Fantastic inaugural World Champion of the Supersport 300 category in 2018, to the great joy of the female race and with the respect of her male opponents, Ana Carrasco won with two victories at Imola and Donington, ahead of his compatriot Mika Perez by one point in the end – 93 to 92.
Last year, she finished on the third step of the final podium, behind Manuel Gonzalez and Scott Deroue, and in front Andy Verdoïa, with two victories at Misano and Magny-Cours. Her team offered her a test drive of Johnny Rea's ZX-10RR, of which Ana has excellent memories.
Before talking about the 1000, Carrasco was asked about his training during this quarantine period.
“It is clear that maintaining physical fitness or training as we did in pre-season is complicated. Ultimately, I don't think any of us have the equipment we need at home. »
“Luckily, I had an exercise bike at home. I have weights, accessories and with this my fitness trainer made me a training plan for these weeks, and let's see if we can at least not lose and maintain the physical shape that we gained during the winter » she told Alex López-Rey for Motorbike Magazine.
Can't wait to get back on the bike and start training again at Rocco's ranch?
“It’s clear we can do it. I'm dying to get out of the house, get on my motorbike, ride my bike... At the end of the day, almost all of us spend many days away from home, we have very active lives and it's clear that Being cooped up in a house for 24 hours is not something any of us like. I want to get back to normal as quickly as possible, and above all start racing again, with the championship, and for everything to go back to the way it was before. »
“Good feelings after the winter tests?
“I really wanted to start, because we had done two pre-season tests and we still had a few days left in Jerez and Aragón to finish preparing for the start of the year. With what we had done, I felt very good. On the circuits where I had ridden, I improved my times compared to last year, and with the things we tested, we had a lot of positive feedback. »
“The internal restructuring that was done in the team also worked very well, so I couldn't wait to start the championship. Plus, I couldn't wait to start in Jerez. I think starting in Spain was going to be a good thing for us, to start in the best way; but for the moment, with the situation that exists, it is complicated. »
“It’s difficult to train in the same way, you don’t really know when to start. So it's difficult to maintain a competitive mentality right now. It's hard to think about racing when you don't even know when you're going to start. »
Is uncertainty the most complicated part of this period?
“We all have doubts. The uncertainty of not even knowing if we will be able to race this year makes it all difficult in the end. I try to be positive. If I stay in good physical shape, my head will always be better too. It is clear that at the moment, with the situation that exists, I always say that there is life first and then racing. »
“We have to try to make sure that everything goes well and that we are all well, and after that start the championship and be able to enjoy it. If there are so many problems, ultimately we won't be able to enjoy the races even if they take place, so let's be patient and start when everything is fine and we can start. »
Do you have any fond memories of testing Jonathan Rea's Kawasaki ZX-2019RR Superbike at the end of 10?
“I wish I could do it again. The experience was very cool, because I had never ridden a 1000cc before, and getting on Rea's bike made me very excited. The change is very significant, from 3 to 300 cm1000. Also, I didn't do many laps either, around 3 or 10, but I felt comfortable and found the bike easy to ride; easy in quotes. »
“It is clear that it must be very difficult to ride at Rea's pace, but from the start it is an easy bike to ride and one that delivers its power more or less smoothly. What surprised me the most was the power there was when braking and also when accelerating. I loved. I would like to do a full day of testing to get used to the bike and be able to adapt it a little to me. Then I'll see how far I can go. »
Source: Motorbike Magazine
Photos © Kawasaki, and Ana Carrasco personally
