After a tough season on a not-quite competitive bike in MotoAmerica, Loris Baz took the injured Chaz Davies’ regular ride to a third place WorldSBK podium at Portimao on Saturday.

Obviously with several top name crashes, including Alvaro Bautista right in front of him in the final corner of the final lap, there was some element of fortune at work but Baz was right in the off podium battle like he had never left WorldSBK at all. But did he think a podium was possible?

“You never really know because you never know what is the strategy for anyone,” Baz said on Saturday.

“I know I had a great pace yesterday, but you don’t know what they are doing. I know that Rinaldi didn’t put a new tyre in FP1, so you never know exactly. But I knew I had a great pace. I just made my life harder by missing my qualifying. [He was ninth on the grid]. But unfortunately I could expect that, with the new qualifying tyre it’s just so hard to use. It changed completely the bike, and I’m not used to this. I don’t like it. At the moment, I just hate this. It takes me five corners to get used to this. I think I would have been faster with the race tyre. But, I knew I had a great pace and I knew I could save my tyre pretty nice. So… just happy. That’s my holiday!”

Like Razgatlioglu and Redding sitting behind Rea - who fell on the same final T15 entry that Alvaro Bautista was to crash at right in front of Baz - the tall Frenchman had a ringside seat.

“Well, I was not looking at my pit board a lot and I didn’t know who was behind,” he said of Bautista’s fast fall. “I overtook him in the last lap. He passed again, but in the last five laps, every time he was in front he was losing the front everywhere. I could see the black ‘paint’ everywhere from the tyre. So, then he was in front. He was doing a good job closing the door, and I was just trying to be as close as I can so he can hear the engine.

“In the last three turns I was really, really close. The corner before he crashed, he closed the door a lot so he needs the exit. I think he went wide and he went wide in the last turn. Then he crashed. So, I did a good job by putting pressure on him. Could have been fourth and I would have been happy too, but the podium is fantastic. I threw a podium last year in the last turn, first lap, and I regained it this year. So, I’m happy.”
When they called Baz to ask him to come ride it, did he imagine the bike would be so competitive? Yes, but that is just one aspect, as Baz explained. “I knew the bike was competitive, but then you never know how well and how long it’s going to take to get used to the bike and the tyres, and if you can get used to this in two race weekends also.

“I didn’t expect honestly to be podium. Leaving US, we were talking. I was in the car with the boss there, and he said, ‘What do you think?’ He’s like, ‘I think a top nine would be good.’ I’m like, ‘Yeah, top seven, top nine. Maybe if I can get top independent in this six races would be good.’

“It’s the World Championship… Everyone is so fast and the pace is really high, especially at the end of the season. So, it’s not easy. Teams have been testing here. Not everyone, but a couple of teams. So, to show up and be on the pace, not easy. So, I’m super happy.”

The tyres have been the biggest thing for Baz to get used to racing in the US, and more importantly getting his Ducati to work on the stiffer Dunlops. “It’s superbike from 2019, so it’s an older spec but the bike is really strong,” said Baz. “Electronics are strong, it’s just not working with the tyres at the moment. We need development to make the tyres work on this bike. I saw this morning, opened Twitter when I wake up, and I see that everybody was complaining about the bumps in Austin, but Austin honestly is the best tarmac that we have in the US. I’ve been racing some proper motocross tracks!

“This Ducati is a real race bike that’s been a really stiff bike, and when you put the stiff Dunlop on it and you have to go through bumps, it’s a real nightmare. So, that’s the biggest difference. Here, for sure the bike is not perfect, but it works well.”