2021 WorldSBK Round Five
TT Circuit Assen – Prosecco DOC Dutch Round – Sunday

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Assen WorldSBK Superpole Race

Toprak Razgatlioglu moved into the lead at turn one but was challenged straight away by Michael Ruben Rinaldi and Jonathan Rea. Rinaldi and Toprak traded the lead numerous times on the opening lap.  Rea moved past Toprak and up into second place late on that opening lap before taking another three laps to then move past Rinaldi and into the race lead.

Scott Redding then moved past Toprak into third place while Andrea Locatelli then tagged on while Alex Lowes was a little late to the party.

Rea pulled away over the latter half of the race and left the rest to battle for second and do battle they did. The last lap was a thriller for second between Michael Ruben Rinaldi, Toprak Razgatlioglu and Andrea Locatelli with the Yamaha riders coming out on top, finishing second and third respectively, but then both were penalised one position subsequently for exceeding the track limits on the run to the flag. This promoted Michael Ruben Rinaldi up to second and demoted Toprak Razgatlioglu to third and Locatelli was pushed off the podium.

Assen WorldSBK Superpole Race Results

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Assen WorldSBK Two

A dramatic Sunday afternoon race came to an end with Jonathan Rea claiming his third win of the Prosecco DOC Dutch Round and the fourth hat-trick of his career despite finding himself in eighth place after Turn 1 after starting from first. Behind him, Scott Redding came home in second with rookie Andrea Locatelli claiming his maiden podium.

Toprak Razgatlioglu got a good start but found himself out of the race after American Garrett Gerloff made contact with the Turkish rider at Turn 1, with the American placed under investigation for the incident by the FIM WorldSBK Stewards and given a ride-through penalty for the incident. The crash put Razgatlioglu out of the race.

The incident forced Jonathan Rea down into eighth place while Andrea Locatelli, running the SCX tyre, found himself leading a WorldSBK race for the first time in his short career. It took until the fourth lap for Rea to be back in second place, as he looked to secure a hat-trick at Assen. Locatelli led the first half of the race as Rea closed the gap to Locatelli with the six-time Champion able to take the lead on Lap 12 of 21, with Rea on the SC0 tyre, on the run to Turn 1.Rea’s victory means he is now on 199 WorldSBK podiums, one away from a historical 200 podiums.

Locatelli was able to stick with Rea for the next few laps, but Rea soon found himself extending the lead over the rookie, with Locatelli having to start watch out for Scott Redding in third as the British rider closed in.

On Lap 19, Redding made his move in the final sector of the lap to move into second place, with Locatelli coming home in third for his maiden WorldSBK podium. Locatelli becomes the first WorldSSP Champion to claim a WorldSBK podium as a rookie since Michael van der Mark in 2015, also at Assen.

Chaz Davies missed out on his 100th WorldSBK podium on his 200th start for Ducati with fourth place after charging through the field, fending off the challenge from Alvaro Bautista by just one second with the Spanish rider claiming his best result of the season so far.

Behind Bautista, there was a titanic battle for sixth place that culminated with Tom Sykes crashing out at the final chicane while battling with teammate Michael van der Mark, Alex Lowes and Michael Ruben Rinaldi; The Ducati man falling down the order on the SCX tyre. Dutchman van der Mark claimed sixth ahead of Lowes and Rinaldi. Axel Bassani claimed another top ten finish with ninth as Leon Haslam rounded out the top ten.

Tito Rabat claimed 11th place in Race 2 at Assen with Kohta Nozane securing another points-paying position with 12. Leandro Mercado was 13th on his return to the Championship after undergoing a testing programme with the team. Isaac Viñales finished in 14th place, ending a run of results for the Spanish rider of finishing in odd-numbered positions, while Sykes claimed 15th after his crash.

Andrea Mantovani missed out on a second points finish of the weekend with 16th place, with Loris Cresson the last of the classified runners. Gerloff’s race came to an end after he had taken his ride-through penalty after he crashed at turn 9 on his Yamaha machine, joining Razgatlioglu as a retirement from Race 2.

Assen WorldSBK Race Two Results

WorldSBK Quotes

Jonathan Rea

“It was nice to make it three-from-three here at Assen. We achieved it after we changed the rear tyre choice from yesterday. With the overnight rain the track’s grip level was a little bit lower and the temperature was maybe three or four degrees lower. We figured that would be the crossover point to run the SC0. It was nice to win with the soft tyre choice yesterday and the standard race tyre option today. It is a massive testament to the guys in the pitbox and what they have done. We made quite a big chassis change in the set-up this weekend and it was easier to ride. You could see in my passes, I could put the bike where I wanted and it was very nimble, yet stable in the fast sections as well. I went over to see the flooding on the track first thing this morning, considering how much rain there was last night – and there was a lake on the inside of turn five! So massive respect to the track and everybody at Assen because they had lots of machines there, two fire trucks, three tankers and I think we were only delayed 45 minutes this morning. They did an incredible job.”

Scott Redding

“I’m happy to end the weekend with another podium. I struggled a lot to find the feeling with the front tire but in Race 2 we were able to make that small step that allowed me to keep a better pace. In the beginning, I tried not to push hard to save the front tyre and for this reason, I lost a little bit of ground compared to the lead. The pace has improved a lot since the middle of the race but the gap with Rea was too wide to fight for the victory”.

Andrea Locatelli

“I immediately forgot the situation from this morning because I had another chance to race today, and you still focus to get the maximum when you can do it. I’m really happy because we got the first podium, also to do it in the long race, it’s really an amazing feeling. In the short race, you need to push hard but also it’s a shame to make the tiny mistake with the track limits, it was only a few millimetres! Then in Race 2, I got the lead immediately and was able to keep a good pace but in the end I fought a lot with the softer rear tyre. With the conditions like today and yesterday with some sun, we can push in all sessions and I learned and improved every time – now we are faster and I was in front! We have been close to the front all weekend and I am so happy also for my crew. We work so well together, they work hard and we make no mistakes, and also the R1 is working so well. It’s nice to ride here in Assen and we have another chance very soon to continue in this way and try to get some more podiums!”

Michael Ruben Rinaldi

“Honestly I can’t be satisfied with this weekend. Yesterday I gave my best but I crashed,  while today I never had the feeling to be in the ideal conditions. The result of the Superpole Race is clearly positive, but it came after the penalisation of Razgatlioglu and Locatelli;  after a good start in the afternoon, since the tire performance started dropping,  I have been no longer efficient. It’s a bit frustrating: we have to work to find a solution that will allow us to be more consistent”.

Alex Lowes

“It was not an easy day or an easy weekend for us. I have had some physical restrictions which have been tough and this track is quite tough anyway, with lots of changes of direction. My tyre in Race Two was in better condition than Michael Ruben Rinaldi’s but the trouble was passing him. I did make a move on him and ran out wide, which allowed Michael van der Mark to pass, but in those last five or six laps I was getting held up a little bit. I could have maybe gone a bit quicker but I still enjoyed the battle through the second race. I was quite happy with sixth and seventh, as I was struggling quite a lot. That is a shame, but my target is to go out and rest and come back 100% for the next race at a new track in the Czech Republic. Sixth and seventh are not where I want to be finishing but all things considered, it was a better day than Saturday! This was the most we could do this weekend.”

Michael van der Mark

“This morning’s crash was a stupid mistake by myself. I really wanted to go for it, and on the fastest corners of the track I tried to go even faster which was a silly mistake on my behalf. In race two, I had an okay start. I had a bit of luck at T1 starting in P11 and by the end of lap one I was in fifth but I didn’t have the pace or the grip I was hoping for. I was struggling to keep the bike on track and I just didn’t have any more to give so it was quite tough. But at the end of the race I found a little extra pace and managed to catch and pass Michael Ruben Rinaldi and Alex Lowes so P6 wasn’t too bad in the end. But I really wanted more.”

Tom Sykes

“We managed to start race two on the third row which was a lot better. We got a much cleaner start to the race as the guys did a bit of work to the BMW M 1000 RR. We used the harder rear tyre and just couldn’t find the grip we needed at the beginning of the race but having said that, the bike stayed very constant throughout the race. Unfortunately coming into the last corner before entering the final lap, I tried to close the line and square the corner off and lost the front. It was such a slow speed crash, but I wasn’t able to save it. It’s such a shame, the bike today was good enough for that top-six and it would have been nice to be consistent the whole weekend. It certainly seemed we have made some good improvements including both me and Michael. A disappointing end to the weekend but we can take the positives from it, and we will focus on that and try to build on it for the next round.”

Toprak Razgatlıoğlu

“In the second race, Garrett made a bad mistake, I am not sure why he tried to do hard braking like this in the first corner – I was surprised and I only feel angry because we lost so many points for the championship. At the start, I passed Rinaldi into the corner but it was not “easy”, it was difficult to stop my own bike so I cannot understand why Garrett arrived inside me. In Most I will only be looking to fight for the win, I am not looking at championship points any more. This weekend, maybe I just had some bad luck, but we fight hard again for the next race.”

Garrett Gerloff

“I’m devastated and I can only apologise to Toprak and to Yamaha for today. I got a good start from the third row of the grid, I felt the contact in turn one, but I didn’t realise it was Toprak until I looked back. I’m sorry for him, as he paid a big price for my mistake, but also for Yamaha, who have worked tirelessly to mount a championship challenge. I can only apologise to both, although I am well aware that this won’t change the outcome.”

Alvaro Bautista

“It has been a challenging weekend for us with two crashes in the first two races, something that quite annoys me honestly, because I think that our performance in those races could have been similar to what we did in race 2. For now, when I try to ride more naturally, I fall. Having said that, we finished the weekend with a positive result, a hard-fought top five, with some nice passes, and I think that this stems from the work we are doing. During the weekend we improved a lot on the electronics side, especially on the lower area of the throttle which gives me more confidence now. Maybe it’s not so apparent yet, but I hope it’s just a starting point for the upcoming races.”

Leon Haslam

“In the Superpole race, a rider caused me to lose many positions through the first turn. It was a difficult race and we struggled with both the front of the bike and power delivery too. In the second race, I made a good start but then Toprak crashed and I had to avoid him, which meant I lost ground again. I felt like I had good rhythm through the first part of the race anyway, but then from about lap ten I started to lose a lot of time, more than one second per lap. Overall, it’s been a tough weekend and I’m left frustrated as I expected top five results at this circuit.”

Kohta Nozane

“Today my Superpole Race was not that good and I discussed with the team about how we could make some set-up improvements for Race 2. These changes worked and I was very happy, my time in the race was quicker than my qualifying time. Unfortunately, my finger is not recovered 100 per cent still and with 16 laps to go I found it very difficult to keep my pace until the end, so it was tough to keep the rider behind. In the end, I finished 12th but of course at Yamaha everyone is riding the same bike, so when I see the others, I think that even though I’m a rookie, I have to convince myself to aim higher. To the next race in Czech Republic, it’s the first time for everyone, so there I hope to be able to reach another level to get closer to the other Yamaha riders.”

Jonas Folger

“It was a really great weekend – until the crash. I am delighted that we were able to show once again that we have the speed and that we can really compete. That did us all a lot of good. I actually wanted to race today. I am still in some pain and a bit stiff walking, but I felt ready. Unfortunately, the race doctors did not give me the OK. I would like to thank the team for their great work nonetheless and for getting us back on track. Thanks also to everyone who has sent their best wishes after my crash. Now it’s time for a few days of recovery and then we will go back on the attack at Most the weekend after next.”

WorldSBK Championship Standings

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Assen WorldSSP Race Two

Racing for the FIM Supersport World Championship at the TT Circuit Assen came to a thrilling conclusion in the Prosecco DOC Dutch Round as Dominique Aegerter (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) claimed his fifth consecutive victory and his second in his team’s home race, while Randy Krummenacher (EAB Racing Team) battled his way to the podium for the first time since 2019.

In a typical 2020 WorldSSP race start, the lead group were battling nose-to-tail and elbow-to-elbow throughout the opening few laps, with Steven Odendaal (Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha Team) able to take the lead on the opening lap despite Aegerter getting a good start from pole position into Turn 1.

German Philipp Oettl (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) was able to take the lead of the race as he did in Race 1 on Saturday, but soon found himself behind Aegerter when the Swiss rider passed Oettl on the fifth lap, having passed Odendaal the lap before to move into second place as he looked to make it two wins in his special yellow livery.

After Aegerter passed Oettl, Aegerter was able to drag the German rider away from the chasing pack as they looked to secure their places on the podium. Odendaal’s race came undone on Lap 9 of 18 when he crashed at Turn 5, falling down to 20th place and had to battle his way through the field, eventually finishing in 13th.

Like in Race 1, Aegerter was able to start pulling away from everyone as he ramped up the pace to start pulling away from Oettl, leading by almost two seconds as Lap 13 got underway. Oettl was able to take advantage of the chasing group to claim second place and his second podium of the weekend.

The final podium place battled raged on throughout the 18-lap race between Luca Bernardi (CM Racing), Randy Krummenacher (EAB Racing Team), Jules Cluzel (GMT94 Yamaha), Manuel Gonzalez (Yamaha ParkinGo Team) and Can Öncü (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing). Krummenacher had been running third before Sammarinese rider Bernardi passed the 2019 WorldSSP Champion, although the Swiss rider was able to respond later on in the race.

On Lap 15, Gonzalez made his move on Bernardi to move into fourth in the hunt for his first WorldSSP podium before setting his sights on Krummenacher, but Bernardi soon made a return to fourth with an aggressive move on the 2019 WorldSSP300 Champion. Bernardi then made his move on Krummenacher at Turn 8 to move into third with two laps to go, but Krummenacher responded ay Turn 15; an error at the chicane meant Öncü was able to move into fourth. At the end, Krummenacher finished in third place to return to the podium in WorldSSP, with Bernardi in fourth. Krummenacher’s podium means it’s the first time two Swiss riders have stood on the rostrum in WorldSSP, while Switzerland now has as many wins as Germany in WorldSSP with 11.

Despite dropping to the back of the lead group, Cluzel was able to take fourth place after Bernardi was penalised with a one-place demotion for exceeding track limits on the final lap. Gonzalez claimed sixth place with Öncü in seventh after he was on the receiving end of an overtake by Bernardi which forced him wide.

Niki Tuuli (MV Agusta Corse Clienti) finished in eighth place with Marco Alcoba (Yamaha MS Racing) in ninth and Vertti Takala (Kallio Racing) completing the top ten; Tuuli and Alcoba around four seconds back from the group chasing down the podium.

Kevin Manfredi (Altogo Racing Team) was the highest placed WorldSSP Challenge rider with 11th place, while Peter Sebestyen finished in 13th place ahead of teammate Odendaal. Sheridan Morais’ (Wojcik Racing Team) secured another points finish with 14th place as he stood in for the injured Christoffer Bergman, with Michel Fabrizio (G.A.P. MOTOZOO Racing by Puccetti) completing the points.

WorldSSP Challenge rider Leonardo Taccini (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) missed out on a points finish by just 0.017s as he chased down Fabrizio, with Eemeli Lahti (HRP Suzuki) in 18th place. Stephane Frossard (Moto Team Jura Vitesse) was just 0.053s behind Lahti in 18th place, with Luigi Montella (Chiodo Moto Racing), Maria Herrera (Biblion Iberica Yamaha Motoxracing), Eduardo Montero Huerta (DK Motorsport) and Pawel Szkopek (Yamaha MS Racing) the last of the classified finishers.

The first lap was an eventful affair in WorldSSP with Indonesian rider Galang Hendra Pratama (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) a Lap 1 retirement following a crash, while Raffaele De Rosa (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) and Federico Caricasulo (GMT94 Yamaha) came together at Turn 10, with both retiring from the race. Daniel Webb (WRP Wepol Racing) was also a retirement from the race, as was Mattia Casadei (VFT Racing). Federico Fuligni (VFRT Racing) retired from the race in the closing stages of the 18-lap race.

P1 Dominique Aegerter

“It was a very great race. At the start, we had some small fights with Oettl and Odendaal. I could make the pace afterwards. The track condition was not like in the Tissot Superpole but the lap time was quite fast and I could make a gap. Thanks to the Ten Kate Race team, they gave me a perfect bike for their home Round. It’s very nice with the special livery. For sure, this weekend we made some history for Ten Kate and I hope the fans here enjoyed the nice weather in the Netherlands and thanks for your support.”

P2 Philipp Oettl

“It was a really good weekend for the team. We had some problems towards the end of the race because I chose again the softer tyre. Like yesterday, I wanted to stay with Domi as long as possible and create a gap. It was an intense race. The tyre moved on the rim a little bit, so I lost the weight, I had a lot of vibrations in the last few laps and lost a lot of time. In the end, it was a similar race to yesterday. Domi is in a league of his own but I think in Most we can work in the Free Practice sessions to have more grip towards the end of the race and the next step will be to stay with him for the whole race.”

P3 Randy Krummenacher

“It’s really nice to be back on the podium. Thanks to everyone who supported me in this difficult time. It was a long time. I want to thank you and it’s so good, so nice to be back on the podium.”

Assen WorldSSP Race Two Results

WorldSSP Championship Standings

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Assen WorldSSP 300 Two

The final race of the FIM Supersport 300 World Championship was full of action at the TT Circuit Assen for the Prosecco DOC Dutch Round with British rider Tom Booth-Amos (Fusport – RT Motorsports by SKM – Kawasaki) claiming a victory as he looked to make up for recent errors that cost him high-scoring points in the last two races.

Booth-Amos claimed victory after being given a nine-place grid penalty for slow riding earlier in the weekend, one of nine riders to be given that penalty for the same offence, as he looked to close the gap to Adrian Huertas (MTM Kawasaki) at the top of the Championship. Booth-Amos claimed Kawasaki’s 90th podium in WorldSSP300 with his second victory of the season. Hugo de Cancellis (Prodina Team WorldSSP300) claimed his second podium of the season with second place, ahead of fellow French rider Samuel di Sora (Leader Team Flembbo); the first time two French riders have been on the WorldSSP300 podium together.

Jeffrey Buis (MTM Kawasaki) finished in fourth place after being demoted two positions for exceeding track limits twice on the final lap, with teammate Adrian Huertas in fifth; the Spanish rider given the same penalty as Buis for the same offence. Yuta Okaya (MTM Kawasaki) was sixth as MTM Kawasaki secured a top six finish with three of their four riders; Koen Meuffels finishing in ninth.

Italian Mirko Gennai (BRcorse) was in seventh place ahead of polesitter Victor Steeman (Freudenberg KTM WorldSSP Team) in eighth after the local hero dropped down the order as the race progressed. Steeman was promoted to eighth after the chequered flag when Meuffels was demoted one place for exceeding track limits on the final lap. Meikon Kawakami (AD78 Team Brasil by MS Racing) completed the top ten, the first rider more than one second away from Booth-Amos.

South African rider Dorren Loureiro (Fusport – RT Motorsports by SKM – Kawasaki) claimed 11th place, missing out on a top ten finish by just one tenth of a second, with Gabriele Mastroluca (ProGP Racing) in 12th. Czech rider Petr Svoboda (WRP Wepol Racing) claimed his best result of the 2021 season with 13th; a result that will give him confidence as the Championship heads to the Czech Republic next time out.

Ton Kawakami (AD78 Team Brasil by MS Racing) was in 14th place after the 14-lap race in the Netherlands with Ana Carrasco (Kawasaki Provec WorldSSP300) securing the last point on offer with 15th place. The 2018 WorldSSP300 Champion was one of three riders demoted a place after the race ended for exceeding track limits on the final lap. Alejandro Carrion (Kawasaki GP Project) finished just outside the points in 16th place with Victor Rodriguez Nuñez (Accolade Smrz Racing) in 17th; the Spanish also demoted one place for a track limits infringement on the final lap of the race. Johan Gimbert (OUTDO TPR Team Pedercini Racing), Kevin Sabatucci (Viñales Racing Team), who claimed a top five finish in Race 1, and Inigo Iglesias (SMW Racing) rounded out the top 20.

Two front runners lost their chance of victory on Lap 11 when Bahattin Sofuoglu (Biblion Yamaha Motoxracing) and Unai Orradre (Yamaha MS Racing) coming together, with Turkish star Sofuoglu and Orradre, the youngest ever race winner in WorldSSP300, able to re-join the race, with Orradre finishing in 25th and Sofuoglu in 32nd.

Young Aussie Harry Khouri claimed a 31st place finish.

Ruben Bijman (Machado CAME SBK) was a retirement on Lap 2 of the 14-lap race after he had a crash at Turn 1 at the start of the second lap. Christian Stange’s (2R Racing) comeback to WorldSSP300 ended with a Turn 3 crash on Lap 4. Vicente Perez Selfa (Machado CAME SBK) also retired from the race on Lap 4 after a crash at the final chicane. Jose Luis Perez Gonzalez crashed out of the race at around half-distance

P1 Tom Booth-Amos

“I’m very happy today after my crash yesterday. It was nice to repay the team with the win. This is a home race, they’re Dutch and German, so I can’t think them enough. It’s nice to be in front of some fans again.”

P2 Hugo De Cancellis

“I’m very happy because yesterday I crashed on the last lap. I can be happy to finish a race like this. It was a very difficult race. Thanks to all my team, all my family and all the people I have with me this year because we worked a lot.”

P3 Samuel Di Sora

“It was a crazy race, actually. Very, very crazy. We struggled a little bit on the back straight but managed to put the bike on the podium again. I’m very happy, third in the Championship, I think. We will be hoping for Most, a new track for us. A big thanks to the team, they did an amazing job. I’m so happy and just want to thank them for their excellent work. Let’s hope for a win in the next race, we’ll work for it.”

Assen WorldSSP 300 Race two Results

WorldSSP 300 Championship Standings

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Source: MCNews.com.au