It has been over four years since Leon Camier last stood on the WorldSBK podium, but since Silverstone 2013 the Englishman has been able to do something remarkable; rebuild his reputation without having the silverware to show for it.
Having raced for Aprilia and Suzuki following his 2009 British Superbike title success, Camier was left high and dry for 2014 and had to take on the role of super-sub for the season.
It must have been a humbling experience for Camier, but it has certianly made him a stronger and more rounded racer, and since joining MV Augusta in 2015 he been the focal point of their WorldSBK programme.
“The bike has evolved from when I first rode it,” said Camier. “It was not a very good race bike at the start and now it is really quite competitive.”
“A lot of that is down to the technicians that we have, and obviously from my feedback and being able to tell the team exactly what I want from a bike.
“I have to understand how the bike works, how the team works and how exact I have to be with my feedback. It’s not enough to say, ‘I need a smoother throttle.’ I have to be in depth about what’s going on and the knock on effect that any change can have on other parts of the bike too.
“When you’re developing a bike you need to look at everything, because we’re not testing regularly because of budget issues. That means that any time we can spend developing the bike has to be really focused.”
“I think that it’s really impressive what we’ve been able to achieve given the resources. One of the biggest reasons for how we’ve been able to move things forward is that we have the right people and they’re all motivated to make the progress.”
“We are working in the right direction and considering the budget that we have we’ve been able to make some really good progress.”
“We’ve made a massive step in absolutely every area since I first rode the MV in 2014. At the time, the biggest change that we have made since then is probably with the chassis and the weight distribution. At the time all of the weight was really high and at the front of the bike.”
“The bike was so soft that you couldn’t feel what the tires were doing, and since then we’ve been able to stiffen it up in all areas and compared to 2014 you couldn’t believe how different it is. Now the chassis is the strong point of the bike.”
The rider has also been noted as a real trump card for the team. Camier has seen his reputation go from strength to strength in the last two seasons as he developed the MV into a genuine front-running bike.
For the 31-year-old Englishman, the goal is to win races again, but reliability issues have consistently dogged his season, and until those problems are solved, it is hard to see MV Agusta being able to take the fight to the leading bikes on a weekly basis.
“Part of the issue is probably that the base of this engine is quite old. Tt has meant that they’re pushing it to the maximum to get as much power as possible out of it.”
“When you do that, you’re naturally at the limit of what it can do and that’s meant that it’s a struggle to make it reliable. If we could have this bike as fast and competitive as it is now, but also to have it reliable it would make a massive difference to us.”
“I was looking at the championship standings and a lot of the problems that we’ve had is that we’ve lost most Friday sessions through the first six rounds of the year and that put us on the back foot.”
“I’m sure that if we had reliability at that point, we’d be top five in the championship and quite close to fourth. There’s a lot of room for improvement from us and we can make some steps to make it more reliable.”
While there is pressure to make the package more reliable, there is very little external pressure on Camier. It is an almost polar opposite situation to what he found as an Aprilia rider.
Armed with the best bike on the grid, there was constant expectation that a win would come easily and that podiums would be there for the taking. In his current team Camier can simply keep his head down, work hard and try and find solutions.
While the pressures from others may be minimal, Camier says that it has not changed how he approaches racing.
“There’s been no pressure on me to do anything other than the pressure that I put on myself. It’s hard though for a rider because you can only do what you can with the material you have.”
“We all put the same pressure on ourselves, train as hard and work as hard to get the most from our bike. If that’s a bike that can win I’ve always put as much work in as if it’s a bike that you’re trying to make into a winner.”
“Personally motivation has never been an issue for me. I do this for myself and money or anything else has never been a motivator for me. I’m not doing this for anyone else, and I push to 100% for my goals.”
“It’s about working as a team and for people outside of the team if they don’t see the development of the bike there could be a variety of reasons why progress hasn’t been made.”
“It’s up to you and the team and if there’s issues that the public don’t see in the team the rider is still the front man of the team and you take that for good and of it.”
“That can be difficult for a rider, because maybe the issue is the people around him, but I’ve been lucky that in MV there’s been good people to work with. I can’t take the credit for the success that we’ve had because it’s been a real team effort from all of us.”
That team effort will also play a role in deciding where to ride for in 2018. Camier has been sought after by numerous teams, and Honda has made no secret of its desire to have him on the Fireblade.
Having proved his chops as a development rider, Camier would be seen as a missing piece for numerous teams in WorldSBK. Having spent 180 races in WorldSBK honing his craft, he is ready to win races and fight for titles.
“When I was in BSB, I was so successful and I came to WorldSBK knowing that I was quick enough to be competitive, but there was a lot of things that I had to learn when I came here.”
“I want to win and fight for a title, but to get to that point you need to learn from the negatives because they teach you a lot more than winning. I think it’s been good to learn the things that I have learned, and for sure I’m riding better than ever now, but I want the chance to win and progress in WorldSBK.”
“I feel that there’s more to come from the MV, but I don’t know if it can win consistently. The new rules for next year could help this bike a lot, and we can be on the podium a lot depending on how the rules will affect the other bikes.”
“I think that there’s a lot improvement to come from this bike, but I don’t know if it can be a consistent winner. It’s an old bike and we’ve developed it so much.”
“You need to make the best decision you can at any given time, and you can’t rely on what might happen in the future. Yamaha’s motto has been to bring up young riders, would Kawasaki be interested in me at the end of next year?”
“I don’t know the answers to those questions. Honda has had a very difficult year, but last year they were able to be on the podium and be quite competitive. They have potential and can make a lot of progress. I have to understand the good and bad of the situation.”
After retiring from a podium position in Race 2 at Magny-Cours, it will be interesting to see the influence it has on Camier’s upcoming decision.
Photos: Photo.GP, Steve English, & Jensen Beeler
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