The season started early for Jérémy and his SRC Kawasaki teammates David Checa and Erwan Nigon. They rode from last Thursday to Saturday on the Ricardo Tormo circuit and we took stock with Guarnoni, reigning French Superbike Champion.
How did these tests go? Was the weather good?
“The weather was great with almost 20° for three days, it was great. This is often the case in this region of Valencia where I now live, mainly due to the weather.
“The tests went well. These were not exclusive private tests (like the official Pirelli days for example) and we shared the track with amateurs, but we managed to work well.
“We will say that it was more of a warm-up for everyone than a program with a multitude of things to try. We didn't have a big program in this area. The goal was to cover a lot of kilometers with the engine of the new Kawasaki which changes quite a bit in 2019. The objective was to accumulate the kilometers to see the reliability for a 24-hour race. So we did a lot of driving, and we drove very quickly. »
Did the new Kawasaki ZX-10RR 2019 model seem more efficient than the 2018?
“It's difficult to estimate precisely because we had the new engine, but not the new electronics. These are the two things that change: the titanium connecting rods and the cases, which are not yet available. The engine takes 600 more revolutions, which is huge and something we will appreciate when we have the new boxes.
“The new engine has a lot more torque, it’s fuller at the bottom. This was the weak point of the Kawasaki, which had less torque than the Yamaha for example. We will know more with the new boxes. »
In endurance, after the Bol d'Or and with Le Mans, Slovakia, Germany and Suzuka remaining, who do you see as the main rivals for the title?
« FCC TSR Honda France is World Champion and it is the best structure in the Championship in terms of the motorcycle, riders and team package. They are very efficient, but not unbeatable. We proved it at the Bol d'Or, and without this small sensor failure we would have easily won the race. So they are takeable.
“The YART is starting to be regular. There is a big reshuffle at SERT, and this change in management combined with a recent bike doesn't really help the team. They are one of the favorites, but a little less than FCC which is really the big team. »
You ride for Kawasaki in Pirelli, FCC TSR Honda France and the YART in Bridgestone, and the SERT in Dunlop. Is it more interesting to have open competition in terms of tires than a single manufacturer?
“We don’t know what it would be like if everyone had the same tires. There are currently large gaps between the tires. Bridgestone, Dunlop and Pirelli are not comparable. They don't work the same way.
“It’s good that it’s open because the manufacturers are very involved. Each manufacturer supports its teams, whereas in the case of single tires, there would be no development. Manufacturers invest more in endurance than in Superbikes. We are doing a lot more development. »
Kawasaki Team Green took pole position at the Suzuka 8H last year with Leon Haslam and Jonathan Rea in 2'05.403 ahead of the Honda, Yamaha and Suzuki factories. Rea clearly outperformed his opponents during the Jerez tests on November 27. Does that give you confidence in the speed of the ZX-10RR?
“We cannot compare our motorcycles and those of Superbike. I rode an SBK and had access to the data from the Team Kawa technicians, and there are a lot of differences. The new bike was made for them because they needed it based on the 2019 regulations.
“These modifications designed for WSBK will not necessarily benefit us for endurance. We ride with the original electronics (i.e. kit), they with Magneti Marelli and it's not comparable. The Magneti Marelli costs 16 euros, ours 000. The difference is huge and that's why I don't look too closely at the Superbike results.
“Let’s take an example to compare: that of BMW. They have a very good bike in Stock and endurance. Originally, it works very well, but in Superbike they have failed until now. I therefore prefer to compare our new times to our old ones rather than to those of the Superbikes. »
After your victory in the French Superbike Championship last year, how do you envisage the 2019 Championship?
“For the moment, I don’t have anything completed for 2019 quickly. I'm trying to find a program because it's very important to me since I don't just want to do endurance. I need both. The Tech-Solutions team with whom I won the Championship is doing everything to do it again, but the help from Kawasaki does not cover all the needs to compete in an entire championship. This is under discussion and I hope it will be resolved before the end of this month. Otherwise I have some contacts in other national championships. »
Video: Jérémy Guarnoni – ALBI FSBK 2018
Video: Jérémy Guarnoni | 7th | TEAM SRC KAWASAKI #11 | Bol d’Or 2018
