Alstare Suzuki’s team manager Francis Batta doesn’t like to sugar coat his words and give you politically correct statements.
In his latest interview with Motosprint magazine, the Belgium manager is worried about the economic crisis that’s already taking its toll on the WSBK championship.
They’ll still be seven manufacturers on the grid, but only 20 riders have been confirmed so far, with teams cutting back on investments as Batta had to do, fielding only Michel Fabrizio as his sole rider or as the Ducati factory team pulling out all together, with one of the excuses being the rules were too penalizing.
When Batta was asked what he thought about an eventual rule change, he said, “I don’t say we have to race with Superstocks, but we should be nearer to them.
Today the market is facing a momentous slowdown, and there’s a lot less money than in the past, and the rules should be changed to adapt to this situation.
We have to go back and nobody should cheat.
” The team manager went on regarding the cheating (and we know he’s implicitly referring to Aprilia) “Have you ever seen one single bike checked over during the entire season? Did someone take apart the engine? I don’t think so, and don’t tell me the lodge a complaint.
I’d have all of them over me.
I’m always the bad guy”Batta would like that all the homologation rules be respected, with a control on electronics and that the tires be handed out on a random basis.
“The FIM is missing in action here, Vito Ippolito the president, doesn’t even know what Superbikes is.
I don’t have anything against Aprilia, I’m upset with the FIM who homologated their gear driven camshaft during the season and then ruled them out for next year.
” “As for investments, the WSBK will not be the same as two year’s ago, we’re going to have a very difficult 2011, but we have the strength to recover.
But I repeat, we have to take a step back.
World Superbikes doesn’t have such a long history that it can’t be flexible.
If it’s well thought out, we could have 36 starters back on the grid in just three years.
”
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