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Lorenzo’s new crew chief Gabarrini analyses secrets of his champions

Legendary crew chief Cristian Gabbarini will return to Ducati for the 2017 MotoGP season to partner Jorge Lorenzo in the factory Ducati squad he left in 2010 as he followed Casey Stoner to HRC. The five-time world champion asked the 44-year-old Italian Engineer to support him in his new challenge on board the Desmosedici as he leaves behind Ramon Forcada at Yamaha.

Gabbarini has seen many riders growing and winning, starting with Stoner. He first worked with the Australian at LCR in the 125cc class. Gabarrini was Stoner’s reference and crew chief in the decisive moments of his career in Ducati MotoGP and in Honda HRC, claiming together two world titles in 2007 and 2011.

He worked alongside Marc Marquez when he made his debut and won in his first year of MotoGP before becoming responsible of the Open class 2014,and finally crew chief to Jack Miller.

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What is the secret of a champion? With Gabarrini, we analyse the characteristics of the riders he was worked with, starting from Stoner, with whom he has a special relationship, and the role of a crew chief to support and motivate the rider:

Almost all the riders you have worked with have won. What is the characteristic they have in common?
“The main difference between a good rider and an ace is the huge talent.”

Can you describe the riders you have worked with?
“Casey Stoner is the greatest talent I have ever seen. He has the speed in his DNA and the skill to adapt immediately to any new situation. He understands quicker the correct line to go fast and adapts it.”

“Marc Marquez is a huge talent. Marc is stronger in entering the corner, Casey in the exit, but both are really fast.

“Jack Miller doesn’t have yet the talent of Casey or Marc, but he has proved he can be there. It’s only a question of time to see him fighting on top every weekend. At the beginning it was very hard for him to adapt, because the jump from Moto3 to MotoGP is huge. The hardest part was to transfer to him the knowledge of the new bike, the new electronics, the tyres, the new race strategy and to put all together in a race weekend”.

And finally Jorge Lorenzo, who is your future.
“Jorge is another ace like Stoner and Marquez. He has different characteristics but it’s difficult to judge from the outside because he has always ridden a Yamaha. His strong point is the skill to be always consistently fast. He did some races where he has been able to keep a constant high pace on 20 laps, dropping only of a few tenths. He has the speed in the DNA as Stoner and Marquez, plus he is mentally very strong mind. We don’t have to forget that he has shared the garage for many years with Valentino Rossi and he is not a just a team-mate. The pressure he puts is incredible.”

How do you explain Lorenzo’s ups and downs?
“It’s difficult to explain the down moments of a rider when you don’t know exactly what is happening in the garage. For example, the tyre supplier can change the type of tyre. You lose the feeling while they perfectly suit your rival, so it’s difficult to judge from the outside.”

How difficult was it for you to leave Ducati for Honda?
“It was very difficult because I left very good friends. But it was a conscious choice because I had the opportunity to work for HRC, which was my dream since I was a kid, and with a rider like Casey.”

What have you learned in Honda?
“I learned ‘the method’. In our job it’s crucial to have a method of work and the Japanese engineers of Honda have a solid and reliable method. This method is at the base of everything they do. To western eyes, it may seem very slow or even the will not to act, but in reality behind there is a long and solid experience that brought them to build extremely fast and reliable bikes. Plus HRC have an infinite experience in racing, technology and mechanics that you would need to work with them at least 50 years.”

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And what about the Ducati world?
“I left a more European ambience, also in terms of dimension. Just think that when we won the World Championship with Casey in 2007, the Ducati works team featured only four engineers, versus the ten in the Honda squad. Now I think things are more equal.”

What motivates you to start this new adventure?
“It’s the challenge of the Jorge Lorenzo/Ducati combination and to work with Jorge, who is an ace. It’s an honour to work with him, although I like to work with Jack and I consider him a younger brother.”

Do you think he can be world champion already in 2017?
“I don’t know how is the GP16, but it’s a competitive machine and looking at Iannone and Dovizioso, I think that with the current situation, Jorge is for sure a title contender already in 2017. Then of course we will have to see which will be the factors on track next year.”

You will also see Casey…
“In reality we have never lost the contact. Casey has always had and will have a special place in my heart. Then I don’t know if in Ducati there will be the occasion to work together as it happened with the Honda development team. In my opinion he remains one of the fastest riders in the world. I don’t think he will be back racing. I don’t know if he will do a wildcard but I reckon he will finish in the top three in qualifying and even in the race. Is he obliged to win? I don’t think so. He returns after so many years of stop and it’s not easy.”

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What is your specific job with a rider?
“The first step is to listen to the rider. Even if he says something that sounds strange or absurd, we engineers should always listen to the rider. He is the most important sensor we have on the bike. Then it’s up to us to match what he says with the data. Honestly I have to say that with riders like Casey, Marc and for sure also Lorenzo, it has never happen that their comment doesn’t correspond to the data. So the key is to give trust and listen to the rider.”

How do you motivate a rider?
“Working at the maximum and showing him that we are doing everything to make him go fast. Then we analyse everything, included the riding style. A clear example is the work we have done with Jack. He arrived in MotoGP only with the experience in the Moto3 class. The jump was huge. We have supported Jack also from the point of view of the riding style.

“This was possible thanks to our experience with other Honda riders but also with the telemetry data of other strong Honda riders. The data are important to explain how the Honda needs to be ridden due of its specific characteristics. For Jack it has been a demanding process of adaptation but he has learned and made it. The first win in Assen was an incredible satisfaction for him and the whole Estrella Galicia Marc VDS Team.”

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