INTERVIEW: Jorge Lorenzo – Hunger for another title remains

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  • After finishing third behind Rossi and Marquez last season, Lorenzo aims to make a perfect start to the new campaign at the Losail Circuit in Qatar on Sunday.

    “The only secret is to go faster than him and get more points.” This is what Jorge Lorenzo tells himself to ease the pressure of gearing up for a new MotoGP season in the shadow of a rival. However, these days it’s not nine-time MotoGP champion Valentino Rossi but 22-year-old fellow Spaniard Marc Marquez, who has taken the sport by storm over the last two seasons.

    Since winning the MotoGP title in 2010 and 2012, Yamaha racer Lorenzo had to play second fiddle to the younger and outrageously gifted Marquez but the 27-year-old is adamant that this year will be a reverse scenario.

    After finishing third behind Rossi and Marquez last season, Lorenzo aims to make a perfect start to the new campaign at the Losail Circuit in Qatar on Sunday – a track he has a history of success on.

    “I was the first winner there in 2004,” he told Sport360° this week in Dubai. “I have good memories from this year. Four years later in 2008, I made my debut in MotoGP and achieved pole position so Qatar has always been special for me. “It’s a track that suits my riding extremely well so I am very pleased.”

    The Qatar GP is not just special for Lorenzo. It is a distinctive experience for all racers because it is the only night race. Lorenzo compares this unique racing condition to his second favourite pastime football.

    “It’s different,” the Barcelona-fan admitted with a smile. “It’s like playing football in a stadium on a night. You have a perfect visual experience because the light is so powerful. It’s not a problem. It’s strange but it makes the weekend special.” 

    With a positive finish last season, Lorenzo feels his Yamaha team have improved the necessary malfunctions to close the gap on Honda, who have won the Constructor’s Championship the last two years. “In the winter Yamaha engineers were working hard to improve the bike’s performance, especially the braking which was the weakest part of the bike last year.

    “Now we can brake a little bit later so in general the bikes are stronger so we are looking forward to starting the season.” 

    Few people expected Marquez to make such an immediate impression on MotoGP, winning six races in his debut season and then 13 of a possible 18 last year. When asked about the young Spaniard, at first Lorenzo answered in a covetous manner, thinking his bike was responsible for the immediate success. “Well obviously he entered on a very strong bike. It has probably been the best for the last three or four years. We are working to beat them but for the moment we still need to do some work.”

    Lorenzo races alongside the most well known man in MotoGP history for Yamaha – Valentino Rossi. Although they will both be working together to dethrone Marquez, their relationship can turn sour at times due to their intense rivalry. The Yamaha team will be hopeful they can bring the best out of each of them this season.

    “I try to learn a lot from everybody because everybody can teach you something. Everybody has something that you don’t have, even if it be the rider that finishes last. Obviously when you speak about Valentino who won has nine world titles and over 100 races, you can learn even more,” he said.

    When interpreting a career racing against rising stars like Marquez and phenomenon’s like Rossi, the timing of Lorenzo’s profession has been unfortunate. Rossi won the MotoGP six out of eight years from 2002 to 2008 and when asked if Marquez can have an even better career than Rossi, he answered: “I hope not… Because that will mean we can beat him some years in the future.”

    Lorenzo will attempt to utilise all his skill and experience to regain the championship in 2015. His hunger is stronger than ever. He finishes: “When you have been the world champion once, or twice in my case, you just want to repeat that feat. We know it’s going to be difficult because our rivals are very strong, but we trust our capacity and we will try our best in every race.”

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