Factory Ducati rider Alvaro Bautista says he “had no grip” through his first World Brace in the Emilia-Romagna Round this weekend.
The Spaniard rider, who came in 11th place, crossed the line but was promoted to sixth after Sam Lowes’ post-race penalty was applied.
The winner of Bautista’s six World Superbike Races at Misano, said he struggled with rear grip in the hot conditions of Race 1 when the official track temperature was recorded at 47c.
“Today, I didn’t have the best feeling on bikes in the race,” Alvaro Bautista told World Bk.com after Race 1 at Misano.
“It’s odd because I struggle to get a good grip from the tires, especially from the rear when the temperature is high and the grip is a little low.
“Every races tried to manage because they didn’t have grips at the rear, at the entry or at the exit from start to finish.
“If you look at my knee time, they’re the same as the end. Every time I tried to force, every time I tried to get faster, I either lost a long time or lost a while and it was difficult to ride.”
Bautista added that he is more competitive when the grip gets higher in cool morning conditions.
“I’m not happy. In the morning, when the track grip got a little better, I was able to create a good lap time and a good pace, especially a pace,” he said.
“But in the heat I felt more inertia, I felt more inertia, it’s difficult to stop the bike and turn it.
“It wasn’t an easy race for me, but it managed to get through. I want to find something in these conditions that can help us in a lot of heat. Tomorrow is a little more competitive.
“We were close to the podium, but I was way too much, so this was how I struggled a lot, and that’s it. I hope I’ll try to find something tomorrow.
Continuing to explain his problem, Bautista repeated that the problem was generated at the rear of the bike.
“I think basically the main issue comes from the back of the bike,” he said.
“There are a lot of problems stopping the brake bike, especially at the last metre of the entry, the rear slides down and pushes me out.
“If you can get a rear grip, a contact grip at the rear, I think you can take a good step because you felt it on all sorts of corners.
“So we’ll give it a try. It’s not easy. Otherwise I’ll make it before. But we’ll try something and see if tomorrow will help me a little.”