Joan Mir: “Not being in the fight for the World Cup would be taking a step back”

“Winning in MotoGP has given me more hunger and motivation”

MADRID, March 1. (EUROPE PRESS) –

The Spanish MotoGP rider Joan Mir (Suzuki) confesses that not being in the group of riders who will fight for the World Championship in 2022 would be “taking a step back”, after his title in 2020 gave him “more hunger and motivation” looking to the future, while highlighting his more introverted personality as “one of the keys” to his performance in the top flight.

“Not being among the riders fighting for the World Championship would be taking a step backwards. Every year we have to be there to win it or at least fight for it, otherwise we would not have met the goal we set at the beginning of the season. I expect a very even season, with many surprises. I have to be in the fight in every race,” Mir said in an interview with Europa Press on the occasion of the presentation of the Amazon Prime docuseries ‘MotoGP Unlimited’.

The Spaniard was Moto3 champion in 2017 and three years later he was crowned in the ‘queen’ category, a title that made him “hunger”. “I thought that when you win MotoGP you can pick up the ‘junk’ and go to rest, but it hasn’t been like that, it has made me more hungry, wanting to get more victories, more motivation”, he revealed.

In this sense, he remembers that he was “very sorry” to win in MotoGP in the season in which there was no public in the stands due to the coronavirus pandemic. “What makes people feel is when they are on the circuit, and I didn’t experience it, I have it pending. I want to win so I can share it with her,” he added.

“Last season I finished third, if I hadn’t won in 2020 it would be a fantastic season, but by winning in 2020, 2021 in the end wasn’t particularly good,” explained the Balearic about the demand on himself.

However, it was a learning season. “Last year I learned a lot, we suffered a lot with a package with the bike that was not what we expected at the beginning of the season and we dragged on starting without enough things that came late. But this year we have a more competitive package, and although there will be more equality , gives me optimism, I think we will be able to fight for the World Cup again”, he predicts.

“It’s the best grid I’ve ever been on, every year the riders are more professional, they train better, there’s more equality on the bikes. There will be many Ducatis, people from below will climb strongly, there will be a lot of equality, we’re all going to arrive more prepared “, he analyzed about the season that starts this weekend in Qatar.

The Suzuki rider admits that his more introverted personality, away from the media spotlight, allows him to focus even more on his goals. “That’s my personality in racing, it’s not a role, it’s who I am when I work,” he said. “I think I have two personalities,” he emphasized with a laugh.

“When I work I’m very serious, I don’t like to laugh, I’m 100% focused on driving. Outside of training I’m calmer, I make jokes all day, quite the opposite of racing. I’ve always been like that, since I was little I have taken the bikes very seriously, it is one of the keys by which I have been able to reach the World Championship,” he added.

“IT IS A PITY THAT NOW FEWER PEOPLE SEE THE RACES IN SPAIN”

On the other hand, he valued the support of Spanish fans, compared to fans from other countries. “We come from Indonesia and it’s amazing how people live MotoGP there. Going from the hotel to the circuit running I felt like ‘Rocky’. It is true that every year the races are seen less in Spain than in the years with Crivillé, when I lived here more. Now there are fewer people who watch them and it’s a shame because there are many Spanish riders, but it’s true that we need a little more,” he lamented.

For this reason, Mir believes that the Amazon Prime docuseries will help increase interest in motorcycling. “Normally, you see the headlines of a driver, how you are on the track, but the personal side is not seen. This documentary will help people really get to know the drivers. I am happy, I really liked the documentary of Formula 1 and I think doing it for MotoGP is very successful, people are going to enjoy it a lot,” he concluded.