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Not so long ago, MV Agusta were a team fighting to get into the midfield battle. Now, with rider Leon Camier putting in some stunning performances on the much-improved bike, the Italian squad have counted on top 5 finishes and are regular contenders in both the top ten and Tissot-Superpole 2. Team Manager Andrea Quadranti talked to WorldSBK.com ahead of the summer break to discuss the stellar rise of the team, and what the future could bring.

“I didn’t expect the progress to be so quick!” says Quadranti. “We took over the project with the bike after Australia. To be honest, we found some things…the bike weighs less, we’ve made some steps with the electronics and we’re very happy with Leon. We’d like to continue with him, that’s my wish. And I know there is more to get out of the bike, even though it’s an older bike.”

Camier has ridden some great races for the team, and has also been the sole development rider in the WorldSBK team, pushing the project forward. Top 5 results, and a best of P4 at Donington and Assen, mean the MV Agusta rider is currently P8 in the title standings, with four Rounds to go. So what is the next target?

“We’re losing mostly in the horsepower, because we’re still very far away if you look at the speeds on every circuit,” explains the Italian Team Manager. “But we’re also limited on that because the design of the engine is old and doesn’t give you many possibilities to work on that and be able to tune it. But we have some ideas and we still have chance to make the bike lighter to get some speed. I’m also keen to have a good winter time with the time and budget to do some proper tests. Then to target the top 5 next year would be good. This year it’s a nice result, but I would be happy with the top ten. Top five is a very good result but I don’t expect it all the time this year.”

So the goalposts are firmly moved to the top 5 as a week-in, week-out result in 2017. With the team wanting to hold onto Camier, what else do MV Agusta count on as they map out their future?

“For next year I’m analyzing the situation and starting to think about having two riders,” reveals Quadranti. “It makes more sense now we are more competitive. And to have somebody else to share the data when we do tests. We’d also have the chance to score more points, so that would maybe be the idea – to have two bikes in WorldSBK and one in WorldSSP next year. Let’s see…”

The current WorldSSP line up sees title contender Jules Cluzel team up with race winner Lorenzo Zanetti, with Cluzel also signed up to the team for 2017. But, explains Quadranti, there are ‘clauses’ that can be changed, and the future is a definite ‘wait and see’.

MV Agusta Reparto Corse and Camier get back on track at Lausitzring in September from the 16^th-18^th for Round 10, with the WorldSSP squad also back in action and Cluzel looking to regain his winning-form as he recovers from a 2015 crash at the Circuito de Jerez.