“This is one of my favorite tracks on the MotoGP bike”: riders ready to take on Silverstone
The pre-event press conference and an important announcement from Triumph open the Monster Energy British Grand Prix
Thursday, August 26, 2021
Are you all ready for the British GP? The MotoGP ™ starting field certainly is, because at the press conference before the event, championship leader Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) and closest challenger Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team), the reigning world champion Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar), Austria met GP winner Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) and rookie superstar Jorge Martin (Pramac Racing) as well as home heroes Cal Crutchlow (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) and MotoGP ™ debutant Jake Dixon (Petronas Yamaha SRT) before the race on Friday.
Here are some of the most important quotes!
Fabio Quartararo. Photo courtesy of Dorna.
Fabio Quartararo: “I was really happy about the second race in Austria because in the first race I was quite far from Jorge, almost 10 seconds before victory, in the second I improved my pace a lot and I think I had the chance to to fight for victory. I think it was one of the funniest races of the year, enjoyed it a lot and felt great. We know that Austria is the most difficult track for us and we fought for victories and podium places there. Obviously it’s not the result we wanted, but I was happier with the second than with the first.
“There was a curve here on Sunday two years ago, but this is one of my favorite tracks on the MotoGP bike, the Yamaha goes very well with the track and it’s all about getting out early tomorrow, enjoying it immediately and having a good time Time. I hope we get good weather and let’s see! “
Advice for Jake Dixon:
“Be calm. Because already when I started in Valencia, it was a short distance, but on the first day I was totally lost. It was a test day. I already told him that it was completely different. He’s going to have the strength and feel the brakes, don’t look at the lap times so much and yes, take it easy! “
Francesco Bagnaia. Photo courtesy of Dorna.
Francesco Bagnaia: “Of course I am happy. I scored more points in this way than in completely dry conditions because Fabio had problems with the rain tires. I was on the verge of fighting for a win, but I’m definitely happy because I did my best race in MotoGP I think. I set my pace and felt comfortable. It was better in the second race, in the first we had a bit of bad luck with the restart, but in the second we were fast enough to stay in front.
“I am very confident of driving this track, it is one of my favorites. I really like the layout and our bike might fit well, maybe not like a Yamaha, but we’ll try to be fast enough to stay with Fabio because we really need to get more points. We’re still at 47 and if Fabio wants to enjoy the championship more, maybe we can fight to the finish, it’s better! “
Johanna Mir. Photo courtesy of Dorna.
Joan Mir: “The last race was a little crazy. I would say in Austria the feelings were good on both weekends, the race in the second GP was unexpectedly difficult, but finally we were able to get very close to the podium that was our goal. Now we come to this track, which, as you say, was strong here in 2019, it won, Suzuki has taken two victories in modern times and there is a reason. The bike can be a good fit for this track and it will be important to fight with the top guys. I will do my best. It will be difficult because it is the first time to come here in a long time and it will be important to be strong right away in FP1 and FP2, get the right feeling, get the right lines and I will do my best.
“I’m not nervous. I think the most important thing, once you get the feeling, is that you bring the feeling here. Not the route. I haven’t ridden a motorcycle here since ’18 and that will certainly be a bit difficult on the first few laps. But if you have a great feeling and you know, we’ve done a lot of races this year and I think I’m in good shape, but I think I can adapt quickly on this track. The route is quite long, wide, the line difficult to find, but yes. It is important to find it as soon as possible. “
Brad Binder. Photo courtesy of Dorna.
Brad Binder: “Now I had a bit of time to go back and look at it all again, I’m really happy that there was no more lap. It was cool. It was a huge risk staying outside and yes, the final lap was super sketchy. I’m glad that I came home safely, but sometimes you have to take a risk and this time it worked out really well, to have happily emerged from the two Austrian races with two good results and, hopefully, to take care of that momentum maintain.
“I mean, we’ve all been to Silverstone a couple of times. It’s always a little challenge that I find on a new track on the MotoGP bike, no matter how often you look through the data, I always find it very different from what I remember. The big goal for me is to feel comfortable right away and not start too far down, as I often did when I hit a track for the first time on a GP bike. It’s a special track, the last time I was here I really liked it and I’m already looking forward to riding the big bike here. “
Jörg Martin. Photo courtesy of Dorna.
Jörg Martin: “I would be so confident if the race were back in Austria, but we’re coming to a new track and I have to be focused and start from scratch. I don’t know what it’s going to be like so just try to get a good feel on the bike. As always, I’ll give 100%, it won’t be easy, but I’ll do my best.
“From my side it will be the same as I always have, because I hit the track with MotoGP, so I’m not nervous, I’m ready and full of energy.”
Cal Crutchlow. Photo courtesy of Dorna.
Cal Crutchlow: “It’s great, it’s great to come to Silverstone. I never thought I’d race a Silverstone GP again after I retired, so coming back, which we missed out on last year, was disappointing, but coming back this weekend with Monster Energy Yamaha is a privilege. It’s a privilege to drive Silverstone anyway and now it’s going to be fun for everyone with a full crowd. I look forward to it. Driving in Austria wasn’t easy after such a long time, but coming here this weekend, maybe in a slightly better situation after the last two races, I’m looking forward to seeing what we can do.
“I think Austria wasn’t that bad. It always looks bad on paper, but we didn’t expect anything and didn’t get anything. We got information for Yamaha and I did my job and I enjoyed it, which was the most important thing. Getting off your bike after such a long time is always fun. In terms of speed, we weren’t that bad, I qualified half a tenth slower than last year on the Honda. After a 5 month break it wasn’t that bad, I enjoyed it, I felt good and hopefully in the end I will feel a little more comfortable with not that great distance. Silverstone is a good track for that, I know a few tricks here and really not in Austria. Let’s see what we can do here at the Monster Energy GP. “
Jake Dixon. Photo courtesy of Dorna.
Jake Dixon: “It’s fantastic, of course, and of course thanks to Petronas for giving me the opportunity to ride the MotoGP bike. It’s pretty special to do it at home, if someone could make their debut I think they would do it at home so yeah I can’t wait. We’ll have a full house in front of a full audience, Silverstone seems to be a good match for the Yamaha in the past. Can’t wait, it will definitely be a huge learning curve but I am ready to take it on and see what we can do.
“I was just telling myself that I had a few sleepless nights, yes. It’s definitely excitement, so much excitement, but also nervous times. I don’t expect anything from me, it’s just a massive learning curve. Nothing can be expected of me, I’ve never ridden a MotoGP motorcycle, everything is so different. I’ll just try to do the best job I can do on the weekend, I’ll take it and see if I enjoy it! “
This is a conclusion to the press conference at Silverstone! Free practice begins on Friday before MotoGP ™ embarks on another battle for Great Britain on Sunday at 13:00 (GMT +1).