The 2024 FIM Supersport World Championship has been nothing short of remarkable, with twists in almost every round. Next up is a visit to MotorLand Aragon and while Adrian Huertas (Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team) has taken the momentum after making big gains at Cremona last time out, both Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) and Stefano Manzi (Pata Prometeon Ten Kate Racing) will be hoping to cause another shift during the Tissot Aragon Round.
FROM 17 TO 43: Huertas’ points lead extended…
Huertas’ P1 and P2 at Cremona, coupled with Montella not scoring in Race 2, enabled Huertas to open a 43-point gap over the #55, while Manzi is just seven points back from Montella. 50 points separate the trio with three rounds to go, and while Huertas has the advantage right now, 2024 has shown anything is possible. Neither of the three have won at Aragon before, although Huertas’ team did the double last year with Nicolo Bulega. Manzi and Montella were on the rostrum in 2023 so, at a crucial stage of the season, will there be more twists to come in Spain?
THE FIGHT FOR FOURTH: one point between Schroetter and Debise
After a recent run of bad form, Marcel Schroetter (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) was back on the pace at Cremona with two fourth-place finishes. He took an Aragon podium in 2023 and will be hoping to repeat that this season as he looks to secure P4 in the Championship standings. He’s got a slender advantage over Valentin Debise (Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha Team) in fifth, with Schroetter on 174 points and Debise on 173. The Frenchman has raced three times at Aragon in WorldSSP, but never higher than P7.
CARICASULO VS NAVARRO: level on points…
If the Schroetter-Debise battle was tight, then the battle between Federico Caricasulo (Motozoo ME AIR Racing) and Jorge Navarro (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) is even closer. ‘Carica’ is ahead of Navarro courtesy of his P2 in France, with the pair level on 148 points. Both have shown big steps forward throughout the season as they look to haul themselves into the podium scrap. Who will come out on top in this fierce fight?
BOOTH-AMOS IN THE FIGHT FOR ANOTHER PODIUM: can he close down Tuuli ahead?
British star Tom Booth-Amos (PTR Triumph) claimed a first WorldSSP podium at Cremona, and his first World Championship rostrum in almost three seasons. He was the first British rider to put a British brand on the podium since Chaz Davies for Triumph at Magny-Cours in 2010. Third in Race 2 was the highlight of his recent form but ‘TBA’ and PTR Triumph have been in the top nine for four consecutive races now as the Brit finds comfort on the Street Triple RS 765. He’s 22 points behind Niki Tuuli (EAB Racing Team) in the Championship standings and will be hoping he can close that gap at Aragon; a track he won at in WorldSSP300 in 2021. Tuuli is a race winner this season so he’ll fancy his chances of keeping Booth-Amos behind and will have his sights set on Glenn van Straalen (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing) in P8 ahead. The Dutchman is just 11 points clear of Tuuli for eighth in the standings.
RIDER LINE-UP NEWS: three wildcards at Aragon
Three wildcards will race at MotorLand Aragon. Jacopo Cretaro and Joan Diaz will compete with the PS Racing Team on Triumph machinery. It’ll be Cretaro’s first WorldSSP race since Misano in 2017 while Diaz was last in the Championship in 2022 at Portimao. There will be a third Honda on the grid too, with Malaysian rider Azroy Hakeem Bin Anuar competing with the PETRONAS MIE Racing Honda squad. Niccolo Antonelli (Ecosantagata Althea Racing Team), Yeray Ruiz (VFT Racing Yamaha), Krittapat Keankum (Yamaha Thailand Racing Team) and Lorenzo Baldassarri (WRP by SKM-Triumph) will need to pass pre-round medical checks to race.
Follow all the action from MotorLand Aragon in style with the WorldSBK VideoPass – now only €9.99!
Source: WorldSBK.com