WSBK – Statements and analysis of the Superbike in Istanbul – Statements of the SBK riders in Turkey

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Istanbul Superbike Statements and Analysis

WSBK - Statements and Analysis of the Superbike in Istanbul - Statements of the SBK riders in Turkey

The eleventh round of the World SBK 2013 took place yesterday in Istanbul, Turkey. To complete our live reports, here are the statements of the Superbike riders as well as the Site analysis of the two Turkish races.

Statements by SBK pilots in Turkey

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 World Superbike and Supersport races on the Istanbul circuit (for latecomers , read then).

Here are the statements of the pilots who distinguished themselves on Sunday … Honors to the double winner !

Eugene Laverty, 1st (x 2):
"My last double was from. These two wins today are particularly good because I wasn’t really expecting them. I am very happy ! Our bike was perfectly tuned for both races, especially for the ends of the race when the tires started to deteriorate, which allowed me to win with such a large gap. My team even managed to improve the settings after the first run: I was able to ride at a similar pace, but much easier. I’m back in the title race, but above all, I regained my confidence and that makes me optimistic for the next events.".

Marco Melandri, 2nd then 4th:
" "I lost a lot of time in the first laps of the first heat. Our bike is still very nervous with new tires. On the first lap I had to cut the gas on the straight because the bike was shaking too much. ten laps the bike became lighter and easier to ride. I was very quick then and caught up with the riders in front. But Eugene was already very far when I passed Tom. For me second place was already a very good result".

"After the first race we made some changes to the bike, but the grip went down, probably due to the increase in temperature on the track. We tried to balance the bike with a few modifications on the rear, but suddenly I had to struggle with the front. I couldn’t get into the corners quickly and had some problems trying to brake. In the end, I couldn’t get the same result as in the first round. We still have three dates and, while it won’t be easy, I still believe in it. I want to fight and do my best in every race".

Tom Sykes, 3rd then 2nd:
"Two podiums today when it was my first here. We only had two and a half hours of driving to face two high-level drivers who already had experience of this circuit. We made a couple of changes to the bike between races and I think everyone saw that our bike was running a little better within a second. We started this race quite strong and I was able to lead again, but some of our competitors were using slightly better tires. Eugene Laverty therefore managed to catch up with me. Unfortunately, at the end of the second round I didn’t have the material to fight and try to win"…

" I believe this weekend has been instructive and will allow us to improve. I also wanted to win the first race, I attacked hard but I felt that by pushing a little more I could have crossed the line. The changes we made this weekend should help us for the races ahead. We start with a strengthened lead in the championship and that can only be a good thing".

Sylvain Guintoli, 4th then 3rd:
"These are two good races, but I’m still missing something … I don’t know if it’s the speed or my physical condition. To be honest, I was expecting better for this weekend after the good practice sessions and my first row on the grid. It’s not a complete disaster since we are still close to Sykes and I returned to the podium. Unfortunately, my shoulder injury is not an easy ordeal to overcome. On a track like this, with fast corners and crosswind, it hurts a bit. The, which is a track that I love and where I hope to take another step".

Davide Giugliano, 5th then 9th:
"The first race went well, my feeling on the bike allowed me to take fifth place and that makes me happy. Elias and I bumped into it on the last corner, but that wasn’t on purpose of course. We just took two different paths and it made contact like it does in many races. In the second heat, I unfortunately suffered from grip problems and I was unable to maintain the pace that allowed me to stay with the leaders during the first race. We are now going to find the cause of this lack of grip which prevented me from riding as I had hoped. I thank my team who, as always, worked very hard all weekend".

Toni Elias, 6th then 5th:
"I’m really happy with my first weekend in Superbike! I couldn’t ask for more with so little experience even though I am now thinking about improving my results. I approached the first heat calmly, but I managed to come back up at the end of the race and I fought until the finish line. The second race went differently. I regained my old resolve and got off to an aggressive start. Lap after lap, I learned to manage my bike and, I must say, also to manage the approach of other riders. I hope to do more from Laguna Seca. I thank once again my whole team and Andrea Petricca for the opportunity they have given me. I deserve it and I promise to prove it to them".

Chaz Davies, 8th then 6th:
"After missing a lot of track time yesterday, it was a difficult day. We struggled to find a good setting in the allotted time. I lacked grip in the front and back and also had stability and balance issues. I was not happy with the first race. After the warm-up we made a little change to try and find more grip at the back, but it just made things worse up front! It was too easy to lose the front end, I think it happened to me 10 or 15 times throughout the race … I couldn’t get into the corners hard. Every time I tried to use the front brake, with the slightest degree of angle, the front would leak. And more, I had trouble with the rear grip. I couldn’t do better, it was very frustrating".

"I was much more satisfied with my second race which certainly went better. My gap with the leaders was halved compared to the first race, but it was not enough in the end. We really took a step in the right direction, but we couldn’t completely solve the problems we had in the first run. A third race would have been good for us today! I don’t know if I would have been in contention for the podium, but I’m sure we would have done even better and we would have come even closer".

Jules Cluzel, 7th (x 2):
"It has been a very interesting weekend overall. I was a bit disappointed with the first race as I felt I could fight for fifth place. I fought a bit with the others for this position, but in the end I was not able to pass them. For the second race, we had a lot more data. We had just completed a lot of laps so we had more information. We made some big changes to the chassis and I felt a few differences, but they weren’t that easy to understand. I made a few mistakes during the race and did some good lap times, but the really interesting point is the last part of the race: I tried to be calmer and understand how the traction works. behaved and how the bike was evolving. It allowed me to learn to improve the bike as well as my riding. I think I understand a lot more now and I can’t wait to compete in the next event because we have more info that I will be able to analyze. I’m happy with my two seventh places, but I felt we could have been stronger. I have to improve myself next time !".

Leon Haslam, 9th then 8th:
"I just had the wrong tire for the first race, it’s that simple, and there was nothing I could do about it. The guys tried to get me to pit for a few laps and in hindsight I probably should have done that, changed the tire and got out for a few laps faster. But the driving instinct dictated me to stay in the race and I came in ninth place, ahead of Michel (Fabrizio, NDLR) barely. I’m happy with my lap times in the second run, even though I had a little less grip than expected. It was the fault of a few chassis modifications that didn’t really work due to the lack of data from the first race. My consistency, however, was good and my pace at the end equaled that of the top 5. We just missed a little pace at the start.".

Ayrton Badovini, retirement then forfeit:
"This stop is really a shame, today we had the opportunity to do a few laps and familiarize ourselves with this track. I would have struggled to finish the race anyway, due to my physical condition, but I wanted to at least give it a try. I also had some grip issues, because after completing just one practice session, we didn’t have time to identify the best setting for our bike on this new track. It’s unfortunately a weekend to forget"…

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

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