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“I’ve experienced it nine times as a rider, but I felt like a child at an amusement park, winning for the first time as a team manager. I saw my Walt Disney. Experiencing the podium and watching my rider get emotional during the national anthem was a thrill,” Roberto Locatelli said as his eyes sparkled, recalling Aron Canet's triumph at the Portuguese GP, his first Moto2 success that took him to the top of the world championship, just after his second race with the Fantic Racing team.
It was also a very strong emotion for his team manager, "Loca", world champion of the 125 class in 2000 and winner of nine GPs.
“You touch something with your finger that makes you feel invincible. But it doesn’t last that long. Walking from our garage, while everyone was running, I slowed down to make that moment last as long as possible. I still remember when I won the world championship in Japan, and I did a lap of honor, slowing down to be able to live that feeling longer. I did it again in Portimão for Aron Canet. It was a really strong emotion, with Aron having never won a race in the Moto2, with Fantic, entrusting me with the role of team manager. And we ended up winning the second race of the season. I felt victorious along with them. It’s part of my victories. There was also a bit of pressure for the result they missed during the first race. And you can’t have that pressure come out of your eyes and your skin, because you have to take it away from the rider. It’s a bit like being a father to your children. For me, Aron Canet is now my sports son.”
Canet’s explosiveness reminds Locatelli of Casey Stoner.
“The difference that I think we have in our favor is the best Moto2 rider, instinctively. If you put him on the bike, he makes me think of Casey Stoner,” Locatelli said as he remembered the Australian, two-time MotoGP world champion, with whom he shared the garage during the 2005 season.
“We were teammates and, when there was qualifying on Fridays and Saturdays, his Friday time remained at the top of the standings even on Saturdays. He was a sporting explosiveness with an outstanding performance. I’m not saying he’s the same, but he reminds me of this. There are similarities in riders – even in life, in work, in everything we do – Aron, in his way of expressing his speed, resembles Casey Stoner. I realized this since I started working with him, from that first day of testing after the 2023 Valencia Grand Prix. Aron is very explosive, and his explosiveness must be controlled. It seems to me that he’s proving he can handle it. It’s his traction control. It’s not an electronic button but a psychological button. If he can always activate it at the right time, it’s easy to circle around that position in Portimão.”
