In Qatar, Luca Marini rides at the back of the field in his Honda debut – But he wants to remain realistic and continue working with the engineers in peace
Luca Marini’s Honda debut at the night race in Qatar was more than difficult. Only Franco Morbidelli was slower in qualifying, but he first had to get to know his new Ducati after missing out on testing.
In the eleven-lap sprint, Marini was 25 seconds behind in last place at the chequered flag. And in the Grand Prix, the Italian also rode at the back of the field together with Jack Miller (KTM), who had a crash at the start.
“It’s strange because I was really slow. I didn’t expect that,” mused Marini. “On Friday I still felt in line with my teammates. We were also in the same range during the test.”
“But I was really slow in qualifying and in the sprint. We need to understand the reasons and check the bike thoroughly. It’s the same problems, but I was slower.” His feeling compared to the test was not that different.
Only the lap times were slower. “Turning was really bad,” said Marini. “I had to use the tire a lot for that. I’m strong on the brakes, but that’s not good because then I have problems in the middle of the corner.”
“After five or six laps, the feeling with the tire got worse. But it’s not due to tire wear, but the performance of the bike is getting worse. I can’t turn and just slide around. It’s certainly not a problem with the tire.”
No decisive progress was made for Sunday. It was clear to Marini that he would not be able to keep up with the field. “I saw on the pit board that someone was behind me. I wondered why,” he commented with a laugh.
“But then I saw Jack’s pit board. I let him past and then followed him. I tried to understand something behind him because KTM had improved a lot.” In the end, Marini finished just ahead of Miller.
And where is the RC16 better than the Honda? “They have a lot of grip at the rear, especially in the final phase of corner entry. Then they can turn the bike very easily because they can use this grip. That’s where we have the most problems, especially on my side.”
Marini’s statements thus coincide with those of his brand colleagues, who cite grip as the main problem. Despite the poor results on the first weekend, the Italian does not want to paint a bleak picture.
“It was the first race. We have to remain realistic,” Marini states. “I understood a lot in this race. That’s better than finishing 16th and not understanding anything. It’s clear to me what we have to do. We need time for that.”
“Our starting point is far back. At the front, the bikes are constantly being developed. The limit is constantly shifting. It’s a process that takes time. We have to stay calm and try to make constant progress.”
“It’s positive for us that everything is so close together. Because if we find something, we might be able to make up a few positions. We have to work well and make good steps. If we can find a few tenths of a second, we can fight for better positions. “
