On this Sunday, June 27, 2021, John Zarco answered questions from journalists from the Assen circuit, following the Dutch Grand Prix which he finished in 4th position after a solid race and contact with Álex Rins.
We went to listen (via teleconferencing software) to the words of the French driver who still occupies second place in the championship, 34 points behind fabio quartararo.
As usual, we report here the words of John Zarco without any formatting (vouvoiement for questions in English and informality for questions in French).
Today, we are publishing his words in French after the first part translated from English.
What is the Ducati missing to be able to stay with the Yamahas?
Johann zarco : " I think the Ducati really doesn't miss much, but on this circuit it was probably missing more, because we had Fabio and Viñales who were really strong. But I find that ultimately he's not lacking that much, and Fabio's strength since the start of the year is still great confidence in the bike and its potential. You see in his driving that he has no hesitation and he goes there with complete confidence! These are things that I miss. These are things that come little by little, which take a little time, but clearly as long as I resist and I make an effort, I tell myself that little by little it will unlock. I want it to unlock faster, but almost, by obtaining the level of confidence that Fabio currently has, for me it can already become much more efficient on the bike that we have, throughout the weekend- end until the race. So there you have it, it's not just the bike, in my opinion there is also a level of confidence which allows him to do great things. »
In what psychological and physical state are you finishing this first part of the season?
« I finished happy! It's really a nice relief to end the first part of the season with a nice race before the break, because clearly it's a nice race that I was able to do here. It’s all good because, frankly, second is great! So happy, and physically it was hard here but it's not an accumulation of physical fatigue from this first half: it's simply that over the weekend, it was difficult and you had to be very concentrated to be able to face this race duration, 40 minutes of racing straight away. I'm glad I was able to concentrate enough. »
What will it take to beat Fabio or are you already starting to look back?
« It's better to look ahead, to continue to move forward very well. And as I did a little in this race: Opting for the podium I thought about being able to get it by following Maverick, trying to stay in contact with Mir at the end, and in the calculation it finally made me take points on everyone who follows me, even if I lose points on Fabio. So there you have it, the strategy of continuing to look ahead always helps you move forward. And take stock of everything I was able to learn in terms of sensations in this first half: If I manage to apply them quickly in the second half from free practice, it will play out in the first three, like Fabio does. He doesn't leave the top three from FP1, and when you have that speed, you see that it gives you a margin in the race. »
In your assessment of the first half of the championship, what are you very happy with and what are you a little less happy with?
« Happy as hell to move up from second positions, not in a mess but I still did a lot. And in the championship, when you take 20 points, it's all good, it's great! Happy to be second, to have led the championship after Qatar, to have lost places after Portugal and to have clawed back with Le Mans, Barcelona, even Mugello it was still a great race. So happy! I was a little more worried about the control of the bike, about how to work during the weekend after the Sachsenring race, because the second half of the race was really difficult. And it was great to continue with a weekend on a very different track, where I still learned things, but where clearly I even believe that we had more difficulties here than at the Sachsenring, and yet the result was better here. That's why it's a great satisfaction and a real motivation, this work of confidence, to be able to feel my bike while I don't yet have enough natural sensations on it. But the more these sensations come naturally, the better it will be. »
What do you expect from the next two races in Austria, on a circuit where Ducati has only won one victory? Can we hope for a second one?
« That would be great ! Especially since Ducati is performing well, Bagnaia, Miller and me, and even Martin because he will have a slightly longer break and no doubt he can find this good confidence over two weekends on a track that he likes and where he had been very fast in Moto2. That's it, but you shouldn't expect it to be easy, because as I already answered a little, MotoGP, if you don't prepare yourself mentally to really commit to the max, ultimately you don't get much out of a MotoGP. And this maximum of the maximum, in Spielberg, must make us win because the track, as we know, must turn to our advantage. »
Viñales' situation at Yamaha is a little reminiscent of the crisis you experienced at KTM. Do you think he might have something to gain by leaving Yamaha?
« Difficult to say, but I left KTM when I wasn't on the podium and I wasn't taking pole positions. So he clearly doesn't realize how lucky he is. »
Standings for the Dutch MotoGP Grand Prix at TT Assen:
Classification and photo credit: MotoGP.com
