Following the presentation of the 2021 colors of the two KTM teams, We attended an exceptional press conference this Friday, February 12.
Exceptional due to the context which prevails at the moment and, as a consequence of the first point, exceptional due to its very unusual length: Hervé Poncharal spoke for almost an hour and a half to satisfy the endless curiosity of the 25 journalists registered for this videoconference.
As usual, we will provide you with the full text of this first substantial chapter of the 2021 season, without the slightest formatting, in several parts, even if it will be very, very long...
Hervé, can you specify what the effects of Guy Coulon's change of position will be?
Hervé Poncharal : " you know, Guy has always been with me. We were born around the same time and of course this represents a big chapter that is coming to an end: Guy will no longer be team leader. Because since we started working in competition, in the French championship, in the world endurance championship, in the Dakar and even on the sand at Le Touquet, Guy was by my side in everything I did. So it's clearly a chapter that's ending, but Guy told me he'll stay involved with me to keep Tech3 running until the end of 2026. The competition team is about 40 people and there's a lot to do . Guy will be the technical manager at the workshop where we now welcome three teams, that of MotoGP with two riders, that of Moto3 with two riders, and that of MotoE with two riders. There are a lot of logistics in the workshop, and as a satellite team we are one of the teams that has a lot to do internally, like working on the trucks and the boxes. Guy will oversee all of this but he will also come to the first test in Doha to see what is happening and to make a smooth transition.
But you know, Nicolas Goyon has been a crew chief for many years and he knows his job perfectly, and Sergio Verbena, who was with Brad Binder last year, won a race and was with us in 2019 to liaise between KTM and Tech3 in our first year. So I think everyone is now completely independent, but Guy will stay with us and be completely available to answer any questions we have, but he won't be involved in the technical management of each driver.
So he is still with me but he is a little more in the shadows and I think he is happy because he will be 66 in a few days, on February 18, and I think he started the competition at 15 years. So that's more than 50 years of traveling constantly, and when you're crew chief, it's non-stop on weekends when you're on a circuit preparing for FP1, FP2, FP3, FP4, qualifying. , the warmup and the race. And even when the race is over, you already have to think about the next one. So he needed this new life and he will always remain involved, but no longer on the circuits. He is happy and that makes me happy. »
Can you specify what the effects of Fausto Gresini's health situation may be?
« Concerning Fausto, many people, including myself, took Covid a little lightly. We took it as the flu, but it's true that for 85% of people, it was like the flu, sometimes a strong flu but a flu. But unfortunately some people, and you never know who will be affected, are suffering greatly. Pascal Verrière, Paolo Campinoti's right-hand man at Pramac, was also very, very seriously affected and I am in daily contact with him.
For Fausto, when we learned that he was positive, we thought it would be like the boys who caught it during the 2020 season. But unfortunately, it was very bad. The news I have comes from Carlo Merlini and fortunately, things are definitely much better: he is awake, the fever is going down, the oxygen level in the blood is reaching a satisfactory level. But it will take time for him to fully recover because when you've been on oxygen for so long, since I think he was hospitalized on December 27, it takes a long time. Fortunately, he is going in the right direction and the team is very experienced. Carlo Merlini is a very good organizer and knows the work very well. I don't think the team will have any problems at the start of the season. Of course, we know they have to make a big decision for 2022 but, hopefully, Fausto will be 100% and back in the paddock by then.
I don't want to talk too much about it but all the news I have is very positive. Thanks for asking. »
Do you think an independent team can fight for the MotoGP title?
« Honestly, yes, since almost all independent teams have identical machines, identical support, and identical development speed! We were able to see last year, and with all the respect we have for our factory team, that we were able to win more races than them. If you look at what happened at Jerez 2 and Spielberg 1, we could have been very close to the top places in the championship. If you look at what happened at Yamaha, the independent team was clearly the leading team for Yamaha in 2020. So an independent team has the possibility of winning races, which we saw last year, and even to fight for the championship. I am absolutely sure of it! 2020 was a crazy season and Joan Mir was an incredible champion but he came out of nowhere, so I truly believe an independent team can win the championship.
For this we must thank the technical regulations, the level of the riders we have, and each manufacturer involved in the MotoGP championship for providing and believing in their satellite team. »
You are now a team that has won Grands Prix in the premier category: will this change your expectations and your approach to the championship?
« Honestly, it doesn't change much. I listened to Pit Beirer's interview and everyone asked him if he felt more pressure and if he felt ready to win the championship in 2021. I think 2020 saw a great championship of a Overall, a great championship for KTM and a great championship for Tech3, but we are starting from scratch. The grid is incredibly competitive, whether it's the bikes or the riders, and it's very smart to say who will win the first race, and very smart to say who will be champion in 2021! I'm not going to list them all but it could be a Ducati rider, a KTM rider, a Yamaha rider, Suzuki, etc. : almost everyone on the grid can win races and quite a few drivers can win the championship. 2020 has been an incredible year and we have unforgettable memories because our first victory in the MotoGP category is something we will never forget, especially with KTM because the emotion is even greater, but we will see. We have a new rider, a new star rider, Danilo Petrucci who still has to get on the KTM and we still have to wait to know how he feels on this bike and how he can perform on this bike. So it's a big question mark, although we think Danilo's potential is very great and he will quickly be fast with the bike. And we have Iker who should improve further: and when you remember where he was at the end of the season, I think we can also be very ambitious. So we have ambitions, but no more pressure than when we started 2020. I even think that after doing what we did in 2020, we even have a little less pressure, because when you want to get your whole first victory, when you want to prove to KTM that you can win, when you want to thank them but show the management and the owner of KTM that they were right to trust you, once you are relieved, it's a less weight on your shoulders. This year, we're starting from scratch and that's what we love about this sport: nothing is written in advance! »
