Miguel Praia is back in the Supersport World Championship, but is only guaranteed to participate in two races – the Nurburgring, Germany, held last weekend, and the Autódromo do Algarve, scheduled for next weekend.
But the Algarve driver does not lower his arms and promises to fight «for the best possible classification», in the «top five», at the Portimão circuit, driving his Honda CBR 600 RR “Fireblade”. "I know this circuit like no one else," he stressed, in an interview with Sul Informação, this Thursday, at Boxe 0 do Autódromo, where Miguel presented his sporting project for this race.
The main obstacle for the Portuguese driver to return «in full time» to the World Supersport Championship are not even his performances, since being in the top 10 is nothing new for Miguel Praia. The problem is “emerging countries”. Miguel explains: «the pilots from emerging countries bring cash to the teams, which, sometimes, is much more important for the teams to maintain themselves than the results themselves». And as in Portugal “live money” is rare…
Even so, in order for him to be able to return to the World Supersport circuit in 2013, Miguel Praia guarantees that he already has «contacts for foreign support».
For now, on the weekend of September 21st to 23rd, at his well-known Autódromo Internacional do Algarve, Miguel's goal is to «make a good result, among the top five, which could put me back on the route of the Championship of the World".
For that, after having been out of action for many months, after the end of his team, the Algarve Parkalgar, and therefore having lost competitive rhythm, Miguel Praia reveals that he has been «working daily for the last two months». “I sat at a desk for a year, while the other drivers have eleven races and a very intense championship”. But at the Nurburgring, last weekend, where he was 17th, after a long absence of months, you could see that the Algarve is there for the curves.
In his return to the Supersport World Championship, Miguel Praia is part of the Bogdanka PTR Honda structure. "It's a team with world scrolls, with seven titles", underlined the pilot. Miguel revealed that, for his return, which culminated in a "long relationship", he had as "an ally a partner who has been a great support, Honda Portugal".
Despite all the «limitations of those who have been stopped for so long», his personal goal is then to achieve the best possible result in the race at the Autodromo do Algarve, among the top five. “At Silverstone I reached the 6th best place and was six seconds from the podium”, he recalled.
"I know it's a high ambition due to the break, but I know the team can help me a lot in this process and I really want to beat my best result on this circuit, which was an 8th place", he explained.
On the Algarve circuit, Miguel Praia has an additional incentive: he will be running among his audience, among his most direct and loyal fans. “For me, as a rider, it gives me great satisfaction, although it is also a great responsibility. But the spectators also know that they will have a Portuguese here that they can root for on the bench».
Even with no guarantees that he will be back in 2013, Miguel Praia says that his return, through Bogdanka PTR Honda, is «at least a step forward» in that goal.
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