wayne gardner
now. Remy has only had four years of road racing and that’s pretty fast compared to someone like Fabio [Quartararo] whose Dad told me he’d been doing it since three or four. Fabio is extremely good and a big champion coming up and Remy is arriving from a different point, and it is putting pressure on him. He’s had some crashes because he is pushing so hard to bridge the gap. There seems to be no other way for kids [to make it] than to go to Spain or Italy and get in the system. But then it costs big bucks… Yes and because it is so popular here in Spain it is expensive because there is a lot of competition for good rides. In my case I jumped on an aeroplane and started hitchhiking around. I was sleeping on people’s floors and by the time that stage is over you are twenty years of age. You cannot do that now. Marquez is world champion at twenty! The competition is so high. How are the other countries going to
breed champions? It is something Rainey is trying in America now but the only realistic option is to come here. That’s why we are here. Is that another appeal of the World GP Legends and those characters of the eighties because MotoGP can seem like a kids game… Maybe. I was a world champion at twenty-seven. The scene has changed and the group has become younger. It used to be that you hit your peak in your late twenties. Obviously there is more longevity in the sport now for these guys. It is safer. There is more run-off and better circuits; which is all fantastic stuff. The bikes are easier to ride. Riding a four-stroke compared to the 500s? I would say it is 60-70% easier. Wow… Then you have electronics on top of that. I’m not taking anything away from the ability of the [current] riders but riding out of the pitlane on a four-stroke is like riding out on a road bike