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It was certainly not an easy weekend for Andrea Iannone who, after two truly difficult days of practice, ended his race early in the gravel at the end of the famous waterfall. However, in spite of this the Italian rider has a reason to smile.
“It was a shame to start from so far back –Andrea begins – since, aside from the first three laps where I struggled because of excessive grip on the rear, I had a really good pace, similar to that of the leaders. This is an important aspect because it means that we have truly taken a step forward between yesterday and today. I am happy with the job Suzuki has managed to do”
So positive signals can be seen, despite the fact that the race ended in a crash.
“The bike started to slide around a lot and when I got to the braking point, first I had a big slide that I was able to contain, but then I lost the front end and there was nothing I could do. The tyre performance dropped a lot and did not let me maintain my pace. Despite that, I was close to Jorge and I wanted to have a go at overtaking him to gain a position. It did not go as I had hoped, but you have to risk and I did just that.”
There is still a lot of work to do, but Andrea is aware of this and is looking to the future with the right attitude.
“We need to improve tyre consistency, even in the early laps since we are struggling, as well as other aspects. We are working hard and I will certainly not give up. From the second part of the season I expect a rather significant improvement. I will try to be at my best for Brno and I am sure that Suzuki will also do their part to provide a slightly more competitive bike.”
Beyond the race, Iannone could not help but comment on the statements made about him by Kevin Schwantz
“I have always respected Kevin as a person and as a rider and I am sorry to hear what he said. I would have preferred, given the fact that we have seen each other often and we work for the same manufacturer, for him to have said certain things directly to me face to face, since he is old enough to be my father. I would have liked to have a father – son type relationship with him, but I see that this is not possible. I accept his criticism and I will give him my answer on the track.”
