Valentino Rossi Says Circuit Of The Americas Has A Lot Of Secrets

Twenty-one-year-old Moto2 racer Joe Roberts joined MotoGP front men Marc Márquez, Andrea Dovizioso, Valentino Rossi, Álex Rins, and Jack Miller on Thursday afternoon in front of a roomful of international media for the pre-event press conference ahead of this weekend's seventh annual Red Bull Grand Prix of The Americas. Los Angeles-born Roberts is the lone American competing in this year's world championship.

Introduced as "the undisputed king of Austin," Márquez has won all six of the premier-class races held at the 20-turn, 3.43-mile Circuit of The Americas. Dovizioso, Rossi, and Rins are second, third, and fourth, respectively, behind Márquez in the championship standings following the first two rounds of the 19-race series in Qatar and Argentina; Miller, who finished fourth two weeks ago at Termas de Río Hondo in Argentina, is eighth overall in points.

Unlike in the past, when the US was home to as many as three races on the MotoGP calendar—Laguna Seca, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and COTA—this weekend represents the one time of the year the pinnacle of international motorcycle roadracing visits North America. What follows are highlights from the press conference, including comments from 2015 MotoAmerica Superstock 600 Champion Roberts.

Marc Márquez, Repsol Honda: "Austin has been a really good circuit for me from 2013, but every year is different. This year, we arrive in very good shape; we won in Argentina. We have a solid base, which is most important, and I feel comfortable with the bike. We will start from FP1 and try to understand, like always. Don't be crazy, don't try to do something that is not in our hands, just try to ride like I know how.

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“It is true that this is a circuit where the perfect lap is impossible, impossible because it is a really long lap. There are many corners, many hard-braking points. And it’s so easy to make mistakes. Most difficult is to be constant all the laps. It’s really bumpy; sometimes you have to change your lines every lap. This year, we have to understand how the asphalt is; the track has made some modifications. Let’s see how it works the tires.”

Andrea Dovizioso, Mission Winnow Ducati: "I'm really happy about our weekend in Argentina. Our speed was really good; we didn't expect that. I'm happy because it confirms our good base. It would be nice if it were like this here. For sure, Marc has shown in the past that he is the king of this track. It will be very difficult for everybody to fight with him, but we have to bring the maximum points so we are focused on that.

“I expect to be more competitive than last year. We are a bit more balanced than last year, so I think we can be a little better everywhere. That’s why our speed in every practice in Argentina was quite good, and I think that is the reason we can be competitive from the beginning here. I don’t think we have a perfect balance to be really competitive and fight for the victory, but you never know.”

Valentino Rossi, Monster Energy Yamaha: "One of the best parts of making a good weekend—a podium result—is the next week because you can be happy and more relaxed. I stayed home and tried to prepare at the maximum for this race. It is one of the most particular tracks of the season, maybe the most difficult, most technical—long, up and down. You have 20 corners, so it's a long way to the end of the lap.

“The first year I was very slow. I needed a bit more time to understand the track. From 2014, it was not so bad. I had a problem with the front tire in the race, but I was quite fast. I take some podiums; in 2017, I finished second behind Marc. It’s difficult because it’s a very tricky track; it has a lot of secrets, a lot of points where you can lose very much. But usually our bike is not so bad. We will try to be strong.”

Álex Rins, Team Suzuki Ecstar: "For sure, in races we are very strong. We saw this in Qatar and also in Argentina; I recovered a lot of positions. We have good speed in the practices, good speed in the races. We need to improve in qualifying to be in the front positions in the first laps of the race. The other way, overtaking a lot of riders, you destroy your tire. We need to think about why we start in the back and improve.

“Last year, I remember we had some problems on the front trying to stop the bike. Race by race during the season, we improved this feeling. Already in Qatar and Argentina, the front feeling was really nice. As Marc says, this track is very difficult to do the laps on the same line. It’s very hard, a lot of corners. But [former teammate] Andrea [Iannone] did a great race last year, so if we qualify better, we can be more in the front.”

Jack Miller, Pramac Racing: "As Vale said, it's nice to go away from the weekend with a decent result. At Qatar, I went away almost depressed after the seat flew off. It was definitely good to get that one out of the way. It got difficult at the end of last year being on the Ducati GP17; as the other bikes were developing throughout the year, we were staying where we were. It's nice to know this year that we should be able to fight throughout the whole season.

“We showed both in Qatar and Argentina that we’ve got good pace. I know when I come onto a straight I’m not losing meters, and I don’t have to brake like an idiot and cook the front tire. Austin is normally a track I like. I struggled a little bit here last year; I had a small injury. So I’m looking forward to coming here 100 percent fit this year to see how many whoops are on the back straight. We need to keep on working.”

Joe Roberts, American Racing KTM: "I always love coming to Austin. Even before I was racing at the world level, it was one of my favorite cities to visit. Just to be here with all the fans is such a nice feeling. Every one of these guys—Marc Márquez, Andrea Dovizioso, Valentino Rossi, Álex Rins, and Jack Miller—has given me some sort of inspiration during my career. To be up here with them is definitely something special.

“As for how the year has gone, it’s been a difficult start. We made a lot of progress in the last round. During the race, I was on pace to my best gap to the front before I crashed. With a new team, sometimes it takes time, and you’ve got to look at the positives and take that forward. This is a hard-braking track. Something I took from the last weekend: We were really good on the brakes. So I’m hoping that is going to work here.”