Zarco is also a former runner-up and race winner in 125 cc class (now converted to Moto3) in 2011. And won the rookie and top independent rider of the year in MotoGP in 2017 with Monster Yamaha Tech3 finishing 6th with 3 podiums and 2 Pole Positions. With 17 Grand Prix victories across all classes and two Moto2 championships, Zarco is one of the most successful French riders in Grand Prix racing history.[2]
Career
Early career
Born in Cannes, Zarco progressed up the motorcycling ladder and moved into minimoto championships in 2004, mainly based in Italy. In 2005, Zarco finished as runner-up in the Senior Mini European Championship and in 2006, he was runner-up in the European Open Championship. He also competed in the Italian 125cc championship, where he finished in twelfth place. Zarco took part in the Red Bull Rookies Cup in 2007,[3] and won the championship at Estoril, after winning three races.[4] He added a fourth win at the final race in Valencia. These performances enabled Zarco to become part of the Red Bull MotoGP Academy scheme along with Cameron Beaubier, Jonas Folger and Danny Kent.[5] This reduced his racing in 2008, making a sporadic appearance in the Italian championship with Team Gabrielli.
125cc World Championship
WTR San Marino (2009–2010)
Zarco made his Grand Prix début with the WTR San Marino Team, in the season-opening Qatar Grand Prix. He finished the race in the points in 15th, although the rain-shortened race meant that Zarco gained just half a point.[6] He took seven further points-scoring finishes, as he finished 20th in the championship. Zarco's best result of the season was a sixth-place finish at Mugello.
Zarco remained with WTR for the 2010 season.[7] Zarco started the season with a consistent run of points-scoring finishes, finishing each of the first eight races in the points. At the Czech Grand Prix, Zarco recorded the first fastest lap of his career, having pitted for slick tyres as the track's conditions became better for them to be run. He ultimately finished eleventh in the championship, despite retiring from the final three races.
Zarco moved up to the Moto2 class with the JiR team, aboard Motobi bikes in 2012. He finished the season 10th in the standings with 95 points and was easily the highest placed rookie that year.
Ioda Project Racing Team (2013)
In 2013, he moved to the Ioda Project Racing Team aboard a Suter, he improved on his rookie season by finishing on the podium twice and ended 9th on the standings with 141 points.
For 2014, he joined the new Caterham Moto Racing team. He impressed on what many considered to be an inferior bike compared to the mainly dominant Kalex bikes. He managed to earn 4 podium finishes, as well as 1 pole position, earning him 6th in the standings with 146 points.
In 2015, Zarco moved to the debuting Ajo Motorsport team, who he raced with in the 125cc class. Zarco dominated the field and won his first Moto2 title,[1] with 8 wins, 14 podiums, 7 poles and a record points haul of 352.
He remained with the team for 2016 and successfully defended his Moto2 title, becoming the first rider in the Moto2 era to win 2 intermediate titles, with 7 wins, 10 podiums, 7 poles and 276 points. Zarco became a popular figure with the fans with his spectacular backflip celebrations when he won a race. During the 2016 season, Zarco got his first taste of MotoGP machinery, testing the Suzuki GSX-RR with Suzuki Ecstar in a private test at track in Ruyo, Japan.[8]
MotoGP World Championship
Team Suzuki Ecstar (testing 2016)
In 2016 Suzuki Team had a pre-contract with Zarco before the recruitment for 2017 was carried out. Zarco tested with Suzuki in a private test at the Suzuka Circuit, Japan. Unfortunately, Suzuki prefers Alex Rins to replace Aleix Espargaro. Meanwhile, for the other seats, Suzuki chose Andrea Iannone as a replacement for Maverick Vinales.[9]
For 2017, Zarco moved up to the premier class with the Tech3 Yamaha team. On his MotoGP debut at Qatar, Zarco shocked the grid by taking the lead on the first lap and building a 2-second lead, until he crashed out at turn 2 on lap 6. He scored his first MotoGP podium, a 2nd place, at Le Mans. He got his first pole position at Assen. In the race he touched with Rossi and dropped to 4th, and eventually finished in 14th place. Zarco again started from pole at the Japanese Grand Prix, but ultimately finished the race in 8th place. He achieved podium finishes in Sepang (Malaysia) and Valencia (Spain) where he finished in 3rd and 2nd respectively. He received the Rookie of the Year Award for 2017 and finished the season in 6th, the highest placed independent rider.[10]
In 2018, Zarco started the season with a pole position in Qatar, before dropping to finish 8th. He finished 2nd in the Argentinian and Spanish Grands Prix, and achieved another pole position at his home French Grand Prix before crashing out of the race. In Malaysia he repeated his 3rd place podium finish from the previous year, and again finished 6th in the rider's championship standings.
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing (early 2019)
In early 2018 it was announced that Zarco would ride for the factory KTM team on a two-year contract from 2019.[11] Following a difficult start to 2019 season where he struggled, managing barely to finish within the points-scoring positions, Zarco and KTM made the shock announcement at their home Austrian Grand Prix that they had reached a mutual agreement to end Zarco's contract prematurely at the end of the season.[12] Despite initial intentions to complete the season with Zarco, KTM elected to release him unconditionally two races later after the Misano Grand Prix and replace him with test rider Mika Kallio for the remainder of the season, citing "lost hope" in the situation with Zarco's "negative attitude" before his impending departure.[13]
LCR Honda (late 2019)
Zarco was offered a Honda for the last three races of the 2019 season due to regular rider Takaaki Nakagami electing to have surgery with an expected long recuperation period.[14] He finished the first event in 13th place, and was knocked off by Joan Mir nearing the end of the second event when in 8th place.[15][16] Zarco fell during his third race on the Honda when in 10th position at Valencia, Spain, being hit when walking away by a following machine, without serious injury.[17]
Avintia Esponsorama Racing (2020)
For the 2020 season, the Frenchman signed a one-year deal through Ducati to ride for Esponsorama Racing.[18][19] During the Czech Grand Prix in Brno, Zarco took Esponsorama's first ever pole position, followed up with a podium finish in 3rd a day later. Consistently finishing within the points, Zarco ended the season in 13th position of the riders' standings.
Pramac Racing (2021–2023)
2021
Zarco signed a deal with Pramac Racing in September 2020 for the 2021 season.[20] Zarco had a strong season in 2021 including career highs in podiums and the highest points total of any of his seasons in MotoGP. He ultimately finished fifth in the championship.
2022
Zarco remained with Pramac Racing for 2022.[21] Zarco claimed four podiums, and ended eighth in the standings.
2023
Pramac Racing retained Zarco for a third successive year in 2023.
In Australia, Zarco won his first race in MotoGP, overtaking teammate Jorge Martin on the final lap
[22]
On 21 August 2023, Zarco announced that he would leave Pramac Racing after spending three seasons with the team.[23] He is set to move to LCR Honda for the 2024 season, replacing Yamaha-bound Álex Rins.[24] The likely reason of moving ship to Honda was Ducati only intending to give Zarco a one-year contract before moving him to the Superbike World Championship in 2025, whereas LCR Honda were offering a two-year deal.[25] LCR Honda then officially confirmed the next day that Zarco would be joining the team in 2024.[26] On the opening round of the season in the 2024 Qatar motorcycle Grand Prix, he finished 12th in the main race.[27] He did the same result at his home race on the 2024 French motorcycle Grand Prix on the layer of the Bugatti Circuit . [28]
Career statistics
Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup
Races by year
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position, races in italics indicate fastest lap)
^"Pedrosa gagne une course, Rossi des points et Zarco un titre" [Pedrosa wins the race, points to Rossi and Zarco the title]. Libération (in French). SARL Libération. Agence France-Presse. 9 October 2015. Retrieved 11 October 2015. A cette occasion, avec huit succès dans toute sa carrière, il efface des tablettes de la vitesse française ses glorieux aînés, Christian Sarron, Olivier Jacque et Arnaud Vincent, tous trois champions du monde également dans les années 80 et 2000. [On this occasion, with eight wins in his career, he moves ahead of the previous tallies of the French former riders, Christian Sarron, Olivier Jacque and Arnaud Vincent, all three world champions between 1980 and 2000.]
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