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SBK, Brookes: "The Suzuka 8 Hours? More difficult than the Tourist Trophy"

"At the TT you hold back a bit of reserve. In the Japanese race the competition is fierce and riding official bikes. To stay up front you need to push 100% from the first to the last minute"

Brookes: "The Suzuka 8 Hours? More difficult than the Tourist Trophy"

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In addition to the well-to-do “daddy's boy” Karel Abraham, in 2016 the Milwaukee BMW SBK team also has cantankerous Australian Joshua Brookes on the grid, British Superbike champion last year, when he raced with the same sponsor colours but astride a Yamaha R1.

The 33 year-old rider from Sidney is having a quiet season, tagging along in the centre of the group in a category, SBK, where the mechanical machine counts for a lot:: “Our BMW is a good bike. The main issue is that we don't have experience on this model. The Pirelli tyres in the championship are different than the ones in the English championship and we are unfamiliar with the tracks. That is why we are struggling. It is not a question of ability but rather one of time to get to know things.”

You have always been fast. In fact, we remember you as winner of the world Supersport race in 2004 where you showed everyone up at your wild card début...

Yeah, it's a good thing someone remembers! My Honda CBR 600 was not at the same level as the official championship bikes, but I was able to exploit my knowledge of Phillip Island, managing to win. Well, I'll admit I took a few risks.”

After various “gypsy” seasons where Joshua raced with various teams in Superbike, attracting attention for his throttle and his unbridled personality, in 2008 his second Supersport win arrived, again with the Honda CBR 600, at the Donington race: “Exactly. That was another nice win. I was racing with the Swedish team Stiggy. There were a few Australians racing that season and Andrew Pitt won the championship, whereas I finished third.”

Then it was the English Superbike championship, BSB, that welcomed Brookes as one of its participants. It was the perfect environment for a daredevil like him. However, not satisfied with that, in 2013 he headed to the Isle of Man to ride in the maddest of races, the Tourist Trophy, astride a team Tyco Suzuki GSX-R 1000: “I just had to experience that. I wanted to see what level I could achieve with those specialists and to prepare for the race I studied the street circuit, by day on a bike and at night in a car. I must have taken hundreds of laps in all sorts of conditions, ad nauseum.”

Nausea that turned into pure adrenaline: Joshua was the fastest rookie ever up to the 2013 edition and both that year and in 2014 he rode his Suzuki to a top 10 finish, demonstrating how the Australian rider loves a special challenge and just how free his spirit is of any convention: “The TT was a great experience. I'm very happy to have raced there. People often ask me if I was afraid I would get hurt, but I wasn't.”

In fact, I'll ask you again: were you afraid of having a serious or fatal accident?

No. I think everything is bound to destiny. If your time comes then that's it. Obviously that doesn't mean that safety is not important. To the contrary, it's fundamental. But, as we have seen recently, if it is going to happen it will happen. It may be a different view of life, a different mentality. I'm a fatalist and I prefer to race with a clear mind.”

Understandable, but there must be a secret to going fast in that race...?!

I'll tell you: you can't push to the limit. You have to keep a bit of margin up your sleeve, let's say 30%. Yeah, to go fast at the TT, besides knowing the track, you need to be physically fit and have the right style, finely dosed. If you know how to race at 70% of your and your bike's potential, you can be fast, riding clean and without forcing your hand where you don't need to. That way you have fun too. And I'll tell you something else: I'd like to go back to the TT.”

First, though, you have two commitments that are no small tasks: your BMW is far from the top in SBK and you will soon be racing in the Suzuka 8 Hours...

Well, my bike needs to be developed, especially in terms of electronics and at the rear where we are lacking mechanical traction. As I said earlier, it takes experience that we do not have. We have changed tyres and it was not an easy transition, but we are working to get close to the top five.”

In Japan, on the other hand, you will be on a team Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R 1000, a bike that you know well…

Yes. After racing in BSB and the TT with that bike, I have already competed in an 8 Hours where my teammates, Tsuda and Aoki (Nobuatsu, former Honda and Suzuki 500 rider) and I managed to finish second and for us that was an incredible result, because that is the most difficult race of all.”

What do you mean? Isn't the TT the most difficult?

No, the 8 Hours is much worse. It is incredibly hot in Japan, there is humidity, the race is long and very tricky. Almost all the official teams are there, on the grid with machines that are in no way inferior to world Superbikes. They have dedicated racing tyres and it is not easy to find a compromise in the saddle for you and your teammates, both because of different physical builds and riding styles.”

Joshua will have two teammates, Tsuda and “grandpa” Noriyuki Haga, signed on in place of Johann Zarco, who preferred to desert. With the former Japanese star, winner of the 1996 8 Hours along with Colin Edwards, the Yoshimura Suzuki colossus will be aiming even higher.

So, the 8 Hours awaits. Is there a secret to being fast there too?

You know how I told you that at the TT you have to ride at 70%, without forcing your hand, so you can be lucid at the end of each leg?”

Sure…

Forget that concept: at the 8 Hours, if you want to be in the lead you have to be fast from the first to the last minute, without any reserve. If you think you can hold back some margin up your sleeve, it means you have gained a huge advantage and you're managing it, or that you are just light years slower than the leaders and you haven't got a clue. At Suzuka you push 100% from the green light to the chequered flag.”

Translated by Jonathan Blosser
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