Wins for Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) came along like London buses. After he took his first MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship win in Race 1 on Saturday, he backed that up on Sunday at the Acerbis Italian Round with a Tissot Superpole Race and Race 2 victory at the Cremona Circuit. He’s become only the fourth rider to take a WorldSBK hat-trick, and the first Independent rider to do so, after his historic weekend.
He started from third in the Superpole Race and was immediately into P1 when lights went out after he got a superb start to jump both Andrea Iannone (Team GoEleven) and Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati). From there, he remained uncatchable despite using the SCQ tyre which had a drop off in the final few laps. Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK), who was on the SCX tyre, had made gains to move into second but he was unable to catch ‘Petrux’.
It meant Petrucci became the fifth rider to take their second win the day after the first, joining Michael van der Mark, Alvaro Bautista, Scott Redding, and Toprak Razgatlioglu. This isn’t a record, however, with 11 riders taking their second win on the same day. In a slightly weird stat, out of Barni’s three WorldSBK wins this season, this is the only time the riders have taken the chequered flag: Nicholas Spinelli’s win at Assen was red flagged, as was Petrucci’s win in Race 1 at Cremona.
Petrucci was able to convert his double into a treble on Sunday afternoon, winning the 23-lap Race 2 from pole position and leading every lap. He initially pulled out a gap over his rivals but had to be prepared for a Bautista charge, whose pace was quicker than the #9’s as the race progressed. The #1 got ahead of teammate Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) before closing in on Petrucci but finished the race around a second behind the #9.
Reflecting on his Sunday at Cremona, Petrucci said: “It was one of the best weekends in my career! After the first victory yesterday, I was full of emotion. I didn’t expect to win the Superpole Race and Race 2. I was a little bit worried. I had a lot of opponents, especially Alvaro; I knew he would be fast at the end of the race. I was able to create a gap and he closed that gap a few tenths per lap. It’s something really special. A new track, a new venue, a lot of people… I think everyone in Italy deserves this kind of day today!”
It means Petrucci became the first Independent rider to take a hat-trick and only the fourth overall, after Bautista, Jonathan Rea (Pata Prometeon Yamaha) and Razgatlioglu. He’s also only the fourth rider to win their first three races consecutively, after Chris Vermeulen (2004), Ben Spies (2009) and Bautista (2019).
Reacting to his historic achievements on home soil, Petrucci said: “They told me not long ago about this achievement. It’s something that makes me proud. Yesterday, I was the first rider to win a race in so many categories, off-road and on-road, and today the first Independent rider to have three wins. We can improve our Championship position, but we can’t beat a weekend like that.”
In the Championship standings, Petrucci sits in fifth on 252 points after adding a maximum 62 to his tally at Cremona. He’s closed the cap to Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) in fourth, with just three points between the Ducati and Kawasaki riders, but perhaps even third place is in sight. Petrucci is 31 points behind reigning Champion in third, with three rounds to go and 186 points available across nine races.
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Source: WorldSBK.com