried it today, this morning and this afternoon. The problem is that I'm not very quick with him. A bet ? Bou… Generally, I am not very enthusiastic about making bets. If you take the soft one, you are faster at the beginning but it would be difficult for me to get to the end. But we have to see. Particularly depending on the temperature, because if it's lower, then maybe. It would be easier. But I will decide tomorrow.”
You took your first victory here and Luca took his first pole position here. Is there anything in particular that you like about this track?
" Sincerely, I do not know. I have loved this circuit since the beginning. It's very smooth, with lots of chicanes, which is always good. I always thought Brno was similar to Mugello, so maybe the Italian drivers already have experience. But I don’t know if that’s the reason.”
Photo credit: MotoGP.com
