Andrea Locatelli “cannot understand” first WorldSBK victory in Assen Race 2

With two laps to go, Andrea Locatelli looked nailed on for second place in WorldSBK Race 2 at Assen, but just a few hundred metres after that penultimate lap started he was elevated to the lead, and just under two laps later he scored his first victory.

Locatelli’s victory was certainly fairly fortuitous with Nicolo Bulega retiring with two laps to go, but he was also almost four seconds clear of Alvaro Bautista by the time the chequered flag was waved.

“Honestly, it’s an amazing day,” said Locatelli, speaking to WorldSBK.com after his maiden World Superbike win.

“I cannot understand that it’s true, but I need to enjoy the moment.

“I have good memories here from 2021, it was my first podium, [now] my first victory, so it’s a [sign] maybe.

“We did an amazing job all weekend, we were strong in every situation; we were strong in the wet. So, [we will] keep pushing in this way and looking forward because we have many races [ahead].”

Locatelli is also optimistic that more wins can follow for him and Yamaha in the remaining races, having achieved one so early in the season.

“It’s just the first round, finally [my] first victory and third podium of the season,” he said.

“We need to push in this way and for sure we can get more.

“Now I just want to enjoy and reset a bit because I need to stop a bit now because I was working quite [hard] to be in this position, and relax a bit and keep fighting again because the next round will be Cremona and there I would like to be on the podium again, and maybe the victory also, in front of the Italian fans.”

The Italian was fortunate that his compatriot, Bulega, retired in front of him, but he explained that he was not sure what was happening when Bulega slowed.

“He was pushing hard and he got a big gap, so in the last couple of laps he had a technical problem and he stopped the bike,” he said.

“[My first thought] was that he took the chequered flag so I was also scared because I didn’t see the chequered flag so I was pushing, and in the end we get the first victory.

“But I’m happy because [I was] fighting with all competitors, we recover from P4 to P2, I was pushing harder and I get confidence lap-by-lap, and in the end we did an amazing job.”