Valentino Schumacher – The 2016 MotoGP season has just ended. Before going on vacation, Jorge Lorenzo was in Andorra to open the doors of its World Champions Museum. More than 100 heirlooms of past and present Champions. There’s also his Yamaha M1. It has a special inscription in honor of the last race in Valencia. From next year, the Spaniard will enrich his museum also with the new Ducati GP17.
MotoGP and F1: Jorge has two Loves
In these four years, Lorenzo has collected the pieces of several drivers. But there is one that the former MotoGP champion considers most important. “Senna’s helmet is undoubtedly distinctive. Because Ayrton is a special champion. Of course, my Yamaha M1. With it, I won the MotoGP title for three times.”
Jorge loves F1. We know. The Spaniard climbed into the Mercedes of Hamilton. While last weekend, he was in Abu Dhabi for the last race of the F1 season. Lorenzo makes a nice comparison with MotoGP. “Hard to say. Hamilton could be Marquez, fast and explosive. Vinales is young and I could compare him to Verstappen. I’m similar to Alonso. Both cold and determined. We fail shortly. While Valentino could be Schumacher.
Drive an F1 is amazing. It was a great day for me.” adds Lorenzo. “I feel privileged to have experienced in my career both in F1 and MotoGP. The Mercedes is a something awesome. Really extreme. So, you can even touch the asphalt with the car.” Valentino Schumacher and Jorge Alonso are two good comparisons. So, the Spaniard acknowledges the merits and great victories of the Italian pilot.
Returning to talk about MotoGP, Lorenzo thinks back to the two debuts made by Yamaha and Ducati. “I can’t compare them. They are two different motorcycles and different sensations. The Ducati is an Italian bike. A special brand that has many fans in the world like Ferrari in F1. Something unique. “I can’t say much about the test done with Ducati. I can only show that I had a big smile under the helmet.” said Jorge. “So, I made this challenge to win it and I will do everything to win the title. The bike will change a lot. There may be negative and positive aspects. We will see what will happen in the future.”
Valentino Schumacher and Jorge Alonso pay attention to Maverick Verstappen
Jorge Lorenzo also talks about the new challenge of Rossi. The Italian champion will have a new teammate Maverick Vinales, the promise of MotoGP. “I do not know what will be their relationship or even as it will be hard to beat Maverick. In 2017, Rossi will be a year older. When I arrived in Yamaha, Vale was in top form. Now, he is competitive. So, it won’t be easy for Maverick keeps it behind.”
Marquez is the favorite again. “Marc has the credentials to be a champion. He remains the favorite. Vinales demonstrated with Suzuki that he can win. However, now a Yamaha waits him. One thing is to be quick over a single lap, but then you must close a race. I know that Valentino will be competitive. As we on the Ducati“.
