Melandri: Either the bike doesn’t like me or my riding style
Marco Melandri has left Donington Park bemused by the disappearance of his pace with GRT Yamaha and believes “either the bike doesn’t like me or my riding style doesn’t suit the bike”.
Having felt able to battle for the podium last time out at Misano, Melandri targeted Donington Park as another strong round but instead struggled throughout the British round taking a total of just eight points across the three races highlighted by 10th place in the final race.
Marco Melandri has left Donington Park bemused by the disappearance of his pace with GRT Yamaha and believes “either the bike doesn’t like me or my riding style doesn’t suit the bike”.
Having felt able to battle for the podium last time out at Misano, Melandri targeted Donington Park as another strong round but instead struggled throughout the British round taking a total of just eight points across the three races highlighted by 10th place in the final race.
Melandri says he’s working with GRT Yamaha to uncover the fundamental issue which has seen his form shift from circuit to circuit, having taken podiums at Phillip Island and Jerez this year, but concedes he’s still searching for answers.
“I never really had a good feeling and I struggled a lot from the start. Either the bike doesn’t like me, or my riding style doesn't suit the bike, so it's difficult,” Melandri said. “Yamaha and the team are working incredibly hard to help me find a solution and so am I, but we're still looking for the light at the end of the tunnel.
“This was not a good weekend for us. After Misano I expected to have a much better feeling, especially here at Donington where I've had good results in the past. So, we were expecting a positive weekend here, but it turned out very different.”
Andrea Dosoli, Yamaha Motor Europe Road Racing Manager, has confirmed Melandri will receive full support from the Japanese manufacturer to rectify the issues and says each day at Donington posed a new problem for the Italian rider.
“For Marco it was a difficult weekend. The problems he experienced were different on each of the three days, but all conspired to stop him realising his potential here at Donington,” Dosoli said.
“We will work closely with the team and with Marco to try and find a solution, as we know he is capable of much more once he recovers his confidence.”
Melandri remains ninth in the World Superbike riders’ championship, six points behind former Ducati team-mate Chaz Davies, heading to the Laguna Seca round this weekend before the lengthy summer break.
