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Records shattered as a ninth straight win for Bautista delivers Ducati 350th
WorldSBK win, ahead of Rea and
Davies
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The
final WorldSBK race of the weekend continued to provide action and entertainment
from lap one, with hard passes and an exciting battle taking place. Out in the
lead of the race once more, Alvaro Bautista took his ninth consecutive race win
to equal 2003 WorldSBK champion Neil Hodgson in winning the opening nine races
of the season, as well as giving Ducati their 350th WorldSBK
win.
Bautista took the advantage from pole position, seeing-off Jonathan
Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) into Turn 1. For the first time in the
weekend in the blue-riband class, everyone made their way through the opening
corners safely and without drama. Chaz Davies was an early improver and up to
third place, whilst Alex Lowes was a strong fourth despite dropping back. Tom
Sykes wasn’t the fastest starter and dropped back, allowing a rapid-starting
Jordi Torres (Team Pedercini Racing) and Eugene Laverty (Team Goeleven) to get
in close proximity.
A move made by Davies at Turn 7 on lap two to get
ahead of Rea and pushed the reigning four-time champion back into the jaws of
the chasing pack. An action-packed second lap saw passes galore, with Tom Sykes
making an error at Turn 12 and seeing Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Racing Team) and
Jordi Torres pass through – Torres now sixth from eighth on the grid, one of the
strongest showings in WorldSBK by the Team Pedercini Racing
Kawasaki.
Alex Lowes was starting his comeback through the order, up to
third position at Turn 1, ahead of Rea, who was starting to look vulnerable. Rea
was now down in fourth and his teammate, Leon Haslam, was closing him down too.
Behind this squabble over second position, Eugene Laverty was closing too,
having disposed of Spanish home-hero Torres.
On lap eight, Davies began
to pull away and put some distance in between himself and Lowes. Rea ran wide
and took teammate Haslam with him; the Kawasaki riders were not looking like
they were going to be able to mount a podium challenge. Lowes challenged Davies
but was not able to make a pass. Further down the order, Toprak Razgatlioglu
(Turkish Puccetti Racing) retired.
With Laverty dropping back from the
battle for second and not able to initiate a challenge for the podium, Rea was
starting his own resurgence, passing Lowes at Turn 7 but Lowes was able to get
back ahead at Turn 8. Rea eventually made the move stick at Turn 12, dispatching
of Lowes and soon setting off after Davies, who was escaping. Two laps later,
and Haslam made his way passed Lowes at Turn 1, pursuing his teammate and Davies
in second. Lowes would remain in fifth, firmly planted and on his way to a tenth
consecutive top five placing.
Whilst Rea looked set for a guaranteed
podium, teammate Haslam had other ideas and got ahead of the Ulsterman, taking
over as the leader in the Kawasaki challenge. A lap later, and Rea repaid the
compliment in identical fashion.
The penultimate lap beckoned, and it was
Rea and Davies who renewed their rivalry. Rea put his trademark passing move on
Davies at Turn 4, slicing under the Welshman, only for the 2011 WorldSSP
champion to fight back at Turn 5. Leon Haslam, after initially being dropped by
half-a-second, was now right back in the battle for the podium; something he
hadn’t stood on since Race 2 at Phillip Island.
On the final lap, a
mistake by Davies at Turn 1 allowed Rea to come straight through and put in the
lap of his life to put distance into Davies. Haslam wasn’t able to capitalise on
the mistake by Davies and whilst Davies was coming back towards Rea into the
final corner, there was nothing he could do to get ahead.
Bautista took
the win, ahead of Rea by another huge margin; the ninth time that those two have
finished in that order in 2019. Davies completed the podium for the second time
at the Motocard Aragon Round, whilst Haslam and Lowes completed the top five.
Laverty took sixth, ahead of Jordi Torres – taking his fourth consecutive top
ten finish for the first time since 2017, during Race 2 and Portimao. Michael
van der Mark completed his weekend with an eighth place, ahead of Michael Ruben
Rinaldi (BARNI Racing Team) and Sandro Cortese (GRT Yamaha
WorldSBK).
Marco Melandri (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) was a dejected
11th, with Sykes right behind, having faded mid-race. Leon Camier
(Moriwaki Althea Honda Team) and teammate Kiyonari were 13th and
14th respectively, whilst Markus Reiterberger (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK
Team) finally finished at MotorLand Aragon, with
15th.
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P1 - Alvaro Bautista (ARUBA.IT Racing -
Ducati)
"It has been a very special weekend for me, winning the
three races in front of my fans! I enjoyed a lot the weekend. It was special for
me here in Spain. Now we go to Assen, a race track which is different from this
and where the weather changes so fast. It will be also my first time with the
new bike, but we go there very confident and I can't wait to be on the bike
again."
P2 - Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team
WorldSBK)
"Today going for second has gone a little more difficult.
There were different riders with a strong pace and even my teammate Leon was in
the fight as well. It was a nice battle. Unfortunately, again too far from
Alvaro. So our target changes a little bit. We have to forget a bit about
winning races and focus to just try to bridge that gap. Now we go to Assen,
which is a race track where I really enjoy racing. I look forward to
that!"
P3 - Chaz Davies (ARUBA.IT Racing -
Ducati)
"Repeating the result from yesterday is great. I was hoping
to go one better today and I had the opportunity to do that but I just made a
mistake in the final lap into T1. Actually, the mistake comes from the last
corner. I missed the back shift, went into the first corner without a lot of
speed. I tried to defend but I opened the door for Johnny and made the life a
little bit easier for him. But I am happy about the podium and I hope to repeat
this next week". |
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Championship Standings after Race 2, Round
3
1. Alvaro Bautista (ESP) Ducati (186
points)
2. Jonathan Rea (GBR)
Kawasaki (147 points)
3. Alex Lowes (GBR)
Yamaha (100 points)
Full
Championship Standings
For more information in more languages head to WorldSBK.com
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WorldSSP: Krummenacher wins
WorldSSP thriller at MotorLand Aragon
Swiss rider extended
his lead in the title race, but De Rosa and Caricasulo weren’t giving up without
a big fight |
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The
FIM Supersport World Championship saw an intriguing race in the first part of
the 16-lap encounter, before a traditional fairing-bashing battle took place in
the final part of the race. Eventually, it was Randy Krummenacher (BARDAHL Evan
Bros. WorldSSP Team) who took the win to extend his championship lead at the top
of the WorldSSP title race!
Starting well from pole position, 22-year-old
Austrian Thomas Gradinger couldn’t fend off a courageous Federico Caricasulo
(BARDAHL Evan Bros. WorldSSP Team) into Turn 1, as the Italian took the lead.
For Caricasulo’s teammate, Randy Krummenacher, it was another poor start, which
saw Jules Cluzel (GMT94 YAMAHA) take advantage. One rider who achieved a good
start was Raffaele De Rosa (MV AGUSTA Reparto Corse), who, from sixth on the
grid, was soon into fifth, ahead of Lucas Mahias (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) and
his Japanese teammate, Hikari Okubo.
Caricasulo and Gradinger pulled
away, with a 1.7 second gap after just two laps of the MotorLand Aragon circuit.
The battle for third saw Randy Krummenacher take advantage of Jules Cluzel at
Turn 1 on lap three, and a lap later, it was De Rosa’s turn to pick off the
fading Frenchman.
However, with the gaps forming, it was the riders in
third and fourth who soon started lapping the faster times, and soon the 1.7s
gap soon evaporated, with two back-to-back fastest laps coming from De Rosa on
laps six and seven.
Despite Cluzel languishing in an isolated fifth
position, the battle raged behind him, with Mahias, Okubo and Corentin Perolari
(GMT94 YAMAHA) and Europe Supersport Cup rider, Kyle Smith (Team Pedercini
Racing). Smith was able to get as high as sixth before dropping back, with
Perolari coming through towards the end.
The battle at the front was now
between four bikes and also, with a different race leader. Thomas Gradinger came
through and passed Caricasulo at Turn 4, to become the first Austrian rider to
lead a WorldSSP race. Austria’s dream of a WorldSSP race winner started to look
like it was finally going to come to reality.
With four laps remaining,
it was a wild WorldSSP race which saw Gradinger make a mistake at the final
corner, dropping from first to fourth. Four riders abreast down the main
straight, Caricasulo and De Rosa took over, whilst Krummenacher watched on
holding his breath in third. The last lap was set to be a thriller, as De Rosa
took the lead when Krummenacher made a mistake at Turn 12. Were we about to see
the first non-Yamaha win for the first time in almost a
year-and-a-half?
The last lap came around quickly and soon, the gloves
were off! Krummenacher passed his teammate at Turn 1 and soon went in pursuit of
race leader De Rosa. Gradinger was still in the battle in fourth, but unable to
make any passes on the final lap, achieving his joint-best result. Down the back
straight and Krummenacher slipstreamed his way through, before slamming his
Yamaha down the inside of De Rosa’s MV Agusta. Through the final corner and over
the rise to the finish line, Krummenacher took a second win of the season,
whilst De Rosa took his first podium of the year, with fellow countryman
Federico Caricasulo in third. Gradinger was fourth.
Behind the leading
quartet, Jules Cluzel’s damage limitation efforts saw him conclude in fifth
position, with teammate Corentin Perolari, who took his best finish of the
season. Lucas Mahias finally got the better of his teammate Hikari Okubo for
seventh place, whilst Kyle Smith was top ESS rider in ninth. Completing the top
ten was Isaac Viñales (Kallio Racing), who recovered to tenth after running wide
in the early stages.
Completing the points was Peter Sebestyen (CIA
Landlord Insurance Honda), who was top Honda in the race after Hannes Soomer
(MPM WILSport Racedays) crashed on the final lap. Teammate Jules Danilo was just
0.116s behind him, whilst Federico Fuligni (MV AGUSTA Reparto Corse) was a
further 0.314s back. 14th and 15th went to Loris Cresson
(Kallio Racing) and Maria Herrera (MS Racing) respectively.
Krummenacher
gave Yamaha their 81st WorldSSP win, whilst giving Switzerland their
first win on European soil, as well as achieving the nation’s 16th
podium – putting them one behind the United States overall, 22 years after the
first Swiss rider achieved a podium, with Yves Briguet at Monza,
1997.
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P1 - Randy Krummenacher (BARDAHL Evan Bros. WorldSSP
Team)
"It was a really tough race. After the warm-up, I felt like I
could have the chance to go away in the race, but the final laps were not that
easy for me. When I finally got to the front, I tried hard to go away, but I
made a little mistake and went wide. Fortunately, the final lap came out
perfectly. I came out of the slipstream, brake a little bit later and I won!
Thanks to my team and my family that always support me".
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#AragonWorldSBK WorldSSP at MotorLand Aragon -
Race
1. Randy Krummenacher (BARDAHL Evan Bros. WorldSSP Team)
2.
Raffaele De Rosa (MV AGUSTA Reparto Corse) +0.094
3. Federico Caricasulo
(BARDAHL Evan Bros. WorldSSP Team) +0.158Pirelli
WorldSSP Tyre Choices
Full
Race
Results
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WorldSSP300: Frantic race sees
local hero Gonzalez clinch first ever win in the
series
3.395s covered the point-scorers in a hectic race for
WorldSSP300 at the MotorLand Aragon circuit
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It
was a crazy return to action for the WorldSSP300 championship at the Motocard
Aragon Round in 2019, with a flurry of action from the start to the end, making
for an incredibly exciting season in prospect. The winner of the first race of
the season was 16-years-old Manuel Gonzalez (Kawasaki ParkinGO Team), whilst
defending champion Ana Carrasco (Kawasaki Provec WorldSSP300) crashed out at
Turn 13, making her title defence even harder work for the remainder of the
season.
From lights out, it was a great start from Indonesian rider,
Galang Hendra Pratama (Semakin Di Depan Biblion Motoxracing) took the lead and
to the amazement, led the field safely through the opening corners, with no
casualties in a packed grid. Gonzalez took the lead early on but there was no
escaping, as he oscillated back-and-forth, as riders passed each other to try
and establish a constant running order.
As the race went on, Victor
Steeman (Freudenberg KTM Junior Team), Hugo De Cancellis (Team Trasimeno) and
Maximilian Kappler (Freudenberg KTM WorldSSP Team) all battled it out, whilst
Andy Verdoia (BCD Yamaha MS Racing) and Jan-Ole Jahnig (Freudenberg KTM Junior
Team) joined the leading group.
It was a disaster in the middle of the
race for the reigning champion, Ana Carrasco, as she crashed out after tangling
with Koen Meuffels (Freudenberg KTM WorldSSP Team), who in-turn was having a
tricky race having won at the track last season. Other falls consisted of sole
Turkish rider Bahattin Sofuoglu (Turkish Puccetti Racing by TSM) crashing at
Turn 2, as well as Indonesian Hendra Pratama, who crashed after contact with
Verdoia at Turn 10; the Marc Marquez corner.
As the race reached the
closing stages, all kinds of different riders entered the battle, with Omar
Bonoli (Team Trasimeno), Scott Deroue (Kawasaki MOTOPORT) and Nick Kalinin
(NUTEC – RT Motorsports by SKM – Kawasaki) all got in on the action. All three
of them had raced through the field from 14th, 15th and 16th, all looking to
take the opening win of the season from the lowest grid positions in WorldSSP300
history (that record held by Manuel Bastianelli of Prodina IRCOS Kawasaki, from
13th on the grid at Misano in 2018.
Into the last lap and it looked like
we would get a victory from 14th, as Omar Bonoli took over at the front; the
17-year-old looking like he had the pace, before De Cancellis came passed at
Turn 7 and immediately looked to break away. However, a fantastic move at Turn 9
by Manuel Gonzalez soon saw a last lap battle. Into the final corner and
Gonzalez made a move to the lead and pushed De Cancellis wide, holding on to the
lead to take his first ever win as the second-youngest rider in the class!
Completing the podium was Scott Deroue, starting his championship challenge off
in fine style.
Behind them, Jahnig, Verdoia and Steeman, whilst
completing the top ten was Bonoli, Bruno Ieraci (Kawasaki GP Project) who
in-turn had come from the back of the grid after a penalty, 2018 Aragon winner
Koen Meuffels and Maximilian Kappler.
Outside of the top ten were Robert
Schotman (Kawasaki MOTOPORT), Mateo Perdeneau (Team MHP Racing-Patrick Pons),
Filippo Rovelli (Kawasaki ParkinGO Team), Nick Kalinin and 2018 runner-up, Mika
Perez (Scuderia Maranga Racing). 2017 champion, Marc Garcia (DS Junior Team)
could only manage 25th position on his return to the
championship.
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P1 - Manuel Gonzalez (Kawasaki
ParkinGO Team)
"I don't have words to describe how happy I
am. I really enjoyed riding today. The race was not easy, and especially the
final lap was extremely difficult. There were many riders taking advantage of
the slipstream on the straight, and it made it hard to keep the position. In the
last corner, I was able to overtake De Cancellis and take victory. Thanks to my
team for all the work they have done during this weekend".
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#AragonWorldSBK WorldSSP300 at MotorLand
Aragon - Race
1. Manuel Gonzalez (Kawasaki ParkinGO Team)
2.
Scott Deroue (Kawasaki MOTOPORT) +0.494
3. Hugo De Cancellis (Team
Trasimeno) +0.545
Full
Race
Results
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Valencia to be replaced by Brno, with the season finale changed to the British Grand Prix Thursday, 28 March 2019 The 2019 ...
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