Poncharal taped by the reaction of Viñales after his penalty

“An explosion of indescribable joy and happiness, a huge relief”. This is how Hervé Poncharal describes the podium won by Maverick Viñales at the Qatar Grand Prix on Sunday, after a beautiful race led by Spanish, just arrived at Tech3. Powerful emotions that the historic boss of the French team felt in his guts, but unfortunately proportional to the disappointment which was going to fall an hour later when the pilot received a penalty which finally had him tumble in 14th place.

Never mind, Hervé Poncharal praises the extraordinary performance of his new pilot. “No one sees what is behind a result of this kind. It is not only the pilot who completed 22 impeccable laps and who then obtains only two points instead of 20”, he described in an interview with Gpone.

“I liked what Marc Márquez said Thursday in Qatar: ‘Sometimes I pilot as if I was in a trance’”, underlines Poncharal in reference to the interview granted by the octle world champion at Motorsport.com. “I think Maverick piloted as if he were in a trance, on Sunday, because he felt in complete harmony with his motorcycle. Maybe it was not the race of his life, but it was one of the best races of his career. He surprised everyone, and including himself. He later said that he had not taken too many risks, he was in a state of trance.”

So there remains this penalty, hard to swallow. If Maverick Viñales said Sunday evening that he had not looked at his dashboard because he was only focused on the track in front of him, Hervé Poncharal reveals that in reality, the pilot saw that he was not in the nails, but too late to be able to reverse the trend.

“On Sunday, he was doing a little fresher than Saturday and many pilots, as well as Michelin’s men, were surprised after the race that the tire pressure went down so drastically. No one expected,”, explains Hervé Poncharal. “If Maverick had fought in a group with Marc, Pecco [Bagnaia] And perhaps Morbidelli, his pressure would have remained within the authorized limit. “

“Maverick saw the pneumatic pressure indicator on his dashboard, so he opened the door to Marc and then he followed him, but it was too late, perhaps only two laps. In addition, Marc pushed hard and has widened an advantage of more than four seconds, Maverick therefore had no more aspiration … You must practically be stuck to the driver’s exhaust to avoid pressure problems. Thailand. “

The incredible positivity of the pilot

“I have owned a team for 40 years. I have known a lot of ups and downs during this period,” Recalls Hervé Poncharal. “I would classify this penalty among our three worst misadventures.”

And the Frenchman to continue, explaining that he had not slept for two nights: “The disappointment is enormous, but I want to clarify immediately that I do not criticize this rule on tire pressure. The Latins say ‘Dura Lex, Sed Lex’, the law is hard but it is the law. […] At the same time, I can’t even describe how frustrated I feel that Maverick was deprived of the fruits of his efforts. “

If frustration is strong, it is because the Tech3 team is convinced that Viñales has taken no advantage from the pressure from its tires, measured outside the regulatory window. “Basically, we have not obtained any advantage and Maverick deserved this podium. But we respect the rules, so we do not complain about the penalty.”

What Hervé Poncharal retains, however, is the support that Maverick Viñales gave his team in a completely natural way. “When Maverick understood that a penalty was imminent, the whole team was devastated, including me, we were on his knees, but he entered the box and he said: ‘Let’s party, let’s take a photo to celebrate this moment! We finished second, I don’t care about the trophy, I can give it to Pecco’. His attitude was fantastic.”

“Maverick’s attitude surprised me several times this year. I have never seen a pilot who, after a failure, takes such a positive look at the next Grand Prix and cannot be killed”, Add the French boss. It was only the fourth Grand Prix that Tech3 lived with Spanish, but it is undeniably of those who cement a relationship and who, beyond the gross end result, will be able to bring a lot to duration.