For Johann Zarco, the 2022 edition of the Italian Grand Prix on the Mugello circuit will be inseparably associated with fourth position!
Fourth behind Aleix Espargaro, Francesco Bagnaia and Jack Miller on an almost tropical Friday, the Pramac rider had however paid with two falls for his search for ease on the handlebars of the Parma Ducati GP22, before warning: “ It looks like the weather will be a little better, a little cooler, for the next few days, and that will be helpful for me. »
Indeed, on a much more disrupted meteorological Saturday, the Frenchman initially managed to avoid moving into Q1, before experiencing a stressful Qualification 2 but ultimately concluded with the fourth position behind Fabio Di Giannantonio, Marco Bezzecchi and Luca Marini : " I tried to work in FP4 to get this performance by being more relaxed on the bike, and it wasn't bad. I wasn't doing well compared to the others but something is starting to happen, so we have to analyze this well with the team. But I'm happy after this qualification because when we left there were a few drops and we didn't know if there was really grip or not. For the first time, I did something around 48. I saw that it wasn't enough but I wondered what I could do, so I stopped before the others, simply to recover a little. to zero the mentality, before doing two additional laps to find a good time, and it went well. So I'm happy about that, because in that kind of situation you can really lose a lot. There is more to lose than to gain, so P4 is perfect! »
Johann zarco had a constructive Sunday and was rewarded with a new 4th place which had to be snatched in the last lap at Marco Bezzecchi.
The Frenchman's race was crystal clear. In the first round, he lets Aleix Espargaró et Fabio Quartararo who have just joined Marco Bezzecchi, Luca Marini et Fabio Di Giannantonio behind him. In the next passage, it is
Francis Bagnaia who doubles him and things stay there until the 8th round where Enea Bastianini
temporarily takes the advantage.
Therefore, after having doubled Fabio DiGiannantonio
in the 9th round, a fight begins with “ Bestia » which will last until the fall of the latter, in the 14th round.
The second part of the race will consist of John Zarco to overtake the two representatives of the Mooney VR46 team, first of all Luca marini in the 17th round, then
Marco Bezzecchi on the 23rd and final passage.
« Very happy today! During the warm up, the feeling was much better than that of Saturday and to start the race it was good to have better confidence, above all regarding the pace. The tire choice was very good and I think the temperature was perfect for medium/medium. Not too hot, in which case we would have had some doubts about the hard, so a very good temperature. Then, it heated up quite a bit during the race but everything remained under control and that was good.
I'm happy with my start because it was better than the other times, so if it can stay like this and I can improve further, I will enjoy the next races even more.
Then you always have to fight at the start of the race, but the confidence on the bike always gets better and I can try to fight. Clearly, sometimes you try things and you lose a little time and the other drivers quickly overtake you, above all Aleix and Fabio because they don't waste time in this area. It was a good fight. Then, at one point in the race, some sort of group had escaped and I was able to catch up with them. At that moment I was happy because the time was very good, which means my speed was really good and the feeling was excellent. At that moment, Bastianini was staying with me because it was just after overtaking Di Giannantonio. I know that Bestia has been strong in the race since the start of the year and I had no doubt that he would be there, that he could stay with me and even overtake me. Then he crashed and at that moment I was able to breathe a little to manage my pace behind Bezzecchi. But when I wanted to overtake the latter to catch up with Aleix, it was too difficult! I really tried to stay as close as possible to get an advantage somewhere, but I couldn't do it: even in a straight line I wasn't fast enough to get close. And when braking, when you arrive 10 km/h faster thanks to the aspiration, it is impossible to brake better, especially with a guy who brakes very late. I then tried to prove a spot but it was too difficult, then I was able to surprise him on the last lap between turns two and three. I then pushed even more because maybe Aleix would suffer damage to his tires, but he was in perfect control. So I missed the podium but it was a good fourth place and that's very good. »
Johann zarco therefore concluded this Italian Grand Prix as the best independent driver behind
Francesco Bagnaia, Fabio Quartararo et
Aleix Espargaró, or the three men we see fighting for the world title... Excuse us a little!
In this area, Tuscany allowed him to get rid of
Jack Miller and gain the upper hand over a
Alex Rins with a very flat curve, but on the contrary forced it to bow before a vigorous
Francis Bagnaia. Bilan de l’opération, une
“vraie” 5e place au championnat, alors qu’il la partageait avec
l’Australien avant l’Italie.
Now head to Catalonia, where John Zarco finished 2nd last year... Clearly, we're playing in the big leagues!
« Barcelona is also a big circuit that I like. Physically, it's not as demanding as Austin, for example, so if I have a good feeling, I hope to have the same level as here, or even better. I have good memories there from last year, and I hope to confirm this feeling which is progressing, even if I feel that I am not yet 100% relaxed. I'm fighting a battle with myself and it's a long-term work because these are reflexes that must be successfully changed, but the results are progressing and it’s motivating! »
Result of the MotoGP Italian Grand Prix at Mugello:
Credit ranking: MotoGP.com
