I took the inside of the first curve and touched Koyama with the handlebar. I don’t actually know if I touched him or if he touched me, because it all happened very fast and I almost fell. The result was that I found it impossible to use the front brake, because the handle had been displaced too far up. I tried to put it right, but then I couldn’t accelerate at the same time, so a lot of riders overtook me. During the first lap I checked that everything was alright and concentrated on recovering positions. I did it the best I could, getting times that I had managed during the training sessions with brand new tyres, so that’s good. In spite of everything, we still had some problems with the front of the motorbike, and I want to make sure that it gets fixed, because in Motegi you spend a lot of time leaning hard on the front wheel. I’m not happy with today’s results, but I am with the way that I rode.
