after the injury, but it still was not enough to keep my place in the championship. That’s why I was disappointed.’
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What about your way of preparing for a race. Do you have certain rituals? ‘Not really. I wake up at eight o’clock and do my warm up at ten. After that I have some briefings with my team and I eat at twelve. I also watch the 125 race on TV and the first lap of the 250s. Forty-five minutes before the start of the race I do my warm up on my bicycle in my motor home for fifteen minutes. Then I’m ready and I go to the box. I can feel the pressure building up. It’s not that I’m nervous, but I’m concentrated. I listen to my iPod and I watch TV. I also think about the race, especially the first lap and the first corner.’
Could you relax during the winter break? ‘Because I had an operation to take the screws out of my ankle this year the break was not so good. But normally when I finish the season I do some sports, just for fun, and go on holiday during Christmas. In January I start up my physical training for the season again, to be strong for the tests in February and March and the first race. It’s possible not to think about racing during the winter. But when you start training again, the thinking starts again as well. I can feel my body react differently and more relaxed off season. It’s a matter of less stress and less pressure. When the season starts you don’t have much time to be relaxed, and maybe I should try and relax a little more during the season this year.’
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Would you like to trade places with guys like Rossi, Lorenzo, Stoner and Pedrosa? They have great bikes, but they are always in the center of attention. ‘For me they are the four best riders in the world, and for me to beat them in normal conditions is almost impossible. Maybe once or twice. But in special conditions you can be there. That’s why I want to be consistent. Last year my target was to be in the top ten every race; this year it’s top eight. If I were to end the season fifth in the championship, I won’t say it will be the same as a world championship title, but you can’t do better than that, because those four guys are the best and they have the best bikes. It would be nice to be on the same bike one year and fight with them. I try to improve whenever I can. At tracks where grip is not too good I have problems. Whether it’s the setting of the bike or my riding style I don’t know, but that’s where we need to improve. I lost too many points at the end of the race last year. In Australia I was riding sixth, but when the tire dropped I lost three places. And in Valencia I was sixth and finished eleventh. For me it was impossible to control the bike after halfway. I think we can improve that by working on the traction control system.’
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Do you think about life after racing already? ‘Not so much yet, because I hope to stay in MotoGP for a long time. After that we’ll see. I don’t know whether after that I’ll switch to Superbikes. That also depends on my motivation, but for now I don’t think about the future a lot. Sure, sometime in the future I would like a family and some children, but for me that’s still too far away now.’
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Is there something you spend a lot of money on, besides racing? ‘I like cars. I need to stop buying cars, because in the end I’ll have too many! I have a Ferrari that I’m trying to sell now, but I also have a BMW M3 and an Audi Q5. The Audi is better for the roads where I’m living. I live in the mountains and during the winter driving a Ferrari there is not so easy.’
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Last question. Do you think there is a possibility that we will see Randy de Puniet and REV’IT! on the podium sometime this year? ‘That certainly is my target. And I would like it to be first place. It’s my goal to win a MotoGP race and to be world champion. But before you’re world champion you will have to win a race first.’«
Join the scene… In cooperation with SportTravel, REV’IT! is raffling off a MotoGP VIP package for two. To enter the contest, sign up for the REV’IT! digital newsletter in March or April 2010. The winner will not only be our VIP guest for the weekend, but will also receive a complimentary stay in a quality hotel near the track, compliments of REV’IT!.
visit www.revit.eu/en/win sign up for the newsletter and win!
REVZINE | #02 spring-summer 2010
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