Superbike, Motul Italian Round, FP: complicated day for the Red Bull Honda Team

Facing a season with a new bike is never easy, especially when you had the chance to ride with the new material halfway through the summer testing session.
The fact that it would be a difficult season of apprenticeship for the Red Bull Honda Team was already in the air from the first winter outings, also considering that the line-up includes a rider, Stefan Bradl, who, although absolutely talented, always comes from a completely different category.

The first day of the Motul Italian Round, with the first two free practice sessions, was complicated for both riders, Hayden and Bradl, who struggled to find the right feeling with the track and the bike, and at the end of the day they were understandably not satisfied with their performance.
The new CBR Fireblade SP2 suffers above all in acceleration, due to a power gap compared to its rivals, and on a track as technical and fast as the Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari in Imola this can represent a significant handicap.
Stefan Bradl and Nicky Hayden ended the day in 12th and 13th position respectively, with the American also being held back by a bad fall in the final stages of the morning session: Hayden did not suffer any injuries but the mechanics had to intervene a lot on the bike, which was therefore not set at its best for the afternoon session.
Both will therefore have to go through the first round of Tissot-Superpole tomorrow to hope for a good position on the grid for Race1.

We met them in the Red Bull Honda pits to understand where they are with the development of the new bike and what their feelings are ahead of the rest of the weekend.

How did it go today? How did you feel for the first time on this track? – we asked Stefan bradl.
“For me it's the first time at Imola, I like the atmosphere, the track. I enjoyed driving here. It's not an easy track, it's very challenging, it's fast and there are many corners, many points where you have to pay a lot of attention. My day was so and so, I can't say it was good but I can't say it was bad either. My time was essentially the same in the two sessions, but so was the gap to the leader. I'm not happy because we're not fast, we're working hard to understand where we can go faster and to achieve that, but at the moment the bike can't go faster. I had the same problems in the other rounds, I can't feel completely comfortable on the bike."

Looking at the weather, tomorrow should still be warm while Sunday could change. What would you prefer?
“I would absolutely prefer the heat, it was nice to ride in this weather and I think the bike works better in the heat. Tomorrow with the sun would definitely be better"

Looking at your first season in WorldSuperbike so far, what do you think?
“I think I still have to improve, that we have to improve as a team. Nicky was more competitive last year than now. Unfortunately the new bike, from a technical package point of view, is not yet good at the moment and we need to work on it. We expect a lot from our results but we still have a big step forward. So at the moment I'm not happy with my season."

What can you tell us about your day? – we asked Nicky Hayden .
“The morning session wasn't bad, I was consistently in the top 10 and it was one of the best of the year for me. Unfortunately at the end of the session I crashed, and it was just my mistake, and the team worked hard to get the bike back on track but it was difficult. In the afternoon I felt something was wrong with the front and I couldn't feel comfortable on the bike, so I wasn't able to improve my time. It was quite a demoralizing session for me.”

What are your expectations for tomorrow?
“I'm not very positive, I wasn't able to get much data from the second free practice session. Let's see what happens".

What are the areas where the bike needs improvement?
“The acceleration, the speed. But not only that, we also have to work on balance and electronics. This is the package that the team makes available to us, so I adapt and work on this."

What do you think of the Imola track?
“I love the track, the atmosphere, I'm happy to be here for the second year, it's a great track. When I was little I watched a lot of races on television. I always like competing in Italy."