Many Moto2 and Moto3 riders have only had one or two seasons in their category, or even started completely this year. Some progress very quickly and see their name appear more and more often at the top of the rankings. Others take their first steps and discover the World Championship. Although they are discreet, these young drivers work hard and at Paddock-GP, we noticed them.
We therefore went to meet them to learn more about them, their journey and their objectives in order to present them to you.
For this first episode, we met the Italian Andrea Locatelli, who is currently competing in the Italtrans team alongside Mattia Pasini in Moto2 for the second year in a row.
Andrea, can you quickly introduce yourself?
My name is Andrea Locatelli, I was born on October 16, 1996 in Bergamo, a city where I still live. It is a place where Motocross and Enduro are very developed. Unfortunately we don't really have any circuits to practice on, and so I started with the mini bikes.
At what age did you start riding?
I started at the age of five with a Polini mini motorbike. It's a brand that comes from Bergamo so we managed to get one for me. I first started in races which took place on Sundays during typical festivals in the region.
Was your family passionate about motorcycles?
No. My father loved motorcycles, but it wasn't a passion, and no one in my family rode. It was all a bit by chance.
What championships did you participate in before arriving at the World Cup?
In the end I didn't have a great experience. I have always only raced in Italy, first in the Italian mini bike championships, then in a championship created by Honda where all the bikes were the same. From there I arrived at the CIV (Italian Speed Championship) Moto3, then I moved to the Moto3 World Cup where I stayed for three years before arriving in Moto2 last year.
Let’s go back to your years in Moto3. After two wild cards in 2013, you arrived in the World Championship in 2014 and spent three years there. Tell us about those years.
These three seasons have been very different. The first, in 2014 with Mahindra, was not easy because I lacked experience, we had problems, and the bike was not perfect. I also had to learn the World Cup circuits.
During the second, in 2015, I had a lot of bad luck. I started the year well, then we had some difficulties, and then at Misano I got injured and missed almost the whole end of the season. Despite this I found an agreement with Leopard for 2016, but that made me change bikes again: after the Mahindra I discovered the Honda, then the KTM.
The first race wasn't easy, but then I managed to get a good fourth place in Argentina, and a fifth place in Texas. Then I progressed until the middle of the season where I won my first podium, in Germany. Immediately afterwards I received the offer from Italtrans to move to Moto2. To be honest, I would have preferred to stay for another season in Moto3, but at the same time I didn't like it, the bike didn't really suit my physique so I based it on my feelings and accepted the offer. In the end I had a very good end to the season in Moto3, with another podium and ninth place in the general classification, which is good, and I moved up to Moto2.
Your move to Moto2 took place last year with the Italtrans team, for which you still race. How was your adaptation to the category?
It was difficult at the beginning, because the change was already total between Moto3 and Moto2, and on top of that I was changing bikes for the fourth time. I still had to start from scratch. It's not easy to arrive in Moto2 after three complicated years, especially since it's one of the most difficult categories. We can see this clearly in the times and the gaps. So 2017 was hard, especially since I didn't feel good on the bike. However, we know: results arrive when the driver becomes one with his machine. Unfortunately, for me last year every weekend was a “drama” because I fell a lot. 2017 was really very, very long because I didn't manage to achieve any satisfaction in my results and I could never breathe. In the end it was a bit of a price to pay to arrive ready in 2018.
This year, you got into the points at every race apart from Qatar, and you even got your best result at home, in Italy, with an eighth place. We feel more at ease: what has changed since last year? The experience? The motorbike ?
The race in Qatar was a little complicated because we hadn't yet found the right path to follow, but then from Argentina it was and I've really had good progress until now. We finally found that feeling that I was missing last year. This allowed me to change, to be calmer on the bike and more efficient.
What are your goals for this season?
Considering what we have been doing since the start of the season and with my entry into the top 10 at Mugello, I would say that the objective is to finish every race in the top ten. Then try to progress to reach the top 5 and then, we don't know, all it takes is a race with somewhat special conditions to achieve an excellent result like a podium.
