Valentino Rossi enters this fifth round of the MotoGP season in an uncomfortable position which will take place at Le Mans, for the French Grand Prix. His only four points scored so far put him at the bottom of the championship standings and his latest performances only make his personal statistics pale. Observers and his former adversaries are practically begging him to stop the charges. For some, the outcome is inevitable and will soon be announced... But the Doctor has another speech. In Sarthe, this weekend, he wants to take advantage of what he learned during the test in Jerez. He is also hoping for good weather. A wish that will probably not be granted...
The gauge has reversed to Valentino Rossi. We no longer wonder if he will be able to do better from one Grand Prix to the next. We rather hope for him that he will not do worse than the previous performance. It's hard for the Doctor whose ailments find their origin in the too soft carcasses of the tires Michelin . As these will not change, the inevitability of a disappointing scenario with each performance seems guaranteed.
However, rightly or wrongly, Vale maintains the illusion. He says this before addressing the Grand Prix of France : " we had a good test in Jerez, we were able to improve various aspects and I hope we will also see it at Le Mans ". The objective for this fifth Grand Prix of the season is clear: “ I want to be stronger this weekend, gain places and be faster than in the previous Spanish Grand Prix », underlined the pilot of 42 years. “ Last year I was strong at Le Mans in dry conditions. I was fast and had a good race pace, but just before the race it started to rain and I crashed in the first turn ».
Valentino Rossi crashed in the rain last year
An unfortunate outcome and a painful memory because it is precisely the rain which seems guaranteed for this weekend in Sarthe... In the past, the Doctor has harvested 13 podiums in the premier category on the 4,185 km Bugatti Circuit, including three victories. “ It's a beautiful track that has a lot of changes of direction thanks to the chicanes, I like it a lot. With good grip and strong acceleration, it's very pleasant to drive there ", did he declare. “ We hope that we will have good weather from FP1 to the end of the race ". An obsession with the weather which betrays a real fear of facing this deadline on a wet track. And yet, current forecasts do not rule out a race MotoGP under the rain.
Franco Morbidelli, his teammate and member of his VR46 Academy, is going to France with the first podium of the season in his luggage. “ I like the Le Mans track, I also won the Moto2 category here “, recalled the 2 Moto2017 world champion. “ During Monday's test in Jerez we focused on the braking phase, because on this track you have to be really strong. The first turns are also quite tricky, you need to drive the first turn correctly so that it becomes easier for the next ones as well. It's difficult, but beautiful ».
« I hope we can confirm the positive feedback and the feeling of the test and that it will be useful for the weekend. It was wonderful to be back on the podium in Jerez and I hope we can build on that this weekend.", finishes last year's vice-world champion.
