The colors of Repsol Honda suit Joan Mir well, very well, a team he dreamed of since he was a child and to which he now arrives as the new teammate of Marc Márquez, a role previously played with little success by Dani Pedrosa, Jorge Lorenzo and Pol spread The two-time champion is not afraid of the challenge.
-Does it make you dizzy to share a box with Márquez?
-There is always the vertigo of being afraid of failure, but I am very confident in my possibilities and in my team. Hopefully the day will come when we are both fighting, and I already say that I am very confident in my possibilities.
-Are you going to race with the same bike?
-In Sepang the challenge was important because apart from having to get used to a totally different ride, I also had to give development guidelines for this year. It’s difficult, because when you don’t push 100 percent of the bike the feedback isn’t real. We set ourselves first to reach a good level, and then give guidelines. I think we did a good job because we got closer to the comments that Marc was giving, and that’s important. Because you can create a bit of confusion if you ask for different things. Marc’s and my way of riding is not that different and we can go the same way.
-Have you analyzed what Lorenzo and Pol lacked to succeed in the position you now occupy?
I haven’t stopped to think about that. I try to have everything under control, to give the maximum of what I am and what I can contribute. Beyond the failures of other riders, I am different, which does not mean that I am going to do better, but I have to concentrate on giving the best of myself.
Are you worried about the rear of the Honda?
-I in Sepang did not see a big problem of confidence to go out by ears or anything like that. It is clear that work has been done to improve in that direction and I cannot tell you that this was a serious problem.
-What have you been able to apply from Suzuki?
-You try to apply the experience to improve. I don’t have it on this computer, but I do have it on others. I want to take this project to the top as I have done in the past with other bikes. I really want to.
What do you think of the new format?
-It is clear that the focus of the weekend will change a lot because until now Friday was to take sensations and now it is to go on to Q2. Then you have a journeyman and a race and it will be a busy Saturday. I can’t tell you how I approach it. Until I live it I won’t be able to tell you if I’ll like it. As a rider I like to compete, more than an FP4 that is just to adjust the bike. And that sprint race will also serve to prepare for the big race.
What do you have to work on the most?
-For me the part that I have to discover more is the acceleration, it is where we can improve more. It is one of our weak points. It’s something you can work on a lot in electronics. This is what I need more time for, to understand it, for which I will need more laps, and with that lap by lap I can improve my confidence.
-Do you expect to be in front from the beginning or will you need some races?
-The expectation is high. I honestly don’t know if I’ll be there to fight for the podium from the first race. The tests and the evolution of the bike will be very important. I will try to be competitive from the first race, but we’ll see. When I say that we are different, it means that we all are, it is not that one is better than another. It is clear that coming to this team with a teammate like the one I have makes the challenge even more difficult. But this partner wants the same thing as me, to succeed. If he shows that it can be done, then it can be done. It is clear that I am coming to a team that he has been with for many years, that he knows the bike perfectly, and this makes it a great challenge. The challenge comes at a good time in my career and I have already said that I am very excited to be able to wear these colors.
-Is it the challenge of your life?
-I begin a second stage in my career. When I started MotoGP there was a very important challenge, now this is another very important challenge. I would classify it as a second stage, super decisive in my sports career that if it goes well it will go very well for me and if it doesn’t quite work we will have to rethink things. But, I’m telling you, I’m in a very good moment to face this, I arrive very prepared and I’m looking forward to it, I think this is fundamental.
-How do you see MotoGP at the level of repercussion?
-The Covid did not help, but the thing is that before there were 4 heroes and they belonged to one or the other, while now there are 12 pilots who can win. I won in 2020 with a victory and being the most consistent. There are more and more motorcycles and there are the wings…
-What can Ken Kawauchi contribute, coming from Suzuki?
-Each person has something different to contribute, as Alberto Puig says. I have the experience of seeing Ken work, he is a very methodical person, who has a very structured, very orderly way of working, and if they have signed him it is because they believe in him. Yes, I think he can contribute interesting things. I have not worked with who he was before, but I think he can contribute things coming from a brand in which he has followed the entire development first-hand. And he can bring a lot of information to Honda from a place like Suzuki where they didn’t have as many resources.
-What can’t be allowed?
-I can’t afford to fail, not be ahead, this is something I can’t afford. And the team is what he wants.
