Tenth in the Superbike World Championship in 2019 having only participated in eight rounds out of thirteen, Loris with his new team Ten Kate finished fourth at Misano, Donington and Magny-Cours. 2020 started well at Phillip Island, with increased competitiveness, but less luck at the start of the season, and Baz left Australia in sixth position in the provisional general classification, tied with Alvaro Bautista, in front Chaz Davies, Leon Haslam and Tom Sykes.
“In our first season together with Ten Kate, I think we grew a lot and the results were evident. Unfortunately, I have not yet been able to reach the podium, but I am aware that it is a goal within our reach, like victory. This is what we are working on », explained the Savoyard to Riccardo Gugliemetti of GPOne.com.
Loris, how are you experiencing the current period?
“I was in France and now I am here in Switzerland, in Nyon, training. A few kilometers from my house lives Dani Pedrosa, with whom I have good relations. I try to stay in shape, although I miss riding a lot. I can't wait to get back in the saddle on the Yamaha. »
To date, only one event has taken place at Phillip Island, where you finished seventh and eighth. How important should we give it?
“In Australia, I wanted to go for victory, but I think I was unlucky, especially in race 2, after that contact with Toprak. Unfortunately, I still had the engine from the 2019 version in the first race and so I'm curious to see what the new one will be like, and what my potential will be with the new one, once I start again. »
How much do you think the Yamaha has changed?
“The R1 is incredibly soft and that’s something that I think is fundamental. It is very simple and its control is therefore natural. Perhaps the only aspect where we need to take a step forward is top speed, but I expect to see something different when the Championship restarts. »
It will be a World Championship comprising six to seven rounds. What do you think ?
“It will be a very complicated championship anyway, because if you make a mistake you will practically be out of the game, because it will become difficult to recover from. At the same time, you will have to try to win and to do so attack. So we'll see what happens. »
Who do you think could be the anti Rea?
" Me ! (smile). In this year 2020, there are many powerful engines and each of them has qualities. To this day I am still in doubt about race 2 at Phillip Island. On this occasion Johnny was beatable, but no one risked overtaking him during the race. Sure, Lowes won, but plenty of other drivers could have finished ahead of him. »
Do you still think about MotoGP?
“No, I'm completely focused on Superbike, as I should be. Personally, however, I don't consider the door to be permanently closed, because if there was a chance, I would use it. I certainly don't want to find myself in the situation of a few years ago, where the project was not ambitious and I could not express my value. In Superbike, I had the chance to start again, I took some time, and to this day I think it was the right choice. »
Still on the subject of MotoGP, fabio quartararo Did he surprise you with his official Yamaha for 2021?
" No not at all. Fabio is a friend and a pure talent. If Yamaha hadn't brought him into the official team, it would have been very strange. He had difficult times in his life, but he always managed to overcome them. I think after what he showed in 2019, he deserved this opportunity, it's a logical thing. He still misses victory, but I am convinced that it will come soon. »
Et Johann zarco ?
“I don’t know him, so I can’t judge. I can't say more about Johann. His choices in recent years have been very strange, I don't really understand them. »
Photos © Yamaha, Ten Kate Racing
