Q&A with Tito Rabat

I sat down with Tito Rabat for a quick chat, at the Grand Prix of Aragon, 2017. The 2014 Moto2 World Champion answered a few quick fire questions, exclusively for CaffsGP.

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CGP - Hi Tito, thank you for speaking to me today. I'll start with an easy question. Who was/is your idol?

TR - When I was very young, my first idol was Michael Schumacher. After him, my idol became Valentino Rossi, and I think this is the most important one as I started to like motorbikes and in the end, this is my passion.

CGP - Interesting! So, is it strange to race with Valentino Rossi now, because he was your hero?

TR - At the beginning, the first moments on track and the first year racing with him, I thought “Wow!”. After a few races, it becomes normal and you want to compete with him, and he just becomes another rider in MotoGP.

CGP - What was the attraction to Ducati over the Honda, for next year?

TR -First of all, I can speak from what I see, before I test the Ducati, however you don’t know until you try. With the Ducati, one thing is certain before I test, and that is, it is much bigger than the Honda. I am a tall rider and the Ducati will for sure fit much more to my size. As you can see on track, the Honda is very agile; whereas the Ducati perhaps doesn’t handle as well, however it has a lot of torque and traction, it seems to be a more stable bike. You can see on track, also, that the Honda is a very difficult bike to ride. However, these are all speculations, you do not know until you try, and when speaking before trying you do not know what you are talking about!

CGP - If you could travel in time, which race would you pick to ride and as which rider?

TR - I think I would choose to be Valentino Rossi in Welkom, South Africa 2004. When he won his first race with Yamaha, I think this was a very big moment for the sport and for Valentino.

CGP - Of course! Moving on, after a race that doesn't go so well, how do you remain motivated for the next race?

TR - To disconnect from the bad feelings from a negative race, I practise with Julito (Julian Simon). We enjoy time off to go racing, to go on other motorbikes and be happy. It is one of the best things to keep motivated. When you are in a bad position and things are not working, keeping motivated can be difficult. I do not remember these last few years being so difficult. Firstly, I was slow in 125cc, then I start to go fast, but the last 2 years in MotoGP have been very hard for me, and last year, being my first year in MotoGP was difficult. However, this year with Julito, going home, enjoying practise with supermoto, motocross and all different types of training has motivated me more. I also must say that the team support me very well, even when the good results are not coming, we always have a good atmosphere, they know that I am coming through a bad moment, and they try to help me and I try my best for them. I appreciate this support from my team.