Zarco: Becoming a motoMotoGP Test Rider Will Not End My Career

Johann Zarco opened up the opportunity to become a MotoGP Examiner after separating from KTM. If realized, Zarco was sure it would not kill his career.

The 2019 season will be the last season for France in RC16. Zarco and KTM have agreed to end their collaboration sooner than they should until the end of the 2020 season.

With this situation, Zarco will probably not have a driver's seat next season. The 29-year-old was originally intended to return to the Moto2 class, where he had won two world championship titles. However, lately, Zarco wants to be a first-class runner.

The six MotoGP builders now have a test team based in Europe, and most test racers have suffered several races during this season. However, in recent times, no test runners were "promoted" to the rank of permanent runners.

"I think for a manufacturer, my situation might be interesting, because if I become a tester, that doesn't mean I'm retired," Zarco told Autosport. "Before, I didn't feel comfortable and I wanted to come back stronger, giving me a chance with a competition bike.

"Even if I have to start testing, I will force myself as if I want to win the race, and sometimes that might not be the best way to develop a bicycle and test many things, but pushing the engine to its limits can be interesting for some builders."

"If I do it, the goal is to do my best, do a lot of turns, and I think an exam runner has many opportunities to ride a bicycle, because we have seen this season that some exam runners have many opportunities to race with wild cards."

"If I believe in myself, I always take the wild card opportunity as a last chance. This situation can force people to fast," said owner number 5.

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