Folger: “Could have been better…”

German debuts in the premier class in the top ten – but still left wanting more

Jonas Folger (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) was a rookie superstar of preseason, and the German kept it together in a challenging first MotoGP™ race to take home a good haul of points and an impressive first top ten.

Initially dropping back and regretting the cautious start, Folger struggled with a full tank and then got back into his preseason groove as the laps ticked down – crossing the line in P10 in his first ever premier class appearance.

Jonas Folger, Monster Yamaha Tech 3, Grand Prix of Qatar

Jonas Folger, P10: "I’m really pleased with today’s tenth position in my first MotoGP race. But it could have been better because I was a bit too cautious at the beginning maybe. However, it was difficult to judge the track ‘s condition after the brief rain shower prior to the race start. In any case, the situation at the start was very confusing. I didn’t know what to do so, I remained seated on my bike and tried to stay focused, and concentrate. But during the first few laps I was too precarious and in addition, I wouldn’t like to take the first opportunity to make a stupid error to create negative attention. From that point I was probably a bit too timid and got passed by many other riders – I just was too slow.

"Beyond that, we had problems with the weight transfer because the bike was very high. But as soon the fuel got less by halfway point of the race, the situation improved significantly and I was able to recover quickly. From this point of time, I felt a lot more comfortable and I was riding easy and relaxed actually likewise during testing. Anyway, my pace was very competitive in the later stages. I think, I could have been able to fight for a top six position. But I failed it at the beginning, because the first laps were my weak point today.

"In this respect, I must work on myself, as well as we have to adjust the bike with a full tank. But for the first race, this tenth position is ok. We have collected some good points and didn’t crash as many others did - although, there was definitely more on the table. We know this and we also know that we have the speed for it."