Waters in the flow
By TMX Archives on 28th Feb 14
GP newcomer Australian Todd Waters ventured to Hawkstone Park to experience one last European circuit before the start of the 2014 GP season.With his feet having barely touched the ground since landing in Europe in the New Year, Todd has embarked on a whistle-stop European tour. Waters completed his busy pre-GP programme in Britain.
TMX: Firstly how have you liked racing at Hawkstone Park – one of the most iconic tracks in Europe?
Waters: It's been really cool. I got a little excited in the opening moto and thought I could win the race on lap three. I felt great, moved forwards, and then started making mistakes. I ended up having a pretty good crash, which put me out of that race.
I settled down after that, and enjoyed the day. It's a pretty brutal track in places, but I was pleased with the way everything went.
We've done some great testing and raced four very different types of tracks in the last four weeks, which is exactly what I needed.
TMX: You've been incredibly busy since arriving in Europe, how have the last few months with the Ice1 Husqvarna camp been?
Waters: It's been incredible since I landed in Europe. I started testing the day after I arrived from Australia, and I don't feel like we've stopped racing, testing and travelling since.
We started in Spain, then went back to Belgium and then to our team photo-shoot, more testing, and our first race in Sardinia.
After that it was off to Sicily, back to Northern Italy, and now to Hawkstone in the UK. We've been all over the place. I've loved it – it's been important for me to get stuck into racing over here.
TMX: How have you been getting on with Antti Pyrhonen – the Ice1 team manager – and the team?
Waters: They've all been incredibly welcoming. I've been getting on well with everyone and to have a really experienced team manager like Antti is great. He runs a really tight ship but he's also been there and done it, so he's able to offer some great advice.
It's reassuring to know that I have someone behind me that's done well in GPs and is really focused on always improving things. He has a wealth of experience, and knows what it's like as a rider.
Everything is so well organised, it feels like everything is checked and double checked, which is very reassuring.
TMX: You've seen and experienced a lot in a relatively short period of time. Is living and racing in Europe like you expected?
Waters: I didn't try to work out what being in Europe full-time would be like. Of course I knew that the riders would be fast, and that it would probably be very different from living in Australia.
There are so many things that are different to home, but that's part of what our pre-GP programme has been about – getting used to everything. Racing is racing, but living in another country is always different to what you know.
In some ways it's a shock, especially the different languages. In Australia we can drive for two days to a race and once we we're there everything is the same as when we left home. In Europe everything changes, which is cool, but it's taking some getting used to.
TMX: Were you able to get any advice on how best to adjust to living in a new place with new people around you?
Waters: I spent a bit of time talking with Ben Townley before I came over here. Obviously Ben's lived in Europe and has been hugely successful racing away from his home. It was great to bounce some ideas off him.
His advice was just to go with the flow and enjoy it. I'm really enjoying the fact that so much is different to back home.
Getting the opportunity to try different foods, meet different people, getting to see all the great buildings. It's made me realise just how young a country Australia is.
TMX: Finally, this weekend is the start of the World Championship. What is Todd Waters expecting from the Qatar GP?
Waters: It's the start of a new chapter in my career. I'm looking forward to flying the flag for Australia and Husqvarna, learning, and as the series unfolds showing people what I'm capable of.
I know that it's going to take a little time to get to where I really feel like I'm comfortable racing the GPs.
Chad Reed struggled to qualify for GPs early in his career, but by the end of that year he was a top-three rider. I'm just focusing on myself, and not making any unrealistic expectations.
