Franco Morbidelli is 10th in the World Championship with 75 points behind leader Fabio Quartararo: his former teammate and who was beaten by him in 2020 when Franky finished the championship in second place.
But the Roman from Tavullia is still on the Petronas team with the same bike as last year, a 2019 M1, while the Frenchman is on the works team.
“What I did last year gave me great self-esteem,” he told MotoGP.com. “But when I got to Qatar I had a big shock because we realized that the others had made progress and we hadn’t. Then I realized in Mugello that it is difficult to fight when you lose so much time on the straight. “
Morbido not only refers to competitors from other manufacturers, but also to its own brand colleagues.
“In fact, there is also a difference to my fellow brands,” he continued. “And it’s not just about performance. The situation also changes your driving style. I can’t drive as smoothly as I would like. It is a doom-loop… Of course, every race is always tough, but it’s even harder for me. It’s a fight against the others, but also against myself. Of course I’m not happy with the current technical support, but I’m happy with Yamaha’s consideration for me. This year will definitely let me grow. “
Morbidelli’s only good race so far has been in Jerez.
“Yes, I had a good race there. Being on a team with Valentino is great. He’s an amazing superstar and I learn from him how to act in bad situations. I would like his ability to be positive in difficult situations and also how he manages to overcome it. I’m definitely learning a lot from him … but I’d love to try the new Yamaha M1 to feel how it drives. I would like to jump in the same boat as the others. “