Testing is a time for riders to get up to speed and it seems like rookie Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) did that despite tricky conditions in testing for the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship. Overnight rain left the track wet and, with more rain falling in the morning, several riders opted not to head out on Day 2 at the Circuito de Jerez – Angel Nieto. However, Montella was one of seven WorldSBK riders who ventured out and the #5 finished in P3.

The Italian rider completed 32 laps on Day 2 in the differing conditions, with the track drying up as the rain cleared although it was never fully dry. He did three stints across the day, with his first the longest at 12 laps long as he eased into riding the Panigale V4 R in the wet. His best time in this stint was a 1’54.998 which came on Lap 10, before he entered the pits for a few hours. He returned at around 14:30 Local Time (UTC+1) for a seven-lap stint before his final run at around 15:00.

This is the stint where he set his best lap time of the day, a 1’53.978s which came on his seventh lap in the nine-lap run. He showed more consistency in his final part of the test, completing five laps in the 1’54s bracket or faster between his fourth and final laps. That time gave him a third-place finish on Day 2, less than a second away from six-time Champion Jonathan Rea (Pata Yamaha). The #65 topped the times with a 1’53.058s.

Reflecting on his wet-weather running and finishing third on the timesheets, Montella said: “I’m quite happy for that. It’s nice but, in the end, we were just a few riders in strange conditions and the wet. We decided to ride because I need to ride in every condition because I need to keep the feeling with the bike, understand it in every condition. I’m happy for the test because it was complete: some dry, some wet.”

Although he’s tested World Superbike machinery before, the Jerez test was his first public outing on the Panigale V4 R. He was 17^th out of the WorldSBK race riders on Day 1 in the dry – when almost the entire field were on track. He completed 80 laps in the dry conditions and lapped around 2.5 seconds off the pace set by Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati), who was quickest on Day 1. Teammate Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) was about 1.7s faster than Montella.

Looking back on the Jerez test as a whole, Montella stated: “Yesterday was dry and today in the wet was enough for us. We did some laps on Day 1 and some on Day 2. I’m enjoying it. I’m learning the bike step by step. In the wet conditions, it was good to just ride. I’m happy for that. Now, we’ll move to Portimao and continue our way of working.”

Follow Montella’s rookie WorldSBK campaign in style using the WorldSBK VideoPass!