Moto3, Locatelli: To finish on the podium I stayed calm

After the Sachsenring, Andrea Locatelli has once again succeeded in finishing on the podium at Phillip Island, in a very complicated race. After the accident involving McPhee, Migno and Bastianini and the resulting red flag, the race was decided over a distance of 10 laps. “The entre weekend was strange and so was the race” the rider from Bergamo jokes.

What was the secret?
“Staying calm, that is what it took and it would have been better to have figured that out already yesterday. In the final minutes of qualifying I made a mistake and went down, compromising my starting position.”

Today you changed pace…
“In warmup I was fast. I was able to maintain a good pace. I was calm at the start of the race. With the slipstreams, the positions change here constantly.”

Then the red flag and the second start…
“I pushed straight away to try and follow Binder. He opened up a bit of a gap and I wanted to catch him, but I was struggling more than him in acceleration. My gear ratios were not perfect. I realized that I had been able to get away from the group behind me and I controlled the situation.”

This is your second podium of the year, but you did not start off very well. Why is that?
“We paid the price for not knowing the bike. When we arrive at a circuit we do not have any reference data from previous years. However, we worked hard and now I am able to be fast on all the tracks with the KTM.”

Next year you will be in Moto2. Any regrets?
“I am pleased with the choice I made. I will leave Moto3 having done something good. I could have stayed another year to try for the top three positions in the Championship, but I really appreciated the chance that Italtrans has given me.”

Is Moto3 a tight fit for you physically too by now?
“At the beginning of the year I was coming from a coccyx injury and I weighed about sixy kilos. Starting to train again, I went up to 66. I am 7 or 8 more than Binder. I wouldn’t say that Moto2 was a forced choice, but if I had remained in Moto3 I would have needed to lose weight.”

There are two races left. Is it time to set your sights on the win?
“I’ll try. I like Sepang a lot, but I know that it will not be simple.”