Jordi Torres: "The hardest part will be getting used to the tyres"

Jordi Torres is one of the friendliest guys in the entire paddock. He always greets everyone with a smile, with a naturalness and simplicity that makes you feel at ease with him, and at the CEV at Motorland Aragón we were able to see him in action once again. Moreover, today it was confirmed that this weekend he will be the replacement for Xavier Simeon in the Tech 3 Racing team for the race to be held at the Montmeló circuit.

While the Spanish Speed Championship is going strong, and after dominating the two qualifying training sessions of the CEV held on Saturday at the Motorland Aragón circuit, we were able to sit down with him for a few minutes so he could tell us how he is going to experience returning to the world championship on a circuit he knows better than anyone, and in front of all his people.

Plusmoto: Is it already confirmed that you are racing at Montmeló?
Jordi Torres: Yes, everything has been sealed for two days now. But it will be a complicated situation. It’s very good, because you’re going to do a world championship race at home, where at least I know the circuit. But I turn up on Friday for FP1, on a blue and yellow bike, which I don’t even know how it handles, with tyres I haven’t used all year… At least I know which way the circuit turns (laughs) but not much more. We’ll be playing catch-up and it will be very hard to get used to the riding style those tyres demand, because here in the CEV we run other tyres that don’t behave like the Dunlops in the world championship. In the CEV we all ride on the rear tyre, while in the world championship you ride on the front. Here you set up your corner entry, but there you’re going flat out through the corner.

Plusmoto: So it will be very hard to change your mindset then…
Jordi Torres: Especially in 40 minutes of FP1, FP2, FP3 and QP… You don’t have time for anything and you’re done for. You start to understand how the tyres behave on the Friday of the following week at home (laughs)… So, knowing it’s complicated, that I don’t know the bike, that it’s not the Suter chassis I know, that there are other tyres and that the only thing I know is the circuit, you have to think positive. You have to go out and ride flat out. If it goes well, great. If it goes half well, well, that’s how it is. I have no pressure to get results.

Plusmoto: Will adapting to the tyres be the hardest thing?
Jordi Torres: The difference between the CEV and the World Championship is right there. Here you only set up corner exits, you don’t brake late to avoid the chatter and you make the apex late so you can cut it while accelerating; here everything is done with the throttle to stop the rear tyre from spitting you off. The front is the complete opposite. It has less grip and makes you bounce on exit, the steering tightens and you can’t ask much of it.

In the world championship, on the other hand, the front holds much more, so you brake a lot later, you let the bike run a lot through the corner because the front holds very well. But on exit you notice the rear is bouncing around. It’s a totally different style. That’s why in the world championship you can get down on the side all the way to the kitchen, touching knee, ear, and you still feel the front asking for more. The grip is brutal. That’s going to be my first problem in FP1, adapting to the tyres. Braking late, entering very fast, releasing the brakes and waiting for a chatter that never comes is going to be an absolute pleasure but I won’t know how to make the most of it, since surely the others still haven’t touched their brakes and I’ll already be almost stopped.

You have to change your whole riding style and on top of that adapt to a bike that very few people have tested. Only the riders in the world championship have ridden it, Simeon, Smith, Di Meglio and Takahashi. It’s a Tech 3 chassis, and you can’t draw any conclusions. I’ll try to get used to the bike and maybe for qualifying I can make some adjustments to set it up more to my liking. And in the race we’ll see. I’m not under pressure. I’m going to enjoy it, to fill a gap, and it’s a very good opportunity for me that I’ll make the most of.

Also, you have to go fast but without risking a crash, since the bike isn’t mine and the team could pull their hair out. It’s a very difficult commitment, to be honest. I’ll try to be in the top 20. And if I score points, it’ll be awesome.

Photos | Plusmoto