MotoGP | Gp Jerez Race: Morbidelli, “There was a drop in the tires”

MotoGP Gp Jerez Petronas Yamaha Race – Franco Morbidelli, after having hit the front row of the MotoGP Spanish Grand Prix yesterday, finished the race in seventh position. “Soft” started well, he lost grip as the laps went by and this factor slowed him down. However, he is the first rider of an independent team, so he has the say.

“With this seventh position we concluded a good weekend. We were very fast at the start of the race and I felt good and comfortable with the pace of the leaders. I felt comfortable with the tyres, even though I had to slow down as the laps went by. In the end, we managed the tires well, so in the last laps we had the chance to fight for first “Independent Rider”. It's the first time we've achieved this, so it's a positive thing. This is a good result for us and shows that we are improving every day. Now we will try to do a good job in tomorrow's test to be as prepared as possible for Le Mans.”

Pole man Fabio Quartararo's race was more unlucky, as he had to retire due to a problem with the gear lever while he was in second position.

“You could say I'm both disappointed and happy. The race was very good; I felt very good with the bike and it was fantastic to ride with the best riders. That was until we suffered a small mechanical problem with the gear lever. It's something very small, but it affected us a lot, forcing us to abandon the race – said Fabio Quartararo – Despite this, I am happy with the work we did during the weekend and we will continue in the same way in the next races. The whole team did an exceptional job, but in this sport there are things you can't control. As we did in Qatar, we will take away the positives, there were many in this GP. Before the start of the season, none of us expected to fight for the podium and get a pole position in the fourth race of the year, so we must be happy with the work done.”