Cal Crutchlow is what we call a paddock figure. The Englishman always has a sharp tongue and in this sense, Jack Miller is made of the same wood. He is a pillar of the HRC, a support to the supporting wall Marc Márquez because he is the only one who can go fast enough on an RC213V to reveal the weaknesses that the Spaniard does not see, naturally compensating for them with his talent... On this experience, he makes revelations to the point of opening up about the Jorge Lorenzo case, different from his own when he also prematurely left Ducati...
Apart Marc Márquez, the LCR driver Cal Crutchlow is the only one still in MotoGP to have won with a Honda. He therefore has every legitimacy to express himself on this RC213V which has caused so much harm to Jorge Lorenzo…In an interview with Marieta Evans and relayed by GP One, he describes the Japanese beast as follows: “ thanks to my riding style I can give neutral information, I also have the ability to understand the bike well and clearly explain my feelings, what is better and what is worse he explained. " Márquez goes incredibly fast with any bike, with any tire you give him. There is no one like Marc in the world, there are more drivers like me. If everyone was like him, everyone would win. »
« During my first year it was difficult to understand the Honda, even if I had made good results " remember Crutchlow. " You really have to push with this bike, you have to ride it aggressively. I understood better during my second year, you have to adapt to the bike, each one has its own DNA. We know that the Honda is fantastic in the corners, it allows you to correct a trajectory when braking, it also leaves a lot of room for the rider, you feel like you can control it, especially at the end of the race. »
“Jorge is a 5-time champion, he knows how to ride a motorcycle”
The second year was therefore beneficial to the Englishman. But Jorge Lorenzo didn’t go that far… “ If Jorge Lorenzo had continued, he would have adapted » assures Cal. “ But the drivers are impatient, I can understand the situation Lorenzo found himself in, he is a winner and he had difficulty finishing in the top 10. After the crashes in Barcelona and Assen he did not not done. You can't blame him if he didn't drive like before, it was two big accidents. Jorge is a 5-time champion, he knows how to ride a motorcycle. »
We will remember that Crutchlow also had a whirlwind stint with a manufacturer. It was about Ducati. But the context was very different: “ I could have been fast with this bike, I never had a doubt. If you look at Dovizioso, in his first year at Ducati he struggled but he had the will to accept it, I didn't and I should have. But the reason I left was not because I didn't think I could win but because they had already signed another driver for the factory team for the following year. Even if I had stayed, I wouldn't have had a place. They had decided for Dovizioso and Iannone »
He finishes : " at the beginning it was difficult to adapt to Ducati, it was like that for me as for Dovi, Lorenzo, Valentino, we all came from Yamaha. However, it was an experience that made me stronger as a driver. » A moment tempted by retirement and the life of a good father, Cal Crutchlow emerges from confinement with newfound motivation. He will need it because Pol Espargaro is not the last one to look at his handlebars…
