American rookie Garrett Gerloff had his second European WorldSBK test outing at Jerez when he rode with the bulk of his new peer group after having ridden at Motorland Aragon a few days earlier.
The Texan, twice an American Supersport Champion, is still taking stock of his new situation, as he placed 14th from the 15 Superbike riders at Jerez.
“The biggest thing is that this track is simple, compared to Aragon, but it is hard to actually put everything together and do a good time,” Gerloff told bikesportnews.com.
“I have been struggling a little bit to find places to make up time, but the R1 is working really well and we have been trying a lot of different things. We are still trying to figure out that base setting that we are going to try to use at all the tracks. We are still kind of experimenting right now.
All in all, I am fairly happy. I have been a lot more consistent this test than last time at Aragon, so that is something I am happy about. I am having fun and Jerez is a super-fun track and the bike is working good, so we’re just trying to make steps forward.”
Like his team-mate Federico Caricasulo and to some extent even the factory pairing of Michael van der Mark and Toprak Razgatlioglu, Gerloff is on a 2019 bike, and until further notice, it seems.
“Our bike is basically 2019, but hopefully I can get some good results and maybe convince them to give me some 2020 parts,” said Gerloff.
He also feels the more track time the better for him right now, especially as his next test is scheduled for Jerez again. “I am glad that we are going to be able to come back here in January to be able to do another two days. I think that will be a big help, but so far, so good.”
Making the Atlantic crossing for most rounds of WorldSBK, he is hoping to relocate to Spain, ideally to Catalunya.
“My plan is to be around the Barcelona area,” he confirmed. “There are a lot of riders around there and I think it would be really good to train with those guys and have other rider friends to make me feel a little bit more comfortable, like I am at home.
"The only thing is that I have to figure out the whole red tape stuff, and the visa thing. So I am still working on that. If everything goes to plan, I will be in Spain, yes.”
