WSBK – Statements from World Superbike riders at Imola – Statements from the second WSBK round

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World Superbike riders’ statements at Imola

WSBK - Statements from World Superbike riders at Imola - Statements from the second WSBK round

The fifth round of the 2016 World SBK took place this weekend in Imola, Italy. To complete our near-live reports, here are the statements of the Superbike riders at the end of their two Italian races.

WSBK Round 2 Statements

Chaz Davies, 1st:
"This weekend has been truly amazing from start to finish! The latest updates from Ducati for the Panigale R to us have kept us fighting for victory in every race. To win a victory here at Imola, the home of Ducati, is special, and to achieve the double is incredible! Today the conditions were different but we were able to widen the gap from the very first laps. I made a few mistakes in the 9th lap which lost me a second, but also helped me to stay focused until the checkered flag. We are heading towards Sepang (the, Editor’s note) with confidence, because we have a more competitive package than last year when we were with a second place and a victory. Our objective is to keep this momentum and to further reduce the gap in the championship ".

Jonathan Rea, 2nd:
"Chaz completed a really good first lap and demoralized me a bit, but then I felt like I was going at the same pace, maybe even a little faster. Then I got really hot at the end of the last chicane. I rode on the Astroturf (synthetic turf, Editor’s note) that was still wet from last night’s rain. A few laps later, my bike cut on the straight when I was fifth, throttle wide open … I lost two or three seconds in one lap! The engine started again, but it took a few turns for me to relax again. It seems like when we can’t win, we finish second. This is what we did in Imola. Three guys now stand out at the top of the championship. We all have our days, and this was not ours ".

Tom Sykes, 3rd:
"We made some progress compared to yesterday, but suffered from losing almost an hour of practice on Friday. I felt a little more comfortable with the bike today, but I couldn’t do good lap times with a bike in front of me. I fell again in 1’48 while on a clear track, I could go down in 1’47. Even on the last lap, I turned in 1’47.7 making a mistake coming out of the final double left. So there are positive aspects to take away from this weekend. You are never satisfied with a third place, but you also have to be realistic and sometimes be satisfied with that. Even when we have worries, we’re on the podium".

Davide Giugliano, 4th:
"Today we made further progress in terms of tuning and I probably could have fought for the podium as my pace was similar to Sykes, but I struggled to heat up my rear tire. Compared to the last two tests (in and in, Editor’s note), this meeting was certainly positive, with two Tops 5 which boost my confidence and put me back on the right track. I want to thank the many Ducati fans who have been incredibly warm despite our recent struggles. Sepang (the, Editor’s note) will be another difficult battle, both because of the climate and the layout, but we will not give up! "

Leon Camier, 5th:
"To be honest, I am really very happy! The start was not so good, I found myself behind the BMWs and other drivers and it was very difficult to overtake. So as soon as I had an opening, I went for it. Unfortunately Giugliano was too far away from me. I am very happy with the feeling with the bike and the changes made between the first and the second race. Many thanks to everyone in the team for their awesome work !"

Alex Lowes, 6th:
"The day went clearly better than yesterday! We made a few changes to the bike last night, they gave me a better feeling and it helped me get my best time of the weekend after 11 laps of the race. I struggled to be consistent towards the end, but we learned a lot and did a good job. We have made some good progress against our competitors and our next goal will be to start the weekends a little more competitive. The bike is still new and we are learning as we go, but I think a lot of things accomplished here will be relevant on other tracks. We hope we can be a little more competitive on Friday morning".

Sylvain Guintoli … spectator:
"The situation is obviously disappointing. The good thing is it could have been a lot worse because the impact has really been huge. In this regard, the injuries are not that big compared to the accident, but we need to understand why it happened so that we can move forward and focus on the future. My ankle is broken and I am very sore because I fell hard, but despite that I feel absolutely fine. My ribs are aching but now we have to wait and see how I recover and see in a few days if we can go "…

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