WorldSBK Estoril: Redding ‘consistently faster and feeling good’

For a time the second row WorldSBK start for Scott Redding on the BMW M1000RR looked like it would deliver him a top five finish in Estoril race one, but as his front tyre got used up too heavily he dropped back to finish eighth.

But while it lasted, with this level of competition, it looked like some extra good BMW news after Michael van der Mark had been ruled out for some time with a right leg fracture near the hip joint.

“The front tyre was my biggest issue in that race,” said Redding of his first race experience on track over 21-laps. “The rear felt quite okay. The front tyre just after 11, 12 laps started dropping, only on the right side. So, I missed a lot in the last corner. Also turns two and three. I could feel the Hondas breathing down my neck. I was just trying to do everything I could to survive, but there was actually too many laps to defend, especially with the last corner, the long right. There was nothing I could do.”

A bad start from his second row grid slot angered Redding enough that he put in the extra effort in the early laps, as he described. “The beginning of the race, I felt quite good. I had a bad start. Something that we’re working on is to try to get better starts with the bike.

“In Portimao (at a recent test) we made a step, but here it seems we’re working a little bit different. So, we need to modify some things to improve because if we can get off the start from the second row you’ve done a lot of work already. That’s why I was happy with the qualifying today. I said on the grid to myself, ‘this is what you wanted, second row. So, now you need to do something with it.’ Made the start, then it starts getting messy and can’t get off the line. Then I just attacked like hell for the first two