What’s going wrong for Bautista?
Bautista is still searching for answers for his lowly preseason form going into last official pre-season test of the year in Phillip Island
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Following the two day Jerez Test, where Bautista finished 10th and 16th respectively, many thought that Alvaro Bautista’s form must have been an odd circumstance caused by discomfort due to nerve injuries to his neck.
However, a week later in the two day Portugal Test, Alvaro Bautista was once again unable to make an impression as he mustered home a disappointing 7th and 15th in the two days.
Meanwhile on the other side of the garage, teammate Bulega put in scorching pace across all four days of testing to make presence known. The Italian went under the previously held lap records in both the circuits by topping three out of four days with Toprak Razgatlioglu piping him in the final day of Portugal testing.
Lingering physical troubles
The Spaniard is not at 100% with physical problems lingering on from the past. Bautista arrived at the tests with nerve injuries to his neck.
Speaking to WordSBK.com, Alvaro Bautista said: “Basically, I can say that it has been better than Jerez but not enough.”
“On Day 1, I felt a lot of improvement from Jerez about my physical condition, but on Tuesday, I felt a bit worse than Monday. Maybe this track is more demanding. Maybe this track is more demanding. It’s not too painful but it’s always there and it’s not easy.”
Faulty setup?
Bautista also felt that he might have gone wrong with the setup and will need to find a better one for Australia.
“I’m not 100% but I think we miss something on the bike setup,” the reigning champion conceded. “ A difficult two days, but now we have some time to think about the setup of the bike and try to recover a bit more for Australia.”
New combine weight causing issues:
Being one of the lightest riders on the grid and with the new regulations favoring riders with the bigger frame, Bautista will be forced to look for ways to increase more weight.
Despite working on his physique to gain more weight, Ducati have estimated an upward of 6kgs to be added on his Panigale V4 R. The new heavier bike is making life more difficult for the Spaniard, as the newer regulations limit Bautista’s lightweight advantages in straightline speed, and tyre consumption and in return cause him trouble with braking.
“It’s much worse to ride,” Bautista explained. “Because, with more weight, you have more inertia, so it’s more difficult to turn in the corners and stop the bike. It’s more physical, and all the areas are worse.”
“With more inertia, the bike goes wide, and it’s more difficult to close the corner. Also, for stopping under heavy braking, we struggle a lot.
“We will concentrate on this and try to be penalized as little as possible and try to be at the best possible performance.”
‘Confident but not Confident’ Approach
After difficult testing days, the champion isn’t looking to give up: “I don’t have confidence, but I have confidence. I’ll try to work as hard as possible at home, I think this is the only way.”
“It doesn’t matter about confidence. If we work hard, it’s the only way we can arrive in better condition. Let’s see. I have to go day by day and then, when we arrive in Australia, I will see what my physical condition is like, and we’ll try to do our best.”
