MotoGP riders reflect on a fabulous French GP – Miller extended cut

2024 MotoGP World Championship
Round Five – Michelin Grand Prix de France
Le Mans – Sunday
MotoGP Rider Reflections

Jorge Martin – P1

“I think one of the best weekends of my career so far, I think really close to Misano last year. I think it was the same. First in every session, record, sprint and Sunday race. And yeah, today with this crowd was super nice to win, also beating Marquez and Pecco, I think it’s outstanding.

“It was a long race. I didn’t do the best start ever, but I think being second was perfect today because I think Pecco had the weight of the race. I was just trying to follow him. He was a good reference with this strange winds of today.

“And then I say okay, I need to try. It’s the moment I saw he was struggling a bit on some corners and then, you know, it was difficult to make the move. He was strong and I went wide the first time, but then the second time I did perfectly and I was able to close the line and keep that position.

“Afterwards, I tried to push a lot to try to make the gap for, you know, don’t give him even a chance to try at the end, but I went wide on three to go and then they catch me again. So it was, you know, I was pretty nervous and tired at that time, but I was, you know, last lap, I was pushing everything I had and winning here in Le Mans was special.

“I know I am strong, but sometimes I have too many doubts. I think maybe I don’t know how good I am, I think. And, you know, when I crossed that finish line, I was like, who is the number one? Who is the number one?

“And yeah, I think I don’t have anything to demonstrate. I think about my future. I can say that the things that happen in the next races won’t change. I mean, even if I win, even if I crash, I think I already did what I had to do and I’m really happy about my performance.”

And on who Ducati will choose to join Bagnaia in the Factory Team….

“For sure it’s important, I think maybe it’s more clear, but I think it won’t change. I am the same rider as yesterday, same rider as Thursday. So if they have to take a decision, I think they have already choose and whatever it is will be good.

“I think I really want to go to the Ducati Factory Team, but if they don’t want me for whatever reason that we don’t know, then I will give my talent to other people.

“I think I’m always progressing. I think every year race, or maybe every year I am a better rider, you can see from my first season in MotoGP till now, and I don’t know where, you know, where the, I don’t know how you say the top, I don’t know where is the limit.

“Let’s see during the time, I think we are doing a great job. I am improving a lot my skills, not only in the race, but also outside, the mentality, you know, as a person I also want to improve and be a better man, and hopefully this, you know, this work, what’s it then on the track.”

Marc Marquez – P2

“Today I didn’t expect. Yesterday was a unreal start, but today we cook the podium slowly you know step by step we overtake the riders I mean I was calm I knew that the race was super long and I say okay the top five was the target on my head but then I saw that the pace was there so when I was third it’s true that we lose there in a strange battle with Di Giannantonio in the middle of the race but from that point I say okay third position is okay but I saw that the pace was there and he started to attack and they lose some time and when I arrived there I expect that Pecco attacked Martin but it was not like this so I attacked Pecco.

“Yeah that fight with Di Giannantonio on those laps was strange because you need to understand sometimes which part of the race you are in, and then if some riders coming from the back and you cannot lose two seconds there because we lose one second and a half too on that chicane with a contact I had already the position so yeah but I forget and I say I keep going keep going and yeah we did an amazing pace it’s true that we thought that battle I had more chance because I will have more laps behind them but you know that second place today was better.

“I was not convinced, because when I arrived to them, I was completely exhausted.  I mean, I was pushing all the way, you know, no time to relax. And then I arrived to them and I tried to attack, but I saw that I’m not feeling well now on the bike. And I saw also that Pecco had a good acceleration, so it was difficult to find the point to overtake because also he was defending well at turn three.

“But on that last lap, I say I will be there to see if it happens something. I saw that Pecco was not attacking Martin, so I go out well from that turn 8 and turn 9, say try, try and I was able to stop well.

“This is something amazing and it makes me just enjoying, you see in my face and you see all what we have inside the box, the atmosphere is relaxed, I mean, we start 13th but it was no panic.

“I mean, okay, we know that for example, to fight for a championship, you need to be on the level like Martín and Pecco, that they are all the practice, all single practice in the top positions. Still, we are, for example, this weekend, we learn something on that Friday afternoon that we choose the wrong direction, so we learn for the future, but we need to understand that still, it means something to fight for the championship, but for me, it’s super happy to fight with the two top guys inside Ducati.”

Francesco Bagnaia – P3

“You can never be fully satisfied if you don’t win, but it was a good race. I managed to recover the feeling from yesterday, but I didn’t feel as competitive as the other two, as they clearly had something extra today. We surely have to keep working, but generally speaking the weekend went well – sprint race aside – as we have always been competitive and fast. It was important to finish the race here at Le Mans after the results of the last two seasons here, so I’m happy about this. In the final stages, I tried to stay as close as I could to Martín in order to try and pass him at turn 13, but Marc was really strong in the third sector, and he used his speed to his advantage in order to have the better of me.”

Enea Bastianini – P4

“Obviously I cannot be fully happy with today as I could have done a lot more, so I’m a little disappointed. We had the speed this weekend, but something didn’t go our way and surely that long-lap penalty did penalise us a lot. It all happened because I was in a rush to pass Aleix as I saw the others at the front were starting to push a bit harder. I didn’t make any calculation, I simply saw the chance and tried to take it. Problem is, as it happened on other occasions, I struggle to get the bike stopped when upright, so I ended up wide. I was ready to give the position back, but then I saw him off track and that made it impossible. In any case, I wasn’t expecting a long-lap penalty.”

Maverick Vinales – P5

“It was a hard race, but I tried to give it my all. We can only be happy with this fifth place. On a weekend when we did not find the right feeling, taking third in the Sprint Race and fifth in the race is a positive outcome. This is the consistency we are looking for. We need to keep believing and work hard like we have up to now.”

Fabio Di Giannantonio – P6

“I’m super happy, the best weekend so far with the Team. After the warm up, I felt really good, the sensations while riding were excellent. I got off to a great start, I was in a battle with Aleix (Espargaro) and I knew I had a good pace. In the end, I struggled a bit with the rear tyre, the bike was shaking a lot, and I had to raise the pace a bit. The others came from behind, I tried to hold the position. A pity for the long lap, but I’m happy. We had a good race and a good battle with Marc (Marquez). Let’s sort out the last details and fight with the strongest guys in Catalunya.”

Brad Binder – P8

“I got a really good start today but I wanted more from the race because I could see 6th place right in front of me. Anyway, we came from a long way back so I cannot complain. Also, we made a really big step from yesterday’s Sprint race to today: I felt a lot better, more confident and was able to ride. I think we’ve got some work to do still but considering where we were on the grid we cannot be too upset today.”

Aleix Espargaro – P9

“I started well, with this bike, I could have finished at least in the top five, but I didn’t feel good in terms of grip. It was an eventful race, with contact that forced me to go long and the time lost attempting to overtake. I wasn’t as consistent as I would have liked, but my outlook is still positive, especially looking towards Montmeló, which will be a fundamental round.”

Alex Marquez – P10

“My pace was good and considering my starting position, we saved our Sunday. We can’t be satisfied, but we now look ahead to Barcelona with a clear picture of what we need to work on, in order to avoid repeating the same mistakes we made at the start of this weekend. The goals are different obviously, but we take all the positives we can from this weekend.”

Raul Fernandez – P11

“The race today was very complicated. Yesterday, my ninth place in the Sprint was very real, today I was just lucky to end up in P11 and finishing the race. The feeling that I had yesterday and this morning was just gone in the race. I had no grip – I couldn’t manage the race well because my pace was just too slow. I’m very disappointed after today; I wanted to finish the race in the second group, which was realistic. Yesterday we had the pace to stay with them but today I was very slow, couldn’t do the same lap times like yesterday and I simply had no feeling. I couldn’t really use the rear brake and it was very difficult to manage 27 laps like this. Day by day, we are working well and improved but today was honestly not our best day. We have to analyze this well now and continue to improve in Barcelona.”

Johann Zarco – P12

“It was a nice race in the end, as I could feel the crowd’s warmth, which was amazing. Of course, we wanted more, but we tried our best, and being on the points is always important”.

Augusto Fernandez – P13

“We had a bad start today, which put us in a bad position for the race, and we paid the price. I expected to start better to be with the faster group, but it did not happen. I could not ride like I wanted, it was a tough and frustrating race, but we have to look at the positive, it is the best I’ve felt since the start of the season. I am looking forward to the next round in Barcelona, it is a track that I enjoy, and hopefully our confidence will continue growing.”

Takaaki Nakagami – P14

“It’s been a long and tough race. We’ve tried to perform well, but it wasn’t easy to push; we need to improve in many areas. In the end, we managed to grab some points, which always boosts motivation”.

Alex Rins – P15

“A quick overview of the Race: it was really tough for me. I struggled a lot from the beginning to overtake the riders I had in front of me. This was the main problem. At the start, the front wheelie was little bit high, and I lost some positions. Then, lap by lap, I was stuck behind Marini. I couldn’t overtake him; I was stuck there. When I was riding alone, I was able to overtake him and manage my pace better despite the problems we were having this weekend, riding low 1’32s. This weekend, it was all about getting a better understanding and taking information. I don’t feel we made a step day by day. Now, we will reset and jump on the bike again for two days for an important private test, and let’s see if we can improve.”

Luca Marini – P16

“It was another long race for us where we are working on those same areas that are troubling us. We can see that Joan, who was doing a great race until he fell, is able to make a big step over the course of the weekend. I am missing this step a little bit so we need to understand that. I am looking forward to Mugello for the test. I am sure that we can find something there and bring it into Barcelona.”

Fabio Quartararo – DNF

“I think this is the first time that I am this happy after a race where I crashed. It’s because this was the first time this year that we were really inside the top 6 and that we were fighting. I was fighting well. I was fighting with Aleix. I saw some great riders in front of me, and I think I got a bit too motivated for the pace that we had and, unfortunately, I crashed. I’m pretty happy with how the Race went, apart from the mistake we made at the end. But I still think we can be happy about our Race. Seeing the fans always supporting me, we had to give everything we had. This morning, we made big changes on the bike that have been quite positive. We decided to go with this bike, and I think it will be our new base moving forward. Tonight, I’m going to Mugello for the private test, and after that we have the GPs in Barcelona and Mugello, so it will be a busy three weeks. With the information from this GP, especially from this morning, I think we can set a new direction.”

Pedro Acosta – DNF

“The weekend was not bad overall. After the sprint, we made a big step on the bike’s setting, and the feeling was really good in the warm up this morning. Today could have been a good day: we made a good start, the bike worked well, but there were a few guys doing strange things on the track, and we ended up crashing, one more year. It feels like it is becoming a tradition for me in Le Mans. Let’s try again at the next round in Barcelona.”

Jack Miller – DNF

“A bit of a head-scratcher this weekend at the French GP, we showed signs of pace and improvement but unfortunately, the result just wasn’t to be. The test in Spain was good for us as we did plenty of work there, testing different parts and setups to continue to increase our comfort, and I think that showed as we rolled onto the track at Le Mans with some good speed.

“It’s always a good Friday when you get a direct pass into Q2, which is what we were able to do in France. Especially on that type of circuit, where the technicality of it can catch you out at any moment and really put a dent in your time. There were bits and bobs to tidy up, but overall the feeling was good.

“Sprint Race rolled around, and really from there on we just didn’t have a lot of grip in the rear end. The tyres took around six laps to come up to the temperature, which meant that there were a few slides out there…P8 was the overall result, which I felt was decent but there was more on the table.

“We regrouped as a team to run some eyeballs over the data, although the real drama that we’re facing is being able to replicate what we do in the mornings in the afternoons. We ran 31s pretty consistently in the morning, then come race time we just struggled to match that.

“Feature Race, the bike was getting better as the race went on, but then a super weird moment into turn 11 there, I was going 1km/pH faster than normal, braked like normal, and just lost the front. Again, a real head-scratcher, but we’re doing everything that we can and leaving no stone unturned at the moment – I’m an open book this year and giving everything a crack.

“Things will turn, I have no doubt about that, it’s just a matter of when at this point. But one thing is for sure, we’ll be keeping up the fight.”

Joan Mir – DNF

“The important thing to take away from today is the feeling that I had on the bike. After yesterday and the issue we had, it was great to be able to make another step with the setting and have a good pace in the race. I was able to confirm my feelings and I want to say thanks to the Repsol Honda Team for their work today, they provided me with a bike where I could attack. It’s important to remain focused on the positive, which is the pace we showed and the work we are doing. Now we go to Mugello to check a few things.”

Miguel Oliveira – DNF

“The race was quite good, I was having a decent pace but soon into the race I had a technical issue with the exhaust. Then I continued for about 10 laps with this problem to a point where it caused me a proper limit to the performance in terms of how the electronics were managing engine brake, torque delivery, etc. So, I had to retire the bike to avoid doing further damage – at that point I didn’t know what it was but, for sure, by the difference in the sound I could tell that it was something related to the exhaust. The team is still investigating it and together we’ll see what we can do to avoid this in the future.”

Marco Bezzecchi – DNF

“It’s a shame, we didn’t need a double crash because we were very competitive. At the touch of gas, I lost the front. It’s a kind of feeling that I’ve had since the beginning of the season and that we need to work on. I don’t think I could stayed with Jorge (Martin) and Pecco (Bagnaia), but perhaps with Enea (Bastianini) and Maverick (Viñales) yes. I was fighting with Enea when in an overtaking I couldn’t do anything to avoid the crash. The riding sensations were good, the bike wheeling a lot at the start, but perhaps the Top 5 was possible. Let’s analyse all the data and try again in Barcelona.”

Team Managers

Massimo Rivola – Aprilia Team Manager

“Maverick took home a good placement and performed rather consistently. It was a pity about Aleix because he started strong but then found himself in a few battles that caused him to lose rhythm. First an aggressive move by Bastianini and then, at the end of the race, Morbidelli also cost him two positions. It’s difficult to find your pace when these types of episodes occur. We were close today, but not close enough. In any case, we know why we missed this small gap and hopefully we’ll be able to bridge it as soon as possible. Barcelona should be a favourable track for us, so we are optimistic.”

Pablo Nieto – Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team Manager

“A positive weekend in some aspects, less so in others. I’m very happy and satisfied with what Fabio did, he was solid and today if it hadn’t been for the long lap he could have been there with the strongest riders. He is growing with the Team and he has to continue like this. Marco’s double crash was a real shame, he worked well, he managed to confirm himself with the strongest and perhaps deserved something more. He has found the right path to move towards becoming competitive again and this is a good thing.”

Francesco Guidotti – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team Manager

“We knew that starting from the back would not be easy for Brad but he did a great job and went from 22 to 8: I think that was the maximum we could do today so we have to somehow be happy with it after what happened the previous two days. We know qualifying is the key to the weekend but we missed it this time and paid the bill. Jack suddenly crashed out of 11th and he had not made a mistake. Maybe it was the increased wind this afternoon. We have a bit of time to rest and check the data now. We will go to Barcelona knowing we have much more potential.”

Nicolas Goyon – GASGAS Factory Racing Tech3 Team Manager

“We are leaving the French Grand Prix with a huge bitter taste this year. Pedro Acosta was feeling really good this morning, he was fastest in the warm up. In the race, the feeling was also good, and he was fighting for the front, but he made an early mistake and crashed. Right now, there is some frustration, because there was potential to do well today. Sometimes we forget that he is a rookie, and it is only his first mistake this season, and I am sure that it will help him bounce back even better, and make him a stronger rider. On Augusto Fernandez’ side, we scored three points, a small reward, especially for the mechanics who had a tough weekend, but it is not the position we are targeting. The positive is that Augusto’s feeling on the bike is a little bit better, but we need to start our weekends better and start the races higher on the grid. We know where we need to work, and we will try to be efficient from Friday in Barcelona. Let’s pack, and head to Spain in two weeks. Thank you Le Mans!”

Massimo Meregalli – Monster Yamaha Team Director

“We feel very disappointed for Fabio. We know he really wanted to get a good result at his home GP and in front of the fans, who have been so incredibly supportive. It’s a pity his race ended like this, but we all attest to his hard work, determination, and effort. This morning, we made some changes on his bike that proved to work quite well. He was matching the pace of the front guys, so this is positive and constructive ahead of a busy three weeks. Álex on the other hand had a far from easy race, with problems on braking and some sliding – and it was made even more difficult by a long-lap penalty. He was not comfortable with the bike’s set-up he tried this weekend, so he will reset and make a fresh start again. As a team, we now need to look ahead to what’s to come. We have the private test in Mugello next week, and the week after we have the Monster Energy-sponsored Catalan GP, followed by the Italian GP, our team’s home race. All these events are important to us, so we’re going to knuckle down in the next weeks.”

MotoGP Le Mans Race Results

Le Mans MotoGP Top Speeds Across Weekend

MotoGP Championship Standings

Moto2 Le Mans Race Results

Moto2 Le Mans Top Speeds Across Weekend

Moto2 Championship Standings

Moto3 Le Mans Race Results

Moto3 Le Mans Top Speeds Across Weekend

Moto3 Championship Standings

2024 FIM MotoGP World Championship calendar (Updated)

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