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SBK, Rea: "I know what I can get from the Yamaha, the best is yet to come"

"I still can't get 100 percent out of the R1, but I'm aware of what we can do. Super concessions? First we need to figure out what we really need without going backwards."

SBK: Rea:

Johnny Rea proved to be a wizard in the wet on Thursday in Jerez. In fact, the Cannibal closed the second day of testing ahead of everyone, without anyone being able to get in his way.

A satisfying result, but one that, at the same time, forces him to keep his feet firmly on the ground.
"I was confident today with the Yamaha, especially with the front," he said. "I think it's the right combination of many factors that helped us get up there in front. Obviously, it's just a test, but we worked well, taking it one step at a time."

You're under super concessions this year. How useful can they be?
"First of all, we need to understand how much the parts can really help our bike. It takes a lot of effort, knowing that we need to get to the right compromise on the whole bike. It's not a question of one component over another, but it's a more general, 360-degree, discussion. As far as I can tell, we worked a lot here in Jerez, focusing on the electronics and chassis. Yesterday, instead, on the engine."

At what point do you think you're at?
"At the moment, I still don't feel one-hundred percent okay on the bike. I still can't ride the Yamaha the way I want to, getting the maximum potential. But I know that the bike has great potential, and I'm well aware of that. The best for us is yet to come. I don't know what's going to be new in Portimao, but I've seen a major effort from all of Yamaha, as well as from me."

Last year, you struggled a lot in qualifying. Do you think it's still possible to make those great comebacks of yesteryear, like when you were in Kawasaki?
"In my opinion, yes. Why not? Toprak is a cat. Bulega, on the other hand, is very aggressive. Maybe Chaz was a rider who was affected by that back in the day, but I think, in the end, it depends on what the approach of a rider is."

 

Translated by Leila Myftija

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