Alcañiz.- The MotoGP world champion ended up satisfied with the work carried out in the classification of the Aragón Grand Prix, more for being able to squeeze the most out of the bike he has than for the few weapons that his factory is supplying him to be able to defend the world title.
“I am satisfied, starting from seventh position is not what I expect, but we have started worse in many races. We had room to do better, but we made a mistake with the choice of the front tire. I couldn’t stop the bike under braking and that made it difficult for me to attack the time”, Mir summed up on Saturday at Motorland.
“I’m satisfied with the pace and I think we can have fun tomorrow,” added the Suzuki rider, hinting that he feels ready to fight for the podium.
During his appearance, Mir complained about not having the same means as his rivals, including his teammate, Alex Rins, this weekend.
The Spaniard explained that he could not mount the holeshot , the device that lowers the rear of the bike to gain grip, when asked if Suzuki had provided him with a new chassis this year.
“No, I have the same chassis as in 2020 . I trust that Suzuki is working for next year. Now we have the same as last year and the important thing is to find good geometries with the one we have, make the most of the qualities of the bike we have now, and a holeshot that works. We cannot afford not to be able to wear it anymore,” he stressed.
“We have to start on equal terms with the others. I think I’m the only rider on the grid who isn’t using it, because I think even Alex Rins has been using it today, and we can’t afford it. At top speed I’m last and the Suzuki’s engine isn’t the worst on the grid. We need an improvement in the holeshot , that is the priority because we lose a lot of time”, remarked Mir, who prefers to sacrifice the device to win in other areas.
(Before reading on, click on the link or on the image to see all the photos of Joan Mir at the 2021 MotoGP Aragon GP)
Despite the pessimism in Mir’s words, the champion is convinced that Suzuki will remedy the situation.
“I am convinced that the engineers in Japan are working on a new bike”, for next year.
The #36 is one of those who always manage to come back in the race and starting seventh is not a big penalty.
“I don’t know what race we will have. There are many people who go fast, but I don’t know how many will be able to keep up until the end”, he warned.
“The sensations for the race are good. I’m going to give one hundred percent and see if that’s enough to be close to victory, which I think is where we can be”.
During Q2, some images could be seen in which it seemed that Mir was recriminating Marc Márquez for some action.
“Nothing has happened to me with Marc. I was frustrated with the sensations of the bike, they were not what I expected in Q2, I was not angry with Marc”, he clarified.
“The chances of winning the World Cup are minimal, but I will fight until the end,” settled the Spaniard in terms of the championship.
