Ranked 15th, 7 tenths behind his teammate at the end of this first day of MotoGP testing in Jerez, rookie Fabio Quartararo told us his impressions on his 3rd day in MotoGP.
fabio quartararo : “the first laps were complicated because it was the first time in MotoGP on this circuit, and we started with the most powerful map. I was really having trouble controlling the bike. On the back straight, the front wheel was just landing before I had to brake. This is where we said we needed to reduce the power a little. Then we put on a new tire and it was much better, even if, with my worn tire, I had set my best time after 27 laps. The new tire allowed me to immediately do a step of one second and that's where we felt much better. I managed to keep pace with the tire, and when we put a new tire on, I improved by a second. For me, I think it was a positive day where we improved the braking and entry zones. But we have to look with my data guy where we need to improve compared to Morbidelli.”
In Valencia, you were impressed by the braking. Here, is it more power?
“Yes, because in fact in Valencia we have a little time to stay in the bubble before braking. There, as soon as you come out of the bend, you go to the right then you go back to the left and you already have to brake. We have no reaction time and that's where we see that, compared to Moto2, the straights are super short. They look much smaller.”
We saw you following Mir at one point. Did this help you?
“It helped me a little bit, because he was on new tires and I was on worn tires. There were places where he took a lot from me and places where I took back a little bit. But in the end it helped me and I think tomorrow we will try to find a wheel when I have a new tire.”
What is your program for tomorrow?
“It's pretty much the same as today: adapting more and more, trying a few little tricks on the bike that I don't know exactly, but of course we're going to try to keep a good pace, which is the most important thing, and try to do a good lap.”
Are you going to do a racing simulation?
" No. We will do short runs but we will keep the worn tire.”
When you arrived this morning, did you feel a little more at home on the bike than in Valencia?
" Yes it's sure. As soon as I got on the bike for the first few laps, I knew that when I braked I would have this reaction, when I put the bike down it was this reaction, etc. So I already felt more on my bike.”
MotoGP test ranking in Jerez J.1:
Classification credit: MotoGP.com
