This Sunday October 24, 2021, John Zarco answered journalists' questions from the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli, at the end of the Gran Premio Nolan del Made in Italy e dell'Emilia-Romagna.
We went to listen (via teleconferencing software) to the words of the French driver who moved up to 4th place in the championship, after crossing the finish line in 5th position.
As usual, we report here the words of John Zarco without the slightest formatting, even if it is partially translated (vouvoiement in English, tutoiement in French).
Johann zarco : " I'm pretty happy! I feel really good about making a top 5 again, scoring big points and being lucky enough to escape the many crashes that led to an elimination race. But I was also able to have a good pace and enjoy overtaking other drivers while regaining good confidence. So I'm very happy with that! Clearly, when Bastianini overtook me, I knew he could be very strong from the last race and I could see that he had good pace, but I had a little more problem overtaking the others pilots because I was not yet 100% confident in the work I was doing. But I'm happy! Finally it's a good Sunday, and I was very consistent without making too many mistakes in the race, so it's very good to try to be consistent again and score points in the last three races: that starts well ! So I take the positive from that and I'm looking forward to being at Portimao to take another step forward to be even more competitive because today I clearly didn't have the pace of Pecco Bagnaia and Marc Márquez at the start. race. The medium/medium option was very good for me, because even if other drivers will think they had the software I don't think it would have helped me much. The rear mid was very consistent for me and I'm happy with that, so I'm holding on to the positive and continuing like that. »
How do you explain that Bastianini always has a very good pace at the end of the race?
« In the last three races he has taken a big step forward, and the last three races are Misano, Austin and Misano again. So I would say we have the good example of Bagnaia's performance so we have some sort of direction to work on in order to be fast on the bike. But we all have different styles. I don't know how he is physically, and of course he is in good shape, but what I could see in the race was that he used the bike's strengths well at the right time. To do that, it's sometimes risky because you can cross the front, but if you keep a little margin, like me, you lose something. Sometimes when you miss a little, you lose a lot. So he hit something that he uses more in the race than in practice, but when he has it, then he repeats it and he is faster than the others. So for me, it can be physical but it's more that he has the right feeling, without making mistakes, so he enjoys it. »
Does Fabio’s title also explain your good mood?
« No. The good mood comes more from the good results I obtained today, the points. I'm back in fourth place in the championship, so I can have that hope of third place clearer again, and that's what makes me smile the most. If I think for Ducati, it would have been good if Bagnaia could postpone the title until the last race. But what Fabio has done this season is he has been more consistent than Bagnaia. Bagnaia has been extremely strong in the last four races, so he came back. But clearly, even with problems Fabio was still able to have good races and score big points, even if he wasn't winning. I was very happy for him, because as I said, we have almost 10 years difference, and it's good for France to have a MotoGP world champion. That's the first thing I told him when I pulled up. I told him, “You’re a world champion, man!” Wow! » ». That's why it's better to share your happiness and enjoy it. He had the perfect season, so respect! I'm happy about that, and like I say, I'm French and I'm happier that Fabio is champion rather than Marc again, because it's new. »
Do you think this weekend is a pivotal weekend for you, one that you can rely on to work for next year?
« The result is very good. Maybe not much work for next year, but it gives good momentum for the next two races, so the last two. I'm happy with that! We see that today it was still special conditions, because I showed consistency but those who managed to go faster were a little more limited, since there was a fall. So I was happy to hold on and have the great gift of this fifth place at the end. Already, finding pleasure at the end of the race and leaving with a smile at home, it brings this good energy for the next one in Portimão. »
We imagine that Fabio Quartararo's title is a huge thing for the entire French paddock...
« It's huge, yes! MotoGP is the best category: It's the Formula 1 of motorcycles, and we have a French World Champion. And that’s great! So we have to take advantage of that, and as I said in English, it's better that it's a Frenchman, even if it's not me, like for example Márquez for a 9th or 10th time, I don't know anymore how many titles he has. I too want to win, but we must also take advantage and salute this performance. It's unique, so it's better to share your happiness too, and for France it's great: It will talk about motorcycles and it will make young people dream. This winter, for the federation, we are starting to give back this taste and a good example for the youngest. We're not going to immediately create sectors like Spain and Italy, but at least we have something to dream about, and that's good. »
As a witness, how did you see Fabio's rise to power and the breakthrough he had in MotoGP?
« In my opinion, it's extremely interesting, because he really is the school of precocity: Very, very strong, very young, ultra gifted, he feels the thing and he's suddenly a rising star: He arrived in the Grand Prix at 15 years old, while the rule is 16 years old, because he won the Spanish championship at 14 years old. It goes against the new rules to be able to reach more maturity before being able to start the world championship. So it's the example of precocity, and so precocious that... He was already a rising star, then we say "That's it, Leopard is getting a big head." “He’s not going to make it anymore” because he didn’t have time to confirm things, and then he moved to Moto2. He learns in Moto2 where sometimes he struggles 20th and sometimes he wins, so things are almost hard to understand. And he gets this opportunity from MotoGP, and MotoGP gave him a feeling that he didn't have in Moto2, because Moto2 is about compromise while MotoGP is "all in". That's a bit like the two definitions of the categories. I found the compromise, I had my two titles, but I have difficulty going “all in” in MotoGP. Afterwards, there are also other things in my career which have meant that I have not yet won, but he who was more of the impulsive and “all in” type, it worked on the Yamaha. And from there, the big lesson in maturity, for him, is from last year to this year. This year, there were zero errors, and that’s great! So that makes a world champion. »
Results of the Emilia-Romagna MotoGP Grand Prix in Misano:
Credit Ranking: motogp.com
