Ramón Forcada's forced vacation in MotoGP: "What I don't consider is getting bored"

Ramón Forcada has been hooked on the elite of the motorcycle world for more than half his life, with which he began to dream as a child and then went on to do pranks around town and finally turn his passion into work.

With 539 Grand Prix races, the Moià coach (65 years old) calmly faced what could be his last race in the MotoGP World Championship.

“If it's the last one, I'm sure I'll be satisfied.

I have seen everything go around so much that I prefer to wait, ”he explains to EL PAÍS from Misano.

“I will wait until the end of the year to see what happens.

I am clear that I do not want to do anything and, due to my age, I can retire whenever I want”.

Coinciding with the hasty withdrawal of Andrea Dovizioso, his current pupil in the Yamaha satellite team and twelfth in his farewell at the San Marino GP, he will also be removed from the competitive spotlight, although he has a contract until the end of the year.

“It will be our last race with Ramón, and it has been a pleasure working with him since 2019. He is a person with great knowledge and experience, and we want to thank him for everything he has done during his career and these last four years with our team”, confirmed Razlan Razali, boss of the SRT, which will pass into the hands of Aprilia next season.

Although the Japanese factory appreciates him a lot, he does not contemplate his continuity in the official team next year for now.

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In 34 years of experience in the world championship, Forcada has achieved three world titles and 59 victories together with his pupils in the premier class.

His most remembered stage is the three titles as Jorge Lorenzo's chief mechanic, although in 1989, his debut year, he also won the 125cc crown with Àlex Crivillé.

Outstanding student of Antonio Cobas, one of the most influential competition engineers in history, the Catalan played a key role in the alirón del

de Seva.

“There is a kid who is not doing badly.

We can do something interesting and I ask you to tune up the engine for him”, Cobas asked Eduardo Giró, as he recalls for this Crivillé newspaper.

In that project Forcada worked and stood out, who also remembers his beginnings.

“One of the most ungrateful people in the world, out of a hundred you stayed with only one, but it served to win”, he recalls about his work on the test bench with the engine that made

champion .

A fan of two wheels, this engineer without a degree –he was studying Mechanical Engineering and Economics, although he did not finish either of them once immersed in the competitive maelstrom– takes advantage of his free time to compete in classic enduro tests and build homemade prototypes in the workshop from your house.

"There are a thousand things to do, and what I don't consider is getting bored," he predicts about his retirement.

From how he talks about the future, however, it seems that he still has the rope to stay in the world of racing.

“The trips, the work itself, do not tire me.

There are only two ways to enjoy the competition: if you are in a contending project or if you are in the technical part and you can contribute something that can be useful to someone else”, he assures about the constant hustle and bustle that life in the

When he thinks about what he will do, she announces his willingness to listen to offers, although she does not think he will be the one to knock on the door.

Working with a young promise, or moving to the promotion categories, are two hypotheticals that he considers attractive.

The rings don't fall off for a technician who has driven legends of this sport such as Casey Stoner, John Kocinski, Alex Barros, Dani Pedrosa and Carlos Checa, the first of the five riders with whom he has won in the premier class.

“I caught Ramón in his early days and then the last full year of my career.

They were two different people, but the word that best defines him now is experience.

There are few here who know more and can easily solve any problem for a driver”, the former Barcelona driver values ​​this newspaper.

"Over the years he has grown and he is someone very philosophical, able to remain serene in victories and not be discouraged by defeats."

Strong character

His strong and changeable character also left a mark on the pilots he wore.

“He was the technician I bet on when I arrived in MotoGP and he is the only one I managed to win with.

He had a strong character, and sometimes we had friction that fortunately did not lead to a break, ”recalls Jorge Lorenzo in conversation with EL PAÍS.

"If you didn't stop him he always wanted to change the bike, and most of the time he was positive, because he always found something to go faster", adds the Mallorcan.

When talking about his relationship with the riders, Forcada hints at his temperament: "You have a great time with the one who wins, but then each one stands out for things that make him unique... When you see that the guy appreciates what you do, you enjoy it”.

Somewhat nostalgic, and a lover of past mounts, the technician understands that interest in the World Cup is declining due to a matter of times and exhaustion.

“There are less fans of motorcycling in general.

We dreamed of having a motorcycle when we still couldn't have a license.

Today, the motorcycle is a traffic solution more than a diversion”, he concludes.

The changes in format that Dorna proposes seem understandable to him, although the technological career of aerodynamics and electronics seems to him an unattractive component for the general public: "It is something that escapes motorcycling and I don't know if it contributes much to the show, although for the technicians is very interesting”.

In addition to firing

, the

also took the opportunity, just in case, to say goodbye to a legend in the box.

“It is a phenomenon.

He has been working at the highest level for so many years, something that says a lot about him, about his passion and talent”, praised Franco Morbidelli, his last victorious pupil.

“The World Cup loses one of the most seasoned technicians.

A guy with a lot of experience and a very intelligent person, with a lot of resources to improve the bike”, ditch Lorenzo, a great example to show how much characters like Forcada matter in the MotoGP universe.

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