Battered by two Friday crashes at a track where last year he scored a podium on a Yamaha, new KTM rider Johann Zarco let rip to his team, before qualifying 18th, one place behind team-mate Pol Espargaro.

This was a further indignity, after Espargaro had finished a best-yet eighth after qualifying fifth, and the highly regarded Frenchman was a distant 13th.

After his first crash on Friday morning, Dorna’s cameras caught an expletive-rich moment in the KTM pit, where he described both chassis and electronic power control as “effing shit”.

The team had tested a new chassis at Le Mans during the break, but with little improvement, according to the former double Moto2 champion, who had frequently given the factory Yamaha riders a headache during his two years on a satellite Yamaha.

“Staying calm in this difficult time is a challenge,” he said later, in his press debrief.

His problems stem from a severe mismatch between his silky riding style and a bike that responds better to a much more aggressive approach. Team-mate Espargaro conforms to the latter.

So far, Zarco’s attempts to change his style have been fruitless. “I try to push into the corner like never before, with my body out as though I am a passenger on the bike.”

Zarco, Spanish MotoGP 2019

By Michael Scott

Photos GnG