IN
THE
WIND
P30
WHAT OF GUINTOLI?
S
ylvain Guintoli, de-
spite being well
ahead of his Aprilia
teammate Marco Me-
landri in the World
Superbike Champion-
ship, has almost been
forgotten in the mael-
strom of other Aprilia
news of late. With
every passing day it
appears less likely
there will be an official
Aprilia team for him to
remain in next year so
he has been forced to
look at other options.
"I have been speak-
ing with almost every-
body, but I have got a
good vision of what is
going to happen," said
a rider who is now only
31 points behind Tom
Sykes with four-point
scoring races left. "I
am not able to confirm
anything to you even
regarding the Aprilia side."
Guintoli has not been included
as an option for Aprilia in MotoGP
and he is definite that he would
rather stay in World Superbike
anyway, because he knows he
can race there to win.
"I have tried to do the same
as I have tried in the last years
- I just want to be somewhere I
can win," the Frenchman said. "I
want to be surrounded by a team
and guys that can give me the
opportunity to win. MotoGP for
me is not an option, and I do not
want to do that. I want to race to
win."
At Jerez he was one of many
riders linked to a ride with the of-
ficial Honda team. And after Pata
opted to stay on board as the
sponsor of the Honda team and
with World Supersport Champi-
on Michael van der Mark already
signed, Guintoli's position to be
the other rider appears to be a
strong one.
There is also a per-
sonal link from the past.
"I have good memo-
ries with Pata because
when I parted ways
with Effenbert they put
something together that
was really good for me
and the first race we did
together I won in Silver-
stone," said Guintoli. "It
was their first race win
as well. They are a great
bunch of guys."
Guintoli should be a
good fit on an inline four
machine, having raced a
Suzuki in British Super-
bike and then in World
Superbike. He's already
proven that he can win
races on different types
of machines - like the
Ducati 1098R V-twin
and the Aprilia RSV4.
"This is one of the top rides
and for sure I have an interest
in it," said Guintoli about the
Pata Honda. "There is quite a
bit to consider as well because
with the new rules coming next
year, we might see some sur-
prises. Definitely one to consider
and I know they have confirmed
van der Mark, so they have one
young lad already."
Gordon Ritchie
Sylvain Guintoli to Honda?
It's a strong possibility.
PHOTOGRAPHY
BY
GOLD
&
GOOSE
