Johann Zarco endured a difficult Sprint race at the French Grand Prix, crossing the line in 10th place after struggling to maintain consistent pace throughout the race.
The LCR Honda rider had a disrupted build-up to the Sprint following a crash at the end of FP2, which affected his qualifying performance. As a result, he started from 11th on the grid and the fourth row.
Despite a strong launch off the line and an immediate gain in positions, Zarco was unable to sustain his early progress as balance issues with the bike became more apparent during the race.
“I finished 11th on the grid because I couldn’t repeat yesterday’s lap time,” Zarco explained, referring to his qualifying setback.
He added that overall feeling with the machine remained inconsistent, which limited his ability to push at full race pace.
“Our balance is very sensitive when it comes to performing well and at a high level. Today I didn’t have the best feeling, and this morning’s crash complicated our plans,” he said.
Although he showed encouraging speed in the opening laps of the Sprint, Zarco gradually lost ground and slipped outside the points-paying positions by the finish.
“During the Sprint, despite a good start, after some laps I started to struggle. I couldn’t maintain the pace and finished out of the points. Let’s try again tomorrow,” he added.
Zarco and his team will now focus on analysing data from Saturday in an effort to improve race setup ahead of Sunday’s Grand Prix, where he will look to bounce back with a stronger result.
