MotoGP riders react to Johann Zarco victory: ‘He deserved at least one’
Marc Marquez is among many to have praised Johann Zarco after the Pramac rider secured his first-ever MotoGP win at Phillip Island.
After 120 attempts, Zarco took his maiden MotoGP win after producing a last-lap overtake on team-mate Jorge Martin.
Zarco, who has traditionally been one of the better riders when it comes to tyre preservation, demonstrated that once again during Saturday’s race.
- Marquez: “Martin is the favourite for the title because he’s the fastest”
- Di Giannantonio wanted to go for the win “but it was Jorge and Pecco…”
Late passes on Brad Binder and Fabio Di Giannantonio put him in position to be the first rider that attacked Martin, who was struggling with the soft rear tyre.
“He deserved the victory,” said Martin. “I’m so happy for the team and for him. Now we are super close to the Teams' Championship.
“This is a good point. But for sure I want the other one. It still depends on me, but I need to be clever and not make these mistakes.”
Zarco’s manager was also quick to praise the Frenchman, calling Saturday’s grand prix ‘his day’.
Gino Borsoi told MotoGP.com: “We never lost trust in him and now he has achieved his dream. When you never give up, you reach your targets. Today was his day.”
Unless Honda makes drastic improvements next season, Zarco could struggle to replicate his performance at Phillip Island when he joins the LCR team.
Honda arguably has the work bike on the grid, while there is no doubt that the Ducati is the machine to beat.
What Zarco will have the chance to do is be one of Honda’s key riders, and someone who will be expected to fill the void left by Marquez.
Knowing what it feels like to win for the first time in MotoGP, Marquez also spoke about Zarco’s achievement, saying: “Johann is really a talented rider. He is a two-time Moto2 World Champion. He deserves at least one victory.
“It was strange that a rider like him didn’t win before, but today he achieved it.”
