Alvaro Bautista is still a long way from his dominance at the Portimao test – physically he is feeling better, but the world champion is not yet at 100 percent
While the worry lines on Superbike World Champion Alvaro Bautista’s face got smaller at the Portimao test, the Ducati rider was still a long way from his dominant form of last year. Shortly before the Jerez test, the 39-year-old was still suffering from pain in his neck and shoulder area. These were the after-effects of a test crash last November
This hindered his work considerably. “During the test in Jerez, I realized that I hadn’t fully recovered from my injury. I worked at home between the two tests,” Bautista told WorldSBK.com.
“Here [in Portimao] I started in better condition. That was very positive. Lap after lap I felt better physically. I’m not at 100 percent yet, but I’ve made good progress since Jerez.”
“I can now concentrate more on riding than on the pain. That’s a good sign. I can feel the bike and the limit better. Now I can start working. In principle, I need more time on the bike.”
Nevertheless, the veteran admits: “Maybe we are a little further behind than we thought.” As in Jerez, his new team-mate dominated the action. Nicolo Bulega set the fastest time on Monday and was only just behind BMW rider Toprak Razgatlioglu on Tuesday.
Bautista completed 86 laps on the first day and was around seven tenths of a second behind Bulega in the daily classification. On the second day, Bautista completed 90 laps. His gap was around one and a half seconds. He did not attempt qualifying.
After the first day, Bautista was still confident, but at the end of testing he had to admit: “I had the feeling that I had made a step forward compared to Jerez. But on the second day I didn’t have a good feeling. It didn’t get any better physically either.”
In principle, Ducati concentrated on the new weight rule with Bautista. A ballast of around six kilograms must be accommodated in his motorcycle. The weight distribution was different on his two motorcycles.
“Fortunately, the feeling was exactly the same as in Jerez. So I like one bike much better. That was positive,” said the world champion. “We didn’t make any major changes to the set-up, but at least I understand the changes.”
The Spaniard must now continue to work on his fitness over the next two weeks in order to improve his condition before his departure for Australia. There are two more test days there for final checks before the season opener on Phillip Island at the end of February
His team-mate looks well prepared. Supersport World Champion Bulega has adapted smoothly to the more powerful Panigale. “My feeling with the bike is good,” the Italian told WorldSBK.com. “But I still have to adjust to it.”
“I’m not at 100 percent yet, but that’s normal. We are working very well together. I will travel to Australia in a positive mood. In Jerez, we started with a normal feeling and then it got better day by day.”
“I think we still have some room for improvement. But it’s a bit better than expected. I still need more laps to understand the bike better with used tires and low fuel. I’m looking forward to Australia with this fantastic bike. Phillip Island is my favorite track. “