For more than 10 years we have had a special relationship with Valentine Debise on French or international circuits. It was therefore natural that we once again opened our columns to him to share his adventure in French FSBK Championship, in which the Albigensian once again aims for the title in Supersport 600 and Superbike 1000.
After his four victories at Le Mans aboard his new Yamahas, then its four victories at Nogaro and three successes at Lédenon, the one we nicknamed VD53 but which now bears number #153 experienced its first mechanical breakdown at Pau Arnos, winning only “only” three of the four races in which he participated. What followed 4 victories at Magny-Cours then his replacing Jules Cluzel injured in Most in the world championship.
We find him again after the penultimate round of the FSBK to Carole, and before wild card at Magny-Cours.
Valentin, you have just completed the penultimate round of the French FSBK championship on the Carole circuit where you won three races out of four, acquired the title of French champion in 600cc, and won the second race in 1000cc while you was forced to retire in the first. Tell us about your weekend…
Valentine Debise : “the 600 races took place like the qualifications, that is to say that I had a clear advantage over my competitors, undoubtedly due to the fact that I had trained thanks to the Mutuelle des Motard, the Carole circuit and the French Motorcycling Federation which had organized two days. In fact, out of the ten or so pilots invited to participate, only two of us responded. It's still a bit of a shame. Personally, I took this opportunity and in the end it served me well. I hadn't gone to train at Magny-Cours for budget reasons, but I knew that Carole is an important circuit for the French championship, in the sense that the entire motorcycle industry is present, just like the FFM, my partners and the Guyot family. So for me, it's a circuit where it's important to perform and that's why I took this opportunity to train with Carole, much more with the 600 than with the 1000. This work has therefore been rewarded.
Afterwards, for the 1000, it's true that I wasn't very fast in the first race. Carole is a complicated circuit with the 1000, and we will say that the pneumatic aspect is quite strange, in the sense that it varies a lot from what we are used to. So, the first race, I wasn't very fast even though I was still in the lead and I managed to keep Kenny Foray behind by braking late and taking advantage of the fact that Carole is a fairly single trajectory circuit. . Then half a handlebar broke and I had to give up. So, for the second race, I changed my choice of tires and it paid off, since my pace was much higher. From memory, I did 16 or 17 laps in 59 seconds, then I cut because I saw that I was more than two seconds ahead of Kenny, but I think I could have done the whole race in 59, which was never achieved. So the pace was great and I was satisfied to have finished in front of Kenny, because for me he is the reference on this circuit: that's where he rode the most, and it's on this circuit where he has always impressed. So to beat him there, with his Tecma team who knows the track very well, it's a personal satisfaction. »
The half handlebar that breaks, is it a flaw in the metal, poor tightening or something else?
“I have quality handlebars, that’s undeniable, but there was poor assembly and it didn’t force in the right place. It could have broken at any time but it broke the moment I hit the brakes in the first corner. I was lucky that it was the left half handlebar, so I managed to slow down but as I pressed on the right side, the bike went to the right, and by the time I reacted I was in the earth. There are some pretty impressive photos on the Internet where I'm a wheel in the air, one hand on the fork, one hand on the handlebars, trying to save my life (laughs). »
You now have two important meetings left, the final of the French FSBK championship where the 1000cc national title will be played out, and the wild card in the 600cc world championship at Magny-Cours. For the Superbike title, what is the situation like?
“Mathematically, Alan Techer can still have the title, but with 50 points behind while 52 remain to be distributed, it seems complicated. So, my main opponent is Kenny, who is at 19 points. Nothing is ever certain but it is better to be 19 points ahead than 19 points behind, so I have no stress about that. Of course, I don't know the Paul Ricard circuit because I only drove there once for half a day, on the small circuit, more than 10 years ago. So I don't know the track and I don't have time to go and practice there while the others will come out of the Bol d'Or and know the route by heart. But despite everything, I think it's going to be okay. I don't yet know which route we're going to use because we're waiting for the federation's decision, but in any case we're going to need an engine even though we have a small disadvantage in this area with our stock engine. But hey, I haven't really calculated it yet, but I think if I go fourth and third while Kenny wins both races, it passes, or something like that, I have to check. Overall, I still have some margin and I'm not super worried, so I'm going to make the bike as reliable as possible to be able to finish the races without problem. »
The other deadline is the wild card at Magny-Cours, which will take place before the final of the French championship. How do you approach this, since we saw that, somewhat paradoxically, you were more satisfied with your second race in Most where you finished 8th than with the first where you finished 4th?
“I'm optimistic because I've already had the chance to ride in the world this year to replace Jules Cluzel who was injured at GMT94, so it won't be my first race, and that already takes away some stress. There, concretely, I'm doing the wild card with my own bike, so I got Pirelli tires and Öhlins suspensions to be able to train. So I put the chances on my side, and above all I approached the race in a different way: arrived at Most, each time I was in the first five I was surprised myself because I saw myself further away than that, with the level which has risen a lot. But finally, I saw that I could really perform, so now my mindset is more about aiming for good performances than being surprised at being fifth. The state of mind will be different, and the team will be too, since I will not benefit from Jules' team. But thanks to GMT 94, I already know who I'll have and I'm sure everything will go well. Last year, the bike was going really well, so we're going to start again on those bases, and in the end there are a lot fewer question marks than at Most this year or at Magny-Cours last year. last: all I have to do is drive, well, so as I have confidence in what I know how to do, I go about it in a much more calm way. »
