Riders reflect on a very wet Mandalika MotoGP

MotoGP 2022 – Round Two
Pertamina Grand Prix of Indonesia – Rider Quotes

Miguel Oliveira – P1

“Emotionally that was a roller coaster. The start was perfect and then it was hard to judge the limit. I followed Jack for a few laps and understood I could go faster, I then focused to do the maximum and built the gap. I was managing the cushion through the race but it was not easy. It’s hasn’t been the easiest time for me so this is emotional and I promised my daughter a trophy from Indonesia so this is for her. Let’s go to Argentina now and see what we can do and keep up the level. Right now, I’m happy to be on top of the podium.”

Fabio Quartararo – P2

“I didn‘t expect this! Already from the warm-up lap it felt like we had something extra compared to normal, because we know that we always struggle in wet conditions. When it‘s full wet and there‘s grip, I know my potential. But today I did better than I expected! I saw an opportunity and went for it. These are super important points. I think this is my first podium in the full wet, so I‘m super happy. ’Thanks‘ to the fans who waited for a long time because of the delay of the GP. I‘m super happy that we found something in the wet. I enjoyed this so much, so thanks everyone.”

Johann Zarco – P3

“I am satisfied and happy, the first podium is always special. If I had had more confidence from the beginning I could have gone higher but I had to understand how far I could push myself. I go back home with more confidence and a lot more confidence with the bike.”

Jack Miller – P4

“Normally I hate finishing fourth – as close as you can get to the podium and some champagne – but here in Indonesia I was actually pretty happy to get fourth because it was one of those days where there’s so much you can lose. I was ninth on the grid, hadn’t scored a point in the first race, the track was soaked and we’d done no wet running all weekend … there was a lot that could have gone wrong. So all in all, pretty happy.

“We had to wait a while to get started and that was a big old thunderstorm we had – reminded me of some of them we get back home – but the show had to go on and I was glad it did, because the fans here have been awesome all week and it was good to put on a race for them. I came through pretty quickly and got out the front for a few laps but it was pretty obvious Miguel (Oliveira) had more pace than me, and I didn’t have a lot for him. From there it was trying to keep it upright and get on the podium, so at least I managed one of those two.

“I tell you, it was pretty wet out there. I was totally drenched even after the sighting lap – it was like I’d stood in front of a hose in my leathers – but being wet is fine, it’s being wet and cold that’s the worst. Not much chance of that with it being 35 degrees all the time here! So it was OK, all in all. It wasn’t ideal and 20 laps in the dry here would have been much more fun, but I think the fans went home pretty happy anyway.

“When Fabio (Quartararo) and then Johann (Zarco) came past me there was only about four laps to go and I thought about how and where I’d be able to attack Johann, but then I had a moment when my foot came off the pegs and decided to play it smart and just tried to get home. Coming into this race with no points on the board definitely entered my thinking. In the end 13 points are better than another zero and me sitting in a wet gravel trap, so there was no point throwing myself off. Be tidy, get it home, live to fight another day. There’s 19 races to go and a lot can happen, we saw that today with some guys who were up the front in Qatar well down the pack here and the other way around.

“I’ll be honest, I wasn’t all that impressed with Fabio because I passed him for second at the start of lap two and he proceeded to ride his motorcycle into my leg. I know he was on pole and I was coming through from ninth but it’s not necessary to ride at someone’s front tyre like that, and I’ll definitely have a word to him. I had better pace at the time and he just rode into my leathers, basically. An unnecessary risk, I reckon. It turned out fine but I didn’t think that was on.

“You can see from how tight the championship is that MotoGP is at such a high level at the moment, from the outside I’m sure you can see how bloody difficult it is. Gone are the days when you could struggle a bit and not pay for it on the time-sheets. One session in Qatar, I didn’t go with a new tyre … bang, 19th. Wasn’t like I wasn’t pushing, but 19th. Everyone seems like they’re a contender now. So it’s about being calm for me. Last year, finishing fourth in the championship – seems a few people out there have forgot about that, but it is what it is – anyway, I got a lot of experience and gained some things. So, be calm, be humble, keep your head down and chip away. That’s the way to build a season and why days like today are so important.

“Anyway, it was a good experience being here, besides the rain. With the passion for motorcycles here, the following is massive and until you see it with your own eyes … we rode all the way from the president’s palace through the city in Jakarta a few days before the race and streets were just rammed with people. It’s amazing, I’ve literally never seen anything like it in my life. Us riders felt pretty fortunate and pretty loved!

“Argentina is next – I have some good memories there and the same with Texas after that, so we’ve got some good ones coming up.”

Alex Rins – P5

“Luckily we were able to start the race; I was very worried about the conditions and didn’t know if it could go ahead. It was a tough race, I made a good start and tried everything to get on the podium, but after some big moments on the front end I tried to calm down and be smoother. When Zarco and Quartararo passed me, I saw that they had better pace than me, and I realised that I couldn’t do more without big risk. So, I took fifth place, which isn’t bad for such a difficult race and a hard weekend where I’ve struggled with my physical condition. I’m happy to get points and I want to continue with consistency.”

Joan Mir – P6

“I’m really happy about my comeback; I started from the back of the grid and finished close to the top group. In the end I was able to get a better feeling with the bike which allowed me to be faster. We’ve worked hard all weekend and we’ve discovered some things, although we were mostly planning for dry settings! In today’s race I was struggling a bit to get the bike stopped, but I was able to start well and hold a decent position. It’s a pity for me that it was shortened to 20 laps, because I started to feel better as the race went on. Anyway, we collected some points and it is early days. We head to Argentina next and let’s see how we can perform there, we hope to build on our package.”

Franco Morbidelli – P7

It was a crazy race! The visibility was zero. You could only see red dots in a white cloud. So it was crazy, but sometimes you’re just feeling it, and today I did. After a bad Saturday, we were able to bounce back on Sunday. We did a good start and especially a good first lap of the race. After that I suffered a little bit. We don’t have too much experience with the new crew and the new bike, so we need to catch up and adapt as quickly as possible. We will try to do it in Argentina.

Brad Binder – P8

“I’m disappointed because I had a good feeling all weekend and especially with rain tires. Despite the rain the grip from the track was insane in some places. Unfortunately, I did the whole race with the ride height device down and to finish 8th is like a win. If it had been a dry race then I don’t think I would have been able to do anything. So, we got unlucky and lucky with the circumstances. It was difficult to bring the bike home so I’m happy. Argentina is a track I really enjoy. It will be my first time there on the MotoGP track so let’s see.”

Aleix Espargaró – P9

“It was a very difficult race because of the weather conditions and because during the first lap, I found myself twentieth due to contact with Álex Márquez. Staying in the group was hard and visibility was also extremely poor. But the bike worked well. Grip wasn’t bad and from there I began to come back. In the last seven laps I overtook quite a few riders, making up positions. Taking home another top-ten finish on such a difficult Sunday was a good result.”

Darryn Binder – P10

“It was an interesting race for sure! When it started raining before the race, I was quite excited to get a rain race under my belt, because it was a learning experience and you know that it’s going to come at some point. Already from the out lap to the grid I was impressed by the amount of grip that the wet tyres had. I started off the race, lap by lap, going a bit harder and faster. I was really impressed by the grip and the feeling I had with the wet tyre. I kept pushing and pushing and then I started making a couple of passes and before I knew it, I was in the points and catching the guys in front of me. Later I got past my brother, which was super cool. Towards the end of the race, once I got to the front of that group, I was struggling a bit with the rear tyre and I wasn’t able to push as much as I did in the beginning. Then it came down to the battle and in the end, I just tried to fight the other guys off. My brother got the better of me and I then fought with Aleix (Espargaro). Overall, it was a really good experience in the rain and I’m really happy with how things went. I felt I gave it a good shot and I’m very pleased with my result.”

Enea Bastianini – P11

“It took a while to get the right feeling, especially as in the early laps I couldn’t see anything due how wet the track was, so I struggled a bit. Then little by little I was able to make my way back, I found my rhythm and I was fast – especially in the last ten laps. Unfortunately when I reached the group of seven riders ahead I was pushed wide at turn two by Darryn Binder after I passed all of them – and that made be go back to the end of the group. I was able once again to recover and in the end an eleventh place is not too bad: I could have finished eighth and I’m sorry for that, but it was important to score some points – and in the end it was a good race.”

Pol Espargaro – P12

“This was a race about survival, this whole weekend has been about surviving. We came here and had a super productive tests and then things out of our control changed the situation. During the start of the race my visor became super dirty with all the dust from the track in the spray of the other riders. When I was behind Pecco I could see his red light, but then when I passed him I was alone and it was very difficult. I hit the curb because I couldn’t properly see it and I made a big save. Finally we are sixth, only ten points off the lead which is very good. We have to focus on this and prepare for a new weekend with the normal tyres. Even like this, I want to say sorry to the team because I think the bike could have achieved more.”

Álex Márquez – P13

“It was a wet race and we’ve not really tested this bike in the wet, just in mixed conditions. In FP3 I was feeling good, but the track was still quite dry, so in wet it was different, it was a little bit frustrating to still have the same problems we had in the dry. It was difficult to overtake people, I had more pace than the guys in front, but I wasn’t able to overtake them. But that’s how it is, we need to keep going and improving. We finished the race and that is the important thing, we need to keep going forwards and try to turn the situation around in the next few races and be more competitive.”

Luca Marini – P14

“A complicated Sunday: I started strong, I felt good, I was fighting for the Top8 after the first laps. I saw several riders crash in front of me, then on lap 10 I started to struggle with the rear tire and the last five laps were very long and tough. I had no speed in the exit of the corners, the electronics were not perfect and while the others riders managed to recover, I had to pick up the pace.”

Francesco Bagnaia – P15

“In the past, we have always been competitive in the wet, but today I didn’t really have a good feeling with the bike. I couldn’t brake the way I wanted to, and I couldn’t push. I’m disappointed because I had a great pace this morning in the dry, and we knew we had a good chance to aim for the top positions. Unfortunately, the weather was not on our side today, and in these first two races of the year, we have not yet been able to show our true potential. We hope to turn the tables at the next GP in Argentina”.

Maverick Viñales – P16

“Even though the result is certainly not the one we wanted, it was a positive weekend. Today was perhaps the most important day of growth for me since joining Aprilia because we found a really good setting that I was able to go fast with in the warm-up session and that I was comfortable with even in wet conditions. I’m happy with the work we did here. We are taking a step closer to the best with every round. I can’t wait to get to Argentina to continue this positive trend.”

Raul Fernandez – P17

“The big challenge for me today was that the only reference in the wet that I have is from Moto2! The front tire is much more sensitive on a MotoGP bike, and more difficult to control, which leaves a huge difference between the two categories. Lap after lap, I started to understand everything better, felt better on the bike, and I did a good job. We have a bike that won today under the rain with Miguel Oliveira, so it is a very good bike and I feel very positive about this. Results will come with time, so we will continue the good work.”

Fabio Di Giannantonio – P18

“I can’t tell you I’m happy because I would have loved to be in the front group. Today I was able to start from a much better position on the grid so I would have liked to play my part an maybe keep that position at the line. Unfortunately it started to rain heavily before the race and that was a completely new thing for me to ride a MotoGP bike in full-wet conditions. I found my rhythm only at the end of the race, when we were too far to make any progress in terms of position. I’m happy anyway because it all works for my experience, but I’m kicking myself at the same time because I wanted to do well; we’re struggling a bit at the moment, but I guess it’s part of the learning process.”

Takaaki Nakagami – P19

“It was a really tough one for me with the delay and the change from dry to wet conditions. The grip level was ok, but unfortunately, I had some issues with the helmet visor and it was really difficult to see anything during the race. That made it difficult to stay on the line, so I couldn’t really do anything. Of course, we were not expecting this result, we’re really disappointed with the weekend but we must now move on to Argentina.”

Marco Bezzecchi – P20

“A shame because the feeling with the bike was not bad at all. I had a problem at the start, but in the first laps I managed to move up the standings to the points area. But something was wrong, it was my first time in the wet in the race and the feelings, compared to Moto2, are very different.”

Remy Gardner – P21

“It was the first time riding a MotoGP bike in the rain, so it is never ideal going into a race when you have never tried the wet before. If I am honest, I expected more of the race today. I had some visibility issues today with the rain and it did not improve much as I was behind the others, but at least I took a lot of experience and managed to do the twenty laps. I was able to learn a lot about the tyres as they are very different from the Moto2 ones. The last few laps, I found myself on my own, so I had less water coming into my visor and was able to start improving my sectors and my times. I try to keep positive and move on to the next race.”

Jorge Martín – DNF

“I’m disappointed, not the result I was expecting. The conditions were extreme and it was easy to make a mistake and unfortunately I did. I’m sorry because we had what it takes to have a good race. We will make up for it soon.”

Andrea Dovizioso – DNF

“I’m disappointed because from the moment I switched on the bike, the dashboard was not working. I couldn’t see or hear anything or use the launch control. Still, I was just riding, pretty far in the back and I was gaining some position. I felt quite good with the handling and grip of the bike, although I was struggling with the left grip on the handle bar from the first lap, as it was turning around and therefore, I couldn’t use my right arm in the normal way. Overall, if I was in a better position on the grid and in a normal race, I could have done better, and Fabio (Quartararo) proved that. It’s not a race that I want but these kinds of issues do happen sometimes.”

Marc Marquez – DNS

“What can I say? It has not been our weekend, we have struggled and had problems from the start. It was a really big crash in Warm Up this morning, maybe one of the biggest I have had. I went to the local hospital and while there were no serious problems – it was decided that I should not race. It’s of course a shame, but the best decision.”

2022 Mandalika MotoGP Race Results

2022 MotoGP Championship Standings