After a 6-week break, we are at the Estoril circuit (near Lisbon). The weather is set to be mild all week, with typical temperatures (between 23 and 29°C).
Thursday: Getting a feel for braking points, racing lines, and overall rhythm. We’re fine-tuning the suspension and gearing—discovering the track with this specific bike—and I’m feeling good. In the afternoon, my lap times improve. It’s crucial to get up to speed as quickly as possible to minimize any disadvantage heading into the upcoming sessions.
Friday: We continue refining the bike’s setup, and I keep pushing harder to prepare for tomorrow’s qualifying. I finish the morning session in 7th place and the afternoon session in 3rd.
Saturday is qualifying day. I complete all my laps on my own and make solid improvements to my times, but it’s not quite enough to secure a spot on the front row. I’ll be starting 5th on the grid, 0.5 seconds off the leader.
The race begins at 3:00 PM:
I get a great start and decide to take the outside line for the first corner. I brake extremely late and pull alongside the rider in 3rd, but I can’t quite get the bike to turn in enough, so I slot back into 5th. At the second corner, the riders ahead of me slow down slightly; I nearly collide with the rider in 4th, forcing me to brake and run wide, which costs me a good ten meters. I’ve lost the slipstream… I remain in 5th, and fortunately, the riders behind me aren’t closing the gap. Over the next few laps, I chip away at the lead held by the two riders in front of me, gaining a tenth of a second here and there. By the 10th lap, I’ve caught up to them and move into 4th place (following a technical issue for the rider who was in 2nd). I waited patiently behind them for their tires to wear down further, looking for the right spot to make a move. The rider in second pulled away slightly. On the final lap, I attacked the rider in third at the only possible overtaking spot: the Corkscrew. I executed a clean block pass; he couldn’t get back around me, and I stayed ahead all the way to the finish line. That was it—I finally secured a podium (3rd place)! I’m incredibly happy, as this is something I’ve been waiting for for a long time.
Sunday, second race:
Thanks to yesterday’s podium, I started from 3rd position and felt much more relaxed. I had a great start, but after the second sector, I began to lose ground because the rider in front was holding me up—he was faster than me on the straights—and a Kawasaki rider even managed to get past me! Two riders pulled away, leaving a group of four of us battling for third place. It was a hard-fought race, with plenty of back-and-forth overtaking. I made a small mistake just before the start of the final lap, which cost me a position (dropping me to 5th). I fought back, catching a good slipstream on the straight and pulling off a brilliant out-braking maneuver to reclaim the spot from the rider who had capitalized on my earlier error. I closed the gap to the rider in third, who had managed to pull a small lead, but I couldn’t find an opening. Coming out of the final corner, I got a strong exit and used the slipstream to try and pass him before the checkered flag. At the line, I missed the podium by just 46 thousandths of a second!! Naturally, I’m very frustrated, but I’m even more determined than before—I want to be on the podium consistently, and, of course, I’m aiming even higher.
I am now 4th in the overall standings, just 7 points behind 2nd place. A very good week from start to finish; I’m leaving happy and full of enthusiasm. The next race weekend is in one month at Aragon, one of my favorite circuits. I can’t wait!!!
