2020 WorldSBK

Round Three – Portimao

After having successfully completed the Pirelli Spanish Round at Jerez de la Frontera two weeks WorldSBK now heads to the wonderful circuit that is Portimao in what is one of my favourite countries in Europe, Portugal.

The third round of the Motul FIM Superbike World Championship will take place from 7th to 9th August and as per Jerez double races are scheduled over the weekend for the three Championship classes, as the riders will hit the track on Saturday for Race 1 and on Sunday for Race 2, in addition to the Tissot Superpole race for WorldSBK.

The Autódromo Internacional do Algarve was designed by architect Ricardo Pina and was inaugurated exactly ten years ago. This track is 4592 metres long, with 9 right-handers and six left-hand corners and a configuration with a maximum gradient of 57 metres, a long turn radii that goes from 23 metres to a maximum of 207 metres, and a finishing straight which has a total length of 835 metres. It is very demanding but a truly magnificent riders circuit and second only to Phillip Island in this scribes eyes.

The Portuguese circuit remains one of the circuits that best brings out the capacity of the tyre to operate in extremely different conditions because of its altitude changes and demanding blind entry curves. Specifically, the rear tyre must go from low to extremely high temperatures, the front must be able to come into the turns mentioned above quickly and precisely. Unlike the rear, which undergoes few but intense mechanical/thermal stresses, the front is always engaged in slow turns with a quick entry and small curvature radii (tight corner) which forces the rider to brake sharply, sometimes downhill.

The most challenging part for the tyres is the last turn which is 350 metres long and takes 6.5 seconds to navigate, and due to the wide turning radius (about 150 metres), the bike is in constant acceleration and goes from 150 to 250 kph at a lean angle of about 50-degrees. So there is a remarkable increase in temperature on the side of the tyre affected by the lean, particularly for the rear tyre which must withstand the high temperature while simultaneously ensuring strong lateral force and allowing the bike to accelerate, it is a ballsy corner… Corners 5, 8, 11, 13, and 14 have on the contrary a very tight radius (about 30 metres), which forces the rider to brake to an extremely low speed. Halfway through the turn the bike needs the rear tyre, which is very cold, to provide strong longitudinal acceleration up to 1G at a lean angle of 50°. The tyres are particularly cold, especially coming into the left handers (numbers 5 and 13).

Marco Zambenedetti – Ducati Corse Superbike Technical Coordinator

“It’s a track with a very particular layout, with many ups and downs and for this reason, it will be important to interpret it well. One critical point is the presence of several bumps, while I think a strong point for us could be the exit from the last corner where we can exploit not only the engine but above all the aerodynamics, an aspect where Ducati has always been at the forefront even in bikes derived from production model“.

So far this year in WorldSBK we have had four different winners in the opening six races and new riders have been making their mark.  Championship leader by 24 points after the first two rounds, rookie Scott Redding (Ducati) heads to round three confident. The Brit took his first wins of his WorldSBK career at Jerez and with the Ducati Panigale V4 R winning Race 2 with Alvaro Bautista in 2019, he could add to that tally.

Scott Redding

“Portimao is an almost new circuit for me. I only raced here once in my career, then I came back for the tests in January. I must admit, though, I had good feelings. It is a track that I really like, that I find fun and the feeling in the tests was positive. We’ve come from an exciting and satisfying weekend and I can’t wait to get on my Ducati Panigale V4 R on Friday morning“.

Team-mate Chaz Davies enjoyed a return to podium form at Jerez and finished second in Race 2 to Redding, securing Ducati’s first WorldSBK 1-2 since Assen in 2012. Davies was second in Race 1 at Portimao in 2019 and looks good in 2020; don’t discount him.

Chaz Davies

“I hope I can confirm the positive trend we had in Jerez de la Frontera. Last year we achieved a good result on this track as I finished second in Race-1. I think we have improved a lot compared to that race and I am sure we have all the credentials to do well. The weather conditions will be different here. We are ready and determined to face this weekend“.

A contrasting weekend at Jerez for Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK); leader in Race 1 and Tissot Superpole Race winner, yet off the pace in Race 2 and outside the top five in a race for the first time since Laguna Seca in 2014. But if one track can host a Rea revival then Portimao is it, as he has the most wins (nine), most podiums (17) and shares the record for pole with Tom Sykes, (three).

Jonathan Rea

“Portimao is a circuit that has been kind to us in the past and it suits the nature of our bike. There are a lot of areas where we can exploit the strengths of our Ninja ZX-10RR. I enjoy the challenge of the circuit as it is very undulating and it is the closest thing you get to a motocross track. The changes of elevation and blind corners; it really takes a lot of rider input and set-up to make a perfect lap. I am looking forward to starting on Friday with the team again and the emphasis will be on understanding how our base set-up works there, especially in the heat. We will possibly face hot temperatures like we have just had this past weekend. We will confirm everything because it was working pretty OK in Jerez. Our goal is to improve the feeling, work toward the races and at the end the target is to win.”

KRT team-mate Alex Lowes was the Championship leader coming into Jerez, but he’s third going to Portimao; he’ll be in the mix again after his first podium at the venue last year.

Alex Lowes

“I am looking forward to Portimao after not the easiest weekend in Jerez but I learned a lot about the bike. I had not had too much experience of the Kawasaki in the heat so the past weekend was about understanding it and learning the best way to ride the bike and adapt my style to the bike rather than chasing a setting. We made some good steps and hopefully that will put us in a good position at Portimao. It is not the easiest track but it is one I really enjoy. I think that the Kawasaki is going to work well there. I am looking forward to trying it for the first time on the ZX-10RR. I am happy we have had only had a few days until we get back out, because we were building momentum over the weekend in Jerez. We can just focus on starting on Friday morning and building from there. It is going to be good fun.”

Toprak Razgatlioglu (PATA YAMAHA WorldSBK Official Team) lies fourth and has four podiums so far this year, but two technical DNFs have left the Turk behind. He was a podium runner at Portimao in 2019 and set impressive times at the rollercoaster in testing on his Yamaha. If he can have a round without issues, it could transcend into something special. On the other side of the garage, Michael van der Mark also suffered a mechanical issue at Jerez but took a first rostrum of 2020 in the same meeting. He has a best result of second at Portimao; can he go one better in 2020?

Occupying seventh in the Championship is Loris Baz (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha), who is promising in 2020. In contention in Spain, Portugal and Portimao await the fastest Independent rider of 2020 so far. Just ten points behind van der Mark in sixth, a special duel awaits in the Algarve. Baz has his own threat for Independent honours; Michael Ruben Rinaldi’s (Team GOELEVEN) stunning Jerez results sent shockwaves through the paddock. A fourth place in Race 2 – after passing Lowes and Rea – gave a fairytale result for the Italian. Can both riders battle at the front again?

Lying between Baz and ninth-placed Rinaldi in the standings is Alvaro Bautista (Team HRC); the 2019 runner-up won Race 2 for Ducati last year. Two races in the points at Jerez and with potential there, Portimao’s intricacies will test Honda, but it should be a track that suits both rider and bike. Leon Haslam (Team HRC) has four podiums at Portimao, including one for Honda in 2008’s Race 2. Tenth overall and yet to finish outside the points, a strong weekend calls the ‘Pocket Rocket’.

Alvaro Bautista

“In Jerez we collected a great deal of information to work with in Portimão. It will be very important to be able to combine this data with what we got from winter testing in order to try and be more competitive than we were in Jerez. We have some ideas and we’ll see if they work once we get there. Portimão is a challenging track as it’s bumpy and has a lot of undulation. It might not be easy, but we really need to take a step forward with respect to Jerez.”

Leon Haslam

“I think Portimão can be a good track for us as the Honda is very fast and the circuit’s main straight is one of the best places to pass. It also requires a lot of hard braking and one of the things we’ve been working on is our straight-line braking, so I can say I’m looking forward to it. It’s a real rollercoaster of a track, where we see some big wheelies, so there are various things to manage but I hope we can use our third event to better understand where we need to continue working.”

It was a dismal Jerez for BMW; Tom Sykes’ (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) third place start was the only real highlight after a Race 1 technical problem. Sixth in the Tissot Superpole Race was followed up by 11th in Race 2, so Sykes comes to Portimao in search of a much-needed result. Two wins at Portimao will lift his confidence and BMW’s best result in 2019 at Portimao was seventh. For teammate Eugene Laverty, Portimao’s almost been like a home event for him and like Sykes, has won there twice. 17th in the standings, the Irishman needs a turnaround in luck and form.

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Portimao WorldSBK Schedule

Source: MCNews.com.au

2020 WorldSBK – Jerez

Superbike Race One Report

Reigning Champion Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) made a good start from the front row to take the lead from polesitter Scott Redding (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) while Toprak Razgatlioglu (PATA YAMAHA WorldSBK Official Team) was also able to jump from fifth to move into second; pushing Redding down into third place.

Redding had to fight his way past Toprak Razgatlioglu on Lap 11 to move back into second place, passing Turkish rider into Turn 6 to move into second place before instantly starting to apply the pressure to Rea.

It took just three more laps before Redding would make the move for the lead.

The race winning move came on Lap 14 out of 20 when Scott Redding (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) passed Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) down into Turn 6; using the power of his Ducati to get alongside before forcing the five-time WorldSBK Champion wide to claim the race lead and his first victory since moving to WorldSBK.

Rea came home in second place ahead of Razgatlioglu, who had to fend off a last-lap charge from Chaz Davies (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) to hold on to third place. Davies tried to make moves at the right-hander of Turn 1 and around the outside of the Turn 6 hairpin, but he ran wide; Razgatlioglu holding on to take third place with Davies in fourth.

Loris Baz (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) was the top Independent rider in the race with fifth place, running in the lead quartet for the majority of the race before a late charge from Davies moved him down to fifth place. Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Team GOELEVEN) continued his impressive weekend with a sixth-place finish from a 10th place start.

Alvaro Bautista (Team HRC) finished in seventh place, four seconds away from Rinaldi and almost in a race of his own in the latter stages as he finished eight seconds clear of eighth-placed Marco Melandri (Barni Racing); the Italian finishing an impressive eighth place after making up 11 places throughout the race. Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK), who led the Championship coming into the race, finished in ninth after being passed by Melandri in the latter stages.

Bautista’s HRC team-mate, Leon Haslam, was 10th ahead of Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Junior Team) and Christophe Ponsson (Nuova M2 Racing) scoring points on his return to the Championship as the privateer team brought Aprilia back to the Championship as part of a wildcard plan.

Xavi Fores (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) finished in 13th place with Sandro Cortese (OUTDO Kawasaki TPR) and Eugene Laverty (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) rounding out the points-paying positions. Sylvain Barrier (Brixx Performance), debutant Lorenzo Gabellini (MIE Racing Althea Honda Team) and team-mate Takumi Takahashi were the last classified runners.

Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) was running in the leading group but suffered a technical issue as he approached Turn 1 in the early stages of the race, ruling him out of contention in the early stages of the race. He was able to take the bike back to the pit lane despite the issue. Sykes was able to re-join the race on Lap 12; the issue not proving to be terminal.

Sykes’ issue was not the only issue during the race as Michael van der Mark (PATA YAMAHA WorldSBK Official Team) retired from the race on Lap 8, lots of smoke coming out the back of his bike forcing him to retire from Race 1 as he was running in the top 10. Federico Caricasulo (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Junior Team) suffered a high speed crash at Turn 4 but was able to ride the bike back to the pit lane, although it ended his race, while Leandro ‘Tati’ Mercado (Motocorsa Racing) also suffered a crash at Turn 6.

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Scott Redding – P1

“It’s a great day for me: pole position and victory, couldn’t have done better. The race was very hard because of the temperature. In some moments I suffered a lot. I would like to thank the team for providing me with a bike that has worked very well. When did I start to suffer? Since I entered the pit lane. These are extreme conditions and tomorrow it will be even more difficult. But this is a problem all riders have to deal with.”

Jonathan Rea – P2

“That is probably the best performance we have done in Jerez for a number of years now. We have got to be really happy with our effort but I am a little bit disappointed that I had nothing left at the end for Scott. I had a few front slides in turn two and it was enough just to knock my confidence a little bit to start thinking to bring it home. We are not loading the front enough so we have some areas to improve for tomorrow. The good thing is that the rear tyre was working really well all race and had a lot of traction. This is not the strongest circuit for us but I was right there in the mix until the last few laps.”

Toprak Razgatlioglu – P3

“Today was very tough for all the riders, it was incredibly hot. I was fighting for the win, but it was just out of reach because in the closing stages the bike began to slide a lot. I tried my best and finishing third means we can take good points for the championship. I was fighting with Chaz Davies in the closing stages, but I managed to hold him off with some defensive riding. After practice I wasn’t completely happy, but it’s good to know that we can fight for wins even after a difficult Friday, so I’m looking forward to tomorrow.”

Chaz Davies – P4

“Unfortunately the start wasn’t the best and it compromised the possibility of fighting for the podium from the very first laps. During the race, however, the pace was good and allowed me to recover many positions. Satisfied? I would be if I raised a trophy. We have to work tomorrow morning to try and work out some small details that will allow me to be more incisive“.

Loris Baz – P5

“Not quite a podium yet, but I’m still happy. We have to take the most points we can without making mistakes, and fighting with factory guys is always good. The qualifying was OK, I felt there was a bit more left but it still wasn’t a bad position. In the race, I struggled at the beginning, it took me three laps or so to be on the pace. The bike was sliding a lot and I had to stop using the rear brake, which is unusual for me. Then I started to come back towards the front three, but I couldn’t find a way to pass. In the slipstream the tyres overheated quite a lot and I dropped to fifth, but overall I’m happy with the job we’ve done today.”

Alvaro Bautista – P7

“I was hoping for better feeling during the race, similar to what I had during the practices. I’m not thinking to the race result here, I’m referring to my feeling with the bike because we’d worked well until this point of the weekend. My Superpole lap time was not so bad even though I didn’t exploit my qualifying tyre to its full potential. So we expected more from this race. Instead we struggled with front feeling and the bike’s turning, something that we had partially solved in the test in Aragon but that here, with higher temperatures and such a slippery track due to the extreme conditions, prevented us from pushing as we wanted during the race. So even though I’m not happy with the feeling I had today on the bike, on another hand I’m happy that we are very clear on where we need to work and the problem we have to solve.”

Alex Lowes – P9

“I tucked the front in the first lap of Superpole, which was a shame, as it put pressure on for the one lap on the qualifying tyre. In the race I struggled a lot more than I expected. The SC2 front tyre worked really well for me on Friday afternoon and I did a lot of laps on it, but today it did not seem to work as well. I think I need a bit more experience of the Kawasaki in hot conditions to get the most out of it. It is easy to forget that this is my second proper ride on it. When you go around Jerez in the winter and the weather is cool you just ride around, can do loads of laps, and everything feels good. The you come here in these temperatures and everything feels a bit different. I had to just manage the race the best I could and we will try to improve a bit for tomorrow.”

Leon Haslam – P10

“It felt like a very long race to be honest. We suffered a similar problem to Australia, which began in the opening laps and gradually got worse throughout the race. I struggled to manage the front and the grip and essentially went backwards. So we need to make a new plan for tomorrow, hopefully rectifying some of these problems. I think our pace through the opening laps can see us up with the top five so I’m confident we can take a step forward tomorrow.”

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Superbike Race One Results

WSBK Championship Points

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Supersport Race One Report

With track temperatures hitting and exceeding 60°c during the FIM Supersport World Championship Race 1, the opening WorldSSP race from the Pirelli Spanish took place in sweltering conditions but that did not stop Andrea Locatelli (BARDAHL Evan Bros. WorldSSP Team) taking victory despite an early-race battle with Jules Cluzel (GMT94 Yamaha).

Locatelli held the lead off the line but French rider Cluzel made the move to take the lead on the opening lap of the race. He was able to hold the lead until lap five when Locatelli was able to make a move back to take the lead and promptly extended his lead to Cluzel to take the Italian rider out of range; eventually finishing the race three seconds clear of Cluzel.

Cluzel finished a comfortable second, with a margin of almost five seconds, despite the lead group of three to break away along with Philipp Oettl (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing); Cluzel able to finish X seconds clear of German rider Oettl. Oettl also had a comfortable run to the podium on his Kawasaki ZX-6R, the top Kawasaki rider in Race 1 with both Locatelli and Cluzel both riding Yamaha YZF R6 machines.

Lucas Mahias (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) claimed a hard-fought fourth place ahead of Raffaele de Rosa (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) in Race 1; the pair fighting on the last lap with Mahias making a move through the fast right-handers towards the end of the lap to secure fourth place. De Rosa had been closing in on Mahias throughout the latter stages and passed him at Turn 6, the pair getting their elbows out as they made their way through the corner.

Steven Odendaal (EAB Ten Kate Racing) finished in sixth place as he held off a challenge from Corentin Perolari (GMT94 Yamaha). The pair were separated by just three tenths of a second as they crossed the line with 2019 WorldSSP300 Champion Manuel Gonzalez (Kawasaki ParkinGO Team) finishing in eighth. Spaniard Gonzalez had to fight off Can Öncü (Turkish Racing Team) and Hannes Soomer (Kallio Racing) who rounded out the top 10; the trio separated by seven tenths as they crossed the line.

Alejandro Ruiz (EMPERADOR Racing Team) finished an impressive 11th place after starting at the back of the grid following a penalty for incorrect tyre pressures; making up a number of positions throughout the 17-lap race to secure a points finish. Ruiz, the highest-placed finisher in the WorldSSP Challenge, finished two-and-a-half seconds clear of Danny Webb (WRP Wepol Racing) in 12th.

Federico Fuligni (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) finished in 13th place, three seconds behind Webb but a comfortable nine seconds clear of Belgian rider Loris Cresson (OXXO Yamaha Team Toth). Cresson was 16 seconds clear of WorldSSP Challenge competitor Luigi Montella (DK MOTORSPORT), who claimed the final point to be awarded in the race with 15th.

Australian newcomer Lachlan Epis as stand-in rider for the MPM Routz Racing Team was the last finisher home in 16th place, just missing out on a World Championship point after struggling with a lack of set-up time to make the tyres last in the hot conditions.

Axel Bassani (Soradis Yamaha Motoxracing) was running strongly in the points during his race but the WorldSSP Challenge competitor had a crash late in the race; the Italian taken to the medical centre for checks following the incident but was declared fit after the check-up. Peter Sebestyen (OXXO Yamaha Team Toth) and Andy Verdoïa (bLU cRU WorldSSP by MS Racing) had an incident at Turn 4 which meant Hungarian rider Sebestyen retired from the race and was taken to the medical centre for a check-up following the incident; later being declared unfit due to concussion. Verdoïa was able to continue in the race but later had an issue which meant he temporarily stopped on track.

Other retirements in the race included Indonesian rider Galang Hendra Pratama (bLU cRU WorldSSP by MS Racing), Hikari Okubo (Dynavolt Honda), Patrick Hobelsberger (Dynavolt Honda) and Isaac Viñales (Kallio Racing); the Spanish rider starting from the back of the grid following a stewards’ decision for incorrect tyre pressures.

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P1 Andrea Locatelli (BARDAHL Evan Bros. WorldSSP Team)

“It’s a fantastic day today, we did a good job, but the conditions are very crazy. It’s so hot and so difficult to push on the bike but we need to understand to take a bit more confidence in these conditions because it’s important for tomorrow and the second race. I think we did a really good job today and this is important for the Championship and also for me.”

P2 Jules Cluzel (GMT94 Yamaha)

“I’m happy. It was the target after practice and qualifying. We knew we could not really follow the rider of the BARDAHL but I gave my best to be second. I tried my best, for sure, to be first but today was too difficult, too much risk. With the hot conditions I was sliding the front, sliding the rear. Actually, I’m happy, I’m proud because I trained hard for these hot conditions. I knew more or less the feeling and I tried to improve the bike in these conditions. It worked today so second is a good result. We still have a race tomorrow so we have to improve a little bit tomorrow and maybe I can fight with him.”

P3 Philipp Oettl (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing)

“I am very happy with my first WorldSSP podium. Manuel Puccetti gave me the opportunity to ride in this team and after one and a half difficult years before then it was a good sign that I can still ride a bike. At the first round in Phillip Island I had a good feeling with the bike and I thought I could be on the podium, but I threw it away. I thought today I could stay calm. I had a good start and immediately we were in front and the gap was already there. I said to myself to keep calm and do not throw it way again. The front was difficult in the race as we had 62°C on the asphalt. The heat was terrible but I am happy.”

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Supersport Race One Results

Supersport Championship Points

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WorldSSP 300 Race One Report

Thrilling racing and scorching temperatures greeted FIM Supersport 300 World Championship riders for the start of the 2020 WorldSSP season at the Circuito de Jerez – Angel Nieto, with the delayed season getting underway with a chaotic race, with Unai Orradre (Yamaha MS Racing) breaking away from the lead group at around half distance before going on to take victory.

Orradre took advantage of Ana Carrasco (Kawasaki Provec WorldSSP300) running wide on Lap 5 to move into the lead before pulling out around half a second to break the slipstream effect, enabling the Spanish rider to control the race without pressure from the chasing pack. Until Carrasco ran wide, there had been a lead group of nine riders.

The battle for second went down to the last corner of the last lap between Scott Deroue (MTM Kawasaki MOTOPORT), Carrasco, Tom Booth-Amos (RT Motorsports by SKM – Kawasaki) and Yuta Okaya (MTM Kawasaki MOTOPORT), Thomas Brianti (Prodina Ircos Team WorldSSP300) and Bahattin Sofuoglu (Biblion Motoxracing Yamaha WSSP300).

Carrasco was second heading into the final corner after an aggressive move on Deroue on the final lap but the 2018 Champion ran wide at the final corner; moving her down to seventh place. Booth-Amos took advantage of this to move into second place while Deroue finished third, Okaya fourth and Brianti fifth; just 0.058s separating the trio at the line. Booth-Amos had a Margin of 0.087s ahead of Deroue.

Behind Carrasco in seventh, Kevin Sabatucci (Kawasaki GP Project) finished in eighth place around four seasons behind Carrasco but in a tight battle with Alvaro Diaz (Biblion Motoxracing Yamaha WSSP300) with the pair separated by 0.002s at the line. Sabatucci and Diaz were part of a second group of riders behind the leaders which also featured Nick Kalinin (Battley-RT Motorsports by SKM-Kawasaki) and Ton Kawakami (Yamaha MS Racing); the pair finishing tenth and 11th respectively. The top 11 were separated by just 7.836s after the 10-lap race.

Samuel Di Sora (Leader Team Flembbo) was 12th after making his way through the Last Chance Race to claim a point-scoring finish, finishing two tenths clear of Kim Aloisi (ProGP Racing). Alejandro Carrion (Smrz Racing – Willi Race) finished in 14th place with Koen Meuffels (MTM Kawasaki MOTOPORT) claiming the final point. Like Di Sora, he had to fight his way through the Last Chance Race to make it onto the grid.

There was an incident involving Johan Gimbert (GP Project) and Hugo De Cancellis (Team TRASIMENO) in the race with a battle on track, with both riders retiring from the race following the crash after completing one lap. De Cancellis had been at the back of the grid following a penalty for a tyre pressure infringement and had made his way into 24th position before the incident. Other retirements include Tom Bercot (ProGP Racing) on the opening lap, Mika Perez (Prodina Ircos Team WorldSSP300) who had came off his bike of his own accord.

Australian Tom Edwards (Kawasaki ParkinGO Team) also failed to finish while countryman Tom Bramich did not make the WorldSSP300 Main after going out of the earlier Last Chance Race.

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P1 Unai Orradre (Yamaha MS Racing)

“To take my first world championship win here today is an incredible feeling and I’m very happy. In the first part of the race I stayed in the lead group, but just after the halfway point I decided to try to go alone and I managed to pull a bit of a gap at the front. From then it was just a case of trying to maintain the advantage, but I actually managed to extend the gap over the final laps. To win today was amazing, but now we need to focus on Race 2 tomorrow, where I hope we can be in the lead group again and in a position to fight for another victory. Thank you to both the MS Racing Team and Yamaha for their incredible support.”

P2 Tom Booth-Amos (RT Motorsports by SKM – Kawasaki)

“Obviously it’s nice to be on the podium but I had the pace to win today. Unfortunately in qualifying I was on my fast lap and the red flag came out, so I started 15th today. I made some mistakes but it was my first Supersport 300 race coming from GP. I made some mistakes, dropped back to 17th then pushed my way forwards and finally it worked. I think tomorrow we can get a better start and push for the win.”

P3 Scott Deroue (MTM Kawasaki MOTOPORT)

“I had a good start from 13th position and my first lap was good too, then I was just looking at what was my pace, what was the pace of the others and it wasn’t too bad. But my bike was getting really hot and in the end, I was thinking “okay, I go first” but I didn’t have the pace to be first to be honest. Then Unai overtook me, I made a mistake, Unai had a gap and I made another mistake and then there was a gap. Second was the ideal to finish. On the last lap, Ana overtook me on the straight and the next corner she touched me, then we came together at the last corner. I took the inside; she went for the inside too and we touched again so I outbraked myself and finished third. I’m happy with that but I was hoping for second.”

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WorldSSP 300 Race One Results

WorldSSP 300 Championship Points

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WorldSBK Sunday Schedule

Source: MCNews.com.au

2020 WorldSBK

The 2020 Motul FIM Superbike World Championship’s resumed overnight under the scorching Spanish sun at Jerez and it was Ten Kate Yamaha’s Loris Baz quickest in the heat to top the day’s running ahead of the Pirelli Spanish Round.

Baz’s time of 1’40.249s was just over a tenth faster than Italian rider Rinaldi’s time from the second practice session, but Rinaldi was able to bounce back from a crash in Free Practice 1 to top the second practice session. As temperatures got higher throughout the day, so did the action on track with 15 out of the 23 riders separated by one second in the combined times.

Loris Baz – P1

“It was a good first day back, even if it was a bit up and down this morning with a small technical issue. We decided after the tests in Barcelona and Assen that we have to change something on the bike, especially for the heat, so we made some adjustments this morning and I’m confident ahead of the race tomorrow. It’s always great to finish a session in first and to improve the lap times, even if it’s only a Friday. This afternoon we did 20 laps on one set of tyres and it felt pretty good, so I think we’re in a strong position.”

Reigning Champion Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki) was second fastest overall with a 1’41.311s; less than a tenth behind Baz’s fastest overall time. Championship leader and Rea’s KRT teammate, Alex Lowes, was 10th fastest but within four-tenths of the fastest time of the day; showing the competitive nature of the field and machines in action at Jerez.

Jonathan Rea – P2

“We still have some work to do but I felt quite good out there today. Pirelli brought three possible race tyres for the longer races so we tried to understand what the best one would be. We did enough laps on each to draw some conclusions for tomorrow, and we narrowed it down to two rear options. The bike is working quite OK. We have moved away from our base set-up this summer, with two recent tests in Misano and Montmelo and the bike is turning well. We never really went for a time attack in the second session so this was just a working day really, to understand where we are.”

Alex Lowes – P10

“I think the biggest challenge is going to be tyres in these kinds of temperatures, so in the afternoon session I just used the same tyre and tried to adapt the bike a little bit. We made a few small changes and rode until the end of the session. My pace was not too bad and I did my best laps at the end. That was quite good and I just need to improve the front set-up of the bike, during the trail-braking phase. If we can improve that for tomorrow I think we will be not too bad. This afternoon’s session was better than this morning’s session and I think it was more relevant for temperature. I felt a bit more comfortable and the races should be held in hotter conditions, later in the day.”

Alvaro Bautista (Team HRC) was fourth fastest overall for the day as he continued his impressive pace at Jerez, with his team-mate Leon Haslam finishing the day with the ninth fastest time.

Alvaro Bautista – P4

“My feeling with the bike is much better than it was in Australia. Conditions were tough today with a slippery track and very high temperatures. I’m happy though because we tested many things, especially in terms of the tyres, to understand the range available and see what might work in the hot conditions here; consumption will be key. I think we’ve taken a step forward and now need to continue in this direction, making small adjustments to build our confidence. Our rhythm is not bad, and I think we need to focus on being constant in this weekend’s races, considering the track conditions. We still have some small changes to make tomorrow of course but, all in all, an encouraging first day’s work.”

Leon Haslam – P9

“Today’s been tough to be honest. The lap times were coming easily during our first exit but then we tried a few things and perhaps went in the wrong direction with a few items. It was tricky in the afternoon and although we tested something else, we ended up going back to the morning setting, with which we got closer in terms of the lap times. We tried many of the tyre options and I’m clear as far as that’s concerned, but we still have more to understand and also need to do a long-run. So, we still have work to do but I don’t think we’re far off though and today has definitely had its positives, which we’ll take into Saturday.”

Bautista headed Aruba Ducati duo Scott Redding and Chaz Davies, who were sixth and seventh respectively. The two British riders were separated by just 0.030s as the day ended, although Davies did have an incident at Turn 2 but was able to continue.

Scott Redding – P5

“It’s been a very good day even though the conditions are really extreme, especially for the tyres. I tried to work in this direction this afternoon and we had positive results. I think that this weekend it will be very important to manage not only the tyres but also our body as we’ll have three races and they will all be particularly demanding. I am very confident though: I feel I am in the best possible condition“.

Chaz Davies – P6

“I think today we have seen the improvements we made in the last two tests in Misano and Barcelona. The bike has worked pretty well and the feeling is extremely positive. The objective for this weekend? I want to fight for the podium in every race. The pace is good even if in the race it is always a different story. In FP3 tomorrow morning we will continue to work to improve the feeling and get to the Superpole in the best conditions“.

Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha) was seventh fastest with a 1’40.507s, beating Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha) by less than a tenth of a second. With the top 10 so close, the action throughout Tissot Superpole and racing is sure to be exciting.

Toprak Razgatlıoğlu – P7

“Today was good start, but we were trying new set-ups on the bike that didn’t always give us the improvements we maybe expected. It’ll be a long race and very hot and, while we don’t have the best feeling at the moment, hopefully tomorrow we can make another step. Because of the track conditions, the bike is sliding quite a lot, but we will work to improve in this area tomorrow morning ahead of qualifying and Race 1.”

Michael van der Mark – P8

“It’s awesome to be back on track with all the other guys again. To be honest I couldn’t find a good rhythm this morning and struggled with set-up, but in the afternoon we changed quite a lot on the bike. I didn’t feel too comfortable with it under braking but then we made another big step during the session. We did a longer run and I felt much more comfortable. We’re missing a few tenths from the race pace, but at least I’m feeling more confident with . Tomorrow morning, we should be able to make another big step, but qualifying and the race are the most important and, as I said, we just need to find a couple of tenths for both.”

Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha) and teammate Federico Caricasulo were 11th and 12th respectively for the day, with both riders able to show their pace throughout the two practice sessions; Italian rider Caricasulo able to improve slightly throughout Free Practice 2.

Garrett Gerloff – P11

“It was definitely a positive start, it felt good right off the bat. We made some changes in Barcelona that have definitely worked here. This afternoon with the track much hotter, we struggled to maintain the same consistency and outright pace, but we made some good progress in the end. We will focus on improving in the hotter temperatures, as that is what the race conditions will be tomorrow. I’m looking forward to tomorrow and I’m confident that we have a good bike. The race pace isn’t bad, we’re not far off so after a few changes we’ll be right where we need to be.”

Federico Caricasulo – P12

“Today was very tough, as it was really hot and FP2 was particularly hard. We did a good job because we improved the bike between the practice sessions and managed the same lap time, despite the hotter temperatures. I’m happy because I didn’t use the soft tyre, I just focused on race runs. I think we are very close to all of the other Yamaha riders, which is good, and I am looking forward to tomorrow.“

Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad) was the highest-placed BMW rider in 13th place, with Eugene Laverty (BMW Motorrad) in 15th after suffering some clutch problems early on before then crashing at turn two.

Shaun Muir – BMW Team Principal

“We hit a few unexpected problems today, however, despite that in the more difficult session of FP2, both riders were able to put some really good race simulations in which overall potentially placed them P6,P7 so on paper that was very promising.
Overall, we had a few issues to sort out which I’m glad happened today and not tomorrow. I feel FP3 will be a good session for us to go do another race simulation. Thereafter we go into Superpole where hopefully we can get both riders onto the front two rows which will put in good stead for the race.”

Tom Sykes – P13

“This morning was just one of those sessions, we had some bedding in to do with the braking system which wasn’t ideal and had a few changes to do, so this morning I wouldn’t say was a wasted session but we got a lot of things out of the way ready for FP2. The afternoon session we focused on working towards a race time and estimating the tyres and temperatures which I felt pretty good in, especially during that first exit so I am looking forward to tomorrow to see what we can do on the BMW S 1000 RR.“

Eugene Laverty – P15

“Its nice to be back at a race weekend, we’ve been testing a fair bit recently but nothing compares to it when your against the clock. Unfortunately this morning that didn’t work well for me as a I had a small issue with the clutch, which lost us a lot of time which is never easy as your up against it from the word go. FP2 was really good in the first half, we were able to push and put some good laps in which were towards to top of the leader board but unfortunately I had a crash at T2 which again set us back in the session. We are a little behind in the sessions but ideally I am pushing to get myself into those first two rows which will help us hugely for the race.”

WorldSBK returnee Marco Melandri continued to get up to speed throughout the day by finishing between the two BMW riders.

In 16th was Chilean Maximilian Scheib (Orelac Kawasaki) as he posted a 1’41.230, the last rider within one second of Baz’s fastest time of the day as he Leandro ‘Tati’ Mercado (Motocorsa Ducati) in 17th place. Xavi Fores (Kawasaki Puccetti) and Sandro Cortese (OutDo Kawasaki) were 18th and 19th, just edging Nuova M2 Racing’s Christophe Ponsson, a wildcard entry on an Aprilia RSV4.

Takumi Takahashi (MIE Althea Honda), WorldSBK debutant Lorenzo Gabellini (MIE Althea Honda) and Sylvain Barrier (Brixx Ducati) completed the 23-rider field.

Takumi Takahashi – P21

“I’ve ridden in some very hot conditions before, but I must say today was extreme and tomorrow’s forecast is similar if not even tougher. Anyway, it’s the same for everyone and I have to say that, despite the high temperatures, I had slightly better feeling on the bike compared to how I felt during the test we completed at Aragon. We have taken a little step forward with the setup and although we are still far from where we want to be, it’s good to see some gradual progress being made.”

Lorenzo Gabellini – P22

“It’s been a useful day in terms of getting to grips with everything – the pace of the category, the bike’s setup and the track, which although I have ridden once in the past now seems like a completely new circuit. When I came here last it was winter, and only about 20 degrees. Today I was able to take a few references from the others but to be honest, I have a lot of things to get used to. I like the fact I was able to shave off about six tenths between the first and second session, with much more difficult conditions in FP2. I’m basically learning step by step and have to adapt to many things“.

Friday WorldSBK Practice Times

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Locatelli WorldSSP on Friday

The FIM Supersport World Championship’s season resumed with two practice sessions and Italian rookie Andrea Locatelli (Badahl Yamaha) continued exactly where he left off at Phillip Island, dominating the field as he topped both practice sessions at the Circuito de Jerez – Angel Nieto.

Locatelli’s best time was set in the morning session with a 1’42.988, the only rider to dip below 1’43 all day. In Free Practice 2 he was the only rider in the 1’43s as he posted a time that was over one second faster than Philipp Oettl (Kawasaki Puccetti) in Free Practice 2. Overall, he was fourth tenths faster than Steven Odendaal (Ten Kate Yamaha), who was second faster for the day with his time of 1’43.399.

South African rider Odendaal was four tenths faster than Philipp Oettl (Kawasaki Puccetti) as the trio rounded out the top three; the riders directly behind Locatelli very close in terms of lap time. Oettl’s Kawasaki Puccetti Racing teammate, Lucas Mahias, was fifth fastest with fellow Frenchman Jules Cluzel (GMT94 Yamaha) in fourth between Oettl and Mahias. Cluzel’s GMT94 Yamaha team-mate, Corentin Perolari was in eighth place after the two sessions.

Isaac Viñales (Kallio Yamaha) was sixth fastest overall over the two practice sessions, three tenths ahead of his Kallio Racing team-mate, Hannes Soomer in seventh. Axel Bassani (Soradis Yamaha Motoxracing) was the highest placed rider competing in the World Supersport Challenge with ninth overall. Hikari Okubo (Dynavolt Honda) rounded out the top 10 while his teammate, German Patrick Hobelsberger, was 21st overall.

Raffaele De Rosa (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) was 11th fastest overall for the day, having posted a 1’44.497 in the second practice session; one of only a handful of riders to improve their time from the opening practice session. Federico Fuligni (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) was classified in 20th place for the day.

Alejandro Carranza Ruiz (Emperador Racing Team) finished the day in 12th overall as he beat Manuel Gonzalez (Kawasaki ParkinGO) by just 0.005s; showing just how close it is in WorldSSP. Danny Webb (WRP Wepol Yamaha) was 14th fastest after both sessions, with Peter Sebestyen (Oxxo Yamaha Toth) in 15th. Hungarian Sebestyen’s team-mate, Loris Cresson, was 23rd fastest for the day.

Andy Verdoïa (bLU cRU Yamaha) finished in 16th with his team-mate, Galang Hendra Pratama in 19th place. Between them was Turkish sensation Can Öncü (Kawasaki) and Christoffer Bergman (Yamaha); the Swedish rider returning to action after suffering from two broken legs.

Lachlan Epis (MPM Routz Yamaha) was 22nd out of 24 riders, with Luigi Montella (DK Yamaha) rounding out the 24-rider field.

WorldSSP Friday Practice Times

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WorldSSP300

Home rider Mika Perez (Prodina Ircos Team WorldSSP300) topped the 300 Supersport time-sheets at Jerez overnight. Times between riders were minimal across Friday’s two practice sessions as Perez made the first move with the fastest time of the day in the first Free Practice session.

Perez’s time of 1’53.609, set in the first practice session, was enough to be the fastest time of the day as he beat Tom Booth-Amos (RT Motorsports by SKM – Kawasaki), whose best time came in Free Practice 2 at Jerez.

Unai Orradre (Yamaha MS Racing) was third fastest across both sessions with a time of 1’53.770s; just over a tenth separating the top three after the first day of WorldSSP300 action.

Meikon Kawakami (Team Brasil AD78) was fourth fastest for the day’s track action with a time of 1’53.907 on his WorldSSP300 debut, beating Scott Deroue (MTM Kawasaki MOTOPORT) by around one tenth of a second.

Hugo de Cancellis (Team TRASIMENO), entering his third season in World Supersport 300, was sixth fastest. The top six in the highly-competitive field were separated by less than half a second, showing how close racing will be in the 2020 WorldSSP300 season.

Deroue’s MTM Kawasaki Motoport team-mate, Yuta Okaya, finished the day with the seventh fastest time, around a tenth off Deroue, after setting a time of 1’54.113s in Free Practice 2. Italian rider Gabriele Mastroluca (GP Project) was eighth after setting his best time in Free Practice 1; beating Tom Edwards (Kawasaki ParkinGO Team) by 0.003s – Edwards setting his best time in Free Practice 1. Bruno Ieraci (Kawasaki GP Project) rounded out the top 10 of the WorldSSP field.

2018 World Champion Ana Carrasco (Kawasaki Provec WorldSSP300) finished the day in 15th place while Ukrainian rider Nick Kalinin (Battley-RT Motorsports by SKM Kawasaki) and Johan Gimbert finished the day 18th and 19th respectively; Gimbert finishing just over one second off the pace of Perez.

Koen Meuffels (MTM Kawasaki Motoport) finished the session in 26th place, with more to come from the Dutch rider who has one win and two podiums to his name in WorldSSP300.

Australia’s Tom Bramich was 33rd quickest on the Carl Cox backed RT Motorsports SKM Kawasaki in what is a massive 53-rider field.

WorldSSP300 Combined Results

WSBK Schedule

Source: MCNews.com.au