We started with a new set-up idea that we had from these last few races in the heat, trying to take some of the grip off the rear of the bike, to create more balance. We worked with that idea and near the end of FP1 we went back to what we used to have. That confirmed that the new idea was working. In the afternoon we tried to do a longer run to understand my rhythm, to understand the tyre drop, and how the bike behaved. It was very consistent, especially in the last sector where normally you face a big drop in the fast right corners. The sector was very stable but the area where I am struggling the most is sector one. That is the main point of focus so we will check and see again tomorrow. What we did is not revolutionary, but it is a step
We’re back in action this week from my teams home race at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. I know owe Toprak a new pair of shoes too. Source: Jonathan Rea On Facebook
4-1-6. In the Superpole Race I had a really good bike set-up; my guys changed the bike throughout the weekend. It was a lot of fun, fighting with Toprak and the rhythm was very fast in a five lap race. It was more about who wanted it than who was most clever with set-up. Overall it was a difficult weekend because we didn’t maximise our potential, both in Race One and Race Two. In the final race today, right from the start, I really struggled in the braking area to stop the bike. On Friday we made a long race simulation with the bike and it felt OK but I still had a drop of pace about lap 14. But today my pace in the middle of the race was terrible. I was just getting pushed into all the corners. I couldn’t be fluid with the bike. It was a real surprise and disappointing because I think we could have been much more competitive
LWe found different grip levels from the ones we had in the Catalunya test. The grip level is quite low and even with a lot of tyre rubber down on the track in FP2, it was still quite low today. Step-by-step we are trying to understand what we are doing with the bike. I made a longer race simulation – not over full race distance – and the tyre grip started to drop. After that I wanted to try the SC0 option tyre, the harder one, but we did not have enough time and I wasn’t really fast with that. I know my race tyre set-up for tomorrow already, but we just need to be a little bit faster at the end. So the key, with the drop of the tyre, is going to be the last five or six laps. Tomorrow we will focus on making the life of the rear tyre better and see where we are.” #CatalanWorldSBK
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@krt_worldsbk @alpinestars @araieu @monsterenergy @showaperformance @oakleymotorsports @snackpata @insidebikes #team65
It’s exciting to go back to Barcelona, for many reasons. I had a win in the first ever WorldSBK race there last season and Montmelo is the team’s home round. I spend a lot of time there and even during these covid times we will have a lot of guests and sponsors there, so it will be even more important to be at 100% to do the best job we can. The circuit’s really nice, I really enjoy it, especially the new Turn 10, which is much more open than the past and the track has more flow now. We have tested there in the summer and we were able to make a good step with our Ninja ZX-10RR. It is a circuit that is very critical for tyre wear, so we need to focus on that to be strong at the end of the race. I feel good with our bike and I was able to fight in Magny Cours for the podium and in Barcelona the target will be the same. The championship is very close and now we have three rounds in a row, so it is so important to be strong – but also to be consistent and make no mistakes. What happens in these next three weeks will have a big impact on the championship, so I am super-excited to get going
