MotoGP, Morbidelli: "Faster than Rossi? This is not a race between him and him"



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The adventure of Franco Morbidelli on the Yamaha M1 of the newborn Team Petronas SIC continues in the light of what he saw in Valencia and probably even better. The first day of testing in Jerez, Morbido has the luxury of beating Valentino Rossi and move on to a Vinales stage, credited for the third time and driving the first Yamaha in the standings.

Franco closed the session with the sixth fastest time, almost a second faster than Rossi. But when they noticed this result, Morbidelli preferred to clarify his point of view immediately.

"I do not want to make comparisons with Vale, in that in the tests, it is always very careful to measure the energy, has the experience to know how to handle. Do not worry if he does not make temples in the tests because he does not look for them and does not leave the margin ".

So, do you avoid watching his work on the track, even if you're both at Yamaha, even if you belong to two different teams?

"The comparison I make with him – he precised – but especially with the other motorcycles, the other Houses and the other pilots. I do not focus on what Vale does, We do not race myself and him. We have a race with twenty other runners, so I focus a little bit with everyone. With Valentino, I still speak, we have worked a lot even after Valencia and we will continue to do it ".

The day was very positive, a sixth time that conveys so much security.

"I am very happy with the way things went today and we confirmed the good feelings we had in Valencia, but we did it here in Jerez, which does not help. is not a great track for Yamaha lately. We did very well from the point of view of pure speed, while there is still work to be done on the pace. In any case, it is very important to be fast with the new tires and we must now understand how to improve the pace. Whenever I get on the bike, I understand how to improve my bike and myself ".

How is the work done with the new team, with Forcada?

"The team works very well. Everything is new, people are new and everyone does not know the bike. But everything is going very well, it seems like the best harmony every time we spend time together. Then we do not have new hardware, we just repaired the electronics of this track. There is no novelty, we just have to work on it and obviously try other sets, but nothing special ".

How much road do you have to do before mastering the M1 perfectly?

"I do not know where I am still completely understanding the new bike. In reality, it's an endless process. You must always understand what is the best style for cycling and try to fit in, but the big step is just the first step I've already made in Valencia.. But after that, the process is really endless. I think we are at a good point, on the right track. We will have to see how this will continue on another track. "

Regarding the 2018 version of the M1, Rossi and Vinales have always spoken "badly" of the behavior of used tires. Do you agree with this badysis now that you know the bike better?

"Absolutely I agree with Valentino and Maverick. We have problems with used tires and it's not a secret. I do not have any ideas to propose at the moment, I limit myself to convey my feelings to the Yamaha guys and then hope that the work will move in the right direction. Every manufacturer has this kind of problem, but in different ways. Put on a new tire and still have a lot of grip, which loses then sooner or later. We just need to understand how to get things done. We simply have more problems from this point of view. "

These results put you in the right conditions to be at the height of the title of best independent pilot in 2019.

"I think I'll have to wait a little longer before I know where we may be at the end of the year, so we're still in 2018 and think we already know where we might be at. the end of 2019 is certainly too early. We are waiting to see how the first races are going, the level of MotoGP is still high. It was in 2018 and so will it in the next season. Nakagami will be one of my opponents, like Bagnaia, Crutchlow. There is so much to beat to be the best of independents, the fight is very hard.

Is there a chance that Yamaha will send you updates on the engine before the end of the test?

"No, he should stay as he is. The work to be done tomorrow will always be the adaptation of my bike to the bike, also trying to adapt the bike to me with the settings ".

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