After seven years, six of them in MotoGP, Johann Zarco achieved his long-awaited first victory in the premier class. To accomplish this, he had to prevail in a battle with several riders in the final laps of the Phillip Island race.
The rider said in a press conference: ‘It’s a quite good feeling. Because you always push and try to catch it, but sometimes you say: «There are some other riders who got the pace, who got this feeling». As long as you don’t catch it, it seems you cannot win. As Pecco [Bagnaia] did now. More than three years ago he has been flying in a Ducati and is winning so many races. Now this is Jorge’s [Martín] time, also in qualifying is doing amazing things and he can control well the race’.
In Zarco’s view, the rear tyre choice was one of the keys to the outcome: ‘The choice of the medium rear tyre was important, and when I saw Jorge going away I’ve been thinking that at least to fight for the podium would be nice. Fight for the second place will not be easy, but it’s possible. And in the last five laps, when Jorge began to drop a lot, I thought something even more special is possible today. So I’m happy I could do it’.
Regarding his feelings, the Frenchman commented: ‘Specially the emotion; maybe we have to do the long race on Saturday for me, because it seems I am a bit fresher than on a Sunday. But at least this is done, let’s see for the future. I will sleep well tonight, because here in Phillip Island, on dry conditions, winning is giving a really nice feeling because everyone loves the track and you feel that you are part of the big guys who won here, and this is a very nice feeling’.