Dorna’s World Superbike boss Javier Alonso wasn’t quite happy with the harsh comments made by Marco Melandri following the difficult Superbike round in Moscow, especially after the tragic death of Andrea Antonelli.
In a previous interview, Alonso was reported as having said, “It’s not true that the wet conditions were that dramatic and that the asphalt wasn’t draining.
During the Superbike race when it started to rain, several riders raced on slick tires for 15 laps on the wet surface.
”Now in another brief interview with the Gazzetta dello Sport, Alonso, has tried to respond to the controversy and the words of several riders, including Marco Melandri – who said that the race should have never taken place.
Apparently Alonso did not like Melandri’s opinion that during the final laps of the Superbike race – which he won – it was impossible to ride and that he even held up his arm several times, but the race wasn’t stopped.
“I have no idea what was going on in his [Melandri] head.
We accept constructive criticism, but not senseless ones.
Melandri has never come to us to talk about safety, the only one that has, has been Carlos Checa.
Under the heavy rain Melandri won the Superbike race improving nine seconds in just six laps over his team mate.
He can’t say he wasn’t able to control his bike.
”The Superbike boss also repeated what Carmelo Ezpeleta said on Sunday, that no rider raised his arm on the grid to stop the race before the start: “Certainly, it’s a standard procedure.
They could have done it during the warm-up lap and during the race.
It didn’t happen.
That means that the riders decided that conditions were normal.
The accident was a fatality.
The surface of the Moscow Raceway was also amply criticized because it wasn’t draining and the fact the circuit is homologated for World Superbikes, but not for MotoGP.
“Each circuit has a type of asphalt formulated for its climatic conditions.
We don’t race on tracks that don’t have proper surface conditions.
The FIM has two types of homologation, depending on the power of the bikes.
MotoGP has more horsepower and needs different track structures.
The type of asphalt has nothing to do with homologation.
Alonso also said that their is space for a sort of Grand Prix safety commission for Superbikes: “The door is always open, but we can only listen if someone comes and talks to us.
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