Lorenzo arrived in MotoGP at the age of 21, welcomed with open arms at Yamaha but with a closed face on the side of the owner Rossi. It was 2008 and the couple began a relationship of ups and downs, quite normal between two champions equipped with the same bike in search of the same goal: the supreme title. The end of this season marked the separation of this duel duo which brought a lot to Yamaha. The opportunity to take stock.
The irony of the farewells to the three tuning forks made by Lorenzo wants this end of the story to have been celebrated in the box in a friendly atmosphere, marked by mutual respect between the two drivers. Quite the opposite of the stormy end of the 2015 campaign marked by a heavy atmosphere when Yamaha had something to celebrate: title among manufacturers, crown among drivers and consecration among the teams. This year, only this last distinction will be brought back to Iwata headquarters. Nothing to brag about. But we nevertheless popped the champagne with more good humor on Sunday than a year ago Valencia.
Lorenzo At Yamaha, it was a lease that began in 2008 and therefore ended in 2016. Great longevity. Difficult start. In 2008, in fact, Por Fuera was welcomed by his teammate with a wall separating the two sides of the Yamaha box. The official reason then given was that the Spaniard was driving on Michelin while the Italian was on Birdgestone.
From the outset, the Majorcan impressed with three pole positions won during his first three Grands Prix, and a victory, the first, in Portugal, in the third round. A flash in the pan since his heavy fall during a Chinese Grand Prix which has since disappeared almost consumed him. A broken momentum while Valentino Rossi continued to win to better capture the title.
2009 and 2010 were going to be the years of head-on clash between the two men with spicy exchanges behind the scenes about taking each other's settings. Vale kept his crown in 2009 but ceded it to his younger brother in 2010. A season at the end of which the Doctor headed to Ducati at age 32 while Yamaha kept Por Fuera aged 23.
2013 marks the reunion of the two men on the M1. In 2012, Lorenzo had celebrated his second coronation. Yamaha found a more serene atmosphere between the two protagonists who had matured a little more and who had discovered a new major rival in the person of a Marc Márquez World Champion in his first year in MotoGP in 2013. A consecration repeated in 2014.
We know what happened to the 2015 campaign in the heartbreaking finale. Here we are in 2016. Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi shared the Yamaha box for two periods. From 2008 to 2010 then from 2013 to 2016. The two men have two titles. Red in 2008 and 2009 and Lorenzo in 2010 and 2015. Because we will remember that in 2012, Por Fuera was champion during the Ducati period of Red.
In terms of victories, the results of this cohabitation reveal 34 victories for the Spaniard against 26 for the Italian. It is now the turn of Lorenzo to live through your red period. With a more assertive leadership status than at Yamaha where neutrality between the two residents has always been the rule.
When packing for Borgo Panigale, Lorenzo said : " I was 20 years old when I joined this team for my MotoGP debut and I had pole position in my first race. Almost ten years later, I leave with a pole position and a victory. I think there was no better gift to thank Yamaha for the support and work that has been done all these years ».
« We have always had a competitive bike, capable of winning. Now we will celebrate this victory and think back to all these memories. During a race, you are 100% focused and when you cross the finish line, you don't think too much, there isn't too much emotion because you need time to recover. But after two or three minutes, I started to think about the best moments of my career, also the most difficult ones, and finding my team in the parc ferme was a great moment of emotion. We're going to celebrate like never before because it's a big day and I'm going to savor these last moments with Yamaha ».
Moments which will still continue until the end of December of this year since if Yamaha authorized its rider to be unfaithful to Ducati for the first off-season tests in Valencia, it will be the only one of the year. Por Fuera due to his commitments with the Iwata firm will not do the Jerez tests at the end of November. Nor will he be able to make the slightest comment on his impressions about the Desmosedici.
