OFFICIAL PROGRAMME
I am not a racer , but I can help the racers . To be working with such a good talented person now , and learning from really good riders like Troy Bayliss , Carlos Checa or Shakey Byrne
Since 2008 Giovanni has worked with Ducati . Based in the office in Bologna between races , Crupi manages the Ducati Superbike development team . As well as being Scott Redding ’ s Crew Chief . Crupi is not sure if his background in electronics makes it easier to head up the technical side of things but the electronic engineer for his side of the garage is not him . “ I can also look at the data from the electronics but I try to stay away from it !” he said . “ I have my electronics guy and I only have another view and we discuss any changes . The final decision is mine but I have a lot of trust in what he is doing . I look more on the chassis side and managing the rider , crew , tyres and everything .” Crupi volunteered a layman ’ s explanation of what his job can entail , explaining what sometimes looks like a black art from outside . “ It is more or less like a doctor ’ s job ,” he said . “ You have some indication of what the illness is and you try to cure it . Your experience tells you a lot . There is not really ‘ Crew Chief training .’” So what ’ s the most interesting thing for Crupi about his job ? “ It has always been my dream to be involved in motorcycles , since I was young . I was always keen on having something to play with . I am not a racer , but I can help the racers . To be working with such a good talented person now , and learning from really good riders like Troy Bayliss , Carlos Checa or Shakey Byrne , is the best part of the job because you learn a lot . The very good thing is to wake up in the morning knowing that you are doing the job of your dreams .” In our alphabetical rundown of Crew Chiefs and their lives , manufacturer-bymanufacturer , we now arrive at the door of Team HRC ’ s citadel and Alvaro Bautista ’ s Crew Chief , Giulio Nava . It was his native Italy and Yamaha that brought Nava into the racing world . “ I was doing mechanical engineering at Milan University ,” said Nava . “ Basically Yamaha Italy were doing Supersport racing at the time . Then in 2005 when they start Superbike project , I was asked to stay , to work again making the drawings of the parts and everything .” The list of who he has worked for and alongside is dazzling and wide-ranging , usually specialising in data and electronics but lately as a Crew Chief . Ben Spies . Casey Stoner . Marc Marquez . Nicky Hayden ( As Crew Chief ). Yamaha , Honda MotoGP™ , Aprilia MotoGP™ , Ducati WorldSBK . And now for three WorldSBK seasons as Alvaro Bautista ’ s Crew Chief . Now that is a CV , right ?? And this is the short version … When he transitioned to Crew Chief , after all of those other technical roles , what was the biggest adaptation for Nava ? “ When I was doing the electronics or when I was doing the data analysis , it ’ s an engineer ’ s point of view . One plus one is two , always . You look at the data . If the bike is spinning too much , it ’ s spinning too much , no matter what . But then when you move to this position , you need to learn that not automatically one plus one is two . Maybe it ’ s 1.5 …? You need to manage the bike from a pure technical point of view , but you need to manage the situation because there are moments where you need to be able to help the rider from a , let ’ s say , more human being point of view . There is a moment where you need to push , and there is a moment where you need to pull . So , this is something you need to discover , you need to learn .” Electronics again , such an important part of the bike set-up in WorldSBK it means that the close relationship between rider and Crew Chief is almost a triumvirate in 2021 . “ You need to consider that for example in the past , to make it very simple , when you fix the carburettor , the carburettor is the same every single corner ,” said Giulio . “ Now , it ’ s like for corner one you have super rich carburation , and corner six you have super lean carburation . So if this is what you need , the bike is working . If this is not what you need , the bike can be completely wrong . Let ’ s say from the chassis side , I can touch whatever I want , but if the bike delivers the
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