Axel Bassani 's test Thursday in Jerez ended with 73 laps completed and the sixth quickest final time, just under eight tenths from the benchmark set by his teammate Alex Lowes. A respectable result for the Bimota rider, who was somewhat slowed by the less than perfect physical condition with which he faced this last commitment of the year.
"I could do three or four laps well, then I was starting to struggle to breathe a little bit. I was coughing inside my helmet, so by the time I got to lap 4 or 5, I was a little tired. A few laps, though, I was able to do them well and with the right pace, so we were able to understand where we need to work," he recounted, "The problems are always the same. I didn't lap badly, because I was always more or less in the low 1'39s, even setting a 1'38 with the race tyre, however I was still suffering in a few places. Particularly in the last part of braking and coming out of corners, where I always have a bit of difficulty controlling the bike well."
Among the aspects in which the Bimota still seems to suffer is undoubtedly the engine. "The Japanese are working and we all know that the engine is our weakest point at the moment, but it takes time," underlined Axel, "By January we will definitely have a little more, but we have to take small steps, trying to always go in the right direction, because it takes a moment to lose our way."
One of the positive notes of the day, however, was the debut of Uri Pallares in the role of the Feltre rider's new crew chief. "This was our first day working together, and we will get to know each other a little bit at a time. Today I was definitely not 100 percent and was struggling a bit, but the first impression was good," commented El Bocia, before taking stock of the season that just ended.
"Where am I now? I'm always 3 or 4 tenths from my teammate, which is the thing I look out for the most, since he rides the same bike as me," he remarked, "He definitely rides very strong, because even today he was the strongest on the track overall and managed to stay consistently in the 1'38s with race tyres. So, it's a good reference. Both he and I have improved, but the gap is still there and I have to try to close it."
Which Bassani is the one who finished this 2025 season?
"Tired. I need to go to sleep! - he replied, laughing - It was a difficult season physically and especially mentally, because this is a new project. Our level was not bad, because both Alex and I finished in the top 10 in the championship. In between Ducati and BMW, who have much more experience than us. We did a good job in general, but it was tiring. Now we need some time to recover."
Everyone hopes that Axel will regain his energy for next year and return to the character he was until a few seasons back.
"It's normal that you don't hear as much about me now; I definitely struggle more than I did with Ducati. I don't hide that. At the same time, however, it's not that I'm going slow: if you look at my lap times they are good, but the level is always higher and never enough. We are there, but in my opinion we are missing those last 2 or 3 tenths to start fighting again - he said - The important thing is to never give up and stay as positive as possible."
The Bimota rider then concluded with a comment about Toprak Razgatlioglu's performance at Valencia: "I wasn't surprised. I always thought Toprak is going strong and will go strong, because for me he is the strongest rider in the world of Superbike. In MotoGP I don't know, but he can adapt to the bike with such speed and ease that I think he is one of the few in the world who can do things like that."