Starting from pole position Adrian Huertas (Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team) dominated the opening Supersport race of the weekend.
The Italian grabbed the holeshot, set the fastest lap and led every lap en route to his ninth win of the campaign.
In the early laps Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) and Stefano Manzi (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing) gave chase to Huertas but ultimately they were in a race-long fight for second position. That scrap was settled in Manzi’s favour on Lap 15 when he moved ahead of Montella. The Yamaha rider ended the race almost three seconds clear of his rival for his eighth second place finish of the season.
Marcel Schrotter (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) returned to form to finish fourth ahead of Tom Booth Amos (PTR Triumph). It was the German rider’s best finish since the second round of the season in Catalunya and ended a run of form that has seen him finishing outside the top six for the last four rounds.
The race saw seven riders crash at Turn 10. The highest profile faller was Federico Carisuolo (Motozoo ME AIR Racing) from a comfortable fourth position six laps from the end.
By virtue of his fastest lap Huertas will start from pole position for Race 2. He’ll be joined on the front row by Manzi and Montella. Can Oncu (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) crashed at Turn 10 on Lap 1 but opted to pit during the race. His strategy was rewarded with a personal best lap on Lap 15 that will see him line up on the second row of the grid.
Championship standings
With races remaining in the season Huertas holds a 23 point lead from Montella in the championship standings.
Valentin Debise (Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha Team) and Marcel Schroetter (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) are now separated by one point for fourth position in the standings.
Key Points:
Pole position: Adrian Huertas (Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team)
Race 1 winner: Adrian Huertas
Fastest lap: Adrian Huertas – 1’32.213s
P1 | Adrian Huertas | Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team
“I’m super happy with this race! I’ve been working so hard to win again and we tried a little bit too hard in the last two races but today I really enjoyed the race. Today, my pace was really strong and I’m really happy with what we’ve achieved. This victory is really important for us and we’ll try to do it again tomorrow. I have learned not to focus on the championship and my team told me before the race to focus on the race and to enjoy it. We’re having a good season and we want to keep enjoying it and to keep winning races.”
WorldSSP Race 1 Results
1. Adrian Huertas (Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team)
2. Stefano Manzi (Pata Prometeon Ten Kate Racing) +4.665s
3. Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) +7.597s
4. Marcel Schroetter (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) +13.000s
5. Tom Booth-Amos (PTR Triumph) +13.682s
6. Lucas Mahias (GMT94 Yamaha) +17.818s
Championship Standings
1. Adrian Huertas (Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team) 314 points
2. Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) 291
3. Stefano Manzi (Pata Prometeon Ten Kate Racing) 259
For more info checkout our dedicated World Supersport News page superbike-news.co.uk/world-supersport/
Or visit the official World Superbike website worldsbk.com
©Words/Images are from official press release posted courtesy of WorldSBK.com