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Niccolò Canepa was the guest during our Live on Monday evening (which you can see in full above). Together with the Yamaha rider, involved in the Endurance World Championship for the Japanese manufacturer and in MotoE, we talked about several topics including the Suzuka 8 Hours, which will see him as a protagonist at the beginning of August.
After returning from last week's tests, the Italian rider seemed particularly confident and ready for the challenge that awaits him in the Land of the Rising Sun.
"Suzuka is a legendary track, where you breathe a special atmosphere - he said - the incredible thing is the development that the manufacturers carry out to get ready for this event. Just to give an example, Honda has been testing two days a week for more than two years to be competitive and get the win. We too worked hard and in the last tests we managed to get good results".
In addition to consistency on the pace, one key aspect is represented by fuel consumption.
"Saving on fuel consumption is essential since the goal is to do stints of more than an hour. In fact, we worked with the team to make the most of the stops and be perfect from this point of view. Endurance electronics are virtually the same as SBK, although there are some setting adjustments. The tires, being different, need a different set-up, also considering the difference in engine power delivery, where it is necessary to save on fuel consumption. An interesting thing is that in Endurance we did the electronic development for Yamaha in Superbike. "
Among the many things we spoke about there was a comment on the onboard coverage with Rea.
“It's a pleasure to lap behind Johnny, as you always have a lot to learn. On that occasion I passed him on the straight because I had the qualifying mapping. As you saw from the video, my and Rea's trajectories are slightly different. This is due to the Bridgestones, where you carry speed, while Rea is in some ways Pirelli Style, that is, picking up the bike and then opening the throttle. The Bridgestone style is in some ways more effective, but I am convinced that when the race starts, Johnny will not wish to be outdone”.
In addition to Endurance, we also spoke about electric with the arrival of Ducati.
“Racing the MotoE bike was a concession from Yamaha for me, as the team I am racing for is managed by GRT. For next year, however, this sort of thing won’t be possible, because Ducati is a direct competitor of Yamaha and among other things, RNF won’t be there. So, we will have to clarify my situation, aware of the fact that my priority is to remain a Yamaha man”.
This will be a major headache for some riders.
“In my case, as well as for Aegerter, when you have a contract with a manufacturer it becomes impossible to race with a competing brand. It will be a problem for several riders. Having been a Yamaha rider for years, my interests are aimed at Yamaha”.
