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Were it not for the sign posted outside the workshop, the Barni Racing Team headquarters would go almost unnoticed in the eyes of an unobservant observer. But the glass and brick facade of that small building located in the Bassa Bergamasca region, more precisely in the municipality of Calvenzano, hides much more than one might imagine. Racing department, workshop, dealership, logistics and administration: three floors, organizing and structuring the world of Marco Banabò and his family. Made up of motorcycles, Ducati, which they resell, repair and prepare for their riders and customers.
"We started as a general motorcycle workshop. Then, we specialized in the Ducati brand. In the beginning our main job was to do service, but slowly we started with a few customers who went amateur on the track and from there we moved to 90-95% on track-only motorcycles," the owner told us, speaking to us all-round about the business that also involves his wife Pamela and their son Davide. And it goes far beyond the Bergamo-based team's involvement in World Superbike, which we talked about in the first part of our interview.
"We have been working together for 24 years and have been married for the same amount of time. We're used to it," Pamela, Barni's logistics and finance director, told us. "What do I take care of? Everything he doesn't do," she added, laughing. "In general I do a little bit of everything: from managing contracts with sponsors and Dorna, to organizing logistics and travel for all the guys on the team. There is never a break between the previous season and the next: the November-December period should be quiet, but it is not. Marco relaxes more during race weekends than at home, where you have a thousand things to do. I like my job, though. Especially when you have satisfactions like this year. I expected a win, but not so much. Especially in Cremona, where it felt like being in a bubble, inside a dream."
Barnabò: "Montella has made a great improvement, I don't think he would have continued in Supersport."
Marco, last year you were fighting for the title with Montella almost until the end of the World Supersport season. Did you expect that?
"If I have to be honest, when we left for Australia I didn't expect it, but after that one-two finish the goals had changed. We had a good season, although in my opinion we kind of wasted it, because we could have fought it out for the championship until the end. I don't know if we would have won it or not, but we could have managed it a little better and avoided some of the mistakes we made, because the speed and competitiveness were there. That leaves a little bitter taste in my mouth."
What do you think was missing?
"Realizing the potential we had. We wasted points, and in hindsight, without the mistakes we made, we could have won the title too, because we were not slower; we had the speed to win seven races."
What is your fondest memory from this season?
"There are really so many. Definitely the two wins in Australia with Yari and the podium we got right away with Petrucci were a good moment, but every weekend there was always something good to remember. Spinelli's win was something really unexpected and it was beautiful. But then there were also Danilo's wins in Cremona. There were so many beautiful moments and I like to remember them all, without saying that there was one more beautiful than the other."
We saw your emotion in the parc ferme.
"Yes, from me it is very heartfelt not only to participate, but also to win. Everyone says the important thing is to participate, but that's absolutely not true (laughs Ed.). The important thing, from my point of view, is to be competitive and try to fight for it. Then it's true that only one wins, but if I do this job and I can't get any satisfaction, in terms of winning podiums or being there to fight with the strong ones, the motivation kind of passes."
Next year, the satisfaction could even double in Superbike, as you will be fielding a second bike with Montella.
"We know it will be difficult for him, because he enters a championship where he will have to fight with ready riders, who have been doing it for years. However, it is also true that in such a situation even a fifth place becomes a very good result. So, I also expect to experience good emotions with him."
By the way, he has made a great improvement in the last two seasons. Do you see him ready for this leap?
"He has definitely made a great improvement from his first year with us, both physically and mentally. I think he would no longer have the motivation to race in Supersport. We didn't want to lose him and that's also why we decided to work on bringing him to Superbike. I am convinced that if we hadn't done it, some other team would have taken him and I would have been sorry. Whether he will be ready to fight with them we will see right away in Australia. He is training well as always and is working even harder this winter. He tried the Superbike last winter in Valencia and had also ridden in Rijeka, but whether he is doing well or not we will see in the tests in January."
Barnabò: "Winning the title with Pirro in CIV gets harder every year."
This was also another great season in the CIV, where Pirro became Italian champion for the tenth time.
"This year we had the goal of winning the championship, after losing it badly at the last race in 2023. Losing it one more time for us, and for me personally, would have been a disaster. From the outside, it looks like doing the Italian championship is a piece of cake, but that's not true, because the others are fast and professional now, too. Then Michele is getting on a bit now and a little something you lose, it is physiological and normal. For us it was important not to make mistakes and that the bike did not break down, so we would not risk losing the championship. There was a lot of focus and we are happy that it went well."
Many people have the perception that it is impossible to fight it out for the win with Pirro and Barni, but Zanetti actually managed to beat you.
"I am convinced that it is not impossible: anyone can do that championship to win it. In my opinion, as in all championships and categories, there is a whole set of things that can allow you to win, such as the work and preparation you do and the people you bring to the track. A competitive rider alone doesn't win championships. The experience we have helps us, but we don't feel stronger than others."
Is it only experience that has helped you be competitive for so long or is there a key behind your success?
"Experience helps, but another important thing to win is continuity, because you don't have to start from scratch every time."
What do you expect from next season?
"The truth is that every year we do with Michele it becomes more and more difficult to win the championship. Because he doesn't want to settle for a placing, he's not okay with finishing second, and that doesn't help us with the standings because it makes everything more difficult. If he had been content he would have won even against Zanetti, who that year I think won a race."
What do you think about the introduction of the new class that will run with Superbike?
"I haven't seen the final regulations yet, but I think that running motorcycles with stock wiring and electronics to lower costs is definitely a good idea. I, for my part, had been recommending a return to Stock even before the standard ECU, because the bikes that are on sale nowadays are very competitive and this would help the teams to lower costs."
Cost is precisely one of the problems why there have always been few entries.
"From my point of view it is the first problem. I think a lot of people could race and be equally competitive if they only had to spend on fairings, exhaust and suspension to put the bike on the track. In my opinion, for the show it is better to have ten more bikes on the grid and maybe all run a second slower. Next year, with half the grid one way and half the grid the other way, I expect to see the front runners on the 'Production Bike' as competitive as the last ones on the Superbike, so I think it will be fun to watch."
