It was a mixed day at the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati squad on the opening day of Acerbis French Round action in the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship. Some small gremlins impacted Nicolo Bulega in Free Practice 1, while Iker Lecuona had a small fall in Free Practice 2 at the Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours. Despite these minor setbacks, the pair finished first and third on the combined timesheets.
Both riders set their best time in Free Practice 1. For Bulega, he posted a 1’35.556s on his way to top spot, although the #11 lost a few minutes of running due to an electrical issue that the team were able to rectify; the time loss was minimal, partly due to a red flag in FP1. In the second session, the #11 set another 1’35s lap time – this time, a 1’35.916s, as he secured P1 in FP2, albeit four tenths down on his overall fastest time.
Despite showing strong pace, Bulega was adamant there was more to come as he searched for improvements to his Panigale V4 R machine. He believed the feeling he had was not the best he’s had with the bike, while also outlining where he would like to improve. Although he’s looking for gains, ‘Bulegas’ was the fastest rider on track and he was the only rider to set a 1’35s lap time in both FP1 and FP2.
Discussing his Friday, the Championship leader said: “It’s good for the position but, honestly, the feeling wasn’t one of the best. I’d like to improve in some areas because I have the feeling I can go faster. It’s too much of a physical bike at this track. I’d like to be more precise and ride with a bit more natural riding style. We tried a different setup compared to this morning in the afternoon. I liked it in some areas but not in others, and I think this isn’t the real way to improve. We have to try again tomorrow.”
Across the box, Lecuona also had a disrupted day for different reasons. His Free Practice 1 session ran smoothly but it was in the afternoon where he hit drama. He crashed at Turns 11 and 12, the Imola chicane, when he ran slightly wide on the entry and then lost the front of his Ducati. He was able to bring his bike back into the pits for repairs before returning to the track to set his best lap times of the session.
Like Bulega, his best time came in the opening session when he set a 1’35.989s on his way to P3 in the standings in FP1, and he finished the day in that position. In the second session, the #7 was fifth on the timesheets with a 1’36.170s. Speaking after the day’s action concluded, Lecuona explained his crash and also spoke about some of the changes he and his team have tried to make on the bike, including things he picked up from his two MotoGP outings with the Gresini Ducati team at Balaton Park and Silverstone.
Reflecting on his day, the Spaniard said: “I crashed before the change of direction. I had new tyres, we’d just changed the bike, and I was a bit too fast. When I went to pick up the bike with the first touch of the throttle, I lost the front. Sometimes, it’s a typical crash but I didn’t expect it. I struggled a little bit today. We tried a little bit of a different base that came from different things I wanted to try. I don’t know if I’m happy or not! We tried something new which I think was important for us to understand the new base, or the new things we did on the bike. It’s time to find the last tenths to Nicolo. In MotoGP, I tried something different from my standard base. I liked it there and said, ‘Why not try it here?’. I like it, a few positive points but other ones we need to improve.”
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