The MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship 2018 has officially kicked off in Phillip Island (Australia), with Jordi Torres getting the 13th position in combined results; Team MV Agusta Reparto Corse by Vamag’s Raffaele De Rosa and Ayrton Badovini closed 6th and 12th after the WorldSSP Free Practice sessions.
WorldSBK – Team MV Agusta Reparto Corse
Jordi Torres tried to make the most of the three 40-minute rounds this Friday required by the new WorldSBK format. Unfortunately, the drizzle that fell during the FP1 has partly slowed down the work of the team, focused on finding the best bike’s setting on the fast-flowing Australian track. At the end of the day, Torres was able to close 13th, which bring him directly into the Tisso-Superpole1 Saturday’s session.
Jordi and his technical team will use the last free practice session tomorrow morning to make the latest changes to the MV Agusta F4 RC, before getting back on track for the Tissot-Superpole1 and the first race of the season.
WorldSSP – Team MV Agusta Reparto Corse by Vamag
Raffaele De Rosa recorded his fastest lap during the WorldSSP FP1, with a 1’34.020 lap time. The Italian rider has qualified 6th, in a provisional second row, making into the Saturday’s Tissot-Superpole2.
After struggling with the aftereffect of the crash suffered during the test, the teammate Ayrton Badovini closed in 12th position and tomorrow will face the Tissot-Superpole1 trying to enter into the Top10 grid fight.
Jordi Torres – Of course, the track conditions have affected this day of testing a lot, but I’m happy because we have collected a lot of data, both in dry and wet conditions. We were able to try several changes to the bike and now we have to work on the data to figure out which is the best direction to take for the race. I am absolutely confident in my team and tomorrow I will get on track ready to fight for the SP2.
Raffaele De Rosa – We have started with FP1 in dry condition but during the FP2 the track was still a bit wet. In any case, we were able to try different solutions to the bike’s setting and I am quite happy with my pace. We are still missing something on the fast lap but I am sure tomorrow we will be able to improve this side as well.
Ayrton Badovini – It was a difficult day for us and I’m not completely satisfied. Unfortunately, I tried various tire solutions and when it was time to push in order to enter the SP2 I had a less performing tire. Phillip Island is not the track in which I usually manage to ride at my best but we will work hard to make a further step forward tomorrow.
