Crutchlow: “Can’t wait to be back on the grid”

After having competed for Honda for the last six seasons, Cal Crutchlow returned to the Yamaha clan as a test rider at the end of last year. After the "shakedown" in Qatar at the start of the year then tests in Aragon and Jerez, the Briton will be back on the Yamaha YZR-M1 this weekend at the Styrian GP in place of Franco Morbidelli, convalescing at the following a knee injury. He will act as interim manager until his home date at the Silverstone circuit at the end of August.

Le Red Bull Ring has never really smiled on the native of Coventry since in six participations, he has a fourth place as his best result in 2018. Apart from this edition, he has never done better than 15th. But this Friday, he will discover the Austrian track for the first time on a machine other than a Honda. “I can't wait to be back on the grid and get the vibes of a race weekend again, he rejoices. Although it will be very different from the work I have done this year as a Yamaha test rider. "

And the Englishman continued: “ The circuit is not the one I have enjoyed the most in the past, but I finished fourth there in 2018 and it was a good result. It's not a fast and smooth route, it's a place where you have to be quick and precise. I have no objective in terms of results, it will mainly be about trying to progress session after session. »

We couldn't keep you waiting any longer… 🙌

Here's @calcrutchlow on track in the striking red and white retro livery to celebrate @YamahaMotoGP 60th year of Grand Prix competition! 🤩#QatarTest | #MotoGP pic.twitter.com/mGgenOcFdB

— MotoGP™🏁 (@MotoGP) March 10, 2021

By replacing the vice-World Champion, Crutchlow will inherit a YZR-M1 version 2019. The bike being different, particularly in terms of weight distribution, he will probably not benefit from the latest developments from the Iwata factory. “ I don't know if he will have things to test... he told us fabio quartararo a few days ago in Clastres. Afterwards it’s good for him to get back into the swing of things a bit.. "

Crutchlow will, however, be able to count on the support of Ramon Forcada, an engineer who has been in the Grand Prix paddock since the 1980s. Among the many drivers with whom he has worked, Forcada was notably Jorge Lorenzo's chief mechanic during his nine years. at Yamaha with three crowns up for grabs.

Crutchlow is therefore delighted to make his return accompanied by the Spaniard. “ I will work with Ramon Forcada, who knows the Yamaha very well, he said. I'm convinced it will be a good thing, because he was at Yamaha when I was there. I'm sure it's going to go well, I just want to make sure I do a good job for the team. "

Yamaha has had its ups and downs since Austria's return to the MotoGP calendar in 2016, an event statistically dominated by Ducati. Only Jorge Lorenzo (2016) and Fabio Quartararo (2019) have finished on the podium and Maverick Viñales, who jumped off his bike at the end of the straight last year due to a brake problem, is the only one to having taken pole position there.

The Yamaha of Maverick Viñales after his fall at the end of the straight during the Styrian GP last year.