1. Jorge Martin (Pramac): “I knew I had a good chance of winning and I’m glad I did it. This was possible thanks to my team who built the perfect bike for me. Then, after the crash I had at the end of the second qualifying They did it again, and in a very short time. I had strong competitors, but the good start allowed me to build up a gap to the competitors. Tomorrow we are ready and I will be in the long run “I’ll do my best in the race. Thank you to the fans because the atmosphere here is incredible.”
2. Marc Marquez (Gresini): “That was literally the perfect start, I did well and I was also lucky because I found the right place to attack and kept the right speed. I was almost trapped between Bagnaia and Bastianini but came out with good pace. I’m most pleased with the pace we found in the 10 to 11 laps since I moved up to fourth place. Tomorrow will be very challenging and you never know how it will turn out if it rains I will sleep soundly tonight.”
3. Maverick Vinales (Aprilia): “It was a fantastic race, it was a joy to drive for these fans. But to be honest it was also difficult. I expected a better rhythm. We now have to check that in the garage. Nevertheless, third place is very good and we have it Fought against the Ducatis. I’m happy to be here and to have learned a lot for tomorrow so that we can fight at the front.”
4. Enea Bastianini (Ducati): “My pace in this sprint race was very good, I was consistently fast right up to the checkered flag. What really made the difference is that I was able to overtake much easier than in previous races and that certainly gives me something special. That’s a key thing for the future it would have been nice to fight with Jorge (Martín), but never say never, let’s see how it goes tomorrow. We are all very close in terms of performance, so the race will be hard fought, just like the championship also.”
5. Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia): Statement follows
6. Pedro Acosta (GasGas): “We had a good start to the sprint today, we were able to use all the devices that are usually a bit tricky for us, which was positive. However, I didn’t expect the drivers to give in in the first few corners.” The possibility “We lost a few positions in the beginning to get past the others, but overall we’re happy. The pace was good, we could have fought for the podium today, so I’m positive about the main race.”
7. Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46): “In qualifying I had an excellent feeling, I felt like I had a lead that I couldn’t make the most of because of the yellow flags. However, in the race, a special feeling immediately came over me. It’s a shame, I had problems. We have to analyze the data and understand that our potential was certainly different. Overall, I finished the sprint in the points for the first time this season and I know that I have the pace to be there with the best. We have to “Just understand what the weather is going to do.”
8. Jack Miller (KTM): “I got off to a good start but was a bit cautious in turn 3 and got slowed down. The bike was working decently but it took some time for the rear tire temperature to rise and didn’t come back for another five to six laps. The other guys “We were able to start the acceleration phase out of the corners a little earlier, so we’ll take a look at that for tomorrow, but the front end of the bike worked really well. We have some information to discuss this evening. Now we have to wait and see the weather.”
9. Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse): “The sprint race went well. The team and Aprilia did a fantastic job again. I’m happy that we are becoming really competitive step by step. We were close to reaching the second qualifying – we gave it our best and in the end the 14th place on the grid, which is pretty good. Today in the sprint I felt very comfortable on the bike and had the feeling that it worked really well. We have never had such temperatures here in France and it was a bit difficult for me From the second lap onwards I couldn’t overtake other riders, although I felt my pace was a little better than some riders in front, but in these temperatures it was not easy for us to cope with that also that we are getting faster every day and since we have last year’s bike, in terms of pace it is amazing how we have managed to improve. I’m really happy, but tomorrow will be a completely different race. We need to study and understand what we need to do and which tire will be the best choice for the front axle.”
10. Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha): “The qualifying was more positive than the sprint. During the sprint race we struggled with grip conditions that were poor for us, so let’s see if we can achieve a little better tomorrow. If the grip is low in the dry, it is in the wet Even lower, so if it rains tomorrow, it won’t give us any advantage. The most important thing is that we give it 100% so far: we had special helmets, caps and T-shirts from day one It’s totally crazy and of course it’s great to see all the fans here.”
11. Miguel Oliveira (Trackhouse): “In Q1 it was a good performance, but then in Q2 I had three laps in a row with yellow flags so I couldn’t do much. In the race it was a bit disappointing because I had a problem with the front tire or the front part of the bike .Basically I suffered big slides at the front, upright when braking and at the apex when accelerating, so even at slow speeds I was on the verge of falling – it was really strange I was just trying to push and not fall at the same time. I can’t really say what exactly it was at the moment, but something was really wrong and the team is still trying to understand what happened and make sure we avoid it for tomorrow. Anyway, tomorrow looks very different to today, “So we have to be prepared for anything and then adapt very quickly to whatever happens on the track.”
12. Franco Morbidelli (Pramac): “I started from a good starting position and then lost my lead on the first lap because I was in the crowded starting position, and I also made a mistake… It wasn’t the best sprint start and first lap. For But it’s great to know that I was fast and that gives me extra motivation for tomorrow’s race. However, we continue to improve and I know that I have the potential to stay in a better position There’s still something missing, but the team and I are working and we’re moving forward.”
13. Johann Zarco (LCR Honda): “I was ready to fight and managed to make good overtaking maneuvers, but the limits of the bike were there and I lost in some places on the track. We are trying to make some changes to be at the level of the competitors. We I’ll try again tomorrow.”
14. Alex Marquez (Gresini): “We didn’t show our best performance, but that’s not all negative. We got a good feeling back on the bike today and our pace was also strong in the sprint race. Of course, the way the qualifying went certainly had an impact on our race, but on We can certainly hope for something positive from the 27-lap distance.”
15. Brad Binder (KTM): “I just couldn’t get into the sprint after a good start. I made a few mistakes and there were a lot of problems with the front axle. At some point I went off the track. It was a fight. It was important to get some data for tomorrow Collecting as I felt great on Friday… but kept crashing It was crucial not to do that again today We found something that gives us a good idea for the race. and small differences will make a big difference right now.”
16. Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda): “We had made some changes to the bike’s setup and I felt better. During the sprint I did my best and kept a consistent pace. Let’s see if we can take it a step further before tomorrow’s race.”
17. Augusto Fernandez (GasGas): “Since the start of the sprint I felt really bad with the rear tire and the feeling wasn’t good at all. Looking back on the whole day, we were in P2 this morning and a bit more competitive in qualifying, even though I crashed at the end, and I have that Feeling like I’m getting back to my driving style and the feeling is coming back. It’s positive and let’s try to have a good race on Sunday.”
18. Luca Marini (Honda): “You can always take something positive from every lap you do. We got more data and learned a few things that we can improve for Sunday. It’s clear what we’re missing in the current package, so we’re continuing to work, Until something changes. For tomorrow we will try to make one more small change to the bike to improve the front feel. I am confident that Honda will bring the things we need.”
DNF Marco Bezzecchi (VR46): “I felt really good, everything was under control. I had great pace, Jorge (Martin) was closer and I understood that Marc (Marquez) was coming from behind and was trying to put pressure to increase the gap a little . I made a mistake in turn 9 and couldn’t recover. It wasn’t necessary, it was a real shame to miss out on the podium. I can’t be happy, but it was important that we stayed competitive here too. Tomorrow I think the pace will be different, we will have to understand the weather but we can do well.”
DNF Alex Rins (Yamaha): “I’m fine, but it was pretty strange because I didn’t have a moment before the crash. I would like to say that these things happen when you push 100%. I had Alex Marquez in front of me, even though it was at that moment Morbidelli was, and I drove well. We had installed the hard tire compound specifically for the sprint race because we didn’t have a chance to try it before and it wasn’t that bad, but I just had the front As a driver it’s frustrating, but we get up and keep looking forward.”
DNF Joan Mir (Honda): “From the start we had the feeling that something was wrong with the rear and we were lacking a lot of grip. We have to examine everything carefully to understand the problem and improve it tomorrow. That’s a shame because that meant our race was already over before it started and I fell because of this problem, because I think we could have kept up with Zarco and even gotten into the top ten. That’s the goal for tomorrow , because I am confident that we can find a solution.”
DNF Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati): “My team is already checking everything and then we’ll try to solve it. I’m pretty sure it will bring an improvement, even if it’s not easy to understand what happened. Today I had to change the bike to be more careful with it to deal with the bike. It didn’t work as I expected It did crazy things, I had to give up, lost the front in turn 6 at an acceleration that is normally impossible. I wanted to finish the race and also some information about the tires for tomorrow, but that wasn’t possible. I’ll try to be as competitive tomorrow as I was this morning.”