Thursday, 02 September 2010 18:51 by Nereo Balanzin

“We will have time to talk about the future, in the future.” A couple of days worth of facial hair, probably out of superstition, and a seat to the left of Lorenzo, which may have seemed unthinkable a few months ago.  But this is the official press conference protocol, where the championship leader sits in the center, withthe second place rider to his right and the third place rider on his left.  If the third place rider is there.  If not, then it is the fourth.  Or the fifth.  Whatever the case, Valentino is certainly not happy to be where he is for his home race.  Yes, Mugello has more history and tradition, but here we are in the hills along the Adriatic; Tavullia is right around the corner.

“"This is my home Grand Prix, because I live just ten kilometres away - Rossi said - I have spent a lot of time on this track, starting with the Italian Sport Production bikes.  I've had two fantastic races here the last two years, so there are a lot of expectations from the fans ahead of this weekend. This race will be hard on the body with all the hard braking, but we must try very hard to make a good result."

The bike will be slightly different than it has been in previous races.  Not in terms of equipment or parts, but in terms of setup.  

“Brno was one of the worst races of my life - Rossi continued - because of my physical condition, we setup the bike to be very easy.  We wanted it to be easy for me to change directions, and to be based around agility.  But this caused me to lose some feel in the front end." So Vale and his team decided to go back to an older setup, suffering three crashes along the way.

Finally, when asked about Jeremy Burgess following him to Ducati, the Italian responded: "If he says yes I will be very happy.  If he happens to retire, I will find someone else.  I will be very sorry, but... I have not rushed him.  It is a decision he has to make calmly.  because if he says yes, then it is a minimum of another two years.  It is a life choice, not a choice between Ducati and Yamaha.  He simply needs to decide if he wants to keep working."

 

 

 

 

 

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