Delighted Alvaro Bautista after Catalunya test: “I feel like I’m back again!”
൲Nicolo Bule💛ga (P1) and Alvaro Bautista (P3) react to Thursday's WSBK test
The Catalunya 168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:WorldSBK test might eventually be remembered as the moment 168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Alvaro Bautista’s title defence truly began.
Bautista has endured an injury-disrupted wint🙈er ahead of the 2024 season which featur🐻es new weight rules.
But on Thursday, the first of two days of ꩵtesting at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Bautista went third-fastest and e☂merged with a feeling of delight.
Bautista was second-quickest uꦕntil a late surge from Toprak Razgatlioglu, but still completed 100 laps with a best time of 1’41.029s.
He confirmed there are no🐎 lingering feeling🤪s from his injury, and added: “Now, I am happy because I am feeling like I am back again.
“Afꦇter the Australian Round, I was quite confident and, today, I started like a bit awkward but then I felt good on the bike.
“I can say I don’t have problems riding the bike.
“We didn’t make a lot of changes because, for me, it’s important to ge🤪t the feeling with the bike.
“The bike is basically the same as last year. A bi♔t more weight but basically the bike di⭕dn’t change.
“It’s important to get t꧅he feeling, get used to the new weight of the bike and see in which areas we can push more or less.”
Nicolo Bulega fastest on Thursday in Barcelona
Bautista’s Ducati teammate Nic💃olo Bulega has topped the timesheets at every WSBK test he has been involved in.
On Thursday he complete🐈d 72 laps with a best time of 1🦹’40.305s, which arrived on his 67th lap.
He finished half-a-second clear of Razgatlioglu.
Bulega reacted: “It’s not a bad feeling to be P1!
“I know it’s just a test, butꦿ it gives me a lot of ღconfidence to be P1 but also if I was P2; I’m fast, so it’s good.
“I used the SCQ, I think like everybody. I used it like Alvaro, Toprak 🃏and a lot of guys.
“I tried the new Pirelli C900 tyre, and I liked▨ it; I think it can be a good choice for the round.
“All the tyres I tried today, I had a good feeling. We concentrated a lot on th🔴e clutch because, in Australia, my three starts were bad.
“We tried something new on the clutch to start better. I improved a little bit, ꦡso I’m happy, but when you are in the races, it’s more difficuওlt.”
Every WSBK rider will also t♈est on Friday in Barcelona🦩.
James was a sp🅘orts journalist at Sky Sports for a decade covering everything from American sports, to football, to F1.
