Month: August 2017

Reale Avintia Racing riders Hector Barbera and Loris Baz left the British Grand Prix with valuable championship points after making a comeback from 16^th and 21^st place on the grid. The free and qualifying practice sessions had been difficult for the Reale Avintia riders, and this result is a good reward for the hard work of the team throughout the weekend.

Barbera had a problem at the start and lost many places, but then he was able to keep a constant pace that allowed him to catch his teammate and beat him on the last lap to score two points.

Loris Baz made a bet before the race, choosing the softer Michelin rear tyre. This was an advantage on the first few laps, but it made things difficult for the French rider in the last part of the race. He struggled with rear grip and he lost several positions. But he still scored one point after a difficult weekend.

“It was a strange race. At the start the bike moved as I put the first gear in and to avoid jumping the start, I stopped and restarted again. This cost me a lot of positions on the first lap and I was almost last. But then I started to recover and pass some riders. I lost too much time trying to get past Smith and Miller, and it was a pity what happened at the start as my pace today was fast enough to fight for a top ten finish. Now we have to focus on this base set up, because it is clear that I’m faster like that. In Misano we need to make another step forward.”

“It was a difficult race but at the end it was better than we expected. It was a risk to use the soft rear tyre, but it was the tyre with which I was more comfortable and it also allowed me to attack during the first laps of the race. Then I just tried to finish the race as the bike was sliding a lot in the righthand corners. When Abraham passed me, I tried to stay with him, but it was impossible, because with two laps to go the tyre was finished. On the last lap Hector caught me and I had nothing left to defend my position. I scored one point and after all the problems during the weekend, this was not so bad. I hope that we can return to the level from the last races at Misano.”

The second day of practice for the British GP has not been easy for Reale Avintia Racing riders. For FP3, the track conditions were not the best after some showers in the morning, and on a damp but drying track they were not able to improve and get direct access to Q2. During FP4, the conditions were much better and with the sun shining again for Q1, both riders improved their pace from Friday. But it was not enough and Hector Barbera will start from 16^th place of the grid, while Loris Baz will do so from 21^st, after they finished sixth and eleventh in Q1.

But although the position is not ideal, both riders are confident to be able to recover and grab some points in tomorrow’s 20-lap-race.

“As we could see yesterday I feel much more comfortable with the set-up from Barcelona. Maybe the bike works better with the one we have been using in the last couple of races, but the bike needs to be ridden in a different way and it wasn’t possible for me to do this me. Now I pushed my limit a bit further and I was faster immediately. The only positive thing today was that I lost just 0.3s to Alvaro (Bautista) ,who is the fastest rider on this bike. Redding was slower. Yes, he is ahead of me on the grid, but just because he got the pass to Q2 this morning. Overall I’m satisfied and I think that my pace is quite strong for the race. We must start well and then we will see where we can finish the race.”

“Today was really difficult. The track was not in the best possible condition this morning, but we didn’t go so bad. But in FP4 and qualifying, it was a disaster. We had to work just with one bike because of the mileage of the engines and with this, it was impossible to improve. The changes that we were testing didn’t work and as I had just one bike to evaluate these changes, we lost too much time in the garage. In qualifying I tried something that we had left from FP4 and this also didn’t work. But then I went out with my second bike for the last exit and my feeling was really good. I think that it was possible to do two fast laps, but I had a strange feeling with the brakes and we didn’t improve. No we are way back on the grid, but we have a good race pace and I am confident we will recover some positions.”

Reale Avintia Racing riders, Hector Barbera and Loris Baz, completed the first day of practice for the British Grand Prix at Silverstone. This first day of action took place in surprisingly warm and sunny conditions in both the free practice sessions of 45 minutes, unlike the expectations of the English weather.

Loris Baz worked hard to improve his feelings with the bike in the morning, and in the afternoon he finished in 15^th place overall. The French Reale Avintia Racing rider is confident of making more progress tomorrow and to be able to fight for Q2, something he already achieved in the last two races.

The first day at Silverstone was not as easy for Hector Barbera. The Spaniard struggled in the morning to find a fast pace and together with his team he decided to go back to the set-up he used in Barcelona. The result was visible immediately and he improved his lap times, but not enough, so tomorrow he wants to keep working in the same direction and try to get the best possible grid position for Sunday’s race.

“I love Silverstone, but at the same time it is a difficult track. It is very bumpy and you have to be extra confident with the bike to go fast. This morning was tough, but we improved a lot in the second practice and I finished close to the top ten. It is a long circuit and everything is really tight. I missed the top ten by just three tenths. Let’s see if we can improve the bike tomorrow. It won’t be easy as this track features several long corners and this is where we suffer the most. We will start the day with the goal of Q2 and then we will see if we can do it.”

“It was a difficult first day. This is a circuit where I usually struggle to be fast, and we also used a wrong set-up in the morning. In the last two races we changed the settings to help me to change my riding style, but the results were worse than in the previous races, so we decided to go back to the set-up of Barcelona, where I felt comfortable riding the bike. It worked immediately and my feeling was much better. I was also faster than in the morning and I was able to get more feedback from the bike. But we need more time. I’m confident that we can improve the pace tomorrow and that we will be more competitive on Sunday.”

Reale Avintia Racing riders Hector Barbera and Loris Baz head to the legendary Silverstone circuit for the twelfth round of the 2017 MotoGP World Championship this weekend.

Barbera and Baz arrive at the British Grand Prix determined to fight for a top ten result on Sunday, a goal that the French Reale Avintia Racing rider achieved at the last race in Austria two weeks ago. Barbera is still trying to get the best out of his Ducati Desmosedici GP16 and although he showed some progress at Spielberg, he failed to get a good result on Sunday.

Baz has mixed emotions when it comes to Silverstone. Last year, he had a terrifying crash on the first lap, but he also has some good memories from the British track and he feels strong to fight for a top ten result again in next Sunday’s 20-lap-race.

As usual at Silverstone, everybody will have an eye on the sky. Rain is quite common during the British Grand Prix despite the fact that the race weekend takes place in August.

“I go to Silverstone focussed on getting a good result. I see every race as an opportunity and now I have to take advantage of these opportunities more than ever. The team is working hard to give me the best package and they are supporting me all the way. We have not yet achieved the results we have been working for since the season began. This track suits my riding style and I think it will also suit my Ducati, so let’s go for it.”

“I love the layout of the fast and flowing Silverstone track, but my memories from the circuit are mixed. I had some good experiences at the beginning of my career and I also won twice in World Superbike. In MotoGP, things haven’t gone quite as well so far. In my first year, we had some technical issues and last year I suffered a big crash. But currently, we are in very good shape and we have been strong in the last few races. I will try to enjoy a circuit that I like a lot and the goal once again will be a top ten result. The circuit is very different from Austria and we will have to work on the set-up to make the bike turn better.”

Reale Avintia Racing rider Loris Baz finished ninth at the Grand Prix of Austria at the spectacular Spielberg circuit today. The 24-year-old French rider started the race from the fourth row of the grid following an excellent performance on Saturday, when he went straight in Q2 and was 12^th fastest in qualifying. After the start he gained some places and he battled for three laps with Andrea Iannone for eighth position. Baz was leading the second group during a big part of the race. With nine laps to go, he tried to get Alvaro Bautista under control, but the Spaniard had a better pace and Loris finished the race in ninth place.

His Reale Avintia teammate Hector Barbera struggled with tyre performance issues from the first laps. The Spanish started the race from fifth row, two spots behind Baz. He had a good start but lost many places after a contact with Pol Espargaro on the main straight. It took him six laps to recovered to 14^th place and he then started a big battle with Jack Miller and Scott Redding, but he struggled with rear grip problems and finally finished the race in 17^th place.

“I’m very happy with my race. It was difficult to choose the tyres before the start, because with the rise of temperature we didn’t know how the soft front would work in the race. I had a decent start, but I lost concentration a little bit when I saw Petrucci moving on the grid. The first lap was good and I was able to pass some riders. I lost too much time trying to overtake Iannone, but then I kept a good rhythm and I managed the gap with the riders behind me really well. Then Alvaro arrived and he was faster and I lost eighth place. But I defended my position from Mika’s attack on the last few laps and I’m happy for that. I think this was my best race in MotoGP, nobody crashed in the front and I finished less than 20 seconds behind the winner. My team did a great job over the weekend and this it the best way to celebrate my Dad’s birthday.”

“The rider who was in front of me got stuck at the start and I was forced to move to the left, but Pol came faster from the back and we had a big contact. We were lucky not to crash. Then I saw that he had to retire, I don’t know if it was because of the incident and if it was because of that, I want to say sorry. Then I was able to recover, I had a good battle with Miller and Redding, but after seven laps my rear tyre dropped and I struggled a lot with spinning. We don’t know why we had this problem, maybe it was because of the higher temperature that affected the tyre performance. But we didn’t have any problem during the weekend and it was strange”.

Reale Avintia Racing riders Loris Baz and Hector Barbera will start tomorrow’s Austrian Grand Prix from twelfth and 14^th place of the grid. Both riders were determined to get in Q2, but then it was just Baz who made it through with an excellent lap of 1’24.097 in FP3.

Hector Barbera was really close, but not quite fast enough. Later in Q1 he finished fourth just two tenths behind the fastest rider. It was a pity, because with his pace he would have been in tenth position in Q2. Nevertheless, the Spaniard is confident for tomorrow 28-laps encounter.

Loris Baz tried his best in Q2, but he didn’t have the same feeling from FP3 and he finished 12^th. Like his teammate, Loris is still confident for the race as his rhythm is good enough to be fighting for a top ten result tomorrow.

“Until Q2 the day was almost perfect, but then everything went the wrong way. I was not able to put all together on my flying lap, I went long several times and I couldn’t find the feeling I had with the front tyre in the morning. But I’m quite satisfied because we tested a lot of ideas to be faster, and that’s the good thing about going straight into Q2. Finally the lap didn’t come, but it is not a big difference to start from the third or fourth row. The most important thing is that we did a great job so far this weekend. We did more than 20 laps in FP4 to learn about tyre performance and we will see what happens tomorrow. My goal is to finish the race in the top ten.”

“I was really close but finally it didn’t happen. I missed Q2 by just one tenth. Everything is really tight and we have been pushing during the whole weekend. Today we went faster compared to yesterday and I was fourth in Q1, only two tenths from the fastest rider. I lose too much in the lefthand corners, but we have some ideas to test during warm-up. I’m confident to recover in the race because my rhythm is quite good. I believe that we can have a strong race tomorrow.”

Reale Avintia Racing rider Hector Barbera had a strong start to the Grand Prix of Austria today. In the morning, he was the fastest rider on track and his feelings with his Ducati Desmosedici GP16 were very good. In the afternoon, with the track drying out after a short downpour right before the start of the session, Barbera lost a few position. But the Spaniard hadn’t pushed for a fast lap and concentrated instead on refining the race set-up of his bike. The Reale Avintia Racing rider, who finished sixth in the combined free practice times, used only Michelin’s medium option rear tyre in FP2, because he wanted to keep the soft ones for tomorrow’s qualifying.

Loris Baz’s was just 0.3s slower than his teammate Barbera today, but the session was incredibly close with 16 riders in one second, which relegated the Frenchman to 14^th in the combined time sheets.

The goal for both riders tomorrow will be passing to Q2, which is crucial to get the best possible position on the grid for Sunday’s 28-lap race.

“It was a positive first day. In the first session we finished on top and this afternoon we have focused on the race set-up, using the medium rear tyre to work on the race pace and my feelings with the bike. Step by step, we were able to get some useful information. We did not use our soft tyres, because we wan to keep them for tomorrow. But I’m calm. I did 1’25.2 easy with the medium compound. In the combined times of the day, we finished sixth and I think the team has done a good job. We have to take advantage of a track that is suited well to my style and the Ducati. Tomorrow it will be important to move to Q2 and continue to prepare Sunday’s race.”

“At this track, everything is always really close, but overall I think that the first day was good. The bike works pretty well and I need to improve my feelings from Brno where the bike was difficult to turn. Here we have that problem in two corners, but we’re progressing in the right direction. We finished close to the top 10, but I went slightly long in one corner on my hot lap and I lost one tenth of a second. But I’m happy because we are working in the right direction and towards the race. Tomorrow we have to try to get straight in Q2 to get the best possible result in qualifying.”

The Reale Avintia Racing Team arrived in the Czech Republic eager to start the second half of the season on the right foot. On Friday, Hector Barbera had a great start and seemed to be set for a good weekend. On Saturday, Loris Baz got straight in Q2 and although Barbera failed his attempt, both riders were confident for the race. Rain would be a big help for them, because both had showed their speed in these conditions many times, and last season they achieved one of the best result for the team in MotoGP at Brno.

But in the race, both Reale Avintia Racing riders were unlucky. The rain stopped before the start and then both riders had problems when they came into the pits to swap their bikes. Hector had to come in again when he felt something was wrong with his bike and after two stops all chances of scoring points were lost. Loris hit one of his mechanics swapping bikes, but fortunately he was uninjured. Then he started to recover and was eleventh, but he lost three places later one and crashed out with six laps when he pushed to catch Jack Miller.

The MotoGP World Championship now heads to Austria next week for the eleventh round.The Reale Avintia Racing riders look forward to move on to Spielberg and put the Brno weekend behind them with a good result.

“It was an up and down weekend. At some stages we seemed to go the right way, but then we got lost again. The race today was really difficult and nothing went as planned. The rain stopped before the start and it was like playing lottery. I decided to swap bikes early as I could see very quickly that the track was ready to go with slick tyres, but when I went out again something was wrong with the bike and I had to stop again. With two pit stops, the race was over for me. We had some positive aspects this weekend, the team is highly motivated and everybody wants to leave this unlucky string of races behind. Next week we have another opportunity and this time, we have to do our best on a track that suits my Ducati very much!”

“It was difficult to make the tyre choice before the start. We always leave the bike with its rain settings when the track is damp and after a few laps we change for the second bike with dry settings. But the problem today was that the track was already dry on the first lap and it was time to pull in and swap the bike, but I had to wait until the bike was ready. I ended up coming in when most of the others did the same and during the change, I tore one of the mechanics to the ground. Leaving the pit lane, I was thinking of what just happened and I almost fell myself. I needed a couple of laps to find back to my concentration, but then I rode on in my normal pace. But this bike is difficult: We can do a single fast lap, but to strong many fast laps together is tough. It’s hard to get the bike to turn, we have a lot of chatter in the front and things get worse as the tyres wear off. I pushed a lot trying to catch Miller and I crashed. It’s a shame, but this is racing!”

The MotoGP World Championship heads to the red Bull Ring for the Austrian Grand Prix this weekend. Reale Avintia Racing riders Hector Barbera and Loris Baz arrive at the track of Spielberg keen to overcome last weekend’s difficult race at Brno with a strong result. The Austrian circuit suits the characteristics of the Ducati to perfection, as it’s layout it is a sequence of long straights linked by fast and short turns, where the Desmosedicis can show their full potential.

Barbera has a pending debt with the Austrian track. Twelve months ago, he had one of his best weekends in MotoGP. But on race day, he jumped the start, didn’t complete the “Ride Through” penalty imposed by Race Direction, and was disqualified whilst running seventh in the leading group. This time he is determined not to fail and to take advantage of the powerful engine of his Desmosedici GP16.

His Reale Avintia Racing teammate, Loris Baz, has good memories of Austria, because despite starting the race from the last position of the grid, the Frenchman made a good comeback that took him to 13^th place. This year he hopes to qualify better and his goal on Sunday will be to finish in the ‘Top 10’.

“We come to a circuit that I really like and on which we went very well last year. It was probably the best race weekend since I’m in MotoGP. During the first few laps we were with the front runners and although I was disqualified in the end because of a jump start, my feelings were very good throughout the weekend. It is obvious that the Ducati works very well in Austria. The team is pushing more than ever and I’m physically well after having trained hard during the break, so this time we have to seize the opportunity to leave the bad streak of this season behind.”

“To be honest, the track is not one of my favourites, but it’s true that its layout is very good for the Ducati. There are only few long corners and that should be good for us, because the bike does not turn very well and in this kind of corners where you go at big lean angles for a long time, we suffer more chatter. I hope to work well from Friday to be able to get in Q2 again and to have a good weekend to make up for the race of Brno. Last week we missed an opportunity to do well, but in Austria I hope everything works from Friday and we can fight to be in the top ten on Sunday.”

After a superb start of the weekend yesterday, Reale Avintia Racing rider Hector Barbera was confident about getting in Q2 and fighting for the first twelve places of the grid. He pulled all strings and used two soft rear tyres in FP3, but missed out on his goal by fractions of a second. Luckier was his teammate Loris Baz, who clocked tenth fastest in FP3 and went straight to Q2.

With just one soft Michelin rear tyre left for Q1, Barbera had only one shot at getting through to Q2, but his last effort didn’t work out either and he will now start tomorrow’s 22-lap race from the sixth row of the grid in 16^th place. Nevertheless, the Spaniard is still confident and he hopes to recover in the race, no matter if the rain forecast is correct or if it will stay dry for the race.

Loris Baz went into Q2 very motivated, but he was not able to string a fast lap together and after two attempts he finished twelfth. Like Barbera, the Frenchman prefers a wet race tomorrow, because both Reale Avintia riders showed on Friday that they can be very competitive in the rain.

“It is always positive to be inside the top 12 and even more when you do it in dry conditions. When you get straight in Q2, it is always easier and although I would like to be one row closer to the front, it was not possible to go faster today. It was too hot and the issues we had in the morning increased with the heat. But anyway I’m happy and I’m looking forward to race. We are not so bad in dry conditions, but obviously I would prefer a wet race. I have very good memories from last year when I finished fourth and I’m highly motivated for the race, as this bike is incredible to ride in wet conditions.”

“It was a shame, because yesterday we were very strong and today we had the pace a well. In FP4 we were fast and consistent, but we wasted one soft tyre this morning trying to get in Q2. We missed that tyre in the afternoon because we just had one left. Things didn’t work as we expected and the bike had a lot of chatter. But we won’t give up, me and my team are highly motivated and we are determined to start the second half of the season stronger. I’m working had to adapt to this bike and tomorrow we will fight in the race to recover and score good championship points. Our goal will be the top ten in dry conditions, but if it rains, everything can happen. We will see what we can do tomorrow.”