WSBK – World Superbike riders’ statements at Donington Park – WSBK 1st round statements

World Superbike riders’ statements at Donington Park

WSBK - World Superbike riders' statements at Donington Park - WSBK 1st round statements

The seventh round of the 2016 World SBK took place this weekend in Donington Park, Great Britain. To complete our near-live reports, here are the statements of the Superbike riders at the end of their two British races.

WSBK 1st Round Declarations

Site readers – who, as everyone knows, are a little more fortunate than the others – have already been able to experience Saturday and Sunday, almost live, the unfolding of the Mondial Superbike and Supersport races on the Donington Park circuit (for latecomers, read, then).

Discover below the statements of the drivers who distinguished themselves on Saturday during the first round, and on the following page the statements of those who animated the second WSBK race on Sunday. Honor to the double winner !

Tom Sykes, 1st:
"I couldn’t really explain all of my successes at Donington Park, but today’s one is the most rewarding and I had to fight. I got off to a good start, but a couple of guys did some tough passes to get past. I’m sure if we could have done a few consistent laps early on we would have had a good pace too. But I’m happy that I had to fight for the victory. I myself had my share of worries on the bike, which is unusual, but the good thing is that despite this I went for his 25 points".

"After six laps I was able to figure out what was going on and then I realized that it would be very difficult if not impossible to win. We kept pushing and I had to handle the bike a little differently in some parts to compensate. Overall I’m really happy I won, and the plan for tomorrow is to be stronger, safer and more consistent"

Davide Giugliano, 2nd:
"This race was tough because it was difficult to manage both the tires and his energy. However, the battle with Sykes was both clean and fun. We practically did the whole race together. I expected him to slow down a bit, but he was faster in the later laps and when I tried to follow him I realized it was too risky. Together with the team, we will now evaluate some small changes to improve ourselves in the final phase of the race. Getting back on the podium after Malaysia is certainly positive, but we are still not making the most of our potential. We don’t want to be satisfied with that".

Jonathan Rea, 3rd:
"My bike was working really well at the start of the race, but at the end of it I started to lose grip at the rear and had a bit of trouble getting into the corners. I ran into five false dead spots, including twice in the last bend where I found myself in the gravel, having to turn around on the access road. In the Melbourne hairpin bend, I used the entire trail but stayed on it. My confidence took a bit of a hit, so I started to gasp to make sure I didn’t make any more mistakes. It’s frustrating for me because at times in the race I could see my pace was even faster than the two guys ahead. I came back to them after my first mistake. I secured my podium, I’m happy about it, but I’m still a little frustrated not to have at least had the chance to fight at the forefront with Tom and Davide at the end of the race".

Leon Camier, 4th:
Read his only statement on the next page.

Nicky Hayden, 5th:
"A final top 5 is always a solid result, surely not a disaster, but after having tasted the victory a little in Malaysia, it is true that we feel like a small lack … I have to thank the team because they worked really well. Last night we took our time, we went through everything and this morning the bike was immediately better. I managed to get through Superpole 1 and get a decent place on the grid, but unfortunately I didn’t manage to get a good start. I lacked consistency at the start and we need to understand why. Overall the bike was doing well. I would have liked to have been a bit faster but the new tire we used for the first time today was very efficient. My pace was very constant throughout the race, thanks to Pirelli so".

Lorenzo Savadori, 6th:
"For me, today’s race was good. At one point I was even very close to third, but only thanks to a Rea error. Maybe it wasn’t exactly our real place today, but the good part was we had a good pace, except in the early laps where I didn’t feel the bike very well. From the middle of the race I started to feel better, but we had some difficulties, some jolts. Rea did a straight ahead of me and I thought I could get back on him. I tried to attack it, but I widened myself. Then Camier and Hayden came on the penultimate lap and I tried to regain a place by passing Hayden entering the turn, but there was nothing to be done. It was a good race despite everything. It’s not yet as I would like, but we rode better than usual in the second half of the race and for that I thank Aprilia and Iodaracing Team for the good work done.".

Jordi Torres, 7th:
"The day did not go too badly. I think we made a good step forward in Superpole with the qualifying tire, which is important. In the race, I got off to a good start and got into the rhythm after a few laps. Unfortunately after about seven laps I started to feel some dribbling from the back. This movement bothered me but I did what I could to maintain my tempo. It worked and I finished in seventh position. We’re not 100% in terms of race pace yet, but we’ve learned some useful things today that we can use for tomorrow’s race.".

Chaz Davies, falls:
"I am obviously disappointed. We had some delay to make up and we got into the race a bit blindly after losing precious time during practice. Friday plays a big part in tuning the bike and choosing the right tire. Unfortunately we weren’t able to take full advantage of it, so the plan for the race was to try to find a good feeling, lap after lap, and assess our possibilities. Maybe our front tire choice wasn’t the best, but that’s not what caused the crash. In both cases, when I released the brake, the front unloaded a bit too quickly. However, it was good to lead for a while and we’ll use that to bounce back tomorrow.".

Related articles

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *