WorldSBK: With five races remaining Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) had a near perfect day at the Circuito Estoril.
A lap record in the Tissot Superpole session was followed by a 20th race victory of the season.
Race 1 Highlights
A five rider incident at Turn 1 saw the race red flagged. Axel Bassani (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team), Michael van der Mark (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team), Tarran Mackenzie (MGM BONOVO Racing), Tetsuta Nagashima (Honda HRC) and Bahattin Sofuoglu (Yamaha Motoxracing WorldSBK Team) were all involved.
When the race restarted the duration was reduced to 20 laps and the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati riders made the fastest start. Alvaro Bautista led for the opening two laps, his first time out in front since the opening round of the year, while Nicolo Bulega was overtaken by Razgatlioglu on the third lap. The Turkish rider hit the front on the same lap and led the field home from there.
Bulega’s pace mid-race put Razgatlioglu under pressure. The Italian rider suffered from front grip issues in the final laps and had to settle for the 20 points for second position.
Bautista spent the first two thirds of the race under pressure. The Spaniard was hassled by Jonathan Rea for the first half of the race. On Lap 12 he ran wide at Turn 1 but he recovered from that moment to re-establish his advantage. Rea would finish in sixth position trailing his Pata Maxus Yamaha teammate Andrea Locatelli and Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team).
Championship Highlights
- Razgatlioglu extends his championship advantage to 41 points from Bulega.
- Despite withdrawing from this weekend’s racing through injury Petrucci’s season has been rewarded with the Best Independent Rider Award.
- In the Manufacturers’ Standings BMW are now one point behind Ducati.
P1 – Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team)
“At the beginning of the race everything was under control but in the middle of the race Nicolo had a bit more grip than me. At the end of the race I was spinning a lot but he was too. I’m really happy to finish the first race in first position. Tomorrow we have two more hard races, and I’ll try my best again.”
P2 – Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati)
“It wasn’t a bad result but it’s not enough. I tried everything but honestly Toprak was very strong today. In the first lap I lost a bit of time and he was already gone. I tried to recover and was nearly able to catch him but in the last five laps I felt a big drop on the front tyre and the risk of crashing was high, so I preferred to take second. We’ll try again tomorrow.”
P3 – Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati)
“Today I didn’t make any mistakes so I’m happy. It was important to finish and take good points for the championship. I had a good start but I couldn’t push in the early laps. The bike was difficult, and I felt a bit like a passenger. The maximum today was third because Toprak and Nicolo were really fast. My pace wasn’t bad, but I stayed calm to finish on the podium. I’m happy and tomorrow I’ll try to keep the same mentality and get the maximum again.”
Race 1 Results
1. Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team)
2. Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) +1.948s
3. Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) +14.729s
4. Andrea Locatelli (Pata Maxus Yamaha) +16.563s
5. Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) +17.044s
6. Jonathan Rea (Pata Maxus Yamaha) +18.575s
Tissot Superpole Highlights
Having broken the lap record in Free Practice Razgatlioglu smashed it during the 15 Superpole Session. The Turkish rider’s sixth pole position of the season was over one second faster than the previous lap record.
Bulega and Bautista completed the front row. It was the first time that Aruba.it Racing – Ducati teammates qualified on the front row together this year.
Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) narrowly pipped Xavi Vierge (Honda HRC) for fourth fastest while Jonathan Rea (Pata Maxus Yamaha) followed Bulega on his fastest lap and was rewarded with the sixth fastest time.
Injury has ruled out Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) and Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) from the rest of the weekend.
Superpole Results
1. Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) 1’34.203s
2. Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) +0.346s
3. Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) +0.960s
For more info checkout our dedicated WorldSBK (World Superbike) News page superbike-news.co.uk/category/world-superbikes/
Or visit the official World Superbike website worldsbk.com
©Words/Images are from official press release posted courtesy of WorldSBK.com
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