Marco Melandri of Yamaha closes in on Max Biaggi with third positions at Silverstone – WSBK news
Yamaha World Superbike Championship Team rider Marco Melandri earned third places on podium in both races at the Silverstone event.
Though Melandri was not able to surpass his teammate Eugene Laverty but still maintained his third position at the 2011 World Superbike Championship.
The Italian rider has decreased his points’ gap from compatriot Max Biaggi of Aprilia Alitalia. Now Melandri stands nine points adrift of Biaggi. Although it is a little hard for Melandri to catch Carlos Checa with four rounds remaining in the 2011 season
but he is challenging compatriot Biaggi.
Melandri said, “In race one, I had a very unstable bike, I didn't have a good feeling from the beginning of the race and struggled with a lack of rear grip. I lost a lot of time with Hopkins and Haga in front of me and it wasn't easy to get by.”
The raceday was tough for Melandri as he struggled a lot to catch the race leaders. He was also facing tyre wear issues during the race.
However staring from sixth place on the grid, he paced up to snatch third place on the podium in both races.
Melandri added, “We changed the tyre before race two to get better grip on the left side, but I hit a stone with my knee on the straight and it caused me to lose a lot of time on that lap. I started to improve then and saw I could catch Camier.”
The Italian also added that he was fighting to hold off Max Biaggi. Meanwhile he aimed to sustain his race position during the duel. At last, he was content with his race finishes and heads for a short summer break.
The team hopes to resume WSBK action at Germany on a stronger note. As Melandri’s efforts have made him a strong contender for the 2011 season runner up seat, his teammate Eugene Laverty is also getting stronger in the season.
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