Jerez MotoGP J. 1 Debriefing Johann Zarco: The day, the goal, Le Mans, etc. (entirety)

On the occasion of this Spanish Grand Prix, we are perpetuating our habit of referring to you in full the words of Johann Zarco, in a raw way, therefore without any journalistic formatting or distortion.

Alongside the sometimes slightly formatted communication of traditional press releases, the exchanges between the French rider and the journalists in the hospitality of the Monster Yamaha Tech3 team are of a richness and simplicity that true enthusiasts will appreciate (you can find all his past debriefings in our section “Interviews").

There is always the little detail that immerses us more every day in the world of MotoGP…

Johann zarco : “I’m pretty happy with this day. The asphalt is really good because you sometimes use extreme lines with the bike and it never moves. Furthermore, without having done a test, here in Jerez we were competitive. Every comment I made to the team, from this morning until this afternoon, and when you move forward like this, and everything is positive, on the bike and on the track, you can relax and be much faster. So I’m happy with that and I want to keep the same speed in the coming days.”

Are you going to learn German for next year?

" No. I will learn Czech first before German (alluding to his partner).”

Last year the factory Yamaha riders had tire problems here. Do you think it could happen again this year?

“It's true that we struggled last year with worn tires, but the track was different. We can now be faster and no matter how we use the bike, I think we have much more control over the traction. So we'll see. It's the game. We work to have a good feeling during the race. So far I have done some very good laps with the medium rear tire, although I had already done a lot of laps with it. So for a first day, we are more than positive and we want to maintain this rhythm for Sunday. Let's keep this good rhythm and play on the little details so that we can play with the bike even more than today, and I think I will have a good chance of making a podium on Sunday.

Your future which is now fixed, does that change anything in your state of mind?

" No. I think I have this advantage, with experience, that whatever is going on around me, I remain free of mind the moment I get on the bike. Currently, I don't feel any difference, but it's true that having officially announced and no longer having thousands of requests can only help. But I have this advantage: once I get on the bike, I forget everything! ".

Compared to last year on this circuit, what has improved on the bike and in yourself?

“I think that thanks to the asphalt, the feeling with the tire has improved. You can really go through corners quickly and the bike doesn't move. We don't lose the front and that's something extremely important to go fast.
And for my part, I can feel that quickly, and even give feedback electronically to have the most controllable bike possible, whether with a full tank of gas or with little fuel. My comments are much more specific. I had fun today, and what's more, I think I made 3^e, so it's good ".

Valentino Rossi greatly regretted having tested at Sepang rather than here. Did you feel that some people adapted faster than others here?

" Hopefully not. I didn't really feel it and I hadn't thought about it much before riding, and as soon as I got on the bike I went for it and it worked.
There, we don't exceed 300 km/h, but it's true that simply to ride a MotoGP, the test in Jerez was especially good because it was during the long break when we had two free weekends. It was between Qatar and Argentina, and there, staying more than 15 days without MotoGP, that was more what was penalizing, and therefore it even put a brake on us, in my opinion more for Argentina than for here. Well, I know that for my feelings, it plays like that.”

In your answers in English, you talked about the podium. Don't you dare say victory for Sunday?

“For the Team to put a headline, I would say Victory, that’s clear (laughs). If I can be on the first row, it is clear that we must have victory in mind. Afterwards, finishing on the podium would already be great here in Jerez, which is a very technical track. For the first race in Europe, it would be a good start. We'll see, but if I can, it's clear that I'll think about victory."

Do the feelings you have here allow you to view Le Mans in the same way?

“You have to know how to take all the Grands Prix one by one, really, even the French Grand Prix which is coming. So far I was happy to have a good start to the first day here in Jerez. We have fantastic weather and we must therefore continue this happiness day by day, doing good work and doing my best here. It will be useful for Le Mans. But to think of working for Le Mans while driving here, let's say that would be to miss the objective.

Jerez MotoGP J.1 Combined Chronos:

1 35 LCR Honda CASTROL C.CRUTCHLOW GBR HONDA 1'38.614

2 26 Repsol Honda Team D.PEDROSA SPA HONDA 1'38.642 +0.028

3 5 Monster Yamaha Tech 3 J.ZARCO FRA YAMAHA 1'38.705 +0.091

4 29 Team SUZUKI ECSTAR A.IANNONE ITA SUZUKI 1'38.709 +0.095

5 93 Repsol Honda Team M.MARQUEZ SPA HONDA 1'38.863 +0.154

6 4 Ducati Team A.DOVIZIOSO ITA DUCATI 1'39.068 +0.454

7 99 Ducati Team J.LORENZO SPA DUCATI 1'39.076 +0.462

8 43 Alma Pramac Racing J.MILLER AUS DUCATI 1'39.102 +0.488

9 46 Movistar Yamaha MotoGP V.ROSSI ITA YAMAHA 1'39.248 +0.634

10 44 Red Bull KTM Factory Racing P.ESPARGARO SPA KTM 1'39.311 +0.697

11 9 Alma Pramac Racing D.PETRUCCI ITA DUCATI 1'39.429 + 0.815