Sara Sanchez (511 Terra&Vita Racing Team) is third in the FIM Women’s Circuit Racing WorldChampionship, 20 points behind the leader, Maria Herrera (Klint Forward Factory Team) and 13 behind Ana Carrasco (Evan Bros. Racing Yamaha Team). So far this year, she has been on the podium in every race, achieving a second place and three third places. However, her ambitions are much higher than the podium. In the first part of the interview, Sanchez talks about the start of the year, technical aspects of the Yamaha R7 and its objectives.
THE SEASON SO FAR: “I’m saddened by not having achieved victory”
Firstly, Sanchez reviewed the start of the season: “If we consider that we are in a World Championship and that in the end there are a few girls, pretty good. In the four races I have made four podiums. I have the regret of not having achieved victory yet. It’s the only thing I think is missing. At the moment I am being consistent, but so is María, who is consistently being first. The important thing will be to be ahead in all the races and score points in all, since the Championship is very short.”
She then spoke about the events ahead and which ones she thinks she can do better in: “Misano narrowly escaped me, because we had pace, and I didn’t know Donington Park; it’s the one that could have gone worse. I know Portimao, it’s not like at Misano, which is like my home. I have ridden more in Misano than in Barcelona, because I train with the team there. I know Portimao as I have done a test there. Estoril will also be complicated, because I have ridden very little there. I have ridden at Jerez many times but since those of us in front are all Spanish, I think we are all the same. Maria and Ana, they have that plus of, in which I could fail, Estoril and Portimao, they have already raced other times. But I think that the most complicated from now on will be Estoril, in Portimao we can do well.”
ADAPTATION TO THE YAMAHA R7: “Having started with different brands would have created more differences… They have chosen well”
The Catalan explained how the adaptation to the Yamaha R7 is going so far: “I come from the Kawasaki 400; with the R7, it’s not that it has much higher power, but the difference is in cornering. With the 300 in the middle of the curve the bike dies, and on the other hand the R7 with the first burst of gas helps you get out. But it is a somewhat heavy motorcycle, it is about 180 kilos, more or less like a Superbike, and I think that for the power it has, it is very heavy. It’s not that you feel the weight much, because, in the end, you notice it the first day, but then you get used to the inertia and speed and it’s not a problem. Since all motorcycles are the same, few differences can be made. That is also positive for the Championship. Having started with different brands would perhaps have created more differences at the start. We all have the same motorcycle to start the journey. They have chosen the bike well.”
Sanchez went into detail and explained what modifications can be made to the R7 and how a weekend in WorldWCR works: “Not much! You can choose three rear spring settings, I think there are three options. At the front you cannot change the springs, only adjust the suspensions. You can touch on the developments of the bike… But even so, when you start training, we all start the same, so as not to differentiate who knows the circuit, who has come to ride with the R7… To begin with, we all start with the same and then each one is free to make changes. We can only make changes once training has started. The tyres are not a problem either because we all have the same ones and they change them at the same time. Looking ahead to the race, they change our tires before the Warm Up. We start the race with old wheels. If you want, you can not do the Warm Up, it’s up to you.”
IT IS WHERE I EXPECTED TO BE: “Ana and Maria do everything faster than us but they don’t do anything that the rest of us can’t”
The #64’s goal was clear before starting and she is fulfilling it. However, she had doubts regarding the level of Herrera and Carrasco: “The objective was clear and that is what we are doing and achieving, which is to be ahead in all the races. What I wasn’t entirely clear about was what level there would be because I did know some that had raced with me in other categories. For example, Beatriz, I know what level she has and I know where I would be with her, but I didn’t have references with Ana or Maria. I had no idea what level they would be and it was the only doubt I had. I was sure that I would be ahead, but I had doubts if Ana and Maria would have anything else. Yes, they do, because they always do everything faster than us. We arrive, but they do everything before anyone else, because they have much more experience than us. There is not a huge difference, they do nothing that the rest of us cannot do.”
After reflecting on the level of the grid and her objectives before starting the year, he explained if these have changed after the first two rounds, and set his sights on the Championship: “I know it is complicated, because there is a lot of level, but the objective is to achieve the first victory. Then, score a lot of points and be as far ahead as possible. I don’t know if I can win the Championship, because it will surely be very difficult, but at least I will fight until the end. The problem is that, at Donington, Maria got within 20 points, but it could also happen to her like in Race 1 and she could finish fourth. Since we are a small group and the last laps are heart-stopping, anything can happen. I must prepare well for the last few laps. But, from the outset, the goal is to get the first victory.”
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Source: WorldSBK.com
