Franco Morbidelli counted with resolute precision the days since he last stood on the podium: 1225. And now that we can talk about this data in the past, the Italian-Brazilian’s face is full of smiles and a lot of satisfaction.
On the podium in the Sprint…
“I’m very happy, this is definitely the first real step, the first podium in a Sprint like this, a sprint of pace done by Jorge and Pecco, done at the maximum, staying there is the sign that we have taken a definitive step.
Your improvement process has been going on for a long time…
“I’ve been fast for a while, I’ve continued to feel fast since Le Mans, but I never put it all together, I was always missing something, my adaptation process continued during the races, the podium is another thing. Jorge and Pecco gave their all for 14 laps, staying there is important, it’s the symptom of a good job”
Afterwards with the journalists…
Still on the podium and on Bastianini’s overtaking attempt on the last lap…
“I would start by saying that it was needed, it’s a podium that was needed. It was a fantastic Saturday, we did the right things, we worked well, the performance was good all day, it was also yesterday. With Bastianini I knew he would do something on the last lap, I managed to keep a bit of a margin and I know how strong he goes in the last laps, this was the case”
How special is Misano?
“I have wonderful memories on this circuit and I am creating new ones with all my friends, all the people I love, all the Italian fans in the stands, racing and doing well has a very special flavour”
Is this podium a middle finger to those who criticized you?
“There’s a saying I like that goes: ‘Haters will always hate’. Those people, the people who criticize, sometimes they’re a push to do better, I don’t feel like giving the middle finger”
In the last laps you were close to Pecco, is this a sign for tomorrow’s race?
“We were close in the last two laps, Pecco slowed down a bit… tomorrow will be a different story because – now we’ll have to see who will use the soft and who the medium – but the race will be longer, the pace less tight”
Which tire are you going for tomorrow?
“I haven’t decided on the tires yet”
“It had been 1225 days since I was on the podium”
What did you think when you crossed the finish line?
“I thought about my team, I was happy for them too for all the work we did at the beginning of the year, for all the criticism that I can handle, but it was also important for those around me to be able to handle that kind of criticism. They never showed me a second of weakness, this first podium goes to them”
Is victory near?
“I would like to confirm this level also on Sunday, in the long races, I would like to win again because I miss it a lot, two positions are missing. I hope to be able to fight for the podium and something more”
On Enea’s overtaking at the last corner: did he overdo it or were you good?
“Enea was a bit far away, he had to let go of the brakes a lot, in fact he went very long, he tried”
At the beginning of the year one of the problems was the departures, now what has changed?
“The experience with the bike has changed, even today I didn’t have a great start, Jorge had a great start, I’m arriving in the average. We are continuing to work to improve it, the ritual is to do it well”
Does the front row change a race?
“It changes a lot, it was thousands of days”
