The MIE Racing Honda team is Jerez-bound for WorldSBK round ten
The MIE Racing Honda Team and rider Leandro ‘Tati’ Mercado head straight into the second of three back-to-back WorldSBK rounds, traveling straight from Barcelona to southern Spain, and the Circuito de Jerez – Ángel Nieto, for round ten of the championship.
During the Catalunya race weekend, Mercado scored a strong tenth-place finish in what turned out to be a very short Superpole race made up of just five laps. He also finished in the points zone in the second of the weekend’s Superbike races. With no down time, team and rider must now immediately turn their attentions to another technical Spanish circuit. 4423 metres in length, the layout incorporates thirteen turns, five left-handers and eight right-handers. The Jerez circuit was inaugurated in 1985 and has hosted all manner of events over the years, including the Superbikes ever since 2013. Last year’s Jerez championship round saw the Argentinian score a best of fifteenth in the second of the weekend’s races, a result he hopes to be able to improve upon this time around at a track the rider enjoys.
Track Information:
Country: Spain
Name: Circuito de Jerez – Ángel Nieto
Length: 4.423 km
Pole position: right
Turns: 5 left, 8 right
SBK RECORDS: Best lap – Bautista (Ducati) 1’39.004 (2019). Superpole – Rea (Kawasaki) 1’38.247 (2017).
2020 SBK RESULTS: Race 1 – 1. Redding (Ducati); 2. Rea (Kawasaki); 3. Razgatlioglu (Yamaha). Race 2 – 1. Redding (Ducati); 2. Davies (Ducati); 3. Razgatlioglu (Yamaha).
Private: Leandro Mercado 36
“Jerez is a track that I like and that I have always felt comfortable riding. I think the test we completed a few weeks ago will help us because we can start with a good base. Hopefully we can improve the rear grip, which is important in order to preserve the tyres for the second half of the race. Jerez is a track that asks a lot of the tyres, with a lot of acceleration while the bike is at an angle. I am confident and want to keep improving and fully exploit our package.”
