Johann was one of only three riders to ride at the start of the second day and he gave his impressions to Dorna's Dylan Gray as he got off his Yamaha Tech 3.
Have you covered almost the distance of a race with a hard rain tire?
“Yes, I even did more than the distance of a race, and I stopped because Michelin recommends for safety not to exceed 24 to 25 laps. I wanted to drive on the circuit and get the M1 in my hands because I need it. This Malaysian circuit sometimes looks dry, but it is not necessarily dry enough to use slicks.
“If we fitted slicks now (at 13 p.m. local time, 6 a.m. French time) we could go faster, but we would wear them out and it would no longer be possible to use them afterwards because we have a limited tire allocation for these three days of racing. test.
“I am happy with the start of this second day, after a difficult first day. I'm relaxed on the bike and having fun. And it's always the one who has the most fun who has the best results.
What about the condition of the track now?
“It’s a bit like the Grand Prix last October, but a little better. They may have done some work on the track, because before when it dried, it was very slippery. There were even some patches that didn't dry at all. Now even these patches seem less present than in October. They worked on it and that's why now we can fit slicks. But you have to be careful, because for example in turn 6 there is a patch that makes the bike move – not fall, but simply move – when entering the curve.
“If you don't use the correct line, you can drive over a wet patch and fall. It happened to me in October in Moto2 during the first free practice session. Sam Lowes fell because he went a little too inside and I fell the next lap for the same reason. On this kind of circuit you can't afford to make this kind of mistake. »
