MotoGP: Lorenzo admits ‘I made a mistake’

Five-time world champion Jorge Lorenzo has held his hands up and admitted that carelessness ended his best hope yet of taking his maiden Ducati victory at Misano, after he crashed out of a controlling lead during Sunday’s race.

Looking like a return to the Lorenzo of form as he cleared off at the front of the field despite the treacherous conditions (And dispelling any lingering doubts about his confidence in the rain in the process), the Spaniard admitted that it was a stupid mistake on his own behalf that ended his charge with a spectacular highside out of contention.

“I’m still understanding everything on the Ducati, and I tried to change the map a little bit on it. That took some of my concentration for a few corners, and I made the change of direction a little quicker and not using the rear brake with as much pressure – and that was enough.

“The conditions were so critical that that was enough, and I wasn’t able to stay on the bike. I crashed, and it was over, and it’s a pity because we had the first great chance to win with the Ducati and we lost it. But it’s only a matter of time before another podium and maybe even a victory. We’ll learn from it and change it so that it won’t happen in the future though.”

And despite the crash and the loss of a probable race win, Lorenzo was upbeat after the race, confident in the fact that while he might not yet have put the puzzle together on Sunday, he now has all the pieces that he needs to be a race winner in the future on the Italian machine.

“In the dry, we’re not far away even though we’re not yet the fastest or the one with the best pace. But if it had been dry on Sunday we could have stayed with the front group a little better than in Silverstone. But it rained, and I knew I was really strong in that so it’s a shame that I didn’t finish.”