EXCLUSIVE: Romain Fèbvre on the 'Romain Fèbvre problem'
The 2015 MXGP world champion, Romain Fèbvre, has had a difficult start to the season. He is currently only 7de in the World Cup standings. These are not the results the Yamaha factory rider expected, nor what his fans hoped for. Mxmag spoke to the sympathetic Frenchman just before the first European GP.
“After the four overseas GPs it feels good to be back in Europe. Especially because it is not always obvious to get all the pieces you want for the distant Grand Prix. Logistically that is just difficult. To be honest, I also found it difficult to perform at my best with the large hourly differences.”
In the eight MXGP rounds held so far, Fèbvre only reached the podium once (the second race in Qatar). Not a great balance for one of the fastest pilots in the field. The type of circuits on which the past GPs took place also does not play into his hands. Romain Fèbvre: “With the exception of the Argentine GP, which was held on an excellently prepared track, the tracks were clearly less fun to drive than in previous years. It just made me feel less comfortable,” Romain said.
“That has made it a difficult start to the season. What is positive, on the other hand, is the fact that my teammate (ed. Jeremy Van Horebeek) and I are off to a good start. That's a huge plus. But I do note that we are currently having difficulty setting up an engine that suits me both in the starts and during the race.”
The 25-year-old top pilot is therefore still looking for the ideal setup for his factory Yamaha 450F. “During the last two weeks we have made a lot of changes. I hope I have finally found the 'problem' that has prevented me from reaching my best level since the start of the season. At the moment I feel much better. Not so much with more self-confidence because I have never lacked that. But training is one thing and a competition is something else. In a race you always drive more aggressively and not always the way you would like. That actually depends on a lot of different factors, such as the riders in front of you, how the bike behaves.”
The rider's vision and the problems he faced in terms of setup confirm in their way what can be seen from the outside. About Romain Fèbvre's disappointing results, MXGP-TV commentator Paul Malin said: “At the moment, Romain wants too much, which means he is making too many mistakes. He puts pressure on himself and makes mistakes that you are not used to seeing from him.” If it is up to Fèbvre, the Arco di Trento weekend will be a turning point in his 2017 World Cup campaign. To be continued!
Text: Loïc Lassence
Photos: Yamaha Racing
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