David Braceras announced his new team for the 2024 season. After learning the ropes on his first MX2 World Championship campaign in 2023, the young Spaniard hopes to continue progressing with the SM Action Fantic Team.
It may be too early to set goals since the preseason has just begun now, but Braceras is clear that he must go step by step to make a jump straight at the front of the pack. World Championship and the Italian International rounds are in the plans, and there is a chance to see him again in the Spanish Motocross Championship, which would be great for everyone.
We spoke with Braceras about his new deal with Fantic, his goals, and more.
Tell us, how did the deal with Fantic come about?
It was made public in Milan and it was a rumor that came a couple of weeks ago, because people in the paddock, after all, this world is tiny and we heard about everything, and it was almost taken for granted. We contacted the factory, we reached an agreement, I tested the bike, I liked it and, from there, we started working towards next year.
Now that you have tested the bike, please explain to us what changes you felt compared to the Kawasaki.
I have tested the Fantic with the engine that we have right now which is a base for next year, and the truth is that I was quite surprised. The bike at the moment is a good base on which we have to improve some aspects, but the truth is that I’m very happy with where we are right now in terms of the engine. Also, in terms of chassis and suspension, it is very similar to the Kawasaki, so I have adapted very quickly to it and I am very happy and excited from the first day.
You move from the Netherlands to live where? Where are you going to stay?
Now I will live in Italy, near Bologna, and I will be training here in November and December. Maybe in December, we will go down to RedSand (Spain) and in January to Sardinia. That’s still not a hundred percent clear, but that’s the idea so far.
What are the team’s facilities like?
The facilities are pretty good, they have a workshop, like most of the World Championship teams that are staying here, and we also have another one in Holland, where we will go in February to train the tracks in the area.
Who will be your mechanic? What about the first days with all the new team members?
My mechanic at Fantic SM Action is called Christian. He was already working here last year. He is a very humble guy, a hard worker and I’m very happy to have the chance to work with him. As for the teammates, Kay (Karssemakers) I was training with him last year and I know him from training and so on; I don’t know Alexis (Fueri) as he hasn´t arrived yet at the team to train here, I think they will do it next week.
What have you started working on the bike setup? And what about you, what are your plans for the preseason? Physical training, training, pre-season races?
We have started to work on the set-up in terms of suspension, handlebars, and things like that to make the bike as comfortable as possible for me. And we have also some engine tests, and there are still quite a few things to test for next year in terms of engine because, in terms of suspension, I’m still working with Technical Touch, which is who I was working with all last year, so it’s KAYABA and they are the same people I was working in 2023, so it’s going to be very easy to set it up. As for the engine, well, the truth is that right now we are at a good point, we need to refine a couple of details, but between now and the first race we have a lot of time left. I believe that coming to the first race, with those details, I will have a very, very competitive bike.
As for the preseason, the idea is to stay in Italy for a month or so, and then go to RedSand maybe in December and maybe in January in Sardinia to race the Italian International. After that, we will prepare for the Argentina MXGP season opener and then back to Holland to do more tests. But I’m 100% sure I’ll do the two Italian Internationals rounds.
It will be your second full year in the MX2 World Championship. Could you give us a little review of the 2023 season? You had some tough moments, but also moments where you showed up at the front of the pack.
Last year I gained a lot, a lot of experience, I progressed a lot during the season, which motivated me a lot for this year. I had moments… at the beginning of the season it was a little bit difficult for me, because I came from a difficult preseason with a small ankle injury. From the middle of the season, after Locket, I progressed, I started to make top 10, I got my best result (7th in Sweden) I rode in the top 5 several rounds for a long time, the speed in the time practices was already good,…. Well, I finished the season very happy with my progression, I was getting closer and closer to the top times, and that was my goal. I also had in mind to finish in the top 10 and I achieved it, so, for next year, my goal is the same: to start there in the top 10, to be in those positions and to progress during the season to get as high as possible.
You had a very bad luck situation not being able to be in the Motocross of Nations this year. What happened and how did you recover from that hard blow of not being able to represent Spain?
The truth it was very hard not to be in the Nations, I mean it´s every child dream, and more with Rubén (Fernández) and Jorge (Prado) as teammates. With them you can think about winning and I think anyone on the planet would dream of being in a team like that. It wasn’t a very big injury, but enough seriously enough to not race at 100%, and that was surely going to slow the whole team down. Clearly Oriol was at one hundred percent, and since I was injured and he wasn’t, he had to go, because we had a very similar level. And that’s what I did, I honestly thought it was fair that he went and not me. It was a hard blow, but it is not the first time that something like this has happened to me in similar situations, and I have always recovered. You spend a few days a little touched, but then you go back to training, I get motivated again and again more than ever and that’s how I do it every time something like this happen. In this sport many times you receive blows that you don’t even expect, and there’s nothing left to do but get up and keep fighting. My motivation is extra for next year, specially to be in the Nations team in Matterley Basin.
