In a mixed condition race Nicholas Spinelli (Barni Spark Racing) won race 1 after finishing P21 on day 1 of track action. Spinelli is subbing this weekend at Assen for the injured Danilo Petrucci. The win marks the team’s first win in World Superbike. Spinelli made the perfect call regarding tires opting for the Intermediate tire in the front and rear. His on track advantage because apparent right away in race 1. Given the mixed conditions opinions were mixed on tire selection.
On Lap 14 the race was red flagged due to an oil spill. After the restart most of the riders opted for slicks which ended up being the wrong call after the race restart. Those on slicks struggled for grip and those on intermediate pulled away rapidly. Spinelli was able to build up a 2 second gap by the end of the race.
Razgatlioglu Fends off Bautista
In the heated battle behind, Toprak Razgatlioglu carved out a P2 finish after a multi-lap battle with Alvaro Bautista. The two were separated by 1 tenth of a second. Despite finishing P3 Bautista has shown signs of his dominance in 2023 but has yet to put the pieces together to return as his normal self. Bautista has been pressured this year with the likes of Nicolo Bulega but Bulega had an extremely disappointing finish only mustering the pace to finish P11.
The weather shook up the field as expected. Remy Gardner and Alex Lowes rounded out the top 5.