Wet race, lucky winning for the Yakhnich Motorsport team deciding a mixed rain selection just before the start

WET RACE, LUCKY WINNING FOR THE YAKHNICH MOTORSPORT TEAM DECIDING A MIXED RAIN SELECTION JUST BEFORE THE START

The worst weather conditions was waiting today Vladimir Leonov and Yakhnich Motorsport team on the grid of second stage of Mototemporada, in Misano. Just few minutes before the race, infact, a shower of rain made wet the circuit and obliged race director to declare wet race. But immediatly after the green light of entering the grid, rain stopped... What to do? Use rain or slick tyres?  Minutes went one by one, and decision to take was realy difficoult... then just one minute before entering the circuit, team decided for a “middle way” solution. Rain tyre in the front, slick tyre on rear.

At start it seemed that this decision was the wrong one... circuit was becaming drier and drier. The only hope was to take advantage in the first 3-4 laps, and hope that the competitors, (all of them starting with slick tyres) could not came back on Leonov in the last part of the race. The plan started to work properly. At start Leonov jumped from his fourth grip place (first 600, back the 3 1000 starting in the same race with separate classment) immediatly in third position, and in second lap the second position was gained... In three laps he gained about 10 seconds on the second 600, but from 4.th lap the competitors started to sign fastest laps, especially Fornasari, caming from 3.th 600 position, seemed able to overtake Vladimir (riding with big difficoulties on the ritmh of 1’47”-1’48” because of the rain front tyre on dry asphalt) in few laps... And... in the seventh lap just 1 second before overtaking Leonov, a suddently heavy rain started to fall down from sky...Fornasari and all the other with slick tyres had to slow down drammatically, while Vladimir Leonov could easily control the second absolute position (only one BMW 1000 ridden by DI Viccaro was able to finish in front of our rider) and, naturally, the first position in 600 class.

Claudio Corsetti Team manager: “It was hard to find a decision before the race, and onestly, as rider started, I thught that our “mixed” selection of tyre was a mistake...But the race demonstrate the contrary: the strategy to have a middle way set up on the bike gived Leonov the possibility to control the race in the most safety conditions. No fast laps for him, but the best average in the whole race... and that is the condition that fix the winner: because winner is the rider that use the shorter time from start to finish!