Elias continues with Red Devils Roma Aprilia
The former Moto2 World Champion will take on his first full season in the eni FIM Superbike World Championship.
Spaniard Toni Elias has confirmed to WorldSBK.com about his participation to the 2014 eni FIM Superbike World Championship, once again on-board the RSV4 fielded by Team Red Devils Aprilia, the same squad with which he contested the last four races of the last season.
How do you feel now that you have reached the agreement with Team Red Devils?
"There have been rumours for long time and everybody thought it was already a done deal, but actually there were some details still to be sorted out. It's been a long winter because of it, but everyone worked out to keep this project going forward. There were some doubts about me racing at Phillip Island, but it's a great pleasure to know I will be there for both official tests and the first round."
Was your goal to stay in WSBK? How was your first experience last year?
"I enjoyed racing World Superbikes in 2013, even though only four rounds. Unfortunately I missed the podium, but I had good moments as well. This is the reason why I managed to work very well during the winter even though I was not sure about my future. I owe a lot to Dorna, Aprilia, my manager and everyone who make this project possible."
How is your relationship with Aprilia? You have good memories with them…
"I'm happy because we achieved tremendous results together in the past and the feeling with them was great. I don't think the bike will be much different than the one I used last year, so I can say I know the RSV4 quite well and this makes me feel good."
Will you be attending the Phillip Island tests?
"I'm travelling to Italy today to catch up with the team and fly off to Australia with them. I'm aware of the fact that there are many great riders in this championship that had much more time to prepare for the upcoming season. I will take it step by step at Phillip Island in order to improve each and every time out on track."
What are your goals for the season?
"I haven't set any goal for 2014. It's obvious that I would like to step on the podium as I narrowly missed it last year in the final race. I hope to keep improving, but there's a lot of hard work to do and I need to be realistic at the beginning."
