Franco Morbidelli therefore made his comeback in MotoGP after missing five races due to a delicate operation on his left knee. An intervention which concerned the cruciate ligaments and the meniscus on the left side which apparently succeeded. The reigning vice-world champion must now get back into rhythm. A return to the bath which is all the more pleasant as it is carried out with the official Yamaha colors which will be its own until 2023…
Franco Morbidelli is one of the last two winners to date on the route of Misano, since it came to fruition in 2020. But this year is different. The 2 version of the Moto2017 World Champion returns from convalescence and is only returning to the handlebars of a MotoGP on which he has not ridden since 25nd June. Which is infinite time in the category. Morbidely also says: “ after three months, a MotoGP seems like a spaceship. The speed is really high and the first four or five laps left an impression. After that, I tried to get my rhythm back as quickly as possible. I certainly missed it ».
He specifies : " I didn't know what to expect because I was absolutely incapable of riding a motorcycle until two weeks ago. But especially last week there was a big improvement and that's why we're here. I am happy. And I was also pretty fast, which is even better. I look forward to continuing the work program and becoming more and more physically fit. It still takes a little while, but it will do it. But I'm definitely very happy about this day. »
Morbidelli: “ I was absolutely incapable of riding a motorcycle until two weeks ago”
« I had more problems with my knee in the morning than in the afternoon, and in wet conditions the strain is much less ", Explain Morbidely, who also revealed that he worked during the day to find a comfortable position on the footrests. “ The more laps I did, the more solutions I tried and the more solutions I found to this problem which was getting smaller and smaller as the day went on. I hope tomorrow will be better in this regard ».
In the mostly dry FP1, the new factory driver Yamaha lost 0,904 seconds to the best time of Maverick Vinales (Aprilia), which earned it 16th place in the ranking. In the FP2 wet, “Franky” landed in rank 13 (+ 1.747 sec) and was thus the best pilot Yamaha ...
He was careful not to make comparisons with his old M1: “ I can't give any feedback on the differences between the two bikes because I've been away for so long » declared the Italian-Brazilian who was initially delighted with his debut as an official Yamaha MotoGP rider: “ It’s definitely a day I will remember forever.s,” he emphasized. “ It was really nice to drive the FP1 and FP2 with these colors in this environment here in Misano. I will never forget him ».
MotoGP Misano 1 J1: FP1/FP2 times
Classification credit: MotoGP.com