This weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix at Motegi will be the last time the current Suzuki team competes on Japanese soil. The Hamamatsu structure announced its departure from MotoGP in the first third of this campaign when the checkered flag was waved in Cheste, which will put an end to eight seasons in the premier class.
Its two riders, Alex Rins and Joan Mir, have found a place in the Honda ranks (the first in the LCR and the second in the Repsol). They both know what it’s like to climb to the top of the podium wearing the colors of Suzuki, but the last course has been difficult. Rins is eighth in the general classification, while Mir does the same in thirteenth position.
However, Rins said the day before the start of the Japanese Grand Prix that he doesn’t feel “extra pressure” to get a good result. “We haven’t been here for a long time, but the bike adapts quite well to this circuit. In 2018 we finished third. I’m looking forward to riding here, it will be the last time I do it with Suzuki, so I want to make the most of it,” he said the one in Barcelona.
“I, as a rider, would like to end the ‘Suzuki era’ by making podium finishes,” he continued. “But I am already satisfied with my work at Suzuki. Obviously, I would like to have a world championship, which my teammate [Joan Mir] did in 2020, but we have done many podiums, we have won three races…” .
“I think I’ve done a good job for the brand, developing the bike,” summed up Rins, who prefers to face the remaining appointments as enjoyment. “It is clear that the last races can be more to enjoy. I feel competitive, so I think we can get a podium.”
However, in the elite of motorcycling not everything is so simple. “I try to take it as enjoyment, but I haven’t done it for years, because in the end this is a job. But I’m motivated.”
In fact, Rins sees himself capable of uncorking a bottle of champagne before the year is out. ” Getting a podium is relative, because we can have pace, but everything has to line up. Qualifying well, making a good start, not getting into any trouble in the first few races… Even though Ducati is one step above, I I think it’s feasible to make a podium”, he concluded.
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