As Valentino Rossi was not invited to the official pre-event press conference for the Japanese Grand Prix, he, as usual, answered journalists' questions at the Movistar Yamaha MotoGP hospitality venue.
Peter McLaren was present for the site crash.net, as Alessio Brunori for the site motograndprix.motorionline.com and they tell us most of what the Italian pilot said.
Regarding the possibility of a possible team instruction to help a Maverick Vinales trailing Marc Márquez by 28 points, the response from the man from Tavullia is no longer as completely negative as in the past: " en this moment, no, Yamaha does not do it, but it depends a lot on the championship; if it gets very, very close, it's possible. It's an interesting situation because all three factories (Honda, Ducati, Yamaha) have the second rider who is fast and who can maybe help the first rider in the championship. So we'll see! There are three drivers still in the race and we are more detached, but with Lorenzo and Pedrosa we could be the needle on the scale. But everyone will shop, anyway. So we have to see if Yamaha, Honda and Ducati will ask us. It will depend a lot on the situations, but usually Yamaha always leaves everything “open”, for example, like in 2010, in my battle with Lorenzo. »
Either way, it's important that the Yamaha rider's leg gets better, which apparently it does: “After the Aragon race having two weeks of rest helped me. Usually such a long break breaks the rhythm, but instead it served me well to recover. My leg is better, I still have trouble walking, but I'm fine, and the trip went well too. I had this extra week, which was very important because after Aragon, I was suffering a little. The leg is now much better, still a little sore, but I guess I can ride the bike. Because, in any case, the leg is in better shape than in Aragon. Of course, I'm not 100%, just like with the workouts which I had to adapt a little. But I feel good and it's not so bad. Last Saturday I ran at the Ranch and it was good, although of course turning on a dirt track is more painful, especially when you put your foot on the ground, but it was a good day. »
He is then asked if he will continue to use the thumb brake once completely healed…
“I was already using it, before the problem. Not initially, but after five or six races, I think. For me and my problem (leg), it's good and it can help. And it's also something that can help generally in some places. »
Finally, Valentino Rossi is asked about how he approaches the expected weather wet this week-end…
“It would be a real shame if it was wet because I think we can be competitive in the dry at this circuit. Last year I was very competitive in the wet, but not so much this year, so I'm hoping it's dry. Our problem in the wet is the same as in the dry: after a few laps, the rear tire starts to lose a lot of grip. If it's completely wet, it's not so bad, but if there isn't much water, we suffer. So we need to understand because we were very strong last year. »
