Razgatlioglu wins Race 1 undisturbed, rear SCX compound is protagonist

FOCUS ON SUPERPOLE

WorldSBK (asphalt: 34°C / air: 19° C)

After his pole position at the Estoril round, the second pole of the season arrives for Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK). The six-time world champion took it with a time of 1’26.080, improving on the track record set in 2017 by former teammate Tom Sykes (1’26.641) by more than half a second. All the riders used the SCQ solution at the rear which the Northern Irishman paired with the front A0674 SC1 development tyre. His teammate, Alex Lowes, did the second best time, but he was using the standard SC1 at the front. Rounding out the front row was Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK), also on the front standard SC1. Fourth place for Scott Redding (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) and fifth for championship leader Álvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati), both on the front SC1 development tyre like Rea.

WorldSSP (asphalt: 31°C / air: 19° C)

It was an extremely heated Superpole battle with Dominique Aegerter (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha), Nicolò Bulega (Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team), and Glenn Van Straalen (EAB Racing Team) the protagonists, taking turns in the lead all the way to the end. In the end, it was the Swiss Yamaha rider who gained the upper hand with a time of 1’29.961 (just 36 thousandths of a second from the track record set by Kenan Sofuoglu in 2015), taking his fourth consecutive pole position and the 100th in WorldSSP for the manufacturer from Iwata. The Italian Ducati rider and the Dutch Yamaha rider completed the front row of the starting grid. All the riders used SCX tyres at the rear and SC1 at the front.

TYRES IN ACTION IN RACE 1

WorldSBK (asphalt: 46°C / air: 24°C)

Unanimous rider choice for the rear tyre used in Race 1: everyone opted for the SCX. Choices for the front varied with Rea, Lowes, Redding, and Bautista opting for the A0674 SC1 development tyre, whereas Razgatlioglu and Rinaldi decided to rely on the standard SC1. The defending world champion had an outstanding start from the third spot on the grid, moving into the lead straight away and holding onto it undisturbed all the way to the end of the race, finishing with an advantage of over six seconds ahead of Rea and his Kawasaki (second) and more than nine seconds ahead of Lowes’ Kawasaki (third). This gives the Turkish rider his second win of the season after the Superpole race he won in Misano. Worth a mention is the spectacular battle between Rea and Bautista for second position which came to an end on the 16th lap when the Spaniard crashed out on turn 12.

WorldSSP (asphalt: 46°C / air: 24°C)

Tyre choices were in line with those of the WorldSBK riders for Supersport, where riders unanimously went with the SCX rear and the SC1 front, both solutions from the standard range. Race distance was at first reduced to 18 laps and then further reduced to 12 laps. For much of the race, Lorenzo Baldassarri (Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha Team) remained in the lead, managing to fend off the attacks by Dominique Aegerter (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) but three laps from the end, the Swiss rider managed to overtake the Italian, winning his eighth race of the season. Third place went to Raffaele de Rosa (Orelac Racing Verdnatura WorldSSP).

For more details on the tyres used in the race by the individual riders in the WorldSBK and WorldSSP classes, please see the sheets attached to this press release. 

GIORGIO BARBIER, MOTORCYCLE RACING DIRECTOR

“Rider pace was extremely high from the first session on Friday and we had confirmation of this in Superpole, where no fewer than 4 riders dropped below the track record, with Rea managing to improve on it by more than half a second. On top of that, average race times were two seconds faster per lap compared with Race 1 last year. With the asphalt temperature never dropping below 30°C and hovering around 46°C during the race, the standard SCX rear tyre proved to be the key compound for both Superbike and Supersport riders, whereas at the front, the key compound was the SC1 in standard or development version. If the temperatures stay in line with those recorded today, as it seems they will, it is going to be interesting to see if some riders try to use the rear SCQ in the Superpole Race.”