Valentin Debise without shifter during race 2 finishes P7. Lorenzo Baldassarri P18 and P16

The race weekend ends under the sun of Imola. Track temperatures of around 60°C put a strain on the riders’ bodies and the machines. Race 2 of Superbike has also been shortened by 4 laps due to the high heat

Valentin Debise had to drive the “old” way following a problem with the “shifter/down shift”. This system allows the rider to downshift without having to let go of the accelerator and without operating the clutch control on the Yamaha R6 of the GMT94. The French driver had a good race despite this technical problem, finishing 7th, in the 5th place group, while starting 13th.

The whole GMT94 team will work hard to find where the faulty signal is coming from which is disturbing the normal operation of the shifter and to have the best weekend possible in the Czech Republic on the circuit of Most in 2 weeks.

Christophe Guyot: “Valentin not being sure of the operation of the shifter at the time of the grid, we all agreed to cut it to take no risk. An ignition cut can cause a breakdown during the race or from the start of the grid which can put the drivers in danger. We wanted to avoid taking this risk. Valentin was brave, he had to relearn how to ride the old way and he did it very well. It should be remembered that driving without a shifter totally modifies the clutch because thanks to the shift down system, the clutch springs are extremely hard, which makes the clutch lever also very hard.”

Lorenzo Baldassarri finished 18th in the Tissot Superpole race and finished 1 tenth out of the top 15 after battling to get over Philipe OETTL in race 2. The Italian driver got off to a tough start from 19th place, then, from Halfway through the race, number 34 manages to get a good rhythm which allows him to return to the top 15.