WSBK – Statements and analysis of Superbike in Imola – Statements of Superbike riders in Italy

Posted on by admin

Imola Superbike Statements and Analysis

WSBK - Statements and analysis of Superbike in Imola - Statements of Superbike riders in Italy

The seventh round of the World SBK 2013 took place yesterday in Imola, Italy. To complete our live reports, here are the statements of the Superbike riders as well as the Site analysis of the two Italian races.

Statements by Superbike riders in Italy

Site readers – who, as everyone knows, are a little more fortunate than the others – were already able to experience yesterday, almost live, the unfolding of the Mondial Superbike and Supersport races on the Imola circuit (for latecomers , read then). Here are the statements of the pilots who distinguished themselves on Sunday … Honors to the double winner !

Tom Sykes, 1st (x 2):
" I had two perfect weekends in the last three events and I am really happy. I love this track and we got the most out of it. This weekend has been perfect, it could not have gone better. It was special in more than one way since a year ago my 2012 teammate Joan Lascorz suffered a serious accident. Not once have I come out of the 6th corner without thinking about his accident. We all think of Joan and thus paying her a little, little tribute. The ZX-10R and I did well. I must thank each member of the Kawasaki team, as well as our great technical partners. Without their help, I wouldn’t be able to put myself forward and I am truly grateful to them. Hopefully this is the start of a challenge, we’ll see how we’re gonna do".

Davide Giugliano, 2nd then fall:
"The podium obtained in the first race really pleased us, partly because it comes after the. This is our first podium this season and crowns three days during which we have constantly rubbed shoulders with the best drivers, both in practice and in the Superpole. During the second race, I wasn’t particularly attacking and was right behind Sykes when my bike suddenly lost grip in Tosa’s corner. I found myself in the gravel, unable to continue. It’s a real disappointment, but that’s also the race. So we will turn the page and look to the future, with more conviction about our capabilities.".

Jonathan Rea, fall then 2nd:
"My feelings are really mixed today. We had a really good pace all weekend, but not enough to keep up with Tom (Sykes, NDLR) today. He had kept some in reserve, especially this afternoon when it got hotter. I hit a big blow at the start of the first race and I thought then "it’s okay, I am gone", but I had a big vibration in the brake disc during the whole race, so I didn’t could not force on the front as I wanted. I made a mistake in the first lap, but regained a lot of ground and then unfortunately fell two laps from the end as I was fighting for the podium".

"In the second heat, I really got my fingers out of … and I didn’t make any mistakes. In the first five laps, I couldn’t get the two guys in front and they widened the gap. Halfway through, Tom was moving away with tenths of a second. My team and months must work to improve the behavior of the bike when the tank is full and the tires are new. But it is clear that we have fixed some problems that we were having with worn tires. We can leave Imola with our heads held high and now we look forward to Moscow".

Eugene Laverty, 3rd then fall:
"The result of the first race was really encouraging. We managed to improve the bike significantly between yesterday and today, including during the warm-up. As for the second race I was expecting another step forward, but unfortunately I had some issues with the bike early on which cost me dearly on some parts of the track. To stay in the race, I had to take risks and that led me to crash. It was a mistake on my part. I am disappointed because I know we are better than what we have shown today".

Sylvain Guintoli, retirement then 3rd:
"The first race was disappointing. Unfortunately, at this level, these kinds of things can happen. In the second run, I really attacked as hard as I could. When Eugene fell, I even tried to join Rea who was in front of me, but I couldn’t. I’m not really happy with this third place, although it was really the maximum we could get today. The season is still far from over. There are plots like this and Donington where we’re weaker, but there are others where we’re definitely going to be benchmarks. The most important thing in all of this is to never finish too far behind the leaders.".

Marco Melandri, 4th (x 2):
"Our bike unfortunately struggled on this track. I don’t think we had a chance to win today, this result was the best it could be. The first race was very difficult. I was struggling to change direction by quickly opening the throttle, which I usually do and, unfortunately, couldn’t have done better. While I had had problems with the new tires in previous races, here at Imola we struggled a lot with the worn tires. The race was very physically demanding and I was really tired at the end"

"In the second run we tried to solve this problem by making some changes to the front suspension, but the situation did not improve. The bike remained nervous and when I tried to push harder it would move more. In the last part of the race, Chaz passed me and I struggled to get back fourth place. Without his mistake he probably would have finished ahead. The positive point is that I reduced the gap with the Aprilia riders in the provisional".

Michel Fabrizio, 5th then 8th:
"I would have needed the start of the second race in first, and the bike of the first race in second. Unfortunately, the temperature was too high and the track gave us a problem in terms of grip, both at the rear and at the front. On one occasion, I even rubbed my elbow and I used it to straighten the bike … It was a hell of a trick! When I saw that how much I was struggling, I preferred to defend 8th place and take my points at home. I am disappointed because we have the opportunity to be competitive in every race. In the first heat I came up very close to the podium … I tried to react in the second heat, but I was not so sharp. Pity".

Chaz Davies, 6th then 5th:
" The first race was difficult. I couldn’t get out of the corners the way I wanted. Everywhere else the bike seemed to run fine, but I couldn’t keep control of the bike coming out of a corner. Either I slid skated and then found the grip which upset the bike, or the acceleration just wasn’t good enough. It made me lose a length each time and I always had to force in the straights to catch up again … until the next turn. At the end of the course, the bike was easier to ride than in the middle of the race, as the level of grip was more consistent. Apparently, the further the race went, the better the bike was".

"We used this data to improve the bike for the second round. The bike was better and at least I was able to fight in a good group that included Marco. At the end of the race I could still see the guys on the podium. The battle with Marco in the last few minutes was fun. I passed it two laps from the end and contained it for one lap. But by approaching the top of the hill, he took advantage of a very good exit to pass me to the top of "Piratella". Then it went a little too far in the last corner and I tried to cut inside but unfortunately lost the rear trying to get it back. It’s a bit of a shame but it was still nice. The only thing that disappoints me is that I still lose too much time exiting slow corners. For some reason I lost grip prematurely and couldn’t open the throttle as hard as I would have liked. We absolutely have to work on this tomorrow. I’m sure we’ll find something".

Loris Baz, 9th then 6th:
"My biggest problem in the first run was the pain in my left shoulder after my big Superpole crash. To be completely honest I was in pain all over so I couldn’t stay with the guys in front. I suffered a lot in my ankles, so I couldn’t change direction quickly, nor brake properly with the rear brake. I was better in the second race because I took advantage of some more effective pain relievers. From the start I tried to stay with the best, to fight behind Leon (Camier, NDLR), to attack hard in the middle of the race even if it was very tiring. I had confidence in my bike and I’m sure if I had been 100% I would have been even closer to the front lines. However, finishing sixth under these conditions is not so bad. On arrival, I felt like I had completed 80 laps, I was simply winnowed !".

Ayrton Badovini, 8th then 10th:
"Everything was going very well until yesterday. But the temperatures today were much higher so there was less grip, not a lot of traction. The first race was not bad but unfortunately I lost too much time at the start. We made a few small changes for the second race, but it was even more difficult as the track was even hotter. I’m not happy with the results today because I really thought I could do better. In the end, I can say that I took a small step this weekend with my bike. I want to thank all the fans who have come here to support us. They can be sure that we will continue to work hard over the next few days".

Jules Cluzel, fall then 11th:
"I’m really disappointed with the whole weekend as we never did a quick lap. The first race should have been my best performance of the weekend, but I did two straight and the second time I fell because I couldn’t find the right gear. However, I think my pace in the race was good enough to claim eighth or ninth position. The second race was worse for me, and I fought against Haslam and Badovini. I overtook them both, but in the middle of the race I had a weird feeling up front. I was pretty scared because i made a few big moves in the faster curve so I slowed down a bit. On the last lap, I cut the last chicane because I couldn’t fall in first gear and I lost a place. I did not enjoy myself this weekend and hope we can find some good improvements during tomorrow’s test".

And now for our MNC analysis of the World Superbike in Imola !

Related articles

Leave a Reply

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