Walking around the pits at Misano during the Aprilia All Stars it was wonderful to admire so many bikes that have made the history of the Italian manufacturer. But history cannot be written without the men who made it possible and in the case of Aprilia it is very easy to immediately think of Marcellino Lucchi, a sort of Michele Pirro ante litteramthe tester who went as fast as the officials and who often during the race gave more than a stomach ache to drivers who were theoretically on another planet.
Marcellino was walking among these bikes in the pits at Misano when we met him, in particular he was admiring the last 500 from Noale, the one that brought Jeremy McWilliams to the race before Aprilia decided to stop this project and dedicate itself to the RS Cube, another motorcycle developed from Lucchi. As always very kind, it was a pleasure to have a chat with Marcellino, who retains that almost grim look, a mirror of a good but quite combative soul.
What can you tell me about this Aprilia 500?
“I would say that I know them very well. I didn’t do all the development with this 500, but I did two races with it because Doriano Romboni was injured and I must say that I remember both of them well. It was a really tough bike to ride, a motorbike that with the electronics we had at the time was really hard to ride, it always reared up, the horsepower it had was a lot for its weight. I would say that the electronics were not adequate, so whoever rode it was able to ride it strong, it was a nice handle.”
Of course the Cube wasn’t a little lamb in comparison…
“The RS Cube was difficult at the beginning. Aprilia was just at the beginning with the work on the electronics of a 4-stroke. There was a lot of power, but the delivery was very bad. It was much worse to ride than the 500. But little by little we began to smooth out certain aspects and secondly there was still a lot of room to work, but then the project was closed, because we know that at the time Aprilia was sold to Piaggio. But that experience we had with the Cube was then very useful for the V4 which became the basis for the RSV4, a winning bike. The experience that the technicians gained with that Cube was very useful in making the bikes that arrived later.”
Pirro is often talked about as the first fast tester of a House, but this record belongs to you.
“I arrived before Pirro, I would say. In my category, I was a tester who also bothered the officials a lot. I also won a Grand Prix, when I raced I was always fighting with the best in the category. A tester must be a driver fast, but also very sensitive. Back then, even the engineers relied much more on the sensations that you were able to convey to them. Today with the technology that exists, the rider must confirm what the electronics say and what they think the bike should do. But for me the fast and sensitive tester remains the most important thing.”
But have you ever regretted not trying to be a full-time pilot?
“I understood that I liked being a test rider much more than being the official rider of a big team, also because Aprilia often gave me the opportunity to do wild cards, or to replace injured riders and I always did my dirty figure. I also talked about it with Michele Pirro and Lorenzo Savadori, I told them that it is better to be test drivers in certain teams at a certain level for a lifetime, than being a pilot for a year or two and then staying on foot. Are you a good tester? Take advantage of this. Then even from the official riders when you make a bike that goes fast, you get recognition. It’s a great satisfaction, I’m very happy with what I’ve done and if you ask me today if I would have changed that career for one as an official rider perhaps I’ll tell you no.”
You once promised me that you would write a book about all the strange things you brought to the track. Do you keep this promise?
“I’d like that! A bit like Pernat did, right?”.
