In the first part of his interview, Marco Melandri explained to us his regret at having missed the Ducati Panigale V4 R, which was ultimately attributed to Alvaro Bautista. The Italian was welcomed by Yamaha, whose machine he initially didn't like very much. In the second part of this interview, Marco gives his point of view on the leading men of the championship.
“It’s a gift for Rea that Bautista moved to Honda. In combination with the Ducati, Bautista was the only rider strong enough to beat him” Marco explained to Sebastian Fränzschky and Lorenza D'Adderio of Motorsport-Total.com.
One of the big favorites comes from Türkiye, and watch out for him because Toprak Razgatlioglu has already won the first race of the year at Phillip Island. “Toprak is really fast with the Yamaha. But it still has its weaknesses in the wet. At the moment he is the most aggressive opponent » believes Melandri.
With a victory and a second place, alex lowes proved an excellent speed of adaptation to the Kawasaki, because few people expected to find the Englishman at the top of the World Championship ahead of his teammate the five-time World Champion Jonathan Rhea. With 51 points, Alex is ahead of his compatriot Scott Redding (39), Toprak Razgatlioglu (34) and Rea (32).
But Melandri is not convinced that Lowes' dominance will continue in the same way it did at Phillip Island: “We have to wait and see how fast Alex Lowes is in the next few races. I think the inaugural weekend in Australia didn't paint a clear picture. »
New Ducati official, Scott Redding was the only rider to finish in the top 3 in all three races at Phillip Island. But according to Melandri, Redding is not as strong as Bautista was last season: “ Redding is going to have a good season. It will be very consistent. But he won't be able to shine like Bautista did last year. »
Will racing without spectators be an option for the Superbike World Championship?
“I have no idea and I hope there will be a sudden improvement in this difficult situation,” wished Melandri, who is not convinced that ghost races would be the right solution to save the 2020 season.
“Football matches can take place behind closed doors, but for motorcycle races it is difficult. Even if you have races without spectators, you still have a group of 2 or 000 people traveling around the world. That's the problem. Even if things are improving in Italy, we do not know when the borders will be reopened,” Melandri commented.
“We don’t know when the second wave will start. This is a very difficult situation and we must reassess it day by day. Everyone should do their best and stay home. We hope there will be a vaccine soon to help us fight this virus. »
Photos © BMW, Aruba, Ducati
