MotoGP, Marini: “It’s nice to see Franky again. This year we’ll have a great battle at every GP.”

A lot can change in just a week’s time. Like with Luca Marini who, from his disappointment in Portugal, went on to savor the joy of a podium, thanks to the third place he won in the Sprint Race at Termas de Rio Hondo. This was the first podium for the 25-year-old rider since he’s donned the colors of the Mooney VR 46 team in the MotoGP, ending a dry spell that has lasted from his Moto2 second place in 2020 in Portugal.

“I agree, this is the best way to leave Portimão behind me. It wasn’t easy because it’s usually difficult to get on the podium when starting from a seventh position, although what Brad did is even more surprising. Anyway, I had a fantastic start, and I was rather lucky at the first corner,” Marini admitted at the end of the race.

The key to Luca’s race was, after all, the start, which allowed him to recuperate four positions and fight for the lowest step of the podium with Bezzecchi and Morbidelli.

“My pace wasn’t bad. But, if you start in the top three or four, maybe five, the sprint is one thing. But, if you start from behind, it’s a disaster. So, for this kind of race, anyone is going to want to start in the first two rows, even better if in the front row. I’m not very satisfied with my pace. I think I need to improve two or three tenths for tomorrow’s race. We’ll look at the data and try to analyze it to understand in which area we can improve,” Marini said. He doesn’t believe he can replicate the performance of the sprint race in the Grand Prix. 

“I think I’m missing something. Today, with half the laps, it was a completely different race. You don’t have to worry about the tires, so you can push with the rear, but I struggled a lot when braking. I wasn’t as fast as in Portimão and in the other races.” Luca explained. “I think this is the area where we need to improve for tomorrow.” 

An even more special moment of this race Saturday was when the Mooney team rider battled it out with Morbidelli and his garage partner. A normal Saturday at the Ranch for the guys at the VR46 Riders Academy.

“It was good to see Franky again. He’s a really fast rider, and it’s difficult to fight with him,” Marini commented. “You can learn a lot at every lap, because he’s really aggressive, but he has good maneuvers, and it's nice to have him up front fighting out with us and the other riders. I think this year we’ll have a great battle at every GP.”