Alessandro Di Mario's diary: "It's time for the Daytona 200—what a captivating debut!

At last, things are getting serious. This is the week that culminates with the Daytona 200, the most important motorcycle race in America. For my debut in the Supersport category, there couldn’t be a more demanding, yet fascinating challenge. Before arriving at Daytona, I took part in two days of testing with Dunlop tires.

For Dunlop-shod riders, Daytona week starts the Monday before the race with a tire test at the Roebling Road circuit in the state of Georgia. I say “Dunlop-shod riders” because, although Dunlop is the sole supplier for MotoAmerica, up until last year—when the 200 Miles didn’t award points for the Supersport championship—you could still race with tires from different brands. These tests are the first common meeting point for all the big MotoAmerica teams. In addition to our Ducati Panigale V2s, there are also the ones from the Celtic/WarHorse team. This year, their lead rider is former Grand Prix racer Darryn Binder. He will definitely be a tough nut for all of us to crack.

I’ll tell you right away that since the bikes didn’t have transponders, I can only have a general idea of who was more or less quick, but I don’t have official data. Monday, March 1st, the first test day, I finally got my first mild, sunny day of the season. This time, unlike previous tests, I know the track well and I’m immediately fast, matching the pace of my teammates.

Roebling is a completely different circuit from the “Podium Club” in Arizona, where we previously tested (here’s my diary). It has only one true braking zone and medium-fast, flowing corners without sudden direction changes, so stability is preferred over agility. The track suits my riding style fairly well, since my strong point is smoothness.

We spend the day working in that direction until, at the end of the day, I make a rookie mistake: after the checkered flag at the end of the session, I get distracted and, to avoid rear-ending my teammate Kayla (Yakov), I grab the brakes and trigger a low-side, luckily with minimal consequences. The bike had a broken clip-on and a right-side footpeg that were replaced, plus a few scratches on the fairing. The day ends amid my embarrassment and the mechanics’ laughter.

There isn’t much to report on the second day. In the morning we stay in the garage—or rather under the tent—because the humidity makes it impossible to work normally. I’ll take the chance to share a curiosity that might seem strange to Europeans: in the United States, for both bikes and cars, pit garages aren’t really used. Even the best circuits, like Daytona, don’t have pit boxes. And when they do exist, they’re located far from the pit lane and are used only for work on the bike or car. During races, the mechanics instead operate under tents set up along the pit lane’s opposite trackside, usually separated from the paddock and the public by just a fence.

In the afternoon we do only two outings, without even attempting a time attack to avoid risks with the humidity, which is still significant. Then we get ready to leave for Daytona, just a 3-hour drive away. Since I’ve been living in the United States, I’ve gotten used to very long transfers—this was little more than a short spin. The 200 Miles has an incredible allure for the most experienced and savvy riders—let alone for me, who’ve never done it and will race it as my first race with the Ducati Supersport. I can’t wait to be there and to tell you all about the incredible charm of this race.