Italiano
CLOSE TO TOP TEN AT THE END OF RACE 1!
A tricky track, where Go Eleven need to defend theirselves and bring home points. But Balda and the Team put in a strong performance, at least until Superpole. In Race 1, after a less than perfect start, Balda suffered so much pain in his right arm that he even considered retiring after a few laps.
For FP3, the engineers opted to try a more rear-based setup, a move that didn’t particularly pay off; this session tested qualifying, with which Balda was able to lower his Best Lap, but without the impact he would have liked.
Free Practice 3:
P 1 I. Lecuona 1.39.186
P 2 Y. Montella + 0.419
P 3 M. Oliveira + 0.436
…
P 15 L. Baldassarri + 1.316
The Superpole here proved to be a truly close affair, with hundredths of a second making the difference between the two positions. Balda chose Bulega as his reference point on the track, and the choice proved to be a winning one. Two incredible laps, the number 34 dropped to the low 39, just two tenths off the previous lap record. Eighth on the grid, the first three rows as hoped. Interestingly, with today’s time, Balda would have started from P2 in 2025 Portuguese Round, a sign of how much the level rises year after year.
Superpole:
P 1 N. Bulega 1.38.495
P 2 I. Lecuona + 0.142
P 3 Y. Montella + 0.438
…
P 8 L. Baldassarri + 0.733
In Race 1, Balda didn’t get a good start, losing a row before Turn 1, then getting caught up in the various classic early-race battles. He set his pace in the first four laps and overtook Locatelli, Bautista, and Petrucci, only to then begin to struggle severely with his right arm. By his own admission, he thought he wouldn’t be able to finish the race. His times, however, weren’t slow, and his feeling with the bike was good, so much so that in the final laps he came back to life, rejoining the battle for tenth place. P 11 under the chequered flag, just a couple of seconds outside the top six. It was a race that certainly taught Balda a lot, in addition to his ability to bring home points in difficult conditions.
Race 1:
P 1 N. Bulega 33’34.579
P 2 I. Lecuona + 2.522
P 3 M. Oliveira + 4.815
…
P 11 L. Baldassarri + 21.126
Tomorrow there will be two more races, two opportunities to show our true pace and get back into the top ten. Now Balda needs to recover during the night and tomorrow is another day, hoping that the pain in the arm will go away!
Lorenzo Baldassarri (Rider):
“Today we found a good balance from Superpole onwards. In qualifying, I made it to the first three rows, but at the start, the bike wheelied and I lost a lot of time. We battled hard in the first laps, and that made me sore. From the fourth lap onwards, it was really painful. For a moment, I thought about retiring, but I’m happy with my reaction and that I gritted my teeth. I scored points, but I felt I could have done much more without this problem. The top six was close and within reach, but we’ll try again tomorrow. The feeling on the bike is good, and we’ve worked in the right direction!”
Denis Sacchetti (Team Manager):
“After a difficult first session, the team was able to react and find a good setup for the race and qualifying. Unfortunately, in the race, Balda lost a few positions at the start, finding himself in traffic, which worsened the pain in his right arm; in some places, he couldn’t keep the throttle open. However, he didn’t give up and, in fact, in the final stages he was back to riding very well, still taking the points. Now he will undergo some treatment, and we hope he can race tomorrow without thinking about the pain!
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