The four regular Spanish riders in the World Superbike Championship arrive at Motorland Aragón after good performances of all of them in the race held last weekend in Cremona (Italy).
About their current season, sensations and other stories, they talk to us before the Motorland Aragon test, tenth of the season of a total of twelve rounds.
Álvaro Bautista (Ducati). 3rd. 283 points
How was your start of the season?
Like last year, I had a difficult start, training badly and also the minimum weight regulations didn’t help me. A complicated start of the year. But in Most we found some set-up that helped us to improve, we gained confidence and from then on we were able to ride more comfortably.
Your problems?
I couldn’t reach, brake, turn with the rear. In mid-corner I couldn’t turn like last year. But we solved it.
The crash in France in the Superpole Race put you out of action.
Yes, it was a mistake on the first lap and I broke a rib. I couldn’t get back out on the track.
You are third in the standings
I don’t count for the World Championship, but anything can happen until the end. My goal now is to be able to ride the way I want to, to enjoy myself again as I have done in the last few years.
Have you thought about retirement and is it reassuring to have renewed your contract with Ducati?
Yes, especially with the injury. In preseason I couldn’t ride, in fact I couldn’t even sleep. I didn’t want to race for the sake of racing. Once I was physically well, before the new crash at Magny-Cours, we solved the problems with the bike. That helped me decide to continue. When you are able to get through even when you have difficulties, you become stronger, a better rider. Now I have become more aggressive. I think I am a more complete rider. You can always learn in life. The important thing is to want to do it.
Toprak’s season before his crash?
I expected him to be competitive, but I don’t know if he was that competitive. Last year from the track the BMW was a very complete bike, more than others, than the Yamaha. And if you put in Toprak, who is a top, plus the superconcessions, they made them unbeatable. As true as it is that at the beginning of the year we were not at the same level. You see the BMW and it looks like a prototype.
Is it true that new things have arrived at Ducati?
That’s what they said, but it’s not true. Bulega rides a 2022 exhaust that is lighter, that’s all.
The new 2025 version of the Ducati Panigale has been presented and in 2026 the R version will arrive, which will be the basis of the new Superbike. Aren’t you motivated to wait for the arrival of the new bike?
We’ll see. Maybe they’ll make me wait to test it!
Last weekend in Cremona you were at a good level despite not being at your best physically.
I didn’t imagine I could be at that level, because ten days before I was in bed with a broken rib. I didn’t have a good feeling in the Superpole. I started very far back, I felt comfortable, I didn’t take too many risks and I had a good feeling. Finishing twice on the podium was fantastic, even though I was in a lot of pain. Little by little I improved my feeling and in the first race, if the red flag hadn’t come, I think I would have overtaken Petrucci. In the second race I pushed hard, I was able to overtake Bulega. At Motorland I will arrive in better physical condition.
The Motorland round is coming… good memories?
Very good memories, I have won many races in Superbike. It’s a difficult track, with a lot of blind corners, it’s challenging, I like it. The part I like the most is the double entry, you have to have the right line.
Your best memory?
In 2019, in my first race at Motorland with the Ducati, I won all three races. It was very cool, it was the third race of the champion.
Iker Lecuona (Honda). 13º. 84 points.
“This bike is taking years off my life”.
Iker Lecuona’s season seems to be straightening out, with good results at Magny-Cours (France), where he finished in the top ten with a sixth as his best result, and a fifth, fourth and sixth at Cremona, his best race of the year.
Your beginning of the year was very complicated.
What happened at the beginning of the season?
My season started worse than expected. In December I had surgery on an old 2021 hand injury. In the preseason I did two tests, one that went well in Jerez and another with less grip in Jerez itself, where nothing worked. In Australia I crashed in practice. I went out by the ears. I pulled my shoulder out of place. I couldn’t race.
At the Circuit Barcelona-Catalunya, I crashed again…
I arrived in Barcelona, where I always went well, and in the second race on Sunday I was knocked down at the end of the straight. Again the shoulder was out of place.
Assen
In Assen I felt good. But I crashed and in the gravel the bike crushed my knee and affected my meniscus and ligaments. It took me more than two weeks to recover. In short, I’ve been dragging injuries all year, I’ve always gone against the tide. I’ve never been injured so much, I keep beating myself up; this bike is taking years off my life.
Since a test in Misano you have taken steps forward.
In Misano I crashed again, but it was looking for the limits. We did a test and another one in Cremona, which was very good for me to familiarize myself with my new technician this year. I finished in the top 10. In Portimao I started to get my head out of my ass, to make up points to my teammate. In France I achieved my best result of the year (6th) and in Cremona I almost got on the podium.
Does your bike have the same limits as always?
It’s different from the past, I can’t say why. The bike has taken a different path and we arrive better at the end of the race. We have other problems. We haven’t found the key yet. I think we should make other changes that take more time. After Jerez we have a test with the new bike. Right now we are tied hand and foot. I think we have to take more radical decisions, take more risks. At Honda they are very conservative.
We need to take a step with radical changes and make the bike turn more naturally.
Last week in Cremona you were in the top 5.
A good weekend, not only because we were among the best, but also because we were close to the podium and because my teammate was also in front.
Motorland?
I like it, I’m good at it, I have good results in all categories. I feel strong there. I like the braking on lap 12, the downhill on lap 14, everything is very critical, but I like it. The track is complicated if you go off the line, the overtaking points are more critical.
I hope I can do well, in the second group, from 5 to 10.
In 2025 you will still be with the same team.
Yes, I give the maximum with what I have. I’m not going to reproach myself no matter what happens. I’m calm because I have a place in 2025, but I’m not so calm because the results don’t come. My best season here was my first year. I’m happy with the team, but they have to prove that it’s worth being here. I hope I have better material to be where we have to be.
Xavi Vierge (Honda). 11º. 89 points.
“We have taken a step forward”.
A season “in crescendo” that culminated in the Magny-Cours race with a fifth place in the Superpole Race, plus two seventh places in races one and two. In Cremona, with a sixth place, he achieved his best result of the season.
A season that has gone from bad to better.
At the beginning of the season we struggled a lot. Obviously we expected more, but since the beginning of the year we suffered a lot. Since Portimao, the Estoril test and then Motorland, we have been getting better. I hope to finish the season with a good feeling and, in fact, in the last tests we have taken a step forward.
You trained at Motorland.
Yes, and we left with a good feeling. It was very positive to come before the race, because with the new asphalt the track has changed a lot. There was very little grip on the track and we had to adapt to this new situation. We worked on different aspects, such as the suspensions, and the truth is that we left Aragon with a good rhythm. In Cremona we confirmed the good feeling.
Another step forward in Cremona?
Yes, good results, even though I had a drop in performance due to lack of grip. But both riders of the team left with good results, and that’s great because at Motorland we will be able to compare information and take another step forward.
What do you expect from Motorland?
It’s one of the circuits that suits our bike. With the new asphalt there is no grip, there is only one track and it reminds me of Indonesia. We have to try to take advantage of this situation. In Aragon we have always been more or less good. With the long straight our bike has potential.
Your goal this season?
This year we made a radical change. The important thing is to finish the year with a good feeling.
Tito Rabat (Kawasaki). 20º. 16 points.
“It’s not easy!”
The Team Kawasaki Puccetti rider is the only Spanish rider in a private team. Despite the difficulties, he is overcoming and last weekend in Cremona he managed to finish in the top ten.
How are you doing this season?
Well, there we are. People think we have an official bike and it’s true, but in a private team. This year we are closer than last year, closer to the group, in the middle of the pack. The results are not what we expected, but we have to keep in mind that there are many good riders and bikes here, it’s not easy.
In Cremona you were in the top ten in two races?
Our best weekend in Superbike, with two top tens. Finally we managed to reap the fruits of our work and everything worked better. Great work from the team after the crash in the Sprint race, where the bike was badly damaged, but in the two races it worked very well.
Motorland?
I remember the first time I came to race Superbike. I was in front with the Barni Ducati and when I was riding with the top ten I broke down. I won in Moto2, in ESBK, with a bike I had just got to know, I did well in MotoGP. Always with private bikes, in private teams, and I assure you that from the inside it’s not the same as seeing it from the outside. But after last week’s results, I’m very excited and eager to confirm all the good things we did in Cremona.
The track suits my riding and the Kawasaki.
What are your plans for 2025?
I’ve talked to two or three teams. I’m trying. I’m sure if I was in a satellite team, it would change the picture. I’m going to fight for it until the end. This year with what we have we have been in a very competitive group.
