New attitude for Simoncelli after Estoril crash
Added on Tuesday, May 10th, 2011 by Carole Nash Editor
New attitude for Simoncelli after Estoril crash
Marco Simoncelli has claimed that he is heading to Le Mans with a new attitude this weekend after a disappointing start to the MotoGP season.
The Gresini Honda rider was largely expected to mount something of a challenge against the so-called “big four” of Jorge Lorenzo, Valentino Rossi, Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa after a very positive pre-season, which saw him sitting at the top of the time sheets.
But that promise has failed to translate into results in the first three races of the season, with a strong fifth place finish in Qatar followed by DNF’s in Jerez and Estoril.
In Spain, the Italian crashed out from a winning position on lap 12 whilst two weeks ago in Portugal, Simoncelli crashed out on the opening lap after starting from second on the grid.
And Simoncelli admitted that he is determined to put the result in Estoril behind him this weekend at Le Mans and start to demonstrate that he can mix it with the big names come race day.
“The Estoril test on the day after the race was a good way for me to put the race behind me and go to Le Mans with a different attitude,” he claimed. “Now I am just looking forward to putting it behind me properly.
“The test was a useful and important one ahead of the fourth race of the season. I am more sure than ever that I can run with the front guys and I will be giving everything to come out with a top result. I will certainly be trying to make sure I don’t make the same mistake on a cold tyre because the only good thing that came out of it in Portugal was a nice picture of my aerial barrel roll!
“Joking aside, I am keen to do well at Le Mans, a circuit I don’t particularly like even though I won there in 250 in 2009 and finished second in 2008.”
