Avintia Racing’s Hector Barbera is looking forward to getting the triple-header flyaway portion of the season underway at Japan this weekend, as the TwinRing Motegi is one of his favourite circuits on the schedule.
The Spaniard heads into this weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix still holding onto 10th in the World Championship standings after finishing 13th last time out in Aragon. Barbera has enjoyed a decent record at Motegi over the years, winning at the track in 2003 in the 125cc class and taking third in the 2007 250cc race. Last year, he guided his GP14 to ninth in the wet conditions to take over top spot in the open class championship.
Motegi features a number of low-gear acceleration points, which should see the Desmosedici’s massive power serve Barbera well. The circuit’s numerous hard-braking zones will also suit the bike, as this is a famed aspect of the GP14.2.
With his Ducati well-suited to the Japanese circuit, Barbera is confident of achieving a strong result but knows that hitting the ground running on Friday with bike set-up will be crucial for success on Sunday. The Spaniard also notes that a good result in Japan will set him up nicely for the following two flyaway races which take place over the following two weekends.
“I head to Japan really strong after two weeks of training. Motegi is one of my favourite tracks and I’ve been always fast there, so I’m ready to start the triple,” he said.
“It will be crucial to get a good result this weekend, because if you make a good start, then everything else comes easily. Last year I rode one of the best races of the season at Motegi and I got the Open Class lead back, so I’m really confident and looking forward to get a good result. The track has many hard braking zones and this is one of the strongest points of our bike, so we have to work hard from Friday to get the best package for Sunday.”
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