Alvaro Bautista crashed out of FP2 today but avoided injury in his quest to clinch the World Superbike championship this weekend. Bautista needs 2 points to secure the title and he can do so starting on Saturday. While the feat seems trivial; anything can happen in motorcycle racing. Bautista and his Ducati V4R have been dominant this season. He has finished 28 of the 33 races thus far on the podium. Bautista enters the race weekend at Circuito de Jerez – Angel Nieto with a 60 point lead in the championship standings. Unless something catastrophic occurs Bautista will be crowned world champion this weekend.
While the idea of Bautista not repeating his 2022 success seems outlandish we have seen crazier finishes to the season. With Bautista’s crash in FP2 he is lucky to have avoided serious injury. Otherwise the championship would have been wide open. Bautista stated the following after the session, “Today, we have to say half a day one! In the morning, the track was too wet and we didn’t want to take any risks so we decided not to exit. In the afternoon, the track was almost dry. Just a couple of water patches in some areas of the track…I crashed at Turn 6 because I went over a wet patch that was not easy to see when you were riding. I didn’t expect it, honestly! It seemed like it was completely dry in that area of the track. Fortunately, I don’t have any physical problems.”
Razgatlioglu Hoping for a Miracle
Toprak Razgatlioglu is hoping for a miracle this weekend. After running fastest in FP1 Razgatlioglu said, “Friday was difficult because FP1, nobody was riding because the track conditions were strange. In FP2 everybody was riding but I was feeling less grip – not just my problem, all riders feeling the same. I felt just spinning, no grip/no turning, but we have already some positive way. Just I need a little more grip for good pace. I did a good lap time, but I need good pace as well and tomorrow I think we are improving to fight again.
I did some laps following Alvaro, just to understand where his bike is strong – I am just trying to see which corners I can catch him in the race…I see and I understand, just I need a good set-up with my R1 – and it looks like tomorrow we can improve. I am still fighting for the win – first I need a good qualifying and after a good race, I hope I am fighting again like Portimão. When I fight like this I enjoy riding the bike a lot, we will see! I’m hungry to win.”
If Bautista makes multiple mistakes this weekend anything is possible. We don’t think this will be the case. Superpole is just a few hours away.
Results From FP2 at Jerez
Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing) won a nail biting Superpole Race in Portimão this morning over second place championship sitter Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Prometeon Yamaha). Baustista followed that win with a win in Race 2 basically sealing the deal for his second championship title. Bautista would have clinched after race 2 if Razgatlioglu had finish third or worse but that was not the case. While Razgatlioglu is still technically in the running, Bautista only needs to score 2 points in the final round of the season at Jerez in three races to clinch. Bautista set a new record for number of World Superbike wins at 56 on Ducati machinery with his hat trick this weekend.
Razgatlioglu’s Title Hopes are All but Over
Razgatlioglu didn’t go away without a fight. Despite getting the hole shot in race 2 he suffers from corner exit speed throughout race 2. His passes were textbook but every time he got past Bautista Bautista would beat him on the exit in to the next turn. It was a bit of a game of cat and mouse but by the final lap Razgatlioglu’s pace dropped off which is likely attributed to the amount of back and forth fighting leading to progressive tire wear. He was visibly dissatisfied with the result as the fate of his season was all but sealed as he crossed the finish line. The pair traded track position a whopping 35 times in race 2 alone.
Michael Ruben Rinaldi secured a consolation third place at Portimão. While his title fight is long over it was a great result for the Aruba.it Racing side to finish with a double podium and a hat trick win with Bautista. It is hard to envision Bautista not scoring 2 points in the next round but we’ve seen weirder things happen. We will continue to report on the status of the championship as we head to the final round at Jerez. That race weekend will kick off on October 27th 2023.
Full Race 2 Results are Below
Championship Standings
Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing) extended his championship points lead to 52 points in Race 1 in Portugal. The win was imperative for Bautista with Toprak Razgatlioglu looming for an opportunity to cut into Bautista’s championship lead. That wouldn’t happen today though. Razgatlioglu had to settle for yet another second place finish and Jonathan Rea brought home third for the Kawasaki Racing Team side. It was a great day for Kawasaki with Rea and Lowes finishing in the top 5. With the win Bautista’s path to securing the championship got much easier.
Despite securing pole position Rea lost out early in the race making contact with Bautista. He dropped to 7th but was able to recover. Rea had the following words after the race, “It was so nice to take another Superpole. It was a good lap but so strange because it didn’t feel like a pole position lap because there were a few mistakes in there. At the back end of the session there were a lot of yellow flags so I got my time in early. It was so nice for Alex to be on the front row too, and good for the team. In the race I struggled at the very beginning because Alvaro cut back in T3 and he just picked me up a little bit.”
“Fortunately I stayed on the bike and then I had to regain track position. I got right back there but then the pace, for me, was just too fast. I couldn’t do 1’40s laps. All weekend I have been doing low 1’41s. So the front two were just getting away, getting away – and then in the last half lasted the race I just struggled in corner exit. The rear tire was spinning, the electronics were working too much and it was just a combination of things. So, there is room for improvement and hopefully tomorrow we can get a bit closer.”
Full Race 1 Results are Below
This follwoing article was not written by Speed Trap Magazine Staff
From Kawasaki...
Axel Bassani has been confirmed as a Kawasaki Racing Team rider for the 2024 season and beyond. He will join established KRT rider Alex Lowes to complete the team’s line up for next season on the official Ninja ZX-10RR.
Bassani (24) is one of the most exciting talents to rise from inside the WorldSBK paddock in recent years. He has amassed six podium finishes since he made the jump to WorldSBK racing in 2021, finishing ninth overall that year and scoring his first podium at KRT’s home round of Barcelona – Catalunya, on his MotoCorsa Ducati.
The ambitious and increasingly skilled Bassani would score three podiums the next season as he finished seventh overall. He was the top competitor in the Independent Riders’ standings in 2022, beating his closest opposition by over 100 points.
At time of writing he is fifth in the overall WorldSBK standings in 2023, and easily the best Independent Rider with two rounds to go.
His relative youth and obvious talent has made him an attractive proposition for many teams and with Jonathan Rea leaving the KRT set-up for 2024, Bassani was seen as the best prospect to be teamed up with Alex Lowes for a full campaign next year.
Bassani has scored six WorldSBK podiums already and is looking forward to having his first ride on the official KRT Ninja ZX-10RR machine once his contract with his current team expires.
Statements
Axel Bassani: “I’m really happy for the important opportunity that Kawasaki is offering me. I will give the best of myself on and off the track to achieve the best possible results, hoping to give all the Kawasaki fans great emotions and satisfaction! I want to thank my family for the sacrifices made and Lorenzo Mauri for the path we have taken together which has allowed me to stand out in recent years. See you soon on the track.”
Guim Roda (Team Manager of KRT): “Our 2024 strategy was set months ago, but Rea’s move made us rethink the organisational logic at KRT. We spoke internally with KMC and the decision was to take a younger rider with the potential to win races and who knew how to take advantage of all the KRT experience. His image is fresh, sincere, fun and has a lot of potential to represent Kawasaki’s image in the world. Alex Lowes will now need to apply all of his experience, while Axel will have a bit of time to learn. We are very happy with the structure we have proposed for 2024 and we are very motivated to enjoy racing and take advantage of the best aspects of the Ninja ZX-10RR. I hope the fans enjoy next season with this latest project we are working on.”
Steve Guttridge (Kawasaki Motors Europe, Race Planning Manager): “While we continue to compete for wins and podiums in the remaining races of the 2023 season with Jonathan and Alex, already the Kawasaki Racing Team is long-term planning for next season. It is almost impossible to express the impact that Jonathan has had within the Kawasaki racing family and as he leaves us at the end of the season there is a golden opportunity for a rider new to our racing project to make an impression. We are delighted to have signed Axel and our feeling is that his impressive track record so far is only a small indication of his future potential. We look forward to realizing that potential and seeing him blossom on the KRT Ninja ZX-10RR.”
Shigemi Tanaka (General Manager of Marketing and Sales Division, Kawasaki Motors Ltd., Japan): “Our WorldSBK racing project has achieved multiple manufacturer and rider World Championships in recent years; first with Tom Sykes and then thanks to Jonathan Rea. The news that Jonathan will move elsewhere in 2024 signifies the end of one incredible chapter and the beginning of another in Kawasaki’s illustrious racing history. The global Kawasaki family welcomes the news that Axel Bassani joins the KRT racing project for the coming season and we are confident that, in partnership with Alex Lowes, we will once again field two exciting and success hungry riders on our iconic Ninja machinery in the 2024 WorldSBK Championship.”
After a very disappointing start to the weekend at Aragon in race 1, Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it) bounced back in the Superpole race and Race 2 to keep his championship lead healthy. Bautista increase his points lead to 504 points ahead of Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK). While Razgatlioglu continues to podium earning good points on the weekend wins are what secure championships and his 47 point deficit to Bautista can be attributed to just that.
Bautista had the following words regarding his day 1 mishap. “I am extremely happy. I want to say it again: I learned a lot from yesterday’s mistake and these are things that help you grow. Even today the feeling with the bike was excellent and it allowed me to push hard in the Superpole Race, putting me in a position to have a great last lap. In Race 2 I stayed focused all the time, first during the nice duel on the first lap, then managing the lead. See you in Portimao”.
Bautista’s teammate Michael Ruben Rinaldi secured two podiums this weekend to round off a very successful weekend for Aruba.it Racing. However the race left Rinaldi feeling like he missed out on an opportunity. He stated, “Maybe I could have attacked Toprak too…if I hadn’t had to slow down not to take risks when Locatelli had that technical problem. But it doesn’t matter because this is still a good result. Maybe I missed something in the Superpole Race but the balance of the weekend is really good. I want to continue having fun like this in the next two rounds”.
Toprak Razgatlioglu Discusses His Feelings on the Championship Race
“In general I am really happy,” he said after the race. “Friday for me was difficult, but together with my team we made a big improvement and this weekend I had three podiums in Aragon – this is fantastic for me! I was not sure if it was possible. Last race, my teammate Locatelli was very strong – his riding was very good and calm!”
“I saw Alvaro was very strong and impossible to follow, so I just follow my teammate to try to save the tire and wait for the last laps to start to fight. Then I saw Rinaldi coming and I know I need to pass for P2 – when I saw the smoke from Loka, immediately I pass him to be safe in this position. Loka made a big improvement, it’s bad luck for him to not finish the race – maybe we were fighting in the last laps and on the podium together! Now I am focused on Portimão and the last two rounds, I will try to do my best for Yamaha!”
Full Aragon Race Results
Current Championship Standings
Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it) won Aragon Round Race 1 today by 1.253 seconds over a hungry Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK). Rinaldi ultimately held Razgatlioglu off but Razgatlioglu’s podium streak continues having podiumed in 6 of the last 7 races. It was Rinaldi’s first win since 2021. Unfortunately for Alvaro Bautista he once again crashed from the lead position after missing his braking zone and crashing in Turn 8. There were 3 retirements in the session. We will see if Rinaldi can keep up this pace in the Superpole race and race 2.
“It’s incredible! At Aragon, strange things happen, I had my first race win here and then this victory today is one of my best, as I fought! It was a race where I had to manage the tire and think a lot. There’s been some really dark moments this year but this is the best road to come back. I decided to not give up and here I am, really happy and enjoying this moment.”
He continued
“I think that the problem for them was at the beginning of the race; I was lapping in the 1’50s but they went away, and I think they were using too much tire, so at the end, it was the key as I was able to catch them. It’s what I thought at the beginning of the race. I’m sorry for Alvaro’s crash and I’m sure his pace was even better, but I took the opportunity and won the race. These things happen and I wish him the best for tomorrow. My target is to always be there fighting for the victory and we’ll see tomorrow if we can repeat it with Alvaro.”
One rider who had the best comeback of the season thus far was Danilo Petrucci. Petrucci crashed earlier in Superpole so where he’d end up in the race was up in the air. He fought through the adversity and finished P5 in the race. Three manufacturers finished in the top 3 in race 1.
Full Race 1 Results Below
Alvaro Bautista edged out Aruba.it Racing teammate Michael Ruben Rinaldi by 0.077 seconds in FP2 at Aragon. Behind was the fellow Ducati of Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing) who seems to have found the necessary chemistry with his Ducati V4R to return to podium contention. It was Ducati day at the top of the table with Ducati bikes filling the top 3 spots ahead Jonathan Rea’s Kawasaki. In an uncharacteristic fifth fastest position sat Iker Lecuona.
Lecuona had the following words after FP2
“Overall, I’m quite happy with the first day here. We already knew that our pace at this track was competitive, something we noted during the recent test. Not over the flying lap, where I expect some challenges tomorrow, but in terms of race pace, so I feel confident there. This morning I could push hard, lapped on my own and felt comfortable all session long. This afternoon the track temperature increased by around ten degrees and the feeling changed a bit, especially at the front. I cannot say I’m a fan of the new front spec, I felt a little on the limit and took a couple of risks before ultimately crashing.”
“Just a small crash, and I’m totally fine, so overall I’m very happy, as I’ve said. We are top five, and it’s been a while since we started a racing weekend this well. We’ll try and fight at the front as far as we can, but we shouldn’t forget that today is only Friday. This morning was cold and windy, and the track was a bit dirty, with many riders already improving their pace this afternoon. The track will continue to improve run by run. So we need to work well in FP3 and qualifying and then perhaps we’ll have a chance to stay in the front group or close to it during the first race. Let’s see what happens tomorrow.”
The result was great for the Honda rider. However, we will see if he can repeat it in Superpole.
Full Aragon FP2 Result are Below
Today it was announced that Kawasaki World Superbike rider Alex Lowes is being held out of the Aragon Round this weekend. The team has decided that he should rest from his recent knee surgery instead of returning too early and risking further injury. Lowes stated, “After Magny-Cours, I took the tough decision to go to Barcelona to have surgery on my knee. The operation went well. Since then, I have been fully focused on my recovery and working as hard as possible.
Physically, I feel good and in a position where I could ride. However, the team have decided the best option is to wait for Portugal next weekend. I respect their decision and switch my focus toward supporting Florian, Jonathan and the team, whilst improving myself in time for the next event in Portimao. It’s a shame because I showed some strong speed in the recent Aragon test and Magny-Cours weekend. They are behind us now, and it’s time to look forward and try to get on the podium again before the end of the 2023 season.”
Florian Marino, the team’s test rider will step in to fill in. Marino has plenty of experience with the bike and its setup so we don’t anticipate him having any issues stepping in for the weekend.
Notes from the Team
Florian Marino Commented on the fill in role, “First of all, I wish the best recovery to my friend and rider Alex Lowes. I know he will come back stronger and racing very soon. For me it’s a great opportunity as a test rider for KRT. I think this weekend will also help me to improve my understanding of the Kawasaki ZX-10RR and of course I can’t wait to work with the technical crew. Personally, I have no expectation, I’m just going to try to make the most of the opportunity for everyone involved. Thank you Kawasaki and Provec Racing for the trust!”
Guim Roda, KRT Team Manager, commented on Lowes having a speedy recovery stating, “We decided to make Alex rest at home for this round but he is training hard to be at 110% for the Portimao round. Just nine days after a knee operation, we didn’t want to force his body into the stresses of racing, to let him recover correctly. We could keep one bike in the pit box for one race, but alongside KMC Japan we decide to give Florian a chance to race. He already has the test rider job for KRT, so he will run at Aragon and keep collecting data to develop the bike in real race conditions. It’ll be a good way to see the rhythm he is able to get to as he will keep working in the winter months to test items at the very top level.”
Scott Redding will move out of his current factory BMW seat and to Bonovo Action BMW as teammates with Garrett Gerloff. Redding will replace Loris Baz. As a result Michael van der Mark will assume the role of Toprak Razgatlioglu’s 2024 teammate with BMW. There has been speculation around such a move for quite some time now but it is officially official. Dr. Markus Schramm, Director of BMW Motorrad, stated his excitement and emphasized that both teams will have equal support and material from the factory itself:
“Four great BMW Motorrad factory riders in our two strong BMW teams – with this new allocation, we are set up superbly for the WorldSBK season 2024. Scott Redding is a great racer and we appreciate that he is staying true to our BMW Motorrad World Superbike project by bringing his skills to bear in the Bonovo Action BMW team. His experience, speed and expertise in particular, will be a key component as we optimise our collective goals together with Garrett Gerloff and the whole team. The addition of Toprak Razgatlioglu allows us to distribute our factory riders perfectly across our two competitive teams. Together with Michael van der Mark in the ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team, we have the ideal line-up for the overall project.”
Schramm Continued on the 2024 Lineup
“Collaborating closely with our BMW Motorrad Motorsport engineers, both teams will use the feedback from the riders to make continuous, collective improvements to the motorbike. We also believe that having two teams with top riders will also raise the internal competitive pressure. That also helps to lift the overall performance levels. We are convinced that this new line-up for riders and teams represents another important step as we move closer to the top of WorldSBK with our project. Finally, I would like to thank Loris Baz for our collaboration. He will leave the World Superbike project after the end of the current season. After two seasons that he contested for the Bonovo Action BMW team, we wish him all the best for the future.”
This Article was not Written by Speed Trap Magazine Staff
From Dorna...
There will be a new solution for everyone to get to grips with at Aragon as Pirelli bring development options to Spain.
The MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship moves from France to Spain and MotorLand Aragon for Round 10 of the 2023 season and tire supplier Pirelli have unveiled their solutions for the first of the Iberian Peninsula double header. The Tissot Aragon Round will feature the debut of a brand-new soft front tire as the Italian brand continues to develop and innovate their solutions in WorldSBK, while the development SCQ returns to action after a successful outing at Magny-Cours.
A NEW FRONT SC0: Pirelli continue their evolution
Pirelli’s big news for 2023 was the development of a front soft SC0 compound with the view of making it a standard solution in 2024. The evolution of this new product continues with the C0927 specification which makes its debut at Aragon. Compared to the first iteration of this specification, the new one features the same carcass but a different compound with the aim of increasing grip at the front of the bikes. The grid will also be able to choose the standard SC1 medium compound.
DEVELOPMENT OPTIONS: four rear solutions at Aragon
Like with the front tyre, Pirelli keep developing at their rear too. Riders can choose from four slick tyres across the weekend with two development tyres brought to Aragon. The standard SCX is joined by the B0800 development solution, which debuted at Magny-Cours last year and has been at most rounds in 2023. The other option available throughout all sessions is the standard SC0 soft tyre. For the Tissot Superpole session and Tissot Superpole Race, Pirelli have brought the development SCQ in C0004 specification, which debuted at Misano and was also used at Imola and Magny-Cours.
ONE DEVELOPMENT TYRE IN WorldSSP: three front tyre choices, two rear options
In WorldSSP, teams and riders will have plenty of choices. At the front, the standard SC1 soft and SC1-B, the standard medium from the WorldSBK range, are joined by the B1333 SC1-A development soft that debuted in France. It is designed to provide more consistency over a race distance. At the rear, the standard SCX superspoft is joined by the standard SC0 soft compound to give teams and riders two choices.
PIRELLI’S VIEW: aiming for more grip at the front
Explaining the tyre solutions, Pirelli’s Motorcycle Racing Director, Giorgio Barbier, said: “From a development point of view, in WorldSBK this season. our efforts have concentrated above all on the extra soft rear, the SCQ, and on the brand new soft front, the SC0, which represented an absolute novelty. Until this year, in fact, Pirelli had never developed a tyre in SC0 compound for the front but, with the development carried out on the rear in the direction of softer solutions and the consequent introduction of compounds such as SCX and SCQ into the range, the need quickly emerged to work on a softer alternative for the front too which could offer a greater level of grip to balance that provided at the rear. The first specification we developed, the B1148, gave good results but did not fully satisfy us so we decided to project a new compound, the spec. C0927, which should offer an even better level of grip. We will certainly try it in Aragon and then also in Portimao and at the end of the year we will decide whether to make it a standard solution or whether to continue development next season.”