Zoom Randy de Puniet

Randy de Puniet and a number of other past and present World Championship participants took part in the “Barclaycard Superbikers” competition at the Bologna Motor Show over the weekend, but it was Giovanni Bussei who ultimately emerged victorious.

The Supermoto event comprised a qualification stage followed by two races, with riders such as De Puniet, Troy Bayliss, David Checa, Alex de Angelis, Hector Faubel, Alex Hofmann and Mattia Pasini cheered on by an enthusiastic Italian crowd.

In the first race French rider De Puniet ended up 18th after a slight crash when in fourth position, but in the second race he finished in sixth position after avoiding a dangerous crash which involved five riders.

The new Honda LCR team signing commented: “I enjoyed myself very much today and the support from the crowd was brilliant! I decided to come to the Motorshow again this year because the Supermoto racing is good for my winter training.”

“All the MotoGP riders understand how to control the slide of the bikes on the corners, but in the first race a rider in front me hit the crash barrier and the straw on the asphalt was very slippery, so I lost control and crashed. ”

“In the second race I was very fast and got sixth place, which was good for me. I like this competition even if sometimes it can be very dangerous for us. The crash in the second race was amazing.”

“Now I'll carry on with my winter training at home and will spend some free time with my family and friends before the next test session at Sepang next January.”

DORNA / CAPSIS International