Alex Rins can now go home in peace after the season. The one from Barcelona managed, after much suffering, to return to the top of the podium with Suzuki, before those from Hamamatsu left the championship.
Rins won in Australia, in a tight race in which Marc Márquez and Pecco Bagnaia did not give him a break until the very finish line.
“I’ve seen the race three or four times,” Rins said at Thursday’s press conference in Malaysia. “It was very good [the race], and it was the second tightest Top 10 in history,” he added.
Now the paddock visits Sepang. Like the rest of the Asian circuits, it has not been raced there since 2019. However, MotoGP has visited Malaysia regularly for the classic pre-season tests. “We have good memories of 2018 and 2019, and in the pre-season tests we got a good set-up,” Rins commented on the matter. “We have some elements that we didn’t have in February.”
The #42 arrives emboldened at the penultimate grand prix of the year, and sets himself the goal of “fighting for the podium again”. “We have the level and the bike. We also have to look at the weather, it seems that rain is forecast for Sunday. But we will give it everything.”
And, how could it be otherwise, he had to talk about the departure of Suzuki . Rins admitted that he still did not understand the reasons that led the Japanese brand to make such a decision. ” I asked when they told us, and they gave us the same explanations as you [the press].”
“In Misano we had a dinner with the president and some members from Japan, and I can tell you that they were very affected by the decision. So I can’t tell you the reason. The only thing I know is that Suzuki will not be in next year. MotoGP”, commented resigned.
His future is in Honda, a motorcycle that, despite its current bad situation, “seems to be going well”. “I think that Honda started the season quite strong, with Pol [Espargaró] on the podium in Qatar. Since Marc’s return, I have seen the bike quite well, although it is true that he is using certain elements that I think the rest do not have. of riders. They have to improve a bit more, but when I was ahead of me at Phillip Island the bike seemed to be going well.
He also had the opportunity to express his vision for the title race . “[Bagnaia] has the first match point and it will be difficult for Fabio and Aleix. In the tests the Ducatis were very fast. But I hope they can take the fight to Valencia, which is more exciting. On the straight, the Yamaha power is lacking, but I think it’s a competitive bike,” he concluded.
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