Moto 3
Published on April 1, 2019 • 19:30 AM by Philippe Debarle

Moto3, Argentina: Exclusive interview with Alain Bronec (CIP Green Power) on the podium with Darryn Binder

Alain Bronec's team has just achieved a splendid feat by placing Darryn Binder on the second step of the podium at the Argentine Grand Prix, behind Jaume Masiá. This is the best result for a French team since Johann Zarco's second place in the Grand Prix at Jerez last year.

Alain, do you think that after experiencing the pressure of being the only KTM factory rider in 2018 (in Team Red Bull KTM Ajo), Darryn feels more relaxed and comfortable in your CIP-Green team Power?

“He is comfortable with us, but we ask him for a lot of investment and work. Indeed, when he is well on the bike, he really has a big attack and he goes very fast.”

“In Argentina we could see that when braking he felt particularly comfortable, because he still allowed himself some very interesting things from the middle of the race until the end. He was comfortable up front, and we found something that worked well in Argentina.”

Were you satisfied with the tests and qualifying in Argentina?

“Since the start of the year, with the new qualifications, we have never reached directly into Q2* ».

*Editor's note: Q2 includes the 14 fastest from free practice and the first 4 from Q1.

“It's definitely the thing to work on for the next GP in the United States. We went through Q1 each time and that actually puts us quite far back on the grid. This is not satisfactory for us, so we absolutely have to work on this with Darryn. There are 18 of them after Q2, and as Darryn ranks sixth in Q1, he is placed twentieth on the grid.”

Darryn was quite far away at the start of the race. Weren't you worried?

“We thought and knew that the race was going to be a bunch and it turned out to be true. Indeed Darryn is quite incisive at the start of the race so he quickly moved up to twelfth place, then he joined the 3-4-5 group from the eighth lap. From then on he remained permanently in the leading group within which he was able to establish himself.”

Qhen he found himself in the lead, how did you experience it? Confident or worried?

“He looked pretty comfortable.” He went with an M tire on the rear, which was an interesting choice all in all. On some corner exits he looked a little wider than some, but for everything else he was really comfortable braking.”

“We know that there is the long straight that comes out of Turn 3 and that it is very difficult to approach it in the lead. We saw at the end of the race Arbolino deliberately cut for Darryn to take the lead, and we saw that if he was first at the start of the straight, he finished fifth or sixth, but if managed well it was not a issue ".

How did you experience the race of your other driver, the Briton Tom Booth-Amos, who finished eighteenth?

“It's also a good result, because he was in the second group and finished 9.798 behind the winner. This is really interesting because it means Tom climbed a big step this weekend. So it was a good Grand Prix for our team who works a lot and it’s starting to pay off for both drivers.”

Will this Argentine GP remain a great moment in the history of your team?

“We are building the team. We are only at the second Grand Prix of the season. This gives time for Darryn to progress, and for Tom also in terms of driving to have a fairly homogeneous team so that we regularly occupy good places.”

“We are in a period of construction, confident in the future because the KTMs are doing well and our sponsors are happy. We are looking forward to the United States.”

The Grand Prix ranking:

Video: Binder on charge!

Video: the last round!

Video: Arrival

Photos © Lukasz Swiderek (www.photoPSP.com) and Dorna TV