Impressive Folger Fires to 2nd on Day 1 at Brno. Strong Zarco Powers to 4th

“It feels really good to be back on my Yamaha after the long summer break and we had a positive first day, especially in the afternoon. I was able to create a good feeling with the bike on the track. The conditions were mixed at the beginning of FP2, so we didn’t have much time until the last part of the session, but there, we were finally able to complete a lot of laps on the tyre and get a solid feeling. We did this without changing much on the bike because of the limited amount of time before the practice finished, but we still set a fast lap. So, everyone is ready for tomorrow and we are excited to get going after a positive first day.”

“I am happy to be back in the paddock and on the bike. The summer break was good because I rested, did some training and thought about what I achieved in the first part of the season. Anyway today, I was pleased to have a positive feeling in the wet this morning because last year, in Moto2, I struggled a lot when it rained. Therefore, I knew that I had to push which I did from the beginning and it worked very well as I finished first. Then in the afternoon, the asphalt improved lap by lap. Eventually, it was dry but we needed to put some rubber on the track to get more grip and at the end, when I put on the new soft tyres, it was good to move up the order. I am happy to be inside the top ten because you never know what the weather will do, but I need to enhance this feeling and work with the team so that I can be quick and consistent which is key for the Grand Prix. My focus for tomorrow will be to work on the race pace and be faster because the track, if it is dry, will improve and so a lot of riders will be able to cut their times and get near to the 1’55 mark. Therefore, I want to be closer to this time, to learn everything and feel good.”