Zarco (Honda) after the crash: “Pain in my hip and fear of Q1”

Fun fact to kick off the Japanese Grand Prix: on Friday, only riders on Japanese motorbikes crashed in the premier class. Honda accounted for the lion’s share with four crashes. After wildcard rider Taka Nakagami had already taken a hard fall in FP1 – much to the horror of Honda’s management – resulting in a broken collarbone, three of the four remaining riders crashed out during the crucial qualifying session.

Whilst the crashes involving Luca Marini and rookie Diogo Moreira could still be classified as mere slips, Zarco caused a few tense moments. The LCR rider, who had only just returned to the MotoGP circuit for the Aragon GP after a months-long break, was violently thrown from his RC213V in the final corner. After a hard impact, the Frenchman had to take a moment to compose himself before leaving the scene of the crash at a leisurely pace.

Hard landing

What happened? Zarco: “As I was downshifting into the final corner, the bike bucked at the rear and then spun out of control. Unlike my previous crashes, this one was nasty because I fell from a great height and landed on my hip. It hurt quite a lot for a moment, which is why it took me a while to recover. But it’s just a bruise – I’m fine and I’m not worrying about it. I was in attack mode and that sort of thing can happen.”

Johann Zarco’s first concern was his position on the timing board. Zarco, who had finished FP1 in a strong fifth place and as the fastest Honda rider, had been in the top 10 throughout the qualifying session but had dropped back to 10th place before his final flying lap. When the crash happened, there were less than five minutes left on the clock.

Zarco: “I was really worried; I didn’t want to end up in Q1 under any circumstances. Because the bike’s base set-up here is fantastic. I’m also sure it would have been possible to improve my position again from 10th place. A low 1:43 lap time – that would have been possible.” That would have put Zarco back in 5th place. The veteran was lucky. His rivals’ attempts to push the watching LCR rider out of the top 10 failed. After an hour, 0.004 seconds favoured Zarco.

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Johann Zarco vor Ersatzfahrer und Markenkollege Somkiat Chantra

Foto: Gold and Goose

Relieved, Zarco summed up Day 1 at Motegi in a message, emphasising: “I reckon we can take another proper step forward on Saturday. The bike is working fabulously, but we still need to set it up so that we can make the most of it. If we manage that, a lot is possible; if we don’t – then it will be really tough with the improvements the others are going to make.”

Despite the crash-filled debacle, the Honda camp are likely to be satisfied with the performance. With two riders in Q2 and only small time gaps to the front-runners, the foundations are in place for a redeeming anniversary weekend at Motegi.