Johann Zarco: No regrets about leaving Ducati / MotoGP

In Austin, LCR Honda driver Johann Zarco had to accept an open lap twice. The American Grand Prix was just the continuation of a season that was not very successful for him. He achieved his best result in Doha with 12th place in the main race. In the World Championship, Zarco is in 18th place after three meetings with five fewer points.

The other Honda riders – Luca Marini, Joan Mir and Takaaki Nakagami – do not make much difference, the RC213V is still not competitive. In an interview with SPEEDWEEK.com, Zarco is nevertheless optimistic. “Of course we can be frustrated because we have limits. But we have to be patient,” assured the two-time Moto2 world champion. “That is the current situation, but I can deal with it. I can only pass my opinion, then it is up to the engineers .I’m not an engineer and I’m not going to tell you what to do. We’re fighting against bikes that are already very well developed from this stage. That’s why we have big problems sometimes, but I have a lot of faith The Japanese.”

The 33-year-old finished his final season with the Pramac Ducati team in 5th place. He won his first MotoGP race at Phillip Island in Australia in 2023. For the 2024 season, after four years at Ducati – three with Pramac, one with Avintia – Zarco replaced the LCR Honda on inferior material.

Instead of a one-year contract from Ducati, Honda gave him a two-year contract. “With this new project I can look further into the future. This can also help me develop as an athlete. That’s why this option was so interesting to me,” said Zarco about his deal with a major motorcycle manufacturer. “During the winter break, I became like athlete thanks to the way I trained. That’s good because it means I can do better on the bike. I wanted to get rid of the constant pressure to achieve results. It’s enough if I put pressure on myself to show good results,” the Frenchman said.

Zarco’s next opportunity for this will be Jerez at the end of April. Things did not go well there last year: with 8th place in the sprint and retirement in the main race, he scored only two points. Things can’t get any worse this year.