He had started a first “run-in” riding the factory M1, but starting this weekend Franco Morbidelli begins his adventure as a factory rider right from the first race. The Italian-Brazilian rider will be at the start of the Qatar Grand Prix with the Monster Yamaha team colors, an important step forward in his career, which leads him to be the teammate of the reigning world champion.
Morbidelli is facing his first full season as an official rider and he does so already knowing that he has the future (at least the short-term one) written, having an agreement also for 2023. However, the Yamaha rider is ready to give his best even if not must earn the renewal on the field this season and aims to do the best possible to be able to get the most out of himself and the bike: “The desire to do well should always be the same, both if you are sure of the renewal and if you you have to earn it. I always try not to be influenced by my possible contractual situation “.
Not only contracted, even the injury seems to be a thing of the past. Forced to skip several races due to knee surgery last year, Morbidelli is back in full shape and trained at the Ranch by Valentino Rossi, demonstrating that his physical shape is now fully recovered: “To be an athlete and to do what I have to do, I’m back to 100%. I went back to training on the ranch. I felt good, it was nice to be back on a real motocross track. It was also nice to get back to training with all the guys. Step by step we feel a little more normal, in particular in these three weeks I felt I was back to a normal condition, so it was nice ”.
“I am confident of the resistance that I will be able to have,” he continues. “We will have to see on the track, but I feel much fitter and better physically than last year. This reflects on my lap time, on the whole race simulation. I am confident that I can do it ”.
But Morbidelli is known to have an incredible sensitivity not only in technical terms but also in emotional terms. Faced with the tragedy that the whole of Europe is experiencing, stunned by the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, a question on the subject could not be missing, to which the Yamaha rider replies with extreme frankness: “The situation in Europe is a great disaster. A lot of things are happening and a lot of information is coming out. So many ideas come out, but the only thing I can say with certainty is that it is not right to wage wars, it is not right to start military conflicts. It is not right to make people, women, children, families suffer. You can’t make people suffer like that, it’s not nice. I am very sorry about all of this and seeing what happens now breaks my heart. I hope that the people who are creating this nightmare will use not only their head but also their heart to act. It’s the only sure thing I can say ”.
However, when the time comes to put on a suit and helmet, Morbidelli will put everything behind him and focus only on the track: “How you forget or put aside the bad things that happen on the track, you have to put aside even the bad things that happen off the track. There is little room to think about these kinds of things when you are racing and when you are running with others. It is something that must be put aside, at least for the 45 minutes of practice and the same number of competition “.
#Morbidelli #whats #happening #Ukraine #breaks #heart