Every once in a while a rookie comes into the MotoGP series and really causes a stir. Unfortunately we have arguably not really had someone come to the series and stand it on its head since Marc Marquez. This year that all changed with the introduction of Johann Zarco. Johann was a fun rider to watch in Moto2, had some great races and showed a lot of tenacity so when he joined MotoGP I was not looking forward to watching all that fierce competition and determination be crushed as it happens with many of the rookies that join MotoGP, because you see MotoGP is unforgiving. On any given weekend it takes a perfect combination of speed, grit, talent and machinery to win a race and that is something that a rookie has got to get their head around because most of the time riders enter the class on machinery that already creates a handicap. All riders join the series with something to prove. Most end their previous season as champions or at least highly competitive so their expectations are high, they are on top of the world and then comes MotoGP. So I digress. Johann entered the series quietly and unassumingly and although he showed great potential as a satellite rider very few people expected him to show ‘alien’ speed or challenge for a podium. The expectation was most likely that he would be relegated to dicing with the other satellite riders as most MotoGP rookies are expected to do. Then came Qatar.
Dude is the bomb!