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Having lost the podium at the very end in the Superpole Race, Remy Gardner got his revenge in the last Superbike race in Assen with an absolute standout performance. After trying to contend for the win with Toprak Razgatlioglu and Alvaro Bautista, the GRT team's rider passed the checkered flag in third place, reaching his first podium in the SuperbikeWorld Championship.
"Finally!" Gardner exclaimed as he spoke to reporters, happy to have obtained the result he had been seeking since his last race last year. "I had told my girlfriend before I came here that, if I got a podium, it would happen right here. Even more so after the races yesterday and this morning," he stated. "I was an idiot this morning to leave the door open for Alex. I could have kicked myself. Anyway, the bike was doing well in the afternoon. I had fun on the track, and the front was working well in entring. We had a decent pace and a good sensation here last year too, even if we didn't get results. So, the team and I were able to figure out what had worked last season and put the experience we had gained to good use."
Being able to enter the battle at the top wasn't easy for Remy, who expected to reach this performance level sooner.
"Considering where I was coming from, definitely," he admitted. "Having won races and a World Championship in the Moto2, you expect to be up in front everywhere you go, but being fast isn't easy when you're coming from a different championship, with a different concept, and a different type of bike. What was most difficult for me was figuring out the tires, which compound to use when. Honestly, if I didn't have experience, I probably would've chosen the SC0 today, and might not have worked. I' m happy with today's tire choice. Now I know the tracks. I know how to ride and how to be fast on a Superbike, and I'm taking advantage of everything a little better, but it definitely took a little longer than I would've expected."
Precisely in light of his road towards adapting, maybe no one as much as Remy can understand the difficult situation Jonathan Rea is in.
"It's surprising, considering what Johnny has achieved in his career and the fact that he's a great rider. What's not surprising is how fast he adapted, since he spent so many years riding a Kawasaki," the 26-year-old noted. "I had come from a different championship and a different type of bike, and it was hard for me, as well. The Yamaha has to be ridden a certain way to be fast, and it takes time to get the hang of it. It happened to me too, which is why I can understand Rea and what he's going through, because being able to understand how to extract the most from a package isn't easy. But, after allm he's a six-time world champion. Give him time, and I am sure he'll be fast."
