Zarco: “This morning, my lap was almost perfect” 

If after having set the best time in the first three free practice sessions, pole seemed within reach of Johann Zarco, the Riviera finally had to settle for sixth position in Q2. But the Ducati rider said he was nevertheless satisfied with his Saturday, unlike his compatriot Fabio Quartararo. “A good day all the same,” says Zarco. The afternoon was more difficult. This morning, my ride was almost perfect. I had managed to put everything together. In the afternoon, we did not manage to take the desired step forward, it was even a little less good in terms of sensations. But like that, I still remained competitive. This is the positive side of this afternoon. We wanted to improve the bike, it didn't work. When you get to this level, going very quickly, it's sometimes a little difficult to continue to progress. That's a bit why I didn't manage to get back to 1'28. »

Zarco tried to return to the settings of the morning, but it was not enough to do better. “We did it a bit during qualifying and I came back to almost the same time,” he said. But to take it to the next level is another story. Tomorrow, the times will not be in 1'28. Above all, you have to find the rhythm to run a short 1'30 and even repeat several 1'29s, this will be the pace of the race. »

Zarco rather favorable to the new format for 2023

Unlike some, including Quarterly, Zarco is up for the new format which will come into effect from next season with the introduction of a sprint race on Saturday. “We talked about it a lot yesterday in the Safety Commission,” explains the Frenchman. It can be interesting, because, as an athlete, changing the mindset of preparation and attack for a weekend a little... I think it's the experience that will help. An FP1 and FP2 to go directly to Q2. If you're comfortable on the bike, it might be nice to do a little more racing. The program is not yet defined, but we still have a good draft of how it could happen. I think it will be FP1/FP2 then “FP4” followed by qualifying in the morning to race in the afternoon; qualifying counts for both races. If you make a mistake in the sprint race, then you don't start from the back of the grid on Sunday. »