Italiano
GOT POINTS DESPITE A TOUGH WEEKEND IN MANDALIKA, A LOT TO IMPROVE IN THE SECOND PART OF THE RACE!
FP 3 was a particular session; few riders have improved compared to yesterday, Philipp entered with used tyres, trying to test the changes compared done, immediately finding a good feeling. Switching to the soft tyres, he managed to improve a few tenths, which however allowed him to enter the top ten of the session. Unfortunately, a large part of the gap is accumulated in the last sector, where the difficulties for the Ducati led by the Go Eleven rider are the same since last year.
Free Practice 3:
P 1 A. Bautista 1.32.981
P 2 T. Razgatlioglu + 0.045
P 3 A. Bautista + 0.079
…
P 10 P. Oettl + 1.270
In Superpole, unfortunately, Philipp Oettl saw himself as the protagonist of a controversial episode during the fastest lap, which essentially made him throw the result away. After good first three sectors, in line with the Top Ten, in the fourth sector Rea completely closed the throttle on the line, in a fast point, forcing Philipp to avoid him. In addition to risking a huge collision, the German rider lost several tenths. These are episodes that happen on the track, Rea was penalized and also went to the Go Eleven garage to apologize in person. Fifteenth position and an even more uphill weekend than what already was.
Superpole:
P 1 T. Razgatlioglu 1.32.037
P 2 A. Locatelli + 0.069
P 3 A. Bautista + 0.165
…
P 15 P. Oettl + 1.350
For Race 1, the choice of rear tire was a puzzle, which was only solved on the grid; SC0, the “hardest” compound so Philipp could push from the first lap without problems. He has an excellent start, he manages to immediately comeback a couple of positions, and thanks also to the impact between Rinaldi and Bassani at the first corner, he crosses the finish line around eleventh position. The first twelve-thirteen laps of the race are good, the German rider manages to keep pace for the Top Ten, staying close to Lecuona. In the last laps, however, he suffers a lot, he picks up the pace, defending the thirteenth position until the checkered flag. A difficult race, in which the number 5 suffered several overtakings in the last sector, unable to defend himself in any way. The important thing is to score points, and there was a step forward compared to yesterday, but it’s still not enough to fight in the leading positions.
Race 1:
P 1 A. Bautista 32’44.093
P 2 T. Razgatlioglu + 4.809
P 3 A. Locatelli + 6.589
…
P 13 P. Oettl + 26.167
For tomorrow it will be necessary to find another step forward; the gap is not high, but this year the riders are all really close and nothing is enough to enter or leave the Top Ten. Unfortunately here in Mandalika things haven’t worked since Friday, little by little all the staff is working to get out of the problems, to close the gap, but it is not that easy, and often by making changes, further difficulties come out. Two races to go and there are still many points to earn; never give up!
Philipp Oettl (Rider):
“This morning we started quite well, the feeling was a little bit better than on Friday, in the Superpole i felt ok, too. In the fastest lap Rea decided to close the gas in a really bad place, and I was behind him, I had to roll off the gas, otherwise I could have been inside the Top Ten. He came to apologise, I accepted it, it was just the correct thing to do, I think I would have done the same. He is a six time World Champion, so I appreciated it even more. I had a really good start of the Race, then it was difficult for me to have a clear idea of my pace, cause every time i went out on track, the conditions were much different. I struggled a lot in the second part of the Race. I think we worked in the correct way, there is potential to improve, we took some points, but still I don’t have a really good feeling here. I try again tomorrow!”
Denis Sacchetti (Team Manager):
“We’re suffering a lot here in Mandalika, we’re not as far away as it seems, but with the level of this year’s category, losing a few tenths means a lot of positions. In Superpole, unfortunately, we didn’t express our potential due to the near contact with Rea, but he came to apologize and we accept it, it can happen to everyone to make mistakes. The Race was important in identifying the points where we and Philipp can work, and tomorrow we will try to take a step forward. Here we must try to resolve the fourth sector, by losing so much at that point we are too vulnerable to be overtaken by other riders. Tomorrow we will have to defend ourselves and try to score more points!”
Saturday pics: CLICK HERE
