Misano MotoGP Day One Quotes / Images / All riders
Pol Espargaro – P1
“It’s a great feeling to end the day in first, even if it is just the beginning of the weekend and with the plans that we have for tomorrow, we hope to continue progressing. Today the bike ran really well and I felt very comfortable on it at the Misano circuit. In addition, the tyres that Michelin brought here have allowed me to ride my Yamaha more in a way that I want to. The rear hard compound has a lot of grip and performed well whilst braking. The end result is a small trophy but the important work starts tomorrow, so tonight we will check some data to improve a bit because there is not much of a gap between the other riders. Another positive from today is that my physical condition after the nasty crash in Silverstone is not affecting my riding whilst on track. Therefore, I look forward to getting back on the Yamaha and I will do my absolute best to get a solid grid position for Sunday’s race.”
Dani Pedrosa – P2
“We’ve started in a positive way and I’m obviously very happy. It will be important to remain totally focused for tomorrow. Luckily we had the chance to try almost all the tyre specs, as the track conditions were ideal—very grippy. In the test after the Brno race, we made a small change in the setting, which I liked. We have continued working in that direction, not making too many changes, first in Silverstone and now here. We’re gaining some confidence step by step, and now we must continue like this, keeping a good pace and making the right tyre choice for the race.”
Andrea Dovizioso – P3
“I am satisfied with how we worked today, and the fact that in the afternoon we made a good step forward. We started off by doing some tyre and set-up tests and we always improved our times, and this is always important. We are in line with the quickest riders but I think that tomorrow we will have to improve even further, in order to stay with the top guys, and so we’ll focus on these final details.”
Jorge Lorenzo – P4
“I’m very happy because finally, after a long while, I feel comfortable again with the bike’s setting and I can ride like I want and keep up a constant pace. We decided to change the front and rear tyre really quickly during the practice, so we didn’t have the advantage to put in a new tyre at the end of the session like the rest of the riders. Because of that we couldn’t be a little bit faster, but anyway I had a good pace and good feelings. Let’s try to make another step tomorrow.”
Marc Marquez – P5
“I’m happy with how the day went overall. I think we worked pretty well and we’ve tried out almost every tyre as we didn’t want to make the same mistake we made in Silverstone. In the morning I had a strange feeling with some different front tyres; I pushed the front in a slow corner and lost it, although I was already looking for the limit at that point. Honestly we’ve suffered less than we had initially expected; in fact, I was able to be among the fastest riders and I think that if we continue to work well we can have a good weekend”.
Valentino Rossi – P6
“We started very well this morning. With the cooler temperatures this morning I was stronger, but in the afternoon we suffered a bit more, like more or less everybody else, and it became more difficult. We have a lot of work to do because we are a bit on the limit with the front tyre, so we need to try to find the right balance, also considering that the race will be very long.”
Massimo Meregalli – Yamaha Team Director
“We’ve made a good start to the weekend today. Jorge quickly found a good basis setting and he carried good speed throughout the two sessions. He could have been even faster if he had changed the tyres later on in the FP2 session. Vale had a solid start to the weekend, topping FP1, but with the temperature rising in the afternoon he suffered from front closing, especially in the fastest sector of the track. We have collected enough data for our engineers to take counter-measures and perfect the setting for tomorrow.’
Cal Crutchlow – P7
“Today wasn’t so bad to be honest, we worked hard with the setting of the bike and we tried both the medium front and the new harder option. I didn’t have a great feeling with either really, but the bike is still working ok. We’re happy enough with certain things on the bike, but not so happy in other areas which is where we need to work. I had a really strange, small crash which having looked at the data we know why. It’s something typical of this year’s Honda, overheating the front tyre under braking and being unable to turn the bike. I’m looking forward to tomorrow, there’s still lots of work to be done, but I think we can do a good job this weekend now.”
Scott Redding – P8
“The feeling was not bad in the morning and in the afternoon, especially on the front where we usually have a bit more difficulties. In the end, we put the soft tire to set the time and things did not go badly. The feeling is that there is still much room for improvement, that is why I am satisfied. The problem of the FP1? Nothing in particular, things that can happen. We lapped a lot with that engine.”
Hector Barbera – P9
“After the difficult weekend at Silverstone, today I recovered the feeling. We went back with the set up of the bike, and we used the one that we were using before UK, because last weekend we lost the way. But today we made a good start and although everything is tight, we managed to be in the top ten in both sessions. This is quite important. I think that tomorrow it will be possible to improve even more, but everybody is pushing hard and at this track two tenths make all the difference. We started with the right foot and this is important. Tomorrow my aim is to get in Q2, but t will be crucial to work for the race during FP4, because Sunday is race day and I want to get a strong result.”
Maverick Viñales – P10
“I’m happy with today because we did a very good job, we are utilising the information we collected from the test in Brno and we decided to focus on the pace to finalise the base set-up for the race. Especially in the afternoon I worked mostly with the hard tyre and I felt confident, we improved a lot and also covered the race distance, in the top-10; which means we have a good potential. Also some of my best laps were cancelled for exceeding the track limit, the truth is that it’s just the exit of a corner where you go on the curb that has been changed this year, but everybody has the same problem and we must adapt to it. I also tried a time attack with the soft tyre in the last run but I didn’t feel confident, so we need more time to try it and adapt the set-up. Maybe if I had more time with the soft I could have improved my lap-time also, but this was not our priority for today. The job we’ve done leaves me confident that we are in good a condition for the race and tomorrow we’ll be able to focus on the time attack.”
Aleix Espargaró – P11
“My feeling today was positive, we did many improvements and I found a positive efficiency. We are not so good in the classification but we worked hard on the pace and this is a very important job we’ve done in preparation for the race. The feeling with the new tyre is good, but we still need to better-understand it in order to exploit it better. We wanted to also check the performance with the drop of the tyres, our consistency on the pace is good, we have room for improvement, but the actual point is not bad. Also the temperature of the circuit will be important, it rises a lot in the afternoon and so we have so much of a difference in performance between morning and afternoon.”
Davide Brivio – Suzuki Team Manager
“The final classification doesn’t show how positive our day was. With race configuration we did a good performance and with both riders we developed a good base set-up. Tomorrow we will work on all information we gathered today, and finalise the best package, but we are pretty happy with the job we’ve done. We will exploit this hard work tomorrow for the attack to Q2 to get a good place in classification. This was an approach we have decided to use, focusing on the pace before looking for the fastest lap, and hopefully this strategy will pay back tomorrow.”
Danilo Petrucci – P12
“Honestly we were struck by the fact that the hard rear tire did not work. This has caused us difficulties as we can not use it in the best way. We put the soft tire during the last three laps but there was no time to be effective. I am confident: I like riding here. We are suffering from the comparison with the factory bikes in the last few GP. But here I think we can get closer.”
Alvaro Bautista – P13
“We started off well. Even this morning in the first session, I finished a second behind the top time without ever changing the tyres. In the afternoon we decided to try a new frame setting, partially because we conducted two days of testing here, so we have plenty of information to work with. We found several positive things with this new configuration. There are a few aspects that need to be improved, but in general we were quite satisfied. Then, in the afternoon we had the best lap we have ever done with the RS-GP, so we can say that the day went very well. Tomorrow we will try to improve on those aspects that are still not perfectly fine tuned with this new setting in order to gain a few more tenths.”
Michele Pirro – P14
“We are not every pleased with today’s performance, but we focussed on a few important tests in view of the race. We picked up some good information and I think that tomorrow it will be possible to make a considerable step forward. The team is working well and I’ll do my best to improve our position tomorrow.”
Stefan Bradl – P15
“A day of ups and downs. This morning we had a very good FP1 session. Unfortunately, in FP2 after a rather fast first run I crashed on turn 14. Consequently, I had to use the second bike for a few laps with a different chassis configuration while my mechanics fixed the first one. When I got back on the track, I was unable to find the right pace in the last part of the session. A pity, because we could have kept improving, but I am confident for tomorrow that we are moving in the right direction”.
Jack Miller – P16
“I felt great this morning and the bike was really comfortable to ride. I was really happy and I felt inside my comfort zone when I did my best lap in FP1. But it was a completely different story this afternoon and I couldn’t even get close to my best lap time even though it felt like I was pushing like crazy. I just didn’t feel comfortable. The track temperature increased by around 20 degrees and it completely transformed the performance of the bike. It is a big disappointment and I’ve got to look through the data tonight to come up with a solution for FP4 and qualifying tomorrow when it will be hot again.”
Alex Lowes – P17
“I have really enjoyed my first day on the YZR-M1 at Misano and I feel that we are certainly making steps forward. In all honesty, riding this bike at this track is fantastic, plus it’s so different to the other motorcycles that I have used here and I mean that in a very positive way. I am increasing my knowledge and the faster I go, the more I have to change my style step by step, but I think we are getting closer to the mid-pack riders. The good thing is, I know what I have to do to advance which is improve my smoothness on the bike in terms of body position, plus I also need to keep building my confidence on corner entry. With a good rest tonight, I will be able to digest all the new information which will set me up for tomorrow’s qualifying. All in all, I have to say that I really liked riding the Yamaha at another track and the sun was shining too which is always good, so I am fired up for the rest of the weekend.”
Eugene Laverty – P18
“It has been a mixed first day, on the one hand I am disappointed with the first session because a crash halfway through made our work more difficult, but at the same time I am happy with the afternoon session. We worked with old tyres and set some good lap times. I wanted to focus our work in this direction and then we can use some fresh rubber tomorrow to try and make it into Q2. The crash was just because of a cold tyre – I was on my out lap and trying to be careful but wasn’t careful enough. With regard to the tyre choices we have here, the softs work better but we need to keep the temperature in them to make them work.”
Andrea Iannone – P19
“On the fifth lap of FP1 I lost the front at Turn 13, crashed and began to roll in the gravel. Unfortunately I suffered a compression on my back and the checks showed that the T3 vertebra was cracked. The doctors decided to check me again tomorrow morning, before giving me the OK for the race: I hope to get some rest tonight and wake up without being in too much pain, because I am really keen on racing here at Misano.”
Yonny Hernández – P20
“We have made some progress with the electronics but still have a problem with the gearing. We are fast through the first two sectors but still need to work on the third and fourth, which is where we lose time. We know what we need to improve, which is the positive thing from today, so hopefully we can be a little closer to the front tomorrow. I would like to be fighting for a place in Q2 tomorrow and for a top ten finish on Sunday. The tyres Michelin have brought here are obviously harder but the hot conditions are good for me. I haven’t had any issues with them but we won’t decide which to use until tomorrow.”
Tito Rabat – P21
“I had a few issues with front feeling this morning and I was lucky to escape without injury after the fast crash at turn 13. The hotter conditions this afternoon made the track very difficult and unfortunately I had another crash. After that it was difficult for me to recover my confidence, but when the situation is complicated like now all you can do is remain motivated and keep pushing on track. I improved my pace at the end of FP2 but clearly it is not enough. I am giving my all and so is my crew, so it is difficult to understand what more we can do. But I will keep trying and be as best prepared as I can for the race on Sunday.”
Xavi Forés – P22
“I enjoyed the day, but it has been more difficult than I expected. Everything is different compared to the bike I’m used to ride. The bike is much more powerful, stiffer and smaller, and the brakes are very different… To be honest I’m struggling to get adapted, but the main thing is that I managed to improve in every exit. It was important to spend time on the track and accumulate some kilometres to get used to the bike. I also was able to watch other riders and learn from their lines. Today was a learning day. From the morning to the afternoon I’ve improved almost 1.5s, and this was my highlight today. My target is to finish the weekend with less than 2 seconds gap to the fastest lap, but overall I want to enjoy and make a good race for the team.”
Michael Bartholemy – Marc VDS Team Principal
“This morning was actually a decent start with Jack competitive and not far off top six pace, so we went into the second session confident that he could be challenging for the top 10 again. But as the temperature rose for FP2 it was obvious that he encountered some problems, particularly with the front tyre. We are struggling a little bit to find a direction with the new front tyre options that are available this weekend, so we have to work hard to find a solution tomorrow. Tito had a couple of crashes today that inevitably dented his confidence and I was happy to see him continue to push and improve his pace to set a respectable lap time.”
