Cycle News

VOL. 55 ISSUE 24 JUNE 19, 2018 P127 This being Lorenzo, it was necessary to think the unthink- able. But only up to a point. With Suzuki already spoken for, and KTM and Aprilia not meeting the description "com- petitive," there could be only one answer. Jorge was going back to Yamaha. A rumor that gelled still further when Yamaha didn't rule out the notion of supplying its still notional satellite team with factory bikes. That seemed settled then. So when the news broke days later that he was to join Marquez on Honda, there wasn't anyone who wasn't flabbergasted. Plenty of people admire Lo- renzo's super-smooth riding, his title achievements (three so far in the premier class alone), and his tireless work ethic. There is grudging respect also for his willful independence, although this is often over-ruled by disdain for his habit of dispensing with his close associates at the drop of a hat. This started when he was still a grand prix beginner; his rider-coach-manager fa- ther had trained him from early childhood for the role of world champion. Now, out of the blue, he dumped his dad. This is a pattern he has re- peated with later management and other allies. Work for Jorge, and all of a sudden you find you're not working for him any more. But I am in a minority in the so-called "MotoGP family" (a sentimental misnomer that strives to unite the irreconcil- able), because I seem to be one of only very few who actually like Lorenzo. "Like" might not be the right word. It's not part of a GP jour- nalist's remit to like the riders, though it helps if you like the racing and like motorbikes. But there's something about Loren- zo's vaulting egotism and well- displayed selfishness that fits a great champion pretty well. Nice guys don't win, etc, etc. It's his riding that really mat- ters. He's struggled with the Des- mosedici, but always promised he was learning. After leading a lot of laps then failing, now he's won a race, in typically imperi- ous start-to-finish style. I venture to suggest it will not be his last this year. If he then goes on to win also on a Honda (and why not?), I believe he will be the first rider in the premier class to do so on three different makes. His greatest achievement at Ducati, however, was to negoti- ate a record sign-on fee, easily eclipsing anything clocked up by Rossi, or anybody else. The rumored amount for two years was 24-million Euros. Phew! Also typically Lorenzo, this first win was for himself alone. As well as costing Ducati a huge amount of money, it did little for the brand, for it robbed team- mate Dovizioso of five potentially crucial points. It was an echo of the last race of last year at Valencia, where Dovi was still numerically capable of winning the title. Against team orders, Jorge decided the best way to help him was to beat him. It will be interesting to see how the two uneasy teammates play it out for the rest of this season. Many believe his style is wrong for the Honda. We shall see. He's an intelligent and hard- working rider, with enormous willpower. His own view, expressed at Catalunya, was typical enough. In the smaller classes he'd won races on a Derbi and a 250 Aprilia, but also scored pole positions on a Honda in his first year in the 250 class. Now he's adapted successfully from Yamaha to Ducati. "I have the capacity." If nothing else, though, he'll be a thorn in the side of Mar- quez. The teammate from hell. Remember the wall down the middle of the Yamaha pit, when he was with Rossi? And the barbed comments between him and Dovizioso at Ducati? That'll be a novelty for Mar- quez, after the amenable Dani Pedrosa. CN

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