Vladimir Leonov in Top-10 of World Supersport

PORTIMAO14-16 OCTOBER

LAST STAGE

WORLD SUPERSPORT

SUNDAY RACE

Ladies and gentlemen here on the stage, the rider and the team that will show the entire world the russian potential in motorcycle world:directly from Moscow Vladimiiiiiiiiiiirrrrrrrr Leonovvvvvvvvvvvvv and his Yakhnich Motorspors Yamaha R6666666666666.

We was here to take lessons. We was in Portimao to start to prepare the 2012 season. We wanted to learn about world supersport race strategy, we wanted the rider to feel the taste of a world supersport race, we wanted to learn about bike setting, engine setting and so on...

We had lot of problems starting to learn this lessons... electronic, strategy, set up. It was not easy to pass all this problems during free practice and during qualifying sessions, knowing that the potential of the rider and of the team was absolutely better then the 18th position conquered.

It was not easy for everybody, first of all for Vladimir, to live with all this problems and with the heavy flu that he suffered in last week.

But, as in the best story, finally the sun was lighting the Yakhnich Motorsport team during the warm up. Mechanics worked all night long to check and eliminate all the problems, and in warm up we see the light. Ok, bike is still not at his best potential, but now all works in the right way.

Less problem to solve is the decision on the tyre compound. Having had no time to experiment it in practice, team decided to start with a soft compound in the rear and hard in the front. No other teams chosen the hard front compound. But we wanted to be safe, finish the race to collect as much data as possible...

And the main data was collected by Vladimir in the 16th lap. After fighting with Praya for many laps for the 13-14th position, both of them was recovering time on the group of rider fighting for the 8-11th position. Leonov and Praya were faster then them about half a second starting from the 10th lap, and, as they reached the group, Vladimir decided to go: put the whole group in his target, and..... wowwwwwwwwww the overtake of the year: three of them in one shot, in the most difficult point of the most difficult circuit of the world supersport.

After watching it, we could even ask to our rider to stop. No necessary to go on in collecting data. We have a potential champion in our team.

But he was no satisfied. He looked Fabien Foret so close, and decided to go, Yessss another overtake, on the Honda Ten Kate factory bike and factory rider... 8th position and one lap to go....

The best result that team could image is here, and no care about the fact that in last lap Praya, riding a faster Honda, overtook Vladimir for the 8th place. 8th or 9th does not care.

Ladies and Gentleman today you saw the born of a future russian international champion! Stand up and claps your hands to him please, and thanks to Yakhnich Motorsport that believed in Vladimir as nobody before!

Not bad.