Quick interviews at JuniorGP: Lorenzo Fellon and Archie McDonald

I had the great honour of interviewing both Archie Bob McDonald and Lorenzo Fellon at the Barcelona-Catalunya round of JuniorGP. McDonald is rider #69 of the Stock category and finished 6^th that same race, whilst Fellon is a proven former Moto3 World Championship point scorer and rider #5 of the European Moto2 category.

Both interviews were carried out on Saturday, November 1^st.

Interview with Archie Bob McDonald:

• Enrique: We’re here with Archie McDonald. Hello Archie, how are you?

• Archie: Good, how are you?

• E: Good, thanks. So how have you been feeling? P1 today [in Practice].

• A: So far P1, it’s been a good session. We need to figure out how to work it out with the old tyres, but we’re happy. We’ve got qualifying this afternoon, I hope we get the same result.

Archie qualified P3 on Saturday and finished P6 on Sunday. An overall positive result for the Australian, who scored 10 points in Catalonia.

• E: I wanted to ask you: what’s your favourite track so far?

• A: This year?

• E: Yes, or any other time.

• A: I really like Valencia, where we’re going next. It’s a good track and it has all the corners. Unfortunately, we couldn’t race there last year, so I can’t wait to get back there.

The tragic floodings in 2024 meant the round at Circuit Ricardo Tormo last year was replaced by a second weekend in Estoril.

• E: What’s your favourite race you’ve ever done?

• A: Portimão, last year. It’s one of my favourite tracks. I won there last year. I was in my prime and I felt so comfortable. It’s such an amazing track to race around on. I won as well; it was my first in an international race.

• E: What about your hardest rival? Do you have a name?

• A: I’d say he was probably always on my bum non-stop for a couple of years, but, at the moment, Iker [García] is pretty fast. But I’ve never had someone I’ve truly hated or battled with in my life.

• E: No, not hate. But the most difficult?

• A: The fastest rider? I’d say Iker. Other than that, he’s always been fast.

Iker García was, at that point, the Stock JuniorGP championship leader until his crash on Sunday. The Spaniard, however, is still a contender for the title, as he sits just one point behind new leader Tibor Erik Varga.

• E: And last but not least. Why did you choose the number 69?

• A: It’s my favourite sex position!

• E: Well, thanks for being so honest!

And thank you for your time, Archie.

Interview with Lorenzo Fellon:

• Enrique: We are here with Lorenzo Fellon, former Moto3 rider and currently competing in European Moto2. I have a few questions for him. How are you feeling, Lorenzo? How is your weekend so far?

• Lorenzo: Good, the truth is that the first few days weren’t easy. But now [after Practice], with a few more laps I feel a bit better.

• E: You are at the Circuit of Barcelona-Catalunya right now. What is your favourite track, from the ones you’ve been to?

• L: I think my favourite track is Philip Island. It’s very unique, very quick, and you really enjoy riding there.

The former Moto3 rider scored a career-best position of P10 in the 2023 Moto3 Australian GP. He also raced in the 2022 weekend (19^th).

• E: Is there a lot of difference between the Moto3 bikes you rode and your current bikes in European Moto2?

• L: Yes, quite a bit. It’s a completely different bike. The riding is very different. The bike is very heavy and has a lot more power. Therefore, the riding style is very different on track.

• E: From the races you’ve participated in, do you have a favourite one?

• L: I think the last race in Misano [in European Moto2] wasn’t bad. We had a crash in the first corner, during the start. I dropped to P22, but we came back from that and ended the race in 8^th. We had some good pace. I really enjoyed that one, I think it was one of the best experiences.

• E: And finally; who would you say is the hardest rival you’ve ever faced?

• L: Honestly, there’s been a lot of them. I would say Pedro Acosta in Moto3 and in the [Red Bull] Rookies [Cup]. Being a junior here, we always raced together. Truth is he was a very hard rival, yes.

“El Tiburón de Mazarrón” won the 2021 Moto3 World Championship where they both participated in as rookies. Fellon continued for two more years. Izan Guevara and Jaume Masià were the victors in 2022 and 2023, respectively.

• E: All right, thank you.

• L: Thank you too!

Again, a huge thank you to both Lorenzo and Archie for opening up a little gap in their busy schedules, and I wish them the best of luck in their personal and professional lives.

You can check out both interviews on my Instagram page @opensector or on my YouTube page.