Johann Zarco 2017
Johann Zarco delivered a sublime performance today at the legendary Le Mans circuit to storm to a maiden premier class podium in the memorable round 5 fight. The home hero began the sprint from 3rd on the grid and quickly surged to the front of the highly competitive field for the opening six laps. After fearlessly dicing with the leaders, the MotoGP rookie met the chequered flag in 2nd to sweeten Yamaha’s 500th Grand Prix win, with the race being won by Maverick Vińales.
Johann Zarco Le Mans
Meanwhile, Jonas Folger powered to 7th at the Monster Yamaha Tech3 home GP where he delivered a solid comeback charge after a tricky start. The young German fell back to 17th at the beginning, but stuck into a formidable pace and posted lap times which were comparable to his teammate at the end of the Grand Prix. The solid finish leaves Folger confident ahead of the next round at Mugello.
Johann ZARCO
Position: 2nd – Championship: 5th – Points: 55
“The result feels so good and there are many words that I could use, but today has been just great. The conditions were perfect for me in the race with the soft tyres and it was fantastic that I was able to run the pace that I did and to also lead a GP again. I had one flashback of Qatar in my mind, yet, everything was better here than there! Vińales passed me on the 7th lap and from that moment I was just happy to stay with him, and he was fast, but I think that this was the key for me to getting the podium. Rossi was also strong, but it’s a bit complicated to fight in Le Mans because the track is tight, so I was thinking that even though 3rd at the time was fantastic, if they fight like that, maybe something will happen and I can get a better position, and this came true. My result is super and it was so much fun today. The crowd made a lot of noise and there was positive energy. I didn’t feel it at the time, but now I realise that they brought me to the top and now I need to enjoy this moment. I’m a rookie and I am not looking at the Championship and the most important thing is to finish races and collect points, and today I got 20, which is fantastic. I am living in the present and enjoying every round, so if this 2nd place gives me a good advantage in the standing, then I will take it.”
Le Mans Race Results