The Barcelona circuit will host the second round of the Superbikes World Championship next weekend. After a tough start in Australia, two-time champion Álvaro Bautista is optimistic and believes he will return to good results on the Catalan track.
‘I had a difficult winter, but I am doing well, almost at 100%. And the most important thing is that I can start focusing more on finding the right feeling with the bike, which we lacked throughout the preseason,’ the rider said in an interview with the newspaper Sport.
The Ducati rider compares the differences between the performance he had in 2023 and what he has been trying to overcome since the implementation of this regulation.
‘If last year it was already difficult for me to move the bike during direction changes… with a heavier bike, it is even harder, more difficult to control. In the case of falls, if you need a certain amount of meters to brake, with five or six extra kilos and speed, you need more space. In many circuits, in the run-off areas, you are already at the limit. There is also more danger for track marshals, even for the spectators in the stands, we have often seen bikes flying off. In short, I do not believe it is the best way to balance the championship,’ he emphasized.
Looking ahead to the next race, Álvaro hopes to stand out in Catalonia.
‘I’m really looking forward to it. In Australia, it was an atypical weekend, with tire changes and red flags, it was strange. But I went from less to more, recovering the best sensations with the bike and starting to ride as I like, at a high level. Barcelona is a track that I really like, I enjoy it a lot. We achieved good results last year and I hope to continue evolving, finding the sensations that I didn’t have in the winter’, he concluded.
