Johann Zarco secures fifth place in Barcelona
Circuit de Barcelona-CatalunyaSprint Race in Barcelona sees Johann Zarco as the highest place Honda rider
After a strong Qualifying session placed him on the fifth grid spot for the Sprint race, Castrol Honda LCR rider Johann Zarco enjoyed a good fight in Saturday's Sprint race at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. A tremendous start saw him almost take the lead on the opening lap and see him battle for the podium early on. Although the Frenchman fought hard to maintain his position, the low grip levels proved to be too much and he lost touch with the top riders. In the end, Zarco crossed the line in fifth place, securing valuable points and finishing as the top Honda rider in the standings.
Hard work from Luca Marini’s side of the Honda HRC Castrol garage turned around a disappointing morning into a more positive Sprint race. Starting in 16th on the grid, Marini followed Mir to the left-hand side of the circuit to gain more positions through Turn 1. Avoiding the incident which would take down his teammate, Marini began to contest the points paying positions alongside the likes of Bagnaia and Bezzecchi. As his tyres dropped, Marini defended his position as best as possible and crossed the line in 11th – just a second shy of points.
After a tough qualifying session, Pro Honda LCR's Diogo Moreira faced a comeback race from 20th on the grid. The Brazilian pushed hard to achieve his goal of scoring points, however a strong field and some difficulties managing tyre wear prevented him from achieving this. At the chequered flag, Moreira was 14th and now looks forward to battling again in tomorrow's full length Grand Prix.
Leading the first session of the day, all eyes were firmly on Joan Mir as he and the Honda RC213V set the pace on Saturday at the Catalan GP. Having already earned a Q2 spot, Mir was hopeful of continuing this early speed, but another nail-bitingly close session would see the #36 only earn tenth on the grid. With a point to prove, the 2020 MotoGP World Champion went for the outside line through Turn 1 as the Sprint began but lady lucky would forgo Mir as contact with another rider sent Brad Binder into the side of his Honda RC213V. Mir was unharmed in the crash.
The main event, the 24-lap Catalan Grand Prix is scheduled to begin at 14:00 Local Time with the weather only set to improve further.
I’m pretty happy with fifth place in the Sprint, and also with the qualifying. I was really happy with the start, everything went well, I gained a lot under acceleration and that really helped me. Then I felt confident enough to overtake other riders; I almost took the lead of the race. I tried, but it didn’t work out. As the laps went by, while trying to keep the pace, I lost positions especially in the last corner. We need to improve there, as that exit was very demanding for us. I tried my best and managed to stay with the group, but in the final laps the tyre temperature dropped. From that moment on, I tried to stay calm and push until the end, and fifth place is still a really good result for us. Let’s see what happens tomorrow!
I’m pretty happy with fifth place in the Sprint, and also with the qualifying. I was really happy with the start, everything went well, I gained a lot under acceleration and that really helped me. Then I felt confident enough to overtake other riders; I almost took the lead of the race. I tried, but it didn’t work out. As the laps went by, while trying to keep the pace, I lost positions especially in the last corner. We need to improve there, as that exit was very demanding for us. I tried my best and managed to stay with the group, but in the final laps the tyre temperature dropped. From that moment on, I tried to stay calm and push until the end, and fifth place is still a really good result for us. Let’s see what happens tomorrow!
On one hand I am satisfied because we were able to make a huge step forward compared to yesterday and this morning. We were able to match the lap times of Zarco in the race thanks to some good changes on the bike. But it is true that this year it is harder for us here than last year, there is less grip from the circuit and we are quite limited. With a new tyre, I am able to stay with the likes of Pecco, Franco and Bezz but then our grip starts to fade. With an even better start we can maybe gain another spot, but the top ten remains the target.
On one hand I am satisfied because we were able to make a huge step forward compared to yesterday and this morning. We were able to match the lap times of Zarco in the race thanks to some good changes on the bike. But it is true that this year it is harder for us here than last year, there is less grip from the circuit and we are quite limited. With a new tyre, I am able to stay with the likes of Pecco, Franco and Bezz but then our grip starts to fade. With an even better start we can maybe gain another spot, but the top ten remains the target.
The start wasn’t too bad, honestly, but the first corner was really tricky and quite scary. After that, I had to recover as many positions as possible. The rivals were pushing hard, and I gave everything I had. We need to keep working and make progress. Of course, we still have to step up in qualifying so we can start from a better position, because from there everything becomes easier. Improving our one-lap pace is key. Let’s see what happens tomorrow, I’ll push hard to fight for a top-12 result.
The start wasn’t too bad, honestly, but the first corner was really tricky and quite scary. After that, I had to recover as many positions as possible. The rivals were pushing hard, and I gave everything I had. We need to keep working and make progress. Of course, we still have to step up in qualifying so we can start from a better position, because from there everything becomes easier. Improving our one-lap pace is key. Let’s see what happens tomorrow, I’ll push hard to fight for a top-12 result.
A really unlucky day with what happened in the Sprint. Our problem started before in the second time attack. We did one time attack with one bike and the second with the other and my feeling wasn’t the same so I couldn’t take 100% from the new tyre and because of this we were in tenth instead of in the top five. If I was able to start inside the top five, we can avoid this kind of bad luck. A shame because I know the speed we can show here. Let’s try tomorrow.
A really unlucky day with what happened in the Sprint. Our problem started before in the second time attack. We did one time attack with one bike and the second with the other and my feeling wasn’t the same so I couldn’t take 100% from the new tyre and because of this we were in tenth instead of in the top five. If I was able to start inside the top five, we can avoid this kind of bad luck. A shame because I know the speed we can show here. Let’s try tomorrow.
