Kiwi team looking forward to Sonoma

Australian Alex Phillis is coming into the Sonoma round of the MotoAmerica Supersport series confident of a good showing on the Helicraft Racing MV Agusta 675 F3.

“We really had a tough US debut at Laguna Seca and all the team is fired up for this weekend,” says Phillis, who is flying in from his home in Melbourne.

“I know what I’m capable of and the team is determined we post some good results.”

Owner of the New Zealand-based team Rod Price, who has shipped the MV from his race shop in Wanaka, believes Sonoma is an opportunity to show the potential of rider, bike and crew.

“We jumped in at the deep end at Laguna. We knew it was going to be a real challenge. And it was!

“It was all new. Track, tires, gearing, schedule. Even the engine. And we got less than 20 laps of practice to decide a race setting.”

But Price is not one for making excuses.

“We learned lots. Alex’s 13th place was hard-earned, but we’re capable of much better.

“Sonoma is shaping as a different proposition.

“And with more set-up time, I’d like to think we’ll be a lot nearer the sharp end of the grid at the end of qualifying,” Price says.

“As this will probably be our last race in the US this year, we’re all keen to finish on a high.”

Price would particularly like to thank “our man on the ground in San Francisco Clint Simpson” and team technicians David “Radar” Cullen and Phil Purdue, plus MV Agusta US and Motul US.

“And, finally, a huge thank-you, too, to all at MotoAmerica who have been so helpful and made us feel welcome, and to all our new friends in the MA paddock.”