RACING AND PERFORMANCE

Brian, (pictured here on the race track with Herb - both of whom had their knees scrape on this corner) always willing to take some risks, has been promoted to Operations Manager for Grass Roots BMW, and will be the person you call to take care of all your service needs on your BMW motorcycle.

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The life of Leon – part one

Preparations for the start of the 2011 Superbike World Championship are gathering steam, with the BMW Motorrad Motorsport factory team riders concluding several days of testing at Eastern Creek and Phillip Island circuits. With only around three weeks until the first round of the 2011 WSBK series, new signing Leon Haslam speaks exclusively to BMW Motorrad about entering the most exciting year of his career to date

How’s life as a married man?

It’s pretty much the same really. We went away to Sweden for the wedding which was amazing, it was really relaxing and remote and we just chilled out. We both wanted a winter wedding and as we enjoy our winter sports, we did some snowboarding as well. For the honeymoon we went out to Borneo and again that was incredible. During the off season it’s just nice to get away and recuperate ready for the start of the new WSBK season. The wedding and the honeymoon allowed me to relax and recharge my batteries.

You’ve followed the development of the S 1000 RR closely over the past two years. Do you feel that it is truly competitive now?

For me the RR is a proven package. It’s the best selling bike from last year, it’s been winning championships and races all round the globe and in stock trim you will struggle to find a better package. On a racing level, the bike has only been developed over the last two years, but the potential is undoubtedly huge with this motorcycle. Last year both Troy and Ruben were competitive, pushing machinery and manufacturers who have been developing and racing for decades. I think it would be a lie for anyone to say they weren’t impressed by the job BMW did last year. 

Are you surprised at the speed of the learning curve?

We are playing catch-up in some respects, purely down to the limited amount of racing experience we have as a manufacturer in WSBK, but the experience and expertise of the BMW family across the entire brand indicates that this team has a huge amount to bring to this championship. There is no doubt that I am riding for the Championship this year – it would be an insult to BMW to say that I wasn’t, and an insult to myself. It’s a really exciting project to be part of and testing already indicates that I can do the times I was doing last year on the Suzuki. I still feel we have a lot more to come in order to push the bike forward before the first race at Phillip Island. 

The rider that secures BMW Motorrad its first WSBK victory will be immortalised in the brand’s history. How much of an incentive is that for you?

I just want to win races. I am with a team that wants to win races and we are pushing on every level to make that a reality. BMW has always been associated with success and prides itself on the machinery it supplies across all sectors. This team has a definite winning mentality and that can only be good for me. I am not thinking about the first win, I am thinking about winning every race we enter. As a racer I am in this sport to win and I came to BMW because they have the ambition and resource to make that possible.

Have you been able to form an early impression from testing of how good the RR is yet?Yes. It was obvious from the first time I met the team and rode the bike that we have a great motorcycle in the RR. There is so much we can try and so many parts being developed, to the point where every time I step on the bike I have the ability to try something new. That’s a great feeling because you cannot afford to stand still for a minute in this game and every test so far we have been quicker. We spend a lot of time running through information and identifying areas of improvement but you have to do that with a new motorcycle because you are constantly finding new areas to work on. 

So your confidence is high at this point then?

I am confident that when we pull everything together at Phillip Island for that first round we will have an exceptional package. The key aspect with this package for me is that we do a lot our development in-house which means that things are done in days rather than weeks and the development curve is a lot steeper than our rivals. We have a great stock motorcycle to work from – one which is only a few seconds off the actual Superbike at certain circuits – so we know we have a superb package to work with.

Is the RR a totally different package to the Suzuki?

With Suzuki we really hit the ground running, we had a good package which was right at the top of its development cycle from the first race of 2010. For the first few rounds we had one of the strongest motorcycles on the grid, but everyone soon developed their machines and progressed ahead of us as the season went on. We just couldn’t see a way to develop the Suzuki any further – the package just wasn’t evolving at the rate of the other leading machines on the grid. What we had at the first race was pretty much the same package we ended the year on. 

Things must seem different now?

Here with BMW we could do a three-day test and every day I could have the opportunity to try something new, all in an aid to develop and that can only be good for me. I am really enthusiastic about the rate of development here and that’s what wins races and world titles. I think we can really challenge from the first race of the season and improve the machine with every race. That in itself is a great feeling. There are seven manufactures all pushing for the title next year – all proven race winners – so we have a tough job ahead of us but one which we are more than capable of.

Is there a lot you feel you can still learn from an experienced racer like Corser?

Troy has got the bike to where it is now, there is no doubt about that, so yes I think I have already learnt a lot from Troy. I think he will be a good source of information as the year rolls on. Personally I think the strongest thing for me and the team now are the new ideas coming to the table. We have new team personnel this year, new mechanics, my chief engineer Giacomo has joined me from Suzuki and he has a lot of ideas already. It’s easy to forget that only Troy and Ruben have raced the BMW at this level and the team only have their feedback to go on when it comes to racing. Another benefit and good source of information will come from James Toseland, Aryton Badovini and the BMW Motorrad Italia team stepping into the series this year. The team is undoubtedly strong, they will have access to all the parts and materials we do, they are all new to the bike and will have some good ideas to work with. I’m sure they can benefit us as well. Ayrton has shown his ability to make the BMW work at a stock level, winning 9 out of 10 races last year.  James’ pedigree speaks for itself. He is a two-time world champion at this level and has recent MotoGP experience so he knows how to develop machinery. I think collectively BMW have a great stable of riders this year and a good blend of qualities to develop the machine.