Carlos Checa concedes it is unlikely he can rely on the data from his World Superbike Championship victory at Portimao last season, claiming he is 'struggling' by comparison this year.
Though still mathematically capable of defending his
WSBK title, Checa is on the cusp of ceding his crown having fallen 70.5 points adrift of the leaders with only two rounds and four races to go.
Indeed, Checa has become increasingly vocal about the difference in pace between his twin-cylinder Ducati and his four-cylinder rivals recently, particularly after his strong performances during practice at Moscow and Nurburgring were followed by fairly average race results.
As such, Checa doesn't expect a different scenario at Portimao, where he led a Ducati 1-2 over Sylvain Guintoli in 2011, insisting last year's data seems to have little relevance this year.
“It's difficult because we usually use the data from the previous year's race but, as we saw in Germany, last year we were going a lot better while this year we're struggling and so those references are not so useful," the Althea Ducati rider said. "Nevertheless Portimao is a fun track with undulations that really make the rider work hard.
“I'll face this weekend with the usual philosophy, I'll do my best to adapt to the conditions and make the most of both the bike and my ability. We'll see what we are able to do.”