Michael Rinaldi: ‘Someone proposed a contract to me without a salary’

With his future soon to be sorted, Rinaldi has already confirmed offers to sign him from the factory Ducati team have been made.

Rinaldi is expected to seal a move to either Motocorsa Ducati or Team HRC, depending on what Marc Marquez does in MotoGP.

• Rea: ‘I saw my last chance to win with Kawasaki’ at Portimao 
• Toprak Razgatlioglu: ‘Everyone knows Ducati is the best bike, but BMW has more speed…’

A rider of Rinaldi’s talent should unquestionably be on the Superbike grid as he’s the only rider other than Alvaro Bautista, Jonathan Rea and Toprak Razgatlioglu to have won a race this season. 

Speaking about his future and whether team orders were also discussed at Portimao, Rinaldi said: “No, not at all. They said to me you can win if you want! 

“We are not in the last race and the points between Alvaro and Toprak aren't big. You can't pass your teammate like crazy but it’s always like that. 

“I'd like to find a good solution for my future. It's strange that for a rider who scored podiums – nine this season - and the only rider to get a win in two years except the top three, someone proposed to me a bike but without a salary. 

“The mechanic gets a salary but I don't. I don't want a million euros like some riders or something crazy but at 27, with my results, I must have something that respects me. 

“Let's see if I find a good deal, I'll race again next season and if not, then I don't. Maybe these will be the last races of my career.” 

Locatelli says Yamaha must close the gap to Ducati

One of the biggest talking points from Portimao was Ducati’s top speed advantage over Yamaha, which was the difference between Bautista winning all three races and Razgatlioglu falling short.

Behind the top two in the standings were Rinaldi, Garrett Gerloff and Andrea Locatelli, with the latter able to see first hand where Ducati were making the difference.

“We have a good bike and we try to be strong and recover in the corner,” began Locatelli. “It’s the one place where we can because in the straight we lose; It’s clear when we watch it on the TV. 

“We need to work and be faster in the corners to close the gap. This is my approach. 

“It’s important here too because onto the straight, we have the rise and for sure, the bikes without wings don’t push down and we then lose speed between the finish line until the braking.”

Locatelli returned to the podium with third in the Superpole Race, although he failed to replicate that position in Race 2 as Rinaldi and Gerloff got the better of him.

Still, Locatelli was pleased with his weekend overall: “It was an amazing Superpole Race. We finished in P3, and we started there again for Race 2. 

“It was a strange weekend to start last from Race 1. I lost the opportunity to understand the bike very well. 

“Race 2 was a little bit more difficult. Some points were a bit difficult, especially on the front after ten laps. In the end, it’s a positive weekend. 

“No mistakes, we got some points, and we were fast in Superpole. We need to improve the feeling a little bit, especially at the front, but I think we can say it’s another good weekend."