Lorenzo Baldassarri was back to his best at Magny-Cours, storming to fourth in WorldSBK Race 2 after the summer break. It was his strongest result since Most, but what made it remarkable was the damage his bike carried for most of the race.
Starting outside the top ten, the Italian carved through the field and even gained a spot when Alex Lowes crashed ahead. But the real story was the state of his Ducati after a first-lap skirmish.
"Race 2 was nice because in the last races something always happens to me," Baldassarri told WorldSBK.com. "In Misano I lost my boot after contact. Race 1 here was compromised by a crash in the warm-up lap."
This time, contact with Xavi Vierge at the Imola Chicane cost him a front wing and left a "big hole" in the fairing. "I was close to retirement because of the hole," he admitted. "But I managed to do a great comeback and fight a good fight."
The damage made the bike unpredictable. "Braking downhill, the movement was strange. Also in acceleration, the wheelie was different. I had to adapt, and then I could go quite fast," he explained.
Fourth place at Magny-Cours proves Baldassarri still has the pace to fight at the front. If he can avoid trouble in the early laps, more strong results could follow.
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