They say that happy men have no history. This is not always true but, this evening in Qatar, Johann Zarco did not extend himself too much to the journalists. A happy man, no doubt he is, but as we know him, he must also have been in a hurry to return to work in his cubicle with Guy Coulon...
Here are his full statements at the end of FP3. (You can find those concerning FP1 here)
How did it go today, compared to your problem of making the most of the soft rear tire?
Johann zarco : " It was better. Since day one, the feeling has been good and I was also able to watch videos to try to understand what Maverick was doing. He rides the Yamaha really well and I tried to understand how, because he moves well on the bike. And confidence came. In FP2 and FP3, we used a soft tire because we wanted to always be in the top 10, just in case, to maintain our place in Q2. As the feeling at the front improved, even on worn tires, it helped me to attack from the first lap on the soft tire. This afternoon, in FP3, we even worked more with the worn tire. It was not easy but the feeling improved even if the times were not very fast, then we put the soft tire and I was also lucky because I did my first lap and when I I had to attack, Maverick was right in front of me. So the one I want to learn from was right there, with fresh tires, just like me, and I was very happy to be able to follow him well to be able to understand where I was losing time, and where I was at a loss. easy. So it was a perfect lesson this evening, and also good in terms of the times which allowed me to be in Q2. ”
Can you say where you learned from him?
”The thing I was able to learn is that ultimately I'm not that bad at cornering (laughs) because I thought I could always do better and better, but when I followed it, I since turns were not my weak point. Now, with the bike, I'm comfortable turning well, and maybe when exiting corners, it can better control the power with the electronics, the traction with the suspensions, but it's the beginning of the work we do with the team. Today went well and we have to work on it because we have all the elements in hand to find a solution. ”
Tell us about these free trials…
”It was very good to do tests 15 days before and I was able to very quickly take the references on the track. Then the confidence grew over the laps; I analyzed my opponents well, this gave me confidence to progress on my side, and there, for the last timed free session, I am really delighted to have improved the time, like that, it directly qualifies me for the QP2, which is the most important qualification. So I'm delighted to have done a good job and to still have a vision of progress, whether it's this weekend or for the future. ”
If you follow our full transcriptions of the French pilot's remarks, you will no doubt have already noticed that his successive remarks no longer leave much doubt as to his objective: to progress with his teammate to catch up with Maverick Vinales...
FP3 ranking compiled by our friends at crash.net:
1. Maverick Viñales ESP Movistar Yamaha MotoGP (YZR-M1) 1m 54.834s [Lap 17/17] 340km/h (Top Speed)
2. Andrea Iannone ITA Team Suzuki Ecstar (GSX-RR) 1m 54.848s +0.014s [16/17] 338km/h
3. Johann Zarco FRA Monster Yamaha Tech 3 (YZR-M1)* 1m 55.008s +0.174s [15/17] 341km/h
4. Andrea Dovizioso ITA Ducati Team (Desmosedici GP17) 1m 55.042s +0.208s [13/15] 348km/h
5. Dani Pedrosa ESP Repsol Honda Team (RC213V) 1m 55.113s +0.279s [15/16] 344km/h
6. Cal Crutchlow GBR LCR Honda (RC213V) 1m 55.211s +0.377s [15/16] 340km/h
7. Marc Marquez ESP Repsol Honda Team (RC213V) 1m 55.296s +0.462s [14/15] 343km/h
8. Danilo Petrucci ITA Octo Pramac Racing (Desmosedici GP17) 1m 55.435s +0.601s [15/16] 345km/h
9. Jorge Lorenzo ESP Ducati Team (Desmosedici GP17) 1m 55.461s +0.627s [14/15] 349km/h
10. Aleix Espargaro ESP Factory Aprilia Gresini (RS-GP) 1m 55.634s +0.800s [16/16] 345km/h
11. Alvaro Bautista ESP Aspar MotoGP Team (Desmosedici GP16) 1m 55.676s +0.842s [17/17] 347km/h
12. Jonas Folger GER Monster Yamaha Tech 3 (YZR-M1)* 1m 55.713s +0.879s [13/14] 338km/h
13. Valentino Rossi ITA Movistar Yamaha MotoGP (YZR-M1) 1m 55.790s +0.956s [15/15] 343km/h
14. Karel Abraham CZE Aspar MotoGP Team (Desmosedici GP15) 1m 56.095s +1.261s [14/16] 346km/h
15. Alex Rins ESP Team Suzuki Ecstar (GSX-RR)* 1m 56.249s +1.415s [16/17] 341km/h
16. Tito Rabat ESP Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS (RC213V) 1m 56.617s +1.783s [14/15] 340km/h
17. Scott Redding GBR Octo Pramac Racing (Desmosedici GP16) 1m 56.662s +1.828s [9/14] 343km/h
18. Jack Miller AUS Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS (RC213V) 1m 56.692s +1.858s [14/17] 342km/h
19. Sam Lowes GBR Factory Aprilia Gresini (RS-GP)* 1m 56.854s +2.020s [11/13] 336km/h
20. Loris Baz FRA Reale Avintia Racing (Desmosedici GP15) 1m 56.935s +2.101s [4/15] 338km/h
21. Hector Barbera ESP Reale Avintia Racing (Desmosedici GP16) 1m 57.005s +2.171s [12/12] 346km/h
22. Pol Espargaro ESP Red Bull KTM Factory Racing (RC16) 1m 57.630s +2.796s [15/17] 340km/h
23. Bradley Smith GBR Red Bull KTM Factory Racing (RC16) 1m 57.654s +2.820s [10/18] 337km/h
