MotoGP Riders speak on Valencia MotoGP
Jorge Lorenzo – P1 – “There was a lot of pressure, especially at the end of the race, because I had been pushing all the time and I was quite tired from pushing so much. Dani recovered so much time and so many metres. He was at 0.5s at the middle of the race and he recovered everything, so I knew I had two riders behind me and that, if they overtook me, I would lose the championship, so it was a very difficult situation. I also felt that the right side of the tyre was destroyed, I was moving so much and I had to go very slowly entering right corners, so I couldn’t keep the 1’31-high up and it became 1’32-low. I also couldn’t see the pit board or how many laps there were left to the end. On the last lap I passed the last corner and saw the chequered flag and I couldn’t believe that I won the race and the championship in the last moment. It’s such a relaxing and enjoyable moment. I was crying on the honour lap, it’s such a fantastic day for us. I equal Wayne Rainey, I equal Kenny Roberts Sr, I equal Ayrton Senna in the motorsport world with these three premier class World Titles, it’s unbelievable! We have to enjoy this day, this week, because you can’t often live this emotion.
“I’ve ridden with Valentino, Marc, Casey and Dani on the track. For me these are the best riders in the 21st century. The first championship title is the first one and thus very special, but to be in the championship with these four legends on track was very important to me. I was always behind in the championship recovering points and it’s a special moment in the last race to become champion, so the championship couldn’t have had a more emotional ending.
“I don’t want to think about 2016 now. We will see later during the test, or after the test. Now I just want to enjoy it with the team like crazy, to feel this moment completely with no end, because it’s not easy to repeat and it’s not easy to become champion again. We have to enjoy it completely now, tonight, this week, next week, this is for sure!
“I was giving everything I have, the rhythm was very low, but I didn’t give up. I knew the importance to put everything on the track and I did, like with yesterday’s pole position.”
Marc Marquez – P2 – “It was a very difficult race. I came out focused, as usual, and initially Jorge pushed strongly. I found it hard to follow him, and at that time Dani was two seconds off us. There were a few laps in which I was really on the limit, forcing the front tyre – which moved around a lot. With about six laps to go, I felt that we could win because I had caught up to Jorge. I did not expect Dani to come through so quickly, and when he passed me he ran wide. I used that to pass him back but Jorge had escaped by half a second making it impossible to recover the gap, even though I rode the last lap and the entire race at 100%.”
Dani Pedrosa – P3 – “I’m very happy and I enjoyed the race – especially in the final part! I was a little bit distant from the battle in third. I couldn’t find the way to go faster because I had problems when braking and cornering; it’s been hard for us to find a good setup for the bike this weekend and I was able to be up at the front but without a good feeling. During the race I tried to counter this, but it was difficult. In the end I found the way to be faster and I was able to ride better and recover ground. When I caught up I saw that there were two laps remaining and I tried to attack, but when I overtook Marc I ran wide and he returned the pass. I am happy because what I can take from here – as well as the third place in the race and fourth in the Championship – is the attitude and the progress we have made in the final part of the season. We’ve been very strong and I hope that we can continue that this winter and next year.”
Valentino Rossi – P4 – “We built this season from the first race and it was a great season, I was always competitive and I never made any mistakes. I thought after Motegi that I had the potential to win the championship, but unfortunately from the race at Phillip Island something changed.”
NB: Rossi had more to say here, and HRC responded to refute his allegations against Marquez
Pol Espargaro – P5 – “Finally, I am pleased with the result and I’m happy to end the season like this. It was a good GP and I completed the race just behind the factory riders so we can’t complain, plus it’s a really positive feeling to close the year in this way. We had to face some difficulties during the season but we worked hard and it seems that we found a solution for some of them here. I was struggling a bit with the front tyre when running on full fuel load. However, in the race, as soon as the fuel level decreased and the laps passed by, I found my rhythm and in the end, I managed to overtake Dovizioso even though the Ducati is a beast on the straight! I passed him a few times and initially it seemed that I couldn’t open a gap, but I was finally able to post a series of rapid lap times which enabled me to escape and then ride comfortably until the end of the GP. It has been a tough year and probably one of the most disappointing ones in the World Championship for me. We weren’t able to make the most out of all of the races and it goes without saying that it was quite frustrating at times. Yet, the team has always been behind me and has given me a lot of support. We have a good feeling internally which we kept even during the difficult times and this is the most important thing. Of course, we may have had a few disagreements, but this is what happens when you want to grow and improve. So I must say thanks to them for always supporting me, and now, we will try to advance next year. I hope all of the bad luck that we had this season won’t repeat itself in 2016 and I am sure we can have a strong year together.”
Bradley Smith – P6 – “It has been a fantastic season and almost perfect after completing all of the 18 rounds, even though I’m a bit disappointed to miss out on our target of finishing as the leading satellite rider today. However, I can’t be hard on myself as I ended up in the top six and I collected a total of 181 points over the year. I am very proud of this, but I am especially pleased with my performance in the second half of the season. In all honesty, after the summer break I think I made another step forward with my qualifying as well as some of my race performances. Anyway, this track wasn’t easy for me and we struggled a bit all weekend, but to be there fighting in the second group was satisfying. We have to look back on all of the ups and downs of the year and then improve on the negatives because we have to do a better job next season. In this sport, you can’t just stay at the same level, so we need to see how we can make another step forward. 2016 will be a new challenge and experience, but I’m already very excited to begin on Tuesday at the test. I’m also looking forward to a bit of a rest as it’s been a demanding year with all of the work that we’ve been doing for MotoGP, plus the Suzuka 8 Hours as well. I want to give a big thanks to all of the team who did a fantastic job. Although I didn’t make any mistakes, they didn’t either with their jobs and to make a Yamaha YZR-M1 work for 18 races without any issues, highlights the great job they have done. I am proud of everyone at Tech3 and thank you to all. In addition, I also want to say thanks to Bridgestone for all of their support and it has been fantastic for me towork with them for the past three years. They have done a tremendous job and for every season that I have been in MotoGP, they have upped their performance continuously, especially this year. It would have been easy to just roll out and enjoy the season, but they came with even better material and they’ve set the level very high in MotoGP.”
Andrea Dovizioso – P7 – “Obviously I cannot be satisfied with today’s result, because I am not riding the way I want and am unable to get the best potential from the bike. Some of the characteristics of the GP15 make it difficult for me to make the difference, and so I hope that we will manage to make the right modifications next year, taking advantage of next season’s regulation changes.”
Aleix Espargaro – P8 – “It’s a pity that we had some troubles with the rear tyre, it was destroyed in the last part of the race and this prevented me keeping the good pace I was lapping with. I had a good start, I kept contact with fourth place and tried many times to overtake, but he overtook me on the straight, it was impossible to get ahead. Then in the second half of the race, the tyre was performing poorly and I couldn’t fight to keep the sixth place. I’m disappointed, but at least we ended up in the points. Now we have a long winter to work and improve the machine, because the improvements we have made throughout the year were not enough and not what I was expecting. We have fought hard to stay in the top 10 but we need to improve a lot. The positive thing is that now we have one year of experience that can be exploited for next season; we have references and data for all tracks and this will make our job easier.”
Cal Crutchlow – P9 – “We had to start from the back of the grid because of a safety concern with my other bike. I changed bikes and then had to be patient on the first lap as I had no heat in the tyres because I had to do the warm-up lap behind the safety car. So I wasn’t able to push and I only made up three places in three laps and that made it really difficult to come back through the field. But honestly I was really pleased with my pace once I got going after ten laps and it probably would have been good enough for fourth place today. It was disappointing not to be able to do that and be there, but my bike has not let me down all year and it was just unfortunate we had to start from the back of the grid today. I think it was an average year for me, but when I took the decision to stay where I am for the next two years continuity was key. I think with some new parts next year we can be back where we belong challenging for podiums and I’m looking forward to that and am grateful for the faith they have shown in me.”
Maverick Vinales – P11 – “I’m a little disappointed because I made a positive start but in the second corner someone pushed me out and I got wide, losing positions. When I could make my own pace, I proved to be as fast as the riders lapping in fifth-to-seventh positions. At the end I could get some points and finish the season in a positive position; we were expecting something more but we have learnt a lot. The season has been positive and without the two crashes I had, we could have placed in the top-10, so we are positive for the next year. Now we need to focus on the next season, we already know the main weakness points and we have much more information from this year. ”
Michele Pirro – P12 – “In the end I am a bit disappointed, because I rode well especially at the start, but then I struggled a bit and lost contact with the second group where there was also Dovizioso. However I tried to do my best and bring home some useful indications for the team, even though this is the last time we used the Bridgestone tyres. I want to thank Ducati for giving me this opportunity as well as all the guys in Ducati Corse for their great commitment. From Tuesday onwards we will start working again to try and make the Desmosedici even more competitive next year.”
Alvaro Bautista – P14 – “I got off the line well, moving up several positions, and then I tried to manage the tyres in order to finish well. With a full tank I struggled a bit because I kept losing the front end when I tried to brake hard. As the laps went by the problem decreased and I was able to find my pace, even overtaking Stefan who had a similar pace but who was slower than me in a few points. I’m pleased to finish out such a demanding season this way. We finished all the races – except for Qatar but that wasn’t our fault – and this is very important. Throughout the year we improved a lot and for that I would like to thank Aprilia and the entire team, because we worked very well together. Now we need to focus on the new season to keep improving and to be more competitive.”
Scott Redding – P15 – “This weekend has been the most difficult one of the season and we don’t really know why, we just struggled with a lack of grip and a lack of feeling. To be honest, I’m not happy with the result, but it could have been worse. From the start I didn’t have any front grip and the bike was skidding a lot under braking. I was missing rear traction as well and I had accepted it was going to be a long old race. But then halfway through the bike came to me and I was able to push a bit more. The lap times were improving with every lap and I was able to regain positions in the last ten laps. My goal, as always, was top ten, but it was a big ask this weekend because we’ve had a lot of difficulties since the first practice session. It wasn’t the race I was looking for, but it also wasn’t as bad as I thought it might be. Now it’s done and I must look to the future, but I’d like to say a big thank you to Marc van der Straten and the team for their support this season.”
Nicky Hayden – P17 – “The start was really good. The first few laps weren’t too bad, I lost a couple of positions but the bike was working good and I was racing with guys that had been faster than me most of the weekend. Things weren’t going so bad, I was really working hard on the brakes and asking a lot of the front tyre but I was getting away with it and the bike stayed consistent. Unfortunately I was’t able to get into the 32s, which I wanted to and needed to, and then the last five or six laps I felt a big drop on the right side of the tyre. The left side was incredibly consistent but the right side felt like it maybe had some cold tears in it, maybe it didn’t keep the temperature with the slightly cooler track today. It wasn’t spinning so much but entry grip got bad and then it was disappointing with three laps to go to see Barbera come past me on the front straightaway on the inside and then on the next lap Redding came past me on the outside. I’m not happy to lose those positions, although I did manage to get one back on the last lap on Bradl, which was nice. It would have been nice to be first Open today, we managed it for 27 laps but that’s why you’ve got to do all 30! It’s been a great ride to be a part of the MotoGP tour for the last thirteen years and to win a world title. For me as kid growing up at the end of a gravel road in Kentucky proves that with the right attitude and support you can turn your dreams into reality. Thanks for the memories!”
Stefan Bradl – P18 – “It’s a shame because throughout the entire weekend we were fast and we prepared well for the race, but unfortunately today we were unable to repeat our performance from practice. I didn’t feel comfortable braking. I struggled to stop the bike and I was forced to use the rear brake a lot, so I stressed the rear tyre too much. That meant that in the last five laps I didn’t have any more grip and I dropped back quite a few positions, which I was very disappointed about.”
Loris Baz – P19 – “It was a difficult race. Unfortunately since the first laps I struggled to find the right confidence with the rear and was not able to keep the pace of the other Open bikes. I had little grip, but I was able to reach the finish line. Too bad for not being able to win the Open title, we were close to the top of the category for much of the season, but at the end I lost something. Overall I can say I’m happy with this first rookie season: I struggled at the start, but I continued to work hard and thanks to all the team I achieved my goals ahead of schedule”.
Toni Elias – P20 – “A difficult season is over for me: I did not have a bike but with the team I had the chance to return to MotoGP. I’m happy and I want to thank Giovanni and Forward Racing for this beautiful opportunity which opens new perspectives. Compared with the competition I can’t say I’m 100% satisfied. I struggled at the start, I had little confidence with the full tank, but after a few laps I found myself fighting with Di Meglio, Laverty and West. I kept my pace and at the end I finished very close to Loris.”
Jack Miller – P21 – “First of all I’d like to thank the LCR Honda team for taking this risk and putting me in this year. It’s been an awesome year, I’ve enjoyed it a lot. We’ve had some ups and downs and didn’t quite achieve the goal of a top-10 finish that we wanted, but we showed some really strong performances during the season and I’m looking forward to coming back to the MotoGP class next year. I think we improved a lot during the course of the year – especially compared to when we tested here at the start of the year, we’ve improved by nearly two seconds and that’s not easy to do. I think Phillip Island would have to be our best race of the season and now I’m looking forward to improving again next year.”
Andrea Iannone – DNF – “My race began well with a good start, and I tried to push as hard as possible as I had nothing to lose. I tried to stay with the top guys and I was pushing Pedrosa, who had an excellent pace. Unfortunately I made a mistake and crashed out, but sometimes you have to be prepared to risk everything to try and reach an important objective. I want to thank my team for this fantastic year, as well as Ducati and all the guys in Bologna for the support they have given me since I joined the factory team. I am very happy with the final result even though we lost out on fourth place, which I was aiming for, and I am sure that next year we will be ready to fight in a big way.”
Eugene Laverty – DNF – “I made a good start, probably my best of the year, and tucked in behind Rossi for the first three corners. Everybody made a gap for him so I followed him through and was able to gain some places. The bike was working well for the first half of the race but after that I started to have problems with my foot burning again. It wouldn’t have been so bad if it wasn’t already raw from Malaysia but once the footrest got up to sixty degrees I knew I was in trouble. I tried to stick it out but I had to come in. My motto is “ride her ’till she blows!” and I have never had to stop for anything like this before so it was hard to take but we have a test to think about on Tuesday and if I didn’t stop I might have not been able to ride on Tuesday. After Malaysia I was on crutches for a week so I had to be smart about it. Overall it has been a strange year. We have had some good moments but to score nine points this year is much less than I feel we deserved. It was good to have a team-mate of the quality of Nicky because we could measure our work and we did a good job, but we didn’t have a package that was capable of consistent points-scoring finishes. When we did have the opportunity to show our pace we were strong but we were never going to be fighting for the top ten, that’s the long and short of it. I am looking forward to a new challenge with a new bike next season. I have a great team behind me that has won many World Championships and we now have the experience of a full season together in MotoGP so I am optimistic about next season.”
