The Ducati rider had a full weekend in Navarre, obtaining two victories. Enough to revive him in the championship, after a difficult pass during the last rounds.
Could it be his marriage proposal on the last podium at Most a little over two weeks ago, or the announcement of his move to BMW next year? There is always that Scott Redding seemed to be released this weekend in Spain, stringing together two new victories and numerous points which now allow him to post new claims to the championship.
The two victories of the former MotoGP rider during Race 1 and the Superpole Race, which followed another success during the last event contested in the Czech Republic at the beginning of August, illuminated an exit from the tunnel for the Englishman who is now 38 units behind Jonathan Rea and Toprak Razgatlioglu in the general classification.
And if he failed to achieve the hat-trick during Race 2 in Navarre, Redding still showed himself to be very combative, particularly against the Kawasaki rider, denying him second place at the finish after three final laps of pure defense.
Pressure and opportunism to overcome Rea
The outcome of a masterfully managed event, and during which he knew how to be opportunistic: “ It was a crazy weekend! », he laughed at the microphone of the Superbike official website. " There were a lot of battles today. At first I was aggressive but then I calmed down a little and took Jonathan [Rea] on the hunt. We had roughly the same pace but I absolutely wanted this second place. I then told myself that I had to do more, but while being vigilant. I later saw him make several mistakes, and I just kept the pressure on until he made one too many mistakes and allowed me to take advantage. I then tried to catch up Toprak [Razgatlioglu], but I think it was already too late. I should have made my overtake something like five laps earlier. »
One thing is certain: Redding is now in a good dynamic, symbolized by his current series of seven podiums in a row. In fact, we have to go back to the Superpole Race in Assen at the end of July not to see his name in the top 3. A situation well restored after a slump, when he was deprived of a podium precisely between Race 1 of Estoril and that of Assen, leaving his teammate at Ducati Michael Ruben Rinaldi take the lead within the team (the Italian signed two victories at home in Misano during this same period, during Race 1 and the Superpole Race).
A challenge from Donington
But by his own admission Redding questioned himself, particularly after Donington, where he had a particularly disappointing round on home soil, with the only achievement being a fourth place in Race 2.
Under pressure, he then decided not to worry anymore, and to drive by hand without necessarily straining his talent. With the success observed since: “A Donington I had a tendency to overdrive, and I must say that throughout the first part of the season I had a lot of pressure on my shoulders, and a lot of stress too », he continues. “ But after Donington I told myself I just had to relax. I knew I was capable of taking the bike to its winning potential, so why overdo it and psychoticize? The bike has hardly changed since Assen, and the positive thing is that we rode in very different temperatures and I was able to be competitive in all conditions. I think if we continue like this things can go well for us in the championship. »
Towards a three-way battle for the title?
With 38 points behind Rea and Razgatlioglu, Redding finds himself in an enviable position as a strong man of the moment who has nothing to lose: He is not that far behind in accounting terms, especially if we keep in mind that There are still six rounds and therefore 18 races to go, but not too close either.
So that he does not feel the pressure – yet – and is able to bring out the big attack during his next outings. “ For my part I just have to take things in a more relaxed way, because in the end the pressure is on them “, he assures. “ And right now they're more concerned about each other than me. For my part, I can only pose problems to them because I still have a significant delay over them and I must reduce it. If they make a mistake, I get closer, and conversely if it's me who makes a mistake it's not a big deal because I'm still far behind in the rankings anyway. For the rest we will see, I will simply try to maintain the pressure and be as regular as possible. »
We couldn't say better if we would like to put the pressure on our opponents... As for whether the announcement of his departure for BMW at the end of the season has changed anything in his mind, the number 45 assures us that it is not Nothing : " Not really... It didn't change anything for me. It's just that I was too demanding of myself until now. In the end I am my own enemy. This is something I need to keep in mind for future races where it will be difficult for me: I can't do too much. »
It will therefore be interesting to see if Redding manages to continue his good momentum in two weeks at Magny-Cours. The Englishman was the last to win there, during Race 2 last year. There is no doubt that he will have this result in mind and will try to repeat it, just to put a little more pressure on his opponents...
