The MotoGP runner-up, Franco Morbidelli, had to settle for twelfth place at the season openers in Qatar and was literally back to last year’s form in Portimao.
The Petronas Yamaha rider completed the 25-lap distance in a time just 0.078 seconds slower than the same route in November. Last year it was good enough for third place, 3.3 seconds before the win, while this season he was fourth, 5.1 seconds before the winner.
Such statistics summarize Morbidelli’s technical situation at face value; He’s still using the same bike spec as last year as his rivals made strides over the winter.
During a video chat a few days after the race, the Italian decided to take a more positive view of Portimao’s performance, especially given Qatar’s confusing form.
Morbidelli pointed out that he had reached his 2020 Portimao racing time, despite falling to 13th in the opening laps, while having the luxury of last season’s finale until Jack Miller’s final lap attack in second place to run.
“It’s great to be in the top five again,” began Morbidelli.
“Yes, my race time is incredibly similar to last year, which is a good thing given the grid position, the sketchy start of the race and the fact that I don’t have a clear track in front of me. I fought a lot in the beginning.
On the subject of matching items
“The package is the same and we’ve managed to repeat last year’s good performance and that’s a positive thing for us.
“It’s definitely more difficult than last year because we have the same package and the other guys have improved their problems compared to 2020,” added Morbidelli.
“So if 2020 was difficult but it was possible to stay with the guys who had the current year and I had the previous year, this year is even more difficult – but not impossible.”
On the subject of matching items
Never before in the MotoGP era has a runner-up achieved the same bike specification the following season, and Morbidelli will be supported with a bike package from 2019 by only Esponsorama Ducati newbies Enea Bastianini and Luca Marini.
It paid off last season when Morbidelli and the A-Spec machine won three races and were just under 13 points ahead of Suzuki’s world champion Joan Mir.
However, partly backed by Morbidelli’s A-Spec data, Yamaha appears to have made great strides with the consistency of its Factory-Spec model, which has taken a perfect three victories so far this season in the hands of Maverick Vinales (1) and Fabio Quartararo ( 2).
“Yes, that [Factory] The bike is a little stronger on the tires, it looks a little more exploitative from that point of view, and it’s faster in a straight line, “agreed Morbidelli.
“When I looked at what happened in Portimao, I had problems in qualifying, but I had a really good race pace, but I couldn’t increase that pace at any moment in the race as with the other brands or the others.” [Factory] Yamahas, especially like Fabio.
“That seems like the difference to me at the moment, but I can’t really tell because I haven’t tried the bike.”
Factory bike has top priority for next year
Morbidelli’s memorable 2020 season was the next a satellite rider has ever seen as a MotoGP champion, surpassing the efforts of former defending champions Sete Gibernau (2003-2004) and Marco Melandri (2005).
The 26-year-old claims that last season’s satellite display during a Covid-influenced calendar wasn’t an uncommon occurrence and that driving is no longer mandatory for a factory team to become a MotoGP champion.
“I think under the current rules a satellite driver can fight for the championship … and have even more chances if he has the latest spec!” Morbidelli smiled.
So, will a factory spec bike be your number one priority for next year?
“Yes.”
Morbidelli’s current two-year contract extension for Petronas is viewed more as a “1 + 1” with only one option for 2022, especially as the Sepang team has not yet confirmed a contract extension with Yamaha for the next season.
“At the moment I drive for Petronas SRT Yamaha and I concentrate on this team. I don’t know anything about my future,” said Morbidelli.
VR46 should target young talent
It is even theoretically possible that Morbidelli will find itself in a kind of tug-of-war between Petronas and VR46 for 2022.
Named after Morbidelli’s teammate and mentor Valentino Rossi, the squad is known to be seriously considering a full MotoGP project after entering the premier class with Luca Marini this season.
“Maybe racing for VR46 in the distant future could be a good thing, but I think VR46 should appeal to young talent from the academy,” said Morbidelli, the first and most successful member of the VR46 Riders Academy.
“I’ve already spent four years in MotoGP and I’m young, but not that young! So I don’t think I’ll be the target of any future VR46 Riders’ Academy team.”
Aside from qualifying for Qatar, Rossi, who has a factory-specific Yamaha, has made a sluggish start to his Petronas career, scoring only four points out of a possible 75 so far.
Morbidelli continues to believe that the nine-time world champion has the potential to fight for victories if he can drive the way he wants.
“If Vale is able to do what he knows he is sure to be fighting for wins,” said Morbidelli.
Fabio has an additional advantage over everyone else
Meanwhile Quartararo, who has swapped places with Rossi, is riding on the crest of the waves. With victories in the last two races, he is 15 points ahead of Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati) in the world championship standings.
Morbidelli believes the young Frenchman currently has an added advantage in terms of title chase, particularly towards Jerez where he took a one-two last year.
“Quartararo is doing a great job and he looks very strong and has started the season very well,” said Morbidelli. “He has the works team behind him and is in the right mental condition.
“So I think that at least in these first races and I think Jerez will be good for him too, Fabio looks like the one who has an extra edge over everyone at the moment.”
MotoGP riders are people. What you read can hurt you
While Quartararo beat his 2020 Portimao racing time by an impressive 26.127 seconds on his way to victory last Sunday, team-mate Vinales fell in the early stages before recovering to eleventh place.
Some fans were quick to condemn the Spaniard’s result on social media, and while Jack Miller chose to stay away from using social media directly after being scheduled in Qatar, Vinales went a step further and closed his account.
Morbidelli – whose inspirational Misano 2020 helmet message based on Spike Lee’s “Do the Right Thing” led to a surprise phone call from the film director himself – believes fans are always entitled to their opinions, but sometimes forgets that MotoGP riders are people are.
“Well, if you’re sure to have a large following, at some point you’ll share the idea; some people will think good things about you, some people will think bad things about you. That’s how life goes,” Morbidelli said.
“Sometimes the delivery of these bad things can be rash, it can be rough. Some people might be hurt by the delivery of these bad things.
“But I think haters in this world are perfectly normal. They can’t change what they think, but maybe they can improve the way they say it so that they don’t appeal to the people they are talking about hurt very much.
“Because sometimes we forget and see a MotoGP rider just as a great character, but after that they are a person. They are normal people. So they can be hurt by what they read.”
Morbidelli is eleventh in the world championship en route to Spanish MotoGP next weekend in Jerez, where he finished fifth in the season opener last year before falling victim to faulty Yamaha valves with an engine failure in race two.
One of the Italian’s goals this time around will be to confirm that the strange shape of Qatar, in which Morbidelli bounced up and down the timesheets when he and his crew “struggled to understand how the bike worked”, has been resolved.
“We have to see if the feeling will be similar at Jerez Portimao and then I can say that the problem may be solved. But we have to wait at least until Jerez,” said Morbidelli.
“You never know in MotoGP but I hope I can stay in at least the top 6-7. I think if I have a similar feeling to Portimao and can ride my bike like I did in Portimao, can I aim for the top 6 -7. “
If so, which means the 2020 podium and victory highs are currently out of reach, how does Morbidelli stay focused?
“The support on and off the track. From the fans, my team, our partners … we have Petronas who are working to provide us with the best products for our performance. It really helps when we focus on driving can, while we know that we have the best partners who support us in other technical areas. “