MotoGP made his debut this weekend at Balaton Park in its first Hungarian Ligue Rampuri since 1992, with Joan Mir giving optimistic reviews about the potential races of the layout ahead of his first practice session on Friday.
The Balaton layout is characterized by a slower speed Chikane with hard brake zones. Due to the slower average speeds, Ducati’s Francesco Bagnaia said Ducati’s Francesco Bagnaia, who rode the track on a summer production bike, in the MotoGP round before Austria, was not suitable for a modern Grand Prix bike that was a Hungarian venue-like layout.
Mir, however, believes Balaton’s layout offers a distinct characteristic from most people, and he considers him to be something positive.
“I did a few laps by bike,” Joan Mir told a press conference before the event in Hungary.
“It’s very small, very tight, one of (more) different tracks on the calendar.
“I think having a different kind of layout is a great thing to have a different kind of layout, as you might see the riding characteristics of people who can get faster on this type of track.
“There are a lot of brake points, lots of opportunities to pass, so I think that’s great.”
Mir added that there are sections of tracks that remind us of other circuit locations, such as the Red Bull Ring and the Mandalica International Street Circuit.
“I think it could be something like the Austrian sector for the character in Turn, but it’s true that this looks even tighter,” Mir said.
“Also, this sector 2 looks similar to Sector 2 of the Mandalica.
“There aren’t many corners here. It looks like everything is stopped. I think the characters themselves, usually the stop-and-go tracks, are (more fun) to see from the outside. It’s great these days.”
Is it a truck that fits the Honda RC213V?
“I don’t know,” said the Honda HRC Castrol rider.
“For me, as a rider, I have to give it the most of that 100%. But that doesn’t just mean I have to adapt quickly to the truck, and the bike has to adapt quickly to the truck.
“When you start playing a lot on the setup, everything becomes more difficult. But I think we can do a good job.”
When World Superbike first visited Balaton at the end of July, one of the clear topics was the crash in Race 1, which took several riders at the opening corner of the race.
Mir said he pointed out that there is always risk at the start of the race and while the slow corners don’t necessarily help at the start of the lap, Balaton is not the only track with a potentially dangerous opening section.
“There’s always a risk in MotoGP and in this world that starting is extremely dangerous, and people are probably brave because if the horns are slow, the fact that the less risk can cause a little more trouble,” he said.
“But, for example, you’ll go to Barcelona later and arrive at the first corner at 250kph, with 22 riders arriving at many speeds, which is also an important and difficult situation.”