The MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship descended on the world-famous Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari di Imola for the seventh round of the 2023 campaign. It’s a track that WorldSBK hasn’t visited since 2019 but makes a welcome return to the Championship this season and several riders have spoken about their favourite parts, or memories, of the stunning circuit ahead of the Prometeon Italian Round.
“MANY DIFFICULT CORNERS, LOTS OF NICE ONES…”: home hero gives his view
Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) comes into his home round on the back of his first-ever WorldSBK podium. Discussing his favourite parts of Imola, he compared one section to Laguna Seca and said: “I can’t wait to ride here again as it’s one of the most beautiful circuits in the world. Imola is a really flowing circuit. There are many chicanes and changes of direction. I really like after Tosa corner. You go uphill but then you go on a right bend, have to brake, and then the track goes downhill and also the track changes direction to go left. You do a lot of things in just one braking area. It’s quite similar to the Corkscrew at Laguna Seca; it’s a really difficult braking area. There are many difficult corners but a lot of nice ones.”
“WHEN YOU GET IT NEAR TO PERFECT, IT’S AN INCREDIBLE FEELING”: Rea on the ‘most iconic’ section
Six-time World Champion Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) has enjoyed plenty of success at the historic venue with nine victories. On his favourite section, he said: “When I saw Imola was back on the calendar, it brought back fond memories. I’ve had some great races here and it’s a unique part of the world. It’s steeped in history. My favourite sector? It’s hard to say just one! Probably the most iconic part is the drop down from Piratella, into Acque Minerali and then the jump out of there. It’s a section of the track that’s so difficult to master but when you get it near to perfect, it’s an incredible feeling. Then you’re accelerating up really, really hard; fighting the bike.”
“MY FAVOURITE TURNS ARE THE CHICANES”: can Razgatlioglu claim a maiden Imola win?
Imola was the venue for Toprak Razgatlioglu’s (Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK Team) first podium in 2019, when he was with Turkish Puccetti Racing onboard Kawasaki machinery. Talking about the track, the 2021 Champion said: “My favourite turns are the chicanes and the downhill. We will see with Yamaha. With Kawasaki, I liked it. The level’s changed after four years, a big change and I think I’m riding very well. Normally, in general, my favourite corners are chicanes.”
“UNBELIVABLE TO RIDE HERE!”: Rinaldi recalls ‘strange’ race
Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) raced at the circuit in STK1000 in 2015 when he won in what he called a ‘strange’ race: Discussing Imola and that race, Rinaldi said: “I love this circuit. I love coming back here. It’s unbelievable to ride here. My best memory was 2015 when I was in STK1000. It was a strange race. Two red flags, three restarts. On the last restart, my mechanics had to change the clutch and it was really tough. They finished this when the pitlane was open and we had, on the monitor, 50 seconds left to exit the pitlane. It was really tough, but we were able to win, and it was one of the best memories.”
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Source: WorldSBK.com