Between the Races: Davide Brivio
March 22, 2006
By CJ
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As the MotoGP circus gets situated in Jerez, Spain, for this weekend’s opening round, Davide Brivio is hoping the 2006 season goes as well for his team as did 2005. As the team manager for Camel Yamaha, Brivio oversees the efforts of champ Valentino Rossi and Colin Edwards, and he knows the squad has a big target on its collective back. We spoke with the Italian a couple of weeks ago in the Camel Yamaha hospitality center at the IRTA test in Barcelona.

RRX: Do you feel at home yet in your new colors yet?
Davide Brivio: Well, with all the testing we’ve done in these colors, we’ve kind of gotten used to it, so yes, we’re at home in yellow.

Davide Brivio is the main man at Camel Yamaha. CJ photo

Do you like the new look?
Yes. When we first used it in January, we prepared the bikes quickly, so we pretty much used the classic Camel look. Then, however, we wanted to do something different with our bikes. It’s very difficult to have new ideas when the color has to be all yellow, and the Camel logo must go in certain, predefined places. That’s how we decided to have a few stripes, which is in line with our tradition over the past couple of years, as well as the idea of a kind of number plate, which calls to mind the ‘60s. I think it’s nice. This is only the beginning. Later, you’ll different things with the numbers and stickers. I think it’s a characteristic of our project. People like the bike’s new design; let’s hope it also goes fast! [laughs]

Do you feel like you’re ready for the season to start?
Ready, no, but the winter tests went pretty well. We have a new bike, but it’s an evolution, not a revolution. It’s improved, so it goes better. Michelin also did a great job with the tires, but the new Michelins still have some problems marrying with the new bike. Now we’re trying to work to improve this combination between bike and tire. But both the bike and the tires are improved with respect to 2005; we only have to make the package work well. We’re working a lot on that problem.

Are you referring at all to the 16-inch tire?
No, no, the tires are still 16-and-a-halfs, but they have other differences. We’re at a good point. The tire is better, it lasts longer, and the lap times are also better. There’s some vibration and chattering that’s disturbing the riders, so we have to try to reduce that as much as possible.

Compared to some of the other teams, the off-season seems to have gone very smoothly for Yamaha.
I think it’s because we worked with a lot of tranquility and calm, because first of all, our bike is an evolution of the one it’s replacing. Therefore, we know it and there aren’t any big changes. Above all, though, our riders are very mature, fast, smart, and talented in developing bikes, so we’re able to take a good direction. Only by racing, though, will we know for sure if we’ve done a good job. In the first races, we’ll know, but both Valentino and Colin say they appreciate the changes and improvements to this bike. Colin really likes the bike, and he’s very happy, so I’m very curious to see him racing. I believe he could make a big improvement with respect to last year. I’m really looking forward to see him race.

I know he has worked on changing his riding, not braking as hard and carrying more corner speed.
Yes, he understood that in some situations, modifying his riding style a little might help him go faster. So he’s working at adapting, to better take advantage of the bike. I think this is one of the great strengths and characteristics of Valentino—to be able to quickly adapt to what he’s using. If Colin can also manage to do this—and I think he can—he’ll be able to get even faster. It’s very interesting to see.

Beginning this weekend, Brivio and his team will be defending their MotoGP crown. CJ photo

Why is it that this “250 style” seems to work better in MotoGP than the superbike style?
I think it depends a lot on the bike. Our bike has very good handling; Yamaha is known for its good-handling motorcycles, so it’s good at carrying speed in corners. We were also able to make the motor smooth, which also helps with corner speed. If you’re to ride more smoothly, like a 250 rider, you’ll be better able to take advantage of the bike’s strength. Maybe another bike would call for another style, but Colin’s efforts to change his style to suit the bike is an intelligent approach. I’m happy to see him make that effort.

Valentino has been spending more time in the Ferrari Formula One car. Has this affected his preparation for the new MotoGP season at all?
So far, I have to say that it hasn’t been a problem at all. Actually, I’ll even say that I may never have seen him so on-form. During the winter tests, he has always remained very concentrated, very effective, very fast. The work has gone very well, and he has done well in his tests despite everything, so I don’t think the fact that he has been doing other tests has hurt him at all.

Would it be going too far to say that it has helped him?
I don’t know. Valentino says they’re two completely different sports. It’s like playing soccer and basketball—two different things. One doesn’t really seem to have anything to do with the other, but I see that he’s very focused and fast on the bike. I don’t expect any problem.

What’s your take on the number of sponsors that seem to be leaving MotoGP?
In the end, MotoGP lost a couple of sponsors, but not because the championship isn’t successful, because it lost part of its audience, or because spectator attendance is down. It was due to other problems, other things, maybe something connected to a rider who changed his mind or had problems with his team—political, external factors. Actually, a new sponsor arrived, with Suzuki, and we saw that Camel immediately found a way to remain in the series. Anyway, the championship is healthy and functions well. Maybe we should all—the factories, Dorna, IRTA, the teams—work together to find a way to reduce the costs of the bikes. We should also work to become more commercial, more sales-oriented, to better take advantage of our product, which I think is very valid. It’s a valid product because MotoGP has a strong following, a big audience, a lot of potential. Maybe we’re not doing a good enough job of taking advantage of that. We need only to work harder to improve our marketing.

Brivio says Valentino Rossi is as focused as he's ever seen him. Andrew Northcott photo

In 2007, we’ll have a new 800cc displacement rule. What’s your opinion on that?
The change was made in hopes of improving safety—to make the bikes safer and not let the development of the bikes take them to a point in the future where they became uncontrollable. I don’t know, we’ll have to see in the future if we’ve managed to achieve our objective with the 800s. I think, though, that in just a few years—and maybe just one year—the performance will be the same as our current bikes. But we’ll have to see. If that’s the case, maybe we’ll have to think of some other measure to control the performance. But I have to say that for now, the performance of the 990s is under the control of the riders. Until now, even though there are obviously crashes, everything is more or less normal. Let’s hope that it continues like this. But the 800 is an attempt to control the performance of the bike. We’ll start with this and see if it works.

Will it have a negative effect on the costs?
I think that the management costs should be more or less the same, because it’s still a four-stroke engine. In the beginning, there will be a certain rise in costs, because obviously, all of the manufacturers will be forced to produce new motors, which brings an added cost. Going into 2005, Yamaha already made an engine that was almost completely new. Now we’ll make a new one for 2007, and these are important costs. It’s a system that raises the costs when a company hadn’t planned to make a new motor, and they’re forced to do so. But I think that the management costs will be about the same.

Do you think the character of the sport will change at all?
I believe it will stay more or less the same. In my opinion, the big change came in passing from two-strokes to four-strokes. That was a big change of mentality and approach, because it opened some big development possibilities for the engineers. Anyway, changing from 990 to 800 won’t change anything from that point of view.

According to Brivio, Colin Edwards has done a good job of adapting his style to the new M1. Andrew Northcott photo

What riders are you most concerned with as we head into the new season?
There are different names. There are young riders, but some of them are also experienced. For example, Loris Capirossi is an important, difficult adversary. Obviously, it will depend partly on his tires and his situation. That’s also true of Gibernau; it will depend a lot on the performance of Bridgestone. For the young riders, Melandri and Hayden were race winners in 2005, so they can still win races. I also think we’ll see Pedrosa being competitive immediately—surely on the podium this year. These are the most important names. Obviously, we have a couple of very good riders, and I expect to see Valentino and Colin in the top group.