It was a half-hearted Valentino Rossi who commented on the fruit of his work at the end of this Friday's Malaysian Grand Prix. A first day at Sepang which could have given him the banana since here he is ahead of Marc Márquez. But he failed while trying to challenge supremacy in the Yamaha clan. So, when it comes time to take stock, he cuts the pear in two…
Valentino Rossi points fifth in the first hierarchy of Malaysian Grand Prix formed this Friday. It returned 0.708 to the stratospheric fabio quartararo, now record holder on the Sepang track. But these fairly respectable results had their drawbacks: the three colleagues from the Yamaha brand were faster than the forty-year-old from Tavullia.
« It was a good day because I was quite competitive and especially in the afternoon with the medium tires “, said Valentino. “ We are worried about tire wear here. We still suffer a lot in this area. Today it wasn't so bad. But it will be for the race over 20 laps which will be very long »
« At the end of FP2 I had the soft rear tire. It's a good turn for me, I'm in 5th grade. So we are quite strong. But we must continue to strive to extend the life of the rear tire » insists the teammate of a Casa Particular in Viñales posted right in front of him.
Red specifies the efforts he has made this season: “ this year the driving style of all the great drivers has improved, it has been modified. This was necessary with the new motorcycles, improved electronics and different tiress. You have to drive differently if you want to determine the limit, you have to brake differently, for example you have to use the rear brake harder. In general, when driving fast, you need to be more careful that the rear tire is not overloaded. This is the secret and greatest goal of all the best drivers. »
« I was fast from the second lap of the 1st session. This means we started with a good bottome,” said Red. “ Now we have to find a way to continue to improve so that we can fight for the podium on Sunday. But the tire bothers us. It's very hot, you have long curves. But today was fun, yes. »
Why Red Does he wear more on the rear tire than other Yamaha riders? “ A good question! In general, we think we are putting more pressure on the tire when accelerating. You have to be gentle in your riding, slowly lift the bike. It's completely different today than three years ago. In the turns, I have fewer problems. But to be honest, we don't always see in the data why I stress the rear tire more than my colleagues do. We may have to try something different when preparing. » Precisely, next year, he will have a new chief engineer…
FP2 standings MotoGP Malaysian Grand Prix at Sepang:
FP1-FP2 standings MotoGP Malaysian Grand Prix at Sepang:
Credit rankings: MotoGP.com
