For his first Grand Prix in the Moto2 category, Fabio started from tenth place on the starting grid, a slight disappointment due to the elimination of the qualifying session. Thirteenth at the end of the first lap, he moved up to sixth position by tenth. A great fight then followed with Luca Marini, the half-brother of Valentino Rossi, and “El Diablo” crossed the line in seventh position for his first GP in Moto2, 13 seconds behind the winner Franco Morbidelli, and with the seventh best race time, 0.7 behind the Italian's fastest time.
How did your tests go?
“The tests went quite well, but I regret that qualifying could not take place because I could have done much better. Many drivers spent more tires than me at the start knowing that qualifying was not going to happen. The weather forecast predicted four days of rain, but there was only one day in the end. It worked in their favor, but too bad. Next time it will go better.
If before the race, you had been offered seventh place at the finish which you ultimately obtained, would you have been satisfied?
“Yes, I’m still satisfied, that’s for sure. It's a shame that I had a bad start because otherwise I think I could have been in the top 5. So yes, I'm happy with my seventh place.
How did your duel with Luca Marini go?
“It went well, but it’s a shame that in the end he was smarter than me. But this is his second year as a permanent rider in GP Moto2, and, counting his 2015 year in CEV Moto2, he is much more experienced than me in this category. So I need to gain experience, compete in many races, do a lot of tests, and little by little I will acquire a higher level.
You set the seventh lap time in the race in 2'00.814, 0.727 behind Franco Morbidelli's best time, while the second rookie Francesco Bagnaia set the twelfth time at 0.860 and Jorge Navarro the seventeenth at 1.113. Is this a reason for satisfaction?
" Not really. Afterwards it is certain that on a lap you can go fast, but what really counts is the racing pace. I think that for example Pecco Bagnaia could have done a faster lap than mine, but what counts is the pace, more pace and more pace. I was missing a little bit to fight at the front, but I still managed to have a better pace than them at the end of the race, so that's positive. We will have to improve this further, but above all first get off to a good start.
Your two seasons in GP Moto3 were a little disappointing, with tenth and thirteenth final places. It didn't undermine your confidence, nor that of your new team manager Sito Pons. How were you able to manage this situation healthily?
“My two years in Moto3 were the hardest of my career. In 2015 I had a big ankle injury, so I was off for five to six races. I wanted to ride during some of them, but it was really impossible. The 2016 season was the most complicated because I had a lot of problems with the team. But hey, it's already forgotten and I have to concentrate on the year 2017, thinking only of positive things.
Coming up from thirteenth place in the first lap to sixth in tenth was a great achievement, but the fifth in front of you was then ahead of you by 5.4. How do you think you can improve your starts (taking into account that this was your first race in Moto2)?
“I will have to improve my starts little by little. I need to gain experience. In the first corner I was sixteenth or seventeenth, so on the first lap I passed several drivers. I moved up more than ten places in ten laps. I need to improve my starts. One of the biggest problems is that we didn't have a qualifier, but it's still positive.
How do you estimate your adaptation to the Moto2 category?
“I think he's pretty good. It was a little difficult at first. Until the IRTA tests, I didn't feel great. But from that moment on, I started to feel that this bike was mine. Until then it was Alex Rins' bike, then it became my bike and I really started to adapt. »
