We are here on the Isle of
Man on the final day of the
TT week… You have just
completed your second
week racing on the mountain
course. As a rider with a
predominantly circuit based
background and coming from
world championship racing
it’s not really the done thing to
go racing on the public roads.
Was this something you always
planned on doing or something
you just fell into?
I’d like to - I mean this year wasn’t
as thrilling as I’d hoped it would
be. It was my second year and
I went slightly quicker than last
year, but the bike didn’t work as
good as I hoped it would.
There were a couple of things I
wasn’t happy with whereas last
year there was no pressure. I
was literally riding around like I
was going to the shops - it was
just like a massive race track and
mean will
“…ImyselfIright
put
out there and I will
say I’m as good
as the people that
run at the front of
MotoGP
”
I was out for a play ride! This
year I kind of had expectations,
I thought this being my second
year and with more time on the
track I would start to progress
more, so I didn’t really get a
chance to enjoy it as much as I
thought I would. So I don’t know I already think that I would like to
come back but it just depends on
the conditions, what the team is,
what the bike is like and all that
sort of thing.
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No, I never thought I would ride
the TT. I never even wanted to
go to BSB (British Superbike
Championship). I used to look
at BSB tracks and thought they
looked dangerous you know there is no run-off and the barriers
are made of concrete or steel. In
comparison to Australia where I
come from even the BSB circuits
seemed so dodgy and extreme.
As it was I got s**t rides in World
Superbikes (WSBK) and I was
looking for stability in a team so I
went to BSB and I’ve been there
ever since. Then my first year
with Honda and Neil Tuxworth
brought me here to the TT and I
just thought I would go out there
for a couple of days on the drink,
a few parties, watch some bikes,
go home with a headache, and
it would be a good weekend off.
Literally as soon as I got here
I watched some bikes coming
through and I just got that feeling
like “I wanna have a go, I want
to try it”. I pretty much
knew straight away I
was going to do it at
some point, I just
didn’t know
when it was
going to
be.
So you will continue doing
it in the future and ride the
TT alongside your circuit
commitments?
That brings us to your switch
to the Yamaha. You have
answered the question that
it just wasn’t as good on the
roads, but looking at you in BSB
you have looked absolutely
at home on it from the very
first round. I guess you
are happy with your
move to Yamaha
and it has been
fresh impetus to your BSB
campaign?
Yeah that’s also part of the reason
why I think I’m disappointed with
the TT this year. The bike works
so good at BSB on proper tracks,
like if you went somewhere
smooth and flowing like Brno I
think the bike would be awesome.
Here at the TT however, where it’s
so bumpy the bike doesn’t get
into its rhythm. It’s such a nice
stable bike, it’s predictable, it
loves a big long sweeping corner
and I thought; “that’s definitely
going to work around the TT
course”. I thought it was going
to be brilliant, but I got here and
it’s been quite the opposite, so
that’s what put a sort of negative
spin on things for me. I had built
it up to expect such a good week
and it turned into just an average
one. Having said that, it puts more
emphasis on just how impressed
with the bike I was at BSB.
I remember for the last three
years at Suzuki, I rode my butt
off and was just getting podiums
and then the other week when I
got a win people were like; “You
rode so well, that was such a
good race” and I’m thinking; I’ve
been riding the same for the last
three years, I haven’t changed
as a rider with ability or skill, the
only difference is the race result.
So all of a sudden now you want
to make a point of recognising
how well I rode, when in fact
I’ve been riding the same for the
past few years. The results don’t
always give the spectator the
same sense of where you are at
in your career. I often sympathise
with you [Michael] as a rider in
MotoGP, because I know that you
are not satisfied with your results,
and how hard you ride and the
fact that the amount of effort you
put in isn’t being portrayed by
what is happening on the track.
So in a big circle my answer to
your question is that the bike is
working really good, the results
are getting better and I guess it’s
because the bike is working to
a standard that I’m expecting it to.