The Master Camp Students Speed Up on Second Day

Filed under: News |

The second day of the Yamaha VR46 Master Camp had a lot more action in store for Peerapong Boonlert (Thailand, 18), Anggi Setiawan (Indonesia, 18), Shota Ite (Japan, 15), Muhammad Akid bin Aziz (Malaysia, 18), Brandon Demmery (Australia,19) and Tomas Casas (Canada, 17) than they dreamed of.

In the morning they were taught how to train on a racing simulator with Andrea Migno and Luca Marini, the afternoon was filled with Francesco Bagnaia teaching the Master Camp riders how to pick the perfect line whilst MiniGP racing at the Misanino KCE World Circuit Marco Simoncelli. The young hopefuls ended the training with a karting session.

Though day one had taken its toll on the riders, a good night sleep meant they started off day two full of energy and raring to go. The first stop was the Fisio Gym, to learn how to use a race simulator. After a quick warm-up to loosen the muscles, the group split into two: one half went on to participate in a Pilates class, while the other half was demonstrated how to use a race simulator by Migno.

After the Moto3 rider showed how to do a hot lap around the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli on the simulator, the Master Camp riders suited up and had a go themselves, only to find that it‘s actually more difficult than riding a real bike if you are not used to the controls. Half way through the gym-session the groups swapped places.

After a quick change of clothes, the riders had to rush off to their next appointment. Yesterday they didn‘t have time to stop by their favourite town, Tavullia, as their riding instructor, Bagnaia, was already waiting for them at the Misanino KCE World Circuit Marco Simoncelli with six mini bikes.

After a rider briefing, the Master Camp recruits quickly changed back into their leathers. During the practice sessions, their instructor (the Moto2 rider who secured second place in Jerez last weekend) steered the students in finding the right line and gear changes. After a few outings on track, the riders felt confident they were ready for the Master Camp MiniGP race, that was also attended by VR46 Riders Academy Director Alessio ’Uccio‘ Salucci. (To find out more of his affiliation with and passion for the Master Camp, check out the Master Camp‘s third blog entry).

The short race was won by bin Aziz, ahead of Setiawan and Boonlert in second and third place respectively. It was time to say “arrivederci” to Bagnaia, who’s work was done for the day. However, the young protégés weren‘t ready to leave the circuit yet and headed back out in go-karts.

Demmery had previous experience in karting, having worked as a mechanic, which also required doing test drives. He set the standard high for the other riders, but they soon found a good rhythm. The Australian came first in a friendly kart competition, Cases and Boonlert came second and third. (You can get to know the laid-back and fully motivated Demmery, better by watching his rider interview video).

Overall the riders were very happy with the variety of experiences and skills they acquired yesterday (see the Day 2 review video), which left them feeling excited for more track action on day three, today.