Remy Gardner is WorldSBK rookie debuting in 2023, after spending years in Moto2, in the end becoming a world champion, and then racing in MotoGP class for Tech3 KTM. Now, as a GYTR Yamaha rider, he revealed how did it feel to debut in a new series in front of a home crowd, how he is adapting to the bike and what are his goals now. Australian rider was interviewed by Julia Trusewicz in Misano before Emilia-Romagna Round in Italy.
How did it feel to debut in the WorldSBK in front of your home crowd at Phillip Island?
I think there was no better way to start the season. I needed to debut in a different series in front of my home crowd - it's a track that I really love as well - honestly, I really enjoyed myself and I don't think it could have been a better start.
So far, from Phillip Island, how was adapting to a new bike going for you?
I'm still learning, every time it's a new track with this bike, so everything's still quite fresh and new. I feel like every time I turn up to the races, we've got one more step of experience and understanding of the bike. Obviously, I'm still missing a little bit, but the other guys have been here for years now, the old dogs, and they know how everything works quite well - the level is really high, but I think step by step we're closing that gap.
After spending a year on a MotoGP bike, before on a Moto2 machine, how did you feel sitting on a WorldSBK bike? How different does it feel on the first moment when you go on a track?
Ergonomically it's very comfortable, you know - the seat's quite comfy, so the first time I rode it I was really surprised of how much fun it is. The bike moves a lot, spins a lot and it's kind of what I enjoy. I was surprised how much it moves, to be honest, and I'm still trying to get used to that, but I do enjoy it.
Is a difference in speed is quite significant?
In the speed I don't think so – I think it's more the power and braking as well. They don't brake as good as a GP bike, you know, with carbon brakes on a GP bike. For me I think probably power, but of course it is still not quite as fast as a GP bike.
Do you have a race you consider as the one you rode the best in? Maybe it was the race in Indonesia when you started last, and you got to the top 10, or a different one when you just felt you were comfortable on the bike?
I'm going to say race 2 in Assen - we came back from 12th to 6th, and we had really good pace as well. Unfortunately, we didn't have a really good qualifying and we lost too much time in the first opening laps. I felt like there I started to feel like: “Ok, we got some good speed here”. It's a shame that I got sick in Indonesia, you know - I think there we could have had a really good race as well, we could have maybe even fought for a podium, but, you know, it's what it is. There's always next year, isn't there? There's a lot more races to go and a lot more chances, so we just got to put everything together and hopefully we can be there step by step.
After that kind of tough year in MotoGP, especially at the end, how did you feel coming here to the new series with different bikes, different teams? Was it kind of a fresh start for you?
Yeah, definitely a fresh start - different bikes, different teams, like you said, different people. I did have a few opportunities to go back to Moto2, but, you know, I just felt like I'd already done what I needed to do in Moto2 - I'd won the championship, I'd been there four and a half years, so I wanted something new, a new challenge. I think it was a good fresh start for me, so honestly, I couldn't be happier with my decision.
You are doing quite well this season, as well as Dominique [Aegerter], so do you think this top independent spot is available to one of you? You are quite fast, even though Bassani is at the top, the differences are not that big, and you still have a great pace.
Honestly, as I said before, I'm not really looking at that right now. You know, my goal this year was just to come and enjoy myself, and I think we still have some work to do to understand everything. At the moment I'm just focusing on becoming faster, understanding the bike more, getting even better understanding with the team, and just going forward from there. Whatever comes from that will come from that, but at the moment my focus is just on improving.
Considering improvement you’ve made this season, what do you expect from this round in Misano? Do you feel comfortable coming here?
Yes, we had a good test - a bit strange conditions with some rain and dry, and grip levels were a bit strange, but honestly, I felt like we were not too bad, and I think we can make a good step here.
But don’t you think it's going to be different because of the conditions? Then it was colder, and there was rain, and now it's pretty hot?
Definitely, we're kind of expecting that for sure. I'm sure the grip level is not going to be what it was, so definitely expecting some different results than in the test. We need to see what happens, stay calm, and just work through the problems that come.
Then after Misano, there are some new tracks for you, for example Imola - it's a new track for you and many riders, so are you excited to go there? It's not a track that hosts motorcycles a lot?
Yes, Imola, also Donington is a new one for me. Most is not, because I have ridden at Most – I did a test there on Moto2 bike, and I did enjoy the track. I don't really remember too much, but I did remember how I enjoyed it. I see Imola as a bit of a special one, so I'm looking forward to it, I think it's going to be hard to get a track day there as they only open like 5 days a year. It is what it is, and I'm just going to go do my best.
World Superbike calendar is quite different to MotoGP one, there are longer breaks for you between the weekends, so do you find more time, for example, for your hobbies? What do you do during the breaks?
I don't think there's more time for my hobbies, but there's more time to train. I get to go home, that's for sure. More time I get to spend with my dog, and my family, and my girlfriend, so I can't complain, honestly, I'm quite happy, and I take advantage of the time at home, but definitely a lot of training going on still.
For the last question - week ago Toprak [Razgatlıoğlu] announced that he's moving to BMW, which means there is a place at factory Yamaha, so had it come to your mind that you may be able to move there if your results are quite good, or are you just focused on doing what you do?
I think, like I said before, at the moment I’m just focused on myself. I honestly haven't even thought about next year because I still think there's work to be done before even thinking about that. My focus is still on trying to improve myself with the superbike, and improve the package we have, and obviously the results. I think if we focus on that, all good things will come in the future.
