The MOTUL FIM Superbike World Champion is officially back in action, and the opening day of Round 4 firmly lived up to expectations. With an opening salvo that delivered thrills, spills and everything in between, one man who has been at the epicenter of the rumour mill is the reigning World Champion, Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati). The Ducati star was discussing everything from technical setup to potential rivals across the weekend, as well as his own future in the paddock.
“I END THE DAY WITH GOOD FEEDBACK”: Bautista continuing to work on setup
Ever since the Cremona test a few weeks ago, Alvaro Bautista has repeatedly been clear on his attempts to discover the perfect setup for his Panigale V4 R; so far, it remains an ongoing process. The reigning World Champion admitted that he struggled in the morning but found more improvement as the day progressed. Speaking about this, Bautista said: “For sure, today was a bit strange. In the morning, we were trying the new front tyre from Pirelli, and for sure, the feeling wasn’t the best. The feedback wasn’t good, and the bike struggled a lot to stop. At the end, we decided to just take it out and keep our standard front tyre, the SC1. In the afternoon, we tried the new rear tyre. Again, the feeling wasn’t as bad as with the front. Today, I didn’t feel the same feedback as I had during the test. I asked the team to make some small changes to the setup of the bike, and with the Pirelli used tyres I did my best time. At least we end the day with good feedback and confidence for tomorrow morning.”
Bautista also addressed the nagging problem of inconsistency with discovering his ideal setup. Talking about this, Bautista pondered: “This year, it’s quite strange. It’s like in every track we have to start from zero and build the right setup. We have to keep working until we find a good base setup that works at all the tracks. Today we had the second practice with good feedback, and I think we will be starting in a better position for tomorrow.”
“I THINK THEY ARE THE STRONGEST GUYS”: Alvaro assesses rivals ahead of races
The Ducati rider was then asked to give his thoughts on the state of his title rivals heading into the weekend. With both ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team rider Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) and fellow Aruba.it Racing – Ducati’s Nicolo Bulega both proving to be very fast on Friday. Bautista had this to say: “I think they both (Bulega and Toprak) are the strongest guys right now. But we cannot forget that Iannone will try to win in Italy. It will be important to have good feeling with the bike and to have a good Superpole session.”
“WHY THINK ABOUT THE FUTURE WHEN I HAVE ALL THIS WORK?”: Bautista on future
Lastly, the reigning Champion once again addressed the hot topic of his future. Speaking about whether there were any plans to make a decision one way or the other, Bautista said this: “It’s most important for me that I have fun with the bike. First of all, I have to find good feedback with the bike, so that I can ride the way I want to. Then I will decide. I am not in a hurry, and I am quite calm. At the moment, the team is happy and supporting me. Why think about the future when I have all this work to do in the present?”
Make sure to follow along with all of the Misano action with the WorldSBK VideoPass!
Source: WorldSBK.com