While Randy has competed in many World Championship races on Kawasaki and Honda, at Sepang he discovered a new Panigale V4 R which was making its first race with the German Team ERC Endurance team, which previously entered a BMW.
He could count on efficient and motivated technical support from Ducati Corse regarding the machine shared with Louis Rossi and Ondrej Jezek.
Randy, how was the first contact with the Ducati at Sepang during initial testing?
“There was initially a lot of work because the bike was brand new. The team finished preparing it the day before the tests. The chassis part of the machine was quite good, and it was enough to adjust it in relation to the track. It required a lot of work because we didn't use the Superbike fork because they decided to keep a BMW fork because they knew it better. For the brakes, we didn't have the big discs, so it was a bit annoying to brake. The swingarm was also a bit longer on the endurance bike, so you couldn't use the settings they usually used in Superbike. »
How did the tests go?
“From there, we progressed constantly. We lost three hours on Wednesday because of the rain. This caused us to miss a lot of driving.
“Thursday morning, we found ourselves directly in qualifying. I finished third in the yellow armband qualifying series, which was quite interesting. In the afternoon it was not possible to improve due to the heat and I retained this third performance. »
And the “Top 10” Superpole?
“They selected the ten fastest in qualifying. They took the best driver from each of these ten teams, so I went for Superpole. But then I had a problem with the brakes during the training lap: the brake handle came into contact with the handlebars on two or three braking attempts, so I did my best to try to find a solution so that it slowed down the brakes. best possible. Unfortunately I found myself braking three times where I didn't have any brakes, so obviously I lost a lot of time. At the end of the lap the brakes started working normally again! »
“So I finished seventh, but with the possibility of having been fourth fastest under normal circumstances. It would have been good, but seventh is good too.”
Especially for a new motorcycle…
" So. Then, for the race it rained. During the first start with the Safety Car, we went to the race management and told them that it was not possible to leave because it was too dangerous. »
“We waited three or four hours, then they gave a new start even though I didn't see how the track could be passable because it was still raining. They sent us to do forty minutes of Safety Car and then I had a bit of a breakdown. I didn't want to leave for the next start and so it was Louis (Rossi) who left, it was ultimately he who took the real start. They did a lap behind the Safety Car and off they went. »
“It wasn't easy for Louis because the track was very wet. Then Ondrej Jezek did a decent stint, and then I did what I could to move up to tenth place. »
“The problems with the bike which had difficulty turning in the dry, we found them in the rain. The bike lacked a bit of handling, probably because you couldn't brake very late due to the lack of braking on this bike, I don't know exactly. There were a lot of things to adjust, including braking stability. We braked less late than we would have liked. »
“The engine was pushing really hard. In terms of tires, Sepang is not a track that is necessarily made for Pirellis. Bridgestone was untouchable, in the rain and in the dry. The Michelins also worked very well, as we saw with Moto Ain's fourth place overall and first in Superstock. It was somewhat expected, there was no miracle at that level. »
Your overall assessment?
“It felt good to be there, to ride because I hadn't raced since Suzuka. There were three Ducati engineers on our bike plus the boss of Team Barni in mechanics. They really helped us. It was very important that they were there. »
“It’s a completely new project, with positive and negative sides. We had consumption problems, which were less noticeable in the rain. There are many things to improve. The bike arrived just before the race and we couldn't expect miracles. What I managed to do in qualifying was already very good. In the dry, we could have fought in the race between 6 and 10 because the fuel consumption problems would have been costly. »
“There are going to be factual tests. I don't know exactly what I will do. I spoke with them, it went well, they want to keep me. I would like some technical guarantees to continue. I have other leads too, so it was good that I went there. »
Video: Sepang 8H qualifying
Videos: The race
Photos © Team ERC Endurance, FIM EWC Eurosport Events
