Former 250GP and World Supersport ace Wilco Zeelenberg is best known these days as Yamaha's key man watching over defending world champion Jorge Lorenzo.
Media Release
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Posted March 24, 2011
Gerno di Lesmo (ITA)
Yamaha Factory Racing's Jorge Lorenzo and Team Manager Wilco Zeelenberg (Photo: Yamaha Racing)
Yamaha Factory Racing Team Manager Wilco Zeelenberg settles in to the 2011 racing season for his second year with the team. The ex-GP rider from The Netherlands reflects on his role as a troubleshooter for Lorenzo’s side of the Yamaha pit garage and shares the advantages an ex-rider brings to his role….
How does it feel to be settling into your second season with the team?
It’s a big change compared to last year. When you start your first season everything has to be worked out a little bit, you have to get to know each other a little bit better. Finally after a season like 2010 you build up a very good relationship with the rider and with the team. You share lot of good moments together that builds up your bond. The start of 2011 wasn’t easy I have to admit, we knew each other very well as a team but we were a bit worried about the level of the competition so it wasn’t an easy start.
How different was you role when you started last year compared to previously as manager in the Yamaha World Supersport Team?
It was very different. I’d talked with Yamaha Motor Racing’s Managing Director Lin Jarvis about what my role was; to make more of a team out of Jorge’s side of the garage. Valentino Rossi was on the other side and he had his crew sorted really well, the right side of the garage was more difficult, we have different strong characters, and after the previous team manager left, that was also big struggle for the rest of the team so we needed to fit in where we were missing strength. I have to admit it wasn’t easy but I think we managed quite well last year to keep everybody in their own roles with their strong characters but fitting along with the rider and team set up in line with the structure of Yamaha.
What is the focus of your role?
That varies; the first priority of course is to get the guys working in their positions as soon as possible at the weekend. Ramon Forcada is great, I don’t have to worry too much about this as he has lots of experience. I ask him sometimes about the status and set up but he always has a good plan. I like to keep my finger on the pulse from that point of view. As soon as the rider rings a bell about an issue I highlight it but when they are all talking the same thing and I can see on the track that they are right then I leave it up to the crew chief. As soon as I sense difficulties I start to interact in the communication. Normally I try to keep away from that and keep to listening as they are very professional and are usually in the right direction.
