Lorenzo Baldassarri (Ducati) on Lecuona’s victory: “Second places are tiring”

The careers of Lorenzo Baldassarri and Iker Lecuona have followed similar paths. Between 2016 and 2019, both rode in Moto2, but after failing to make the next step up in the GP paddock, they both switched to the production-based World Championship in 2022 and established themselves as regular contenders there. This year, both are competing in the Superbike World Championship on Ducatis – the Italian with the Go Eleven customer team, and the Spaniard with the Aruba.it works team.

When the 26-year-old from Valencia won the first race at the Donington Park round, ending his team-mate Nicolò Bulega’s winning streak, Baldassarri was delighted for him.

“He did a brilliant job; he deserves congratulations for that. I think he really deserved this win,” said the 2022 Supersport World Championship runner-up during a small press briefing. “It was probably quite stressful for him to keep finishing second, and in a situation like that it’s easy to make mistakes. I’ve been in a similar situation myself: you want to prove yourself and show everyone what you’re made of, but then you end up overdoing it. Iker could easily have made a mistake too.”

Baldassarri knows what he’s talking about: when he was battling Dominique Aegerter for the Supersport title in 2022, he finished second behind the Swiss rider in nine races.

“At first you’re happy with second places, but at some point you get tired of constantly missing out on victory,” explained Baldassarri. “I think it was tough for Iker at Donington too, when he narrowly missed out on pole position – that’s not always easy to take in your stride. In that respect, it was really impressive how he kept his cool and beat Nicolò in the first race.”

Topic of the week

The 2027 Formula 1 grid: Will the transfer bombshell only drop in the autumn?

Summertime, holiday season, the silly season: these are the weeks when the most outrageous driver changes are usually discussed. The big news for the 2027 season is yet to materialise.

Mathias Brunner

Read more

Lorenzo Baldassarri is also enjoying a strong Superbike season. With two podium finishes and nine top-six results, the Ducati privateer sits in a solid seventh place in the World Championship standings after eight of twelve rounds.