Alex Rins believes he can “drive better” in 2022 if Suzuki can improve their GSX-RR package and admits he has to “drive at the limit” right now.
Suzuki has had a relatively tough 2021 season, compared to the 2020 season in which it took both the team championship and the drivers crown to championship glory with Joan Mir, the Hamamatsu-based brand that won both the team championship and the drivers’ crown, as it has been surpassed by its rivals in the fields of development.
As the last of six manufacturers in the starting field, he presented the innovative ride-height device that improves both straight-ahead driving and starting from a standstill, while it made little progress in other areas of his machine – they fell behind those like Yamaha and Ducati in the competition order .
At least I managed to save a strong third place overall in his title defense season, even though Rins ended up with a low 13th.
The Spaniard saw a possible podium finish at the end of the season of the Valencia Grand Prix disappearing after falling from third place after losing the top at Turn 6 just before the middle distance, which made him “motivated” to find improvements for 2022, that allow him you don’t have to drive “at the limit” to get a result.
“It was a very frustrating race because everyone saw we were fighting with Pecco (Bagnaia) and (Jorge) Martin, I waited,” said Rins.
“My strategy was to wait a bit for the tires to wear off a bit and then attack. I modified the line at Turn 6 and lost the front.
“It’s a big shame, but now it’s time to focus on next year. In a few days we’ll be going to Jerez to try out the new bike. I’m not 100% at what we are Have to try, but the guys told me “We have a lot of things to try, that’s nice.
“We’ll definitely be trying out a new engine and some new fairings so I’m motivated to go there and get the bike ready for next year.
“I think if we can improve the bike, I’ll ride better. At the moment we are driving at the limit of the Suzuki and if we make a little mistake we will fall. “
I had to end his year with a distant fourth place after he had fallen away from the leading Ducati trio in the climatic phases of the encounter and admitted that it was “impossible” to do anything against the flying Desmosedici on a route that he considered first achieved and so far only class win last year.
The 2020 MotoGP World Champion agreed with his teammate that the upcoming Jerez Test was “very important” in trying to put the team back in a position to fight for wins and championships next season.
“You (Ducati) were faster, that’s it,” Mir explained.
“It’s frustrating because I gave everything all weekend to get a better end to the championship, but it was impossible so I’ll try again next year and I’m sorry to all the fans because I ended up right wanted to celebrate the season it was not possible.
“In any case, I will sleep well tonight, because I gave everything this year, it was a difficult year.
“We have improved a lot in the last two races, that is clear and if we had had this potential for every weekend, we could have made it a little more difficult for Fabio (Quartararo), but more was not possible this weekend.
“The test is very important for everyone to understand the new things that Suzuki brings. You have worked hard all year to put together a good package for the next season so we need to focus well to give 100% good information.
“It’s not about being quick, just about accurate information.”