As we systematically do in winter, we took advantage of this long, very long, summer break to ask a certain number of speakers from the MotoGP paddock to take stock of this first half-season of 2021.
To all lord all honor, it is Hervé Poncharal, both president of IRTA and co-owner of the Tech3 team, which inaugurates this summer series.
You can find the first part of this interview here
So, conversely, we recently learned that Maverick Viñales was going to give up a highly coveted place…
« Yes, it was an incredible thunderbolt! We have a factory driver who has a firm two-year contract, with a machine that is at the top of the world championship, with an excessively comfortable salary, who decides to leave because he is no longer happy, does not feel feels more out of place and perhaps not supported enough. I don't know the details but it's an incredible bolt from the blue. Afterwards, we can say that he is crazy or whatever we want, but somehow it still brings a note of humanity. It shows that drivers are not only interested in having the most prestigious team, the most efficient machine and the highest salary they can get. I don't know exactly what he was missing but he felt, whether on a technical or human level, that he was not very happy there. Was it fatherhood that made him see things differently, did he put his priorities in a different place, I don't know, but it's still something to point out , which is not trivial and which is not frequent. There are some who can say that this is a crazy decision, but we can also say that it is mega stupid. I don't know if the term romantic or novelistic can shock people but we can also say that, in this sense, it is a bit romantic. »
There has already been a precedent with Johann Zarco…
« Yes, but that has nothing to do with it. It has nothing to do with it because the weekend Maverick made his decision, he is on pole and he can fight for the victory. Johann was in trouble and didn't feel at ease. Maverick won the first race and despite everything, even if he is a little late, he remains a potential candidate for the title, so we cannot compare too much, even if there is also a certain form of panache and romanticism in Johann's decision. »
Back to Tech3. The situation is not easy but we expect better days for next year with, perhaps, a decision and/or an announcement in Austria…
« Indeed, it's not easy, but, indeed, it's not very, very funny. But we saw, even if it wasn't a mega super performance, that the Le Mans weekend brought a boost to the morale of the team: The smiles, and the glitter in the eyes for all the members of the team. team. So yes, our adrenaline, what keeps us going, are the results, so at the moment it's a bit gloomy and a bit sad, and the drivers are also a bit sad to achieve the results they achieve, and everyone has a bit of a bad-day look. So yes, it's not a very easy period, but we're not really surprised because we didn't expect to get poles and victories in every race at the start of the season. We kind of expected it! We also know that there is no need for much to change in a team for you to become a top team. When you look at Pramac's performance in Qatar, when Martin is not yet injured, it was great! At Repsol Honda, which is still the most exclusive team and the biggest war machine, apart from the ray of sunshine at the Sachsenring, we were almost better than them in terms of results or at least we played with them. So things can change extremely quickly.
Yes, today it's complicated and it's not easy but we are very happy to see the evolution of Remy Gardner. He started in Moto2 with us, and we saw him evolve over the seasons. He did two with us then he did two with Stop and Go, and each year we see him progress and grow. I think the victory last year, at the last race in Portimão, was really a trigger: It was what he needed. He digested it well and experienced it well during the winter, and this year, he is having an incredible season. Until now, he was fast but he made mistakes relatively often, but this year he is even faster and you see that he is excessively methodical in the race. He is intelligent and relatively often manages to gain the upper hand over his teammate, more in terms of strategy and management of his potential. He's really someone who is learning a lot, a lot, maturing a lot, and I think it's magnificent what he's doing at the moment. Over the first half of the season, we can say that he made zero mistakes! Obviously, you feel that he is ripe to arrive in MotoGP, so to find him again and find him with this level of performance and zenitude, even if we never look forward to getting older is very, very motivating for next year . It's going to be very interesting to see him start in MotoGP, because he really wants it and I think, when we see the top Moto2 riders who have joined MotoGP who are all performing well, that he will perform well. I find him really intelligent in his approach to racing: He is ready to make the jump to the premier category. It's exciting and it's something that excites us »
Speaking of excitement, do Moto3 races give you the same intensity of pleasure and stress as MotoGP races?
« For me, more! More, because I have an even closer relationship with my two Moto3 riders. They are younger and more in need of a sort of substitute dad or big brother. Deniz (Öncü) doesn't have a driving license and Ayumu (Sasaki) is too young to be able to rent a rental car, so we are much more with them than the MotoGP riders who are independent. Danilo is with his assistant and manages himself. Same for Iker. On the other hand, I bring my two Moto3 riders back to the hotel every evening, I take them to the circuit every morning, so we are together a lot more. I am very close to them on a human level: We try to help them grow, we try to make them learn a whole bunch of things, in terms of racing and life.
And then the races are so intense that you get a thrill. Young people are crazier! MotoGP riders, even if they are hot, they are aware that they have to score points every time, so there are ultimate maneuvers that they will not do, especially since the machines are heavier and more powerful, therefore more difficult to manage. In Moto3, it's racing at its highest intensity that exists! So I'm more stressed during a Moto3 race, when I watch Deniz and Ayumu, than during a MotoGP race, because the Moto3 riders are crazier and my riders are also among the crazy ones. At every turn, incredible things can happen! In MotoGP, there is still more wisdom, perspective and reflection on the part of the riders. »
To be continued…
Deniz Oncu, Moto3 race, German MotoGP, June 20, 2021
Ayumu Sasaki, Moto3, Catalunya MotoGP, June 4, 2021
Deniz Oncu, Moto3 race, Catalunya MotoGP, June 6, 2021
Deniz Oncu, Moto3 race, Spanish MotoGP, May 2, 2021
