MotoGP Riders Ready but Worried Ahead of Qatar Race

Kompas/Danu Kusworo

Tiga pebalap motoGP, (dari depan) Jorge Martin, Franco Morbidelli dan Takaaki Nakagami beradu cepat di Sirkuit Mandalika, Sabtu (12/02/2022).

MotoGP riders have left the Mandalika circuit with both optimism and anxiety over what might happen during the first race in Qatar. Honda is believed to be more competitive.

PUJUT, KOMPAS — The Honda team stole the attention from their rivals for the RC213V’s rapid progress in speed and stability over the five-day pre-season test at Sepang and Mandalika last week.

Marc Marquez and Pol Espargaro also left Mandalika with high optimism because they had become more familiar with Honda's new motorcycle. Meanwhile, defending champion Fabio Quartararo felt something was still missing with the Yamaha YZR-M1.

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Success of MotoGP Mandalika

At 5 p.m. Eastern Indonesia Time on Sunday (13/2/2022), the last day of the pre-season test at the Mandalika International Street Circuit in Central Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, Espargaro recorded the fastest lap time of 1 minute, 31.06 seconds, beating Quartararo in second place by 0.215 seconds. With this result, Espargaro should be more confident about starting this season.

"It's a complete turnaround [from last season's bike]. Now I can apply the riding style with the rear brake, which I really miss,” said Espargaro.

As a result, he always rode the M1 motorbike at the limit of control.

The Honda riders’ promising performance made Quartararo worried. Quartararo felt he was still not fast enough because the M1 did not show a significant increase in power. As a result, he always rode the M1 motorbike at the limit of control.

“I was forced to stay constantly at the limit. The lap time was good, but I wish it could have been a bit better. We'll see in Qatar, which will be a different story, but I'm 100 percent ready [for the first race]," he said.

DANU KUSWORO

2021 MotoGP runner up, Francesco Bagnaia on the Lenovo Ducati team seen at the Mandalika Circuit paddock, Thursday (10/02/2022).

The French racer said that the Honda riders had the potential to become podium contenders this season. The new RC213V did an excellent job and allowed the Honda riders to go even faster during the five days of the pre-season test.

Suzuki Ecstar's Alex Rins, who was consistently in the top flight during the test, was also surprised by the Honda riders. "The bike that surprised me more was the Honda. Pol Espargaro and Marc Marquez rode fast. So, I think all will be our competitors," said Rins.

However, Rins said he was also optimistic that he would be more competitive this season because the GSX-RR was more powerful with a higher top speed, and because it did not experience problems in power distribution.

"I did a good test at Sepang and here. The pace was very good here and Sepang, too. So I feel ready," said Rins.

Dangerous track

Regarding the condition of the Mandalika circuit, Rins said that it was still dangerous for racing because it was still cluttered and the racing lane was so narrow. Such conditions are very dangerous, because all riders must drive their bikes as fast as possible during a race. This was is quite different from a test session.

KOMPAS/DANU KUSWORO

Suzuki MotoGP team racer Alex Rins takes part in a photo session in the Mandalika Sirkuot area, Thursday (10/02/2022).

"It's not safe at the moment. They cleared the track, but still there was only one lane to ride and it was very difficult to overtake,” said Rins.

Quartararo also said that the track was not suitable for racing, even saying that it needed to be repaved at Turn 1 because the asphalt layer was peeling off.

I got a lot of small pebbles in my neck. So, imagine if you are behind three, four, five riders.

"When I was behind Franco [Morbidelli], I got a lot of small pebbles in my neck. So, imagine if you are behind three, four, five riders," he said.

"From turns 1 to 7, there was a lot of loose asphalt. I think for the race, they need to repave Turn 1 because it's so bad. In my opinion, the circuit is safe, but the asphalt on the track is peeling off," said Quartararo. (ANG)

This article was translated by Hendarsyah Tarmizi.