Movistar Yamaha rider Jorge Lorenzo was the man to beat, he looked like he had it all, the pace, the record, the pole position, until Repsol Honda rider Marc Marquez came along and stole it all from him.
Lorenzo found his form again
Lorenzo was heading into the eleventh round of the MotoGP season after finishing third at the Austrian GP behind the Ducatis. Looking to close the gap between him and championship leader Marquez he soon find a great rhythm and a fantastic pace at the Automotodrom Brno.
Lap record for Lorenzo at Brno
Lorenzo was setting the pace in most sessions after he found his feet by FP2, but Marquez went on to lap quicker taking the crown of the fastest rider after day one. Come Free Practice 3 the Spaniard again set the fastest time, this time it broke the lap record and claimed him the top spot of the leaderboard heading into Qualifying.
He confirmed his pace in FP4 and after he again set the fastest lap he knew that he just had to repeat what he had done previous and the pole position would be his. Lorenzo did just that he went out and set the fastest lap in qualifying.
Relaxed approach to the end of qualifying
He returned to the pits before his final stint on track and looked very subdued. So relaxed he sauntered back to his bike, full of swagger, ready to possibly improve on his own time. But meanwhile on track, Marquez was flying.
He was catching Movistar Yamaha rider Valentino Rossi and Monster Tech 3 Yamaha rider Pol Espargaro, and used the tow from them to help him achieve his record breaking lap time before overtaking them in the final corners.
It was all gone…
Everything that Lorenzo had achieved was stolen from him in that moment. There was nothing more that the 2015 MotoGP champion could do, he was out of time and had to settle for sixth on the grid. He should never have underestimated the fellow Spaniard.
Lorenzo was present at the press conference after Qualifying where he spoke about the days building up to the Czech GP. After complete his record breaking lap time during FP3 he expected to “be much quicker in the afternoon”.
However he though the slight increase in temperature and the fact he “was maybe too aggressive” with the second tyre by “braking too late” and “opening too much throttle”, which he felt meant he “did not improve so much compared to the first lap time”.
Speaking about Marquez’s lap time he expressed that he felt it was “impressive” and that “he was really, really fast”, something which he admitted he “never expected him being”. He also feels that “being held by the riders in front of him gave him the last push.”
Optimistic about race pace and tyre choice
Speaking about the race he thought “it would have been better” had he ended up starting in pole position, however he said, “second place is a very good place to start tomorrow”. He is reassured by the fact he “will have a very good pace” with the tyre he has chosen.