Motul FIM Superbike World Championship
Circuito de Jerez, Spain
October 16, 2016
Race Two Results (all on Pirelli tires):
1. Chaz DAVIES, UK (Ducati Panigale R), 20 laps, Total Race Time 34:20.026, Best Lap Time 1:41.492
2. Jonathan REA, UK (Kawasaki ZX-10R), -5.893 seconds, 1:41.909
3. Tom SYKES, UK (Kawasaki ZX-10R), -6.030, 1:41.729
4. Nicky HAYDEN, USA (Honda CBR1000RR SP), -6.750, 1:42.228
5. Sylvain GUINTOLI, France (Yamaha YZF-R1), -10.762, 1:42.829
6. Michael VAN DER MARK, Netherlands (Honda CBR1000RR SP), -11.310, 1:42.733
7. Alex LOWES, UK (Yamaha YZF-R1), -16.413, 1:42.781
8. Jordi TORRES, Spain (BMW S1000RR), -19.232, 1:42.962
9. Anthony WEST, Australia (Kawasaki ZX-10R), -24.095, 1:43.194
10. Lorenzo SAVADORI, Italy (Aprilia RSV4 RF), -25.379, 1:43.035
11. Roman RAMOS, Spain (Kawasaki ZX-10R), -26.036, 1:43.405
12. Josh BROOKES, Australia (BMW S1000RR), -29.230, 1:43.585
13. Davide GIUGLIANO, Italy (Ducati Panigale R), -34.879, 1:43.528
14. Markus REITERBERGER, Germany (BMW S1000RR), -49.708, ran off track, 1:43.276
15. Gianluca VIZZIELLO, Italy (Kawasaki ZX-10R), -62.245, 1:44.140
16. Luca SCASSA, Italy (Ducati Panigale R), -68.295, 1:45.219
17. Matthieu LUSSIANA, France (BMW S1000RR), -80.252, 1:44.976
18. Dominic SCHMITTER, Switzerland (Kawasaki ZX-10R), -93.859, 1:45.274
19. K. PESEK, Czech Republic (Yamaha YZF-R1), -93.965, 1:45.577
20. Xavi FORÉS, Spain (Ducati Panigale R), -12 laps, DNF, mechanical
21. S. AL SULAITI, Qatar (Kawasaki ZX-10R), -12 laps, DNF, crash
22. Alex DE ANGELIS, San Marino (Aprilia RSV4 RF), -17 laps, DNF, crash
23. Leon CAMIER, UK (MV Agusta F4 RC), -18 laps, DNF, crash
24. Peter SEBESTYÉN, Hungary (Yamaha YZF-R1), -20 laps, DNF, crash
More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki:
Final Round Showdown Coming For Rea And Sykes After Jerez Podiums
Jonathan Rea finished second and Tom Sykes third in the second 20-lap FIM Superbike World Championship Race at Jerez, meaning that one of the two official Kawasaki Racing Team riders will definitely be crowned champion at the final round in Qatar in two week’s time. Which one will be champion is still to be determined, however, after their strong combined Jerez podium performances.
Having guaranteed the Manufacturers’ Championship for Kawasaki on Saturday, when Sykes was second and Rea third, both official KRT riders aimed to try and overcome Chaz Davies on Sunday, to overturn his race one success. Davies was to win his second race of the weekend all the same but this time around Rea finished ahead of Sykes on the podium, in second place.
The second Jerez race was held in marginally warmer conditions than the first race on Saturday and with some set-up and tyre choice changes on board the KRT riders pushed hard to maintain their championship challenges. Rea passed Sykes at half race distance and from then on they ran together, finally crossing the line only 0.137 seconds from each other.
Rea drew himself 48 points ahead of his team-mate today with only one round and two races left to run. That margin was just two points short of guaranteeing Rea the Riders’ Championship at the Spanish round but he goes into the Losail race weekend as hot favourite, with only 50 points available for Sykes if he wins both races.
Jonathan now only has to score two points or more to win his second consecutive Riders’ Championship with KRT. Only he or his fellow Ninja ZX-10R rider Tom can now win the championship itself, as Davies will be unable to score enough points in the races that remain to get ahead of Rea. Tom has an arithmetical chance of winning the title but also has to ensure he finishes second overall, if the goal of taking the championship proves impossible.
The last of 13 rounds of WorldSBK racing will be held at the Losail circuit in Qatar, between 28th and 30th October.
Jonathan Rea, stated: “I am satisfied with the championship gap. We can go to Qatar in a relaxed mood and look to pick up the target there. To date we have had nine race wins and done a very good job. I struggled with traction front and rear today and Jerez is a low grip track. As soon as the grip went off I was starting to struggle a lot, although not like yesterday. We changed a lot on the bike for Sunday, including the engine character. I had confidence with my team that it was in the right direction and I think we made one step forward. The temperature was up today so it was quite a different race, and slower at the end.”
Tom Sykes, stated: “Third is the best we could manage today but that is racing. It was a good race and a good fight over the distance but I just came out third best today. I was very close to Jonathan at the end but just not enough. I could have so easily tucked the front in some areas but we saw it through to a podium finish. We will move on from this and try to be stronger. We have a 48-point deficit and we need to find a better set-up in Qatar to allow me to be aggressive from start to finish. I feel I am not able to do what I need to do right now. I do not want to lose second in the championship if we can help it. We have an important test tomorrow and utilise this in the best way.”
Behind the official KRT Riders Anthony West (Pedercini Racing Kawasaki) secured a strong ninth place and at his home round Roman Ramos (GoEleven Kawasaki) placed 11th. Gianluca Vizziello (Grillini Racing Team Kawasaki) scored a point for 15th. Dominic Schmitter (Grillini Racing Kawasaki) placed 18th but Saeed Al Sulaiti (Pedercini Racing Kawasaki) slid off on lap nine. In the championship Ramos is 15th with 85 points and West 17th with 64.
More, from a press release issued by Aruba.it Racing Ducati:
Chaz Davies does the double again at Jerez, Davide Giugliano finishes Race 2 in 13th position
After taking the top step of podium in Race 1, the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team did the double in Jerez de la Frontera (Spain) with Chaz Davies. The Welshman rider thus seized his fourth win in a row and ninth of the season – tied with championship leader Rea – to maintain the momentum that saw him win five out of six races after the summer break.
Thanks to a blistering start from sixth position on the grid, Davies entered turn 1 in second place and soon after took the lead and adopted the same strategy as in Race 1, progressively building a gap with an unequaled pace. To underscore his masterful performance, he also set the fastest lap with a 1:41.492.
Davide Giugliano, on the other hand, faced an uphill race as he was forced to play defense due to the less than optimal conditions of his injured right shoulder. The Italian rider, after losing positions in the early phases, did not give up despite the pain and some grip issues to finish in 13th position.
After twelve rounds, Davies and Giugliano are respectively third (395 points) and sixth (197 points) in the general standings. The Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team will be back in action under floodlights in Losail for the final round of the season, scheduled for October 28-30.
Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #7) 1st
“To win four races in a row is just unreal. Lately I’ve been very confident and able to push 100 percent every lap, just dancing on the bike. Also, I managed to get the best start of the year and entered turn 1 just behind Sykes. I think he was trying to save his tyres, so I took the opportunity because I knew we could run our pace for the whole race. Today, the key was to manage the grip. I was a little mindful at the start, because the hotter conditions made the track more slippery, but in the end I could see the gap building and then it was just a case of bringing it home. Without getting overconfident, we’ll try to make it sixth in a row to get second position in the championship.”
Davide Giugliano (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #34) 13th
“It’s a pity, but we had another difficult race. This morning we found a competitive setup, but the track temperatures during the race were almost twice as high and we lost grip. To make things worse, the right-shoulder injury forced us to drop the pace after a few laps. It was still important to make it to the finish line to score points and gather data. We’ll try some more things in tomorrow’s tests and then I’ll continue the physio treatment to go to Qatar in better shape and make the most of our potential.”
Stefano Cecconi, Aruba S.p.A CEO and Team Principal
“Given the results achieved in this second half of the season, in which we’ve been fighting at the top constantly, one can say we reached the competitiveness we aimed for. However, we’ll try to make further improvements to finish the season on a high note with both riders and work with the maximum concentration possible during the winter break to make sure we start 2017 in this kind of form.”
More, from a press release issued by Dorna WSBK Press Office:
Davies Can’t Be Beat at Jerez
– Unstoppable Ducati and the duelling Kawasakis –
Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) won Race 2 at Jerez in a similar fashion to his victory on Saturday, while also taking out the overall Pirelli Best Lap Award. The Welshman won his fourth double of the season in southern Spain with almost six seconds separating him from fellow podium finishers and Kawasaki Racing Team duo Jonathan Rea and Tom Sykes.
Davies had an incredible start storming straight through to fourth by the first corner, but it was Sykes who led with Rea close behind in second. By the end of the first lap, the Ducati rider had already shot to the front and began to build his lead.
The Kawasakis then battled it out for the remainder of the race together, with Rea trying to hunt down his second World Title. The lead swapped and changed between the Championship contenders but the reigning World Champion couldn’t shake off Sykes to take the crown, which he stll leads by 48 points.
By the end of the race, fourth-placed Nicky Hayden (Honda World Superbike Team) had caught up to the KRT duo to fight it out for the podium, but he narrowly missed out as Sykes took third behind his teammate Rea in second. As a result, the 2016 Championship could not be won at the Gaerne Spanish Round and the Northern Irishman will need to wait until the last round at Qatar to be crowned Champion.
Sylvain Guintoli (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) had a solid ride in Race 2, improving from Saturday to come home in fifth ahead of Honda World Superbike Team’s Michael van der Mark in sixth, who celebrated his 50th WorldSBK race start.
Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) finished in seventh ahead of Jordi Torres (Althea BMW Racing Team) who was the first Spaniard home in eighth. Torres battled with fellow Spaniard Xavi Fores (Barni Racing Team) earlier on in the race to break into the top ten. Unfortunately for Fores, his race ended early after technical issues forced him to retire.
Anthony West (Pedercini Racing) ended Sunday in ninth while Lorenzo Savadori (Ioda Racing Team) rounded out the top ten. Roman Ramos (Team GOELEVEN) came home in P11 with Josh Brookes (Milwaukee BMW) crossing the line in P12. Davide Giugliano (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) finished in P13, which was a solid effort considering he struggled with his recovering shoulder throughout the weekend. Althea BMW Racing Team’s Markus Reiterberger finished in P14 with Gianluca Vizziello (Grillini Racing Team) picking up a point in P15.
The 2016 MOTUL FIM World Superbike Championship will now be decided in the final round of the season at Qatar on the 28th to the 30th of October and it’s Jonathan Rea who leads the way.
Quotes from the top three riders:
1st Place
C.Davies (DUCATI): “Since the summer break we have been flying and this is the result. Five out of six wins now, so hats off to the crew because it is thanks to them that we are now in this position, they never stopped working or rested on their laurels. They keep chipping away in Bologna so thanks to them, thanks to Aruba and thank you to Ducati.”
2nd Place
J.Rea (KAWASAKI): “We have to play the long game. I haven’t felt so good at this circuit honestly. So to be two times on the podium is quite good. The gap to Chaz and Ducati is a bit worrying right now. But we can move on to Qatar, which is a track I really enjoy. Last year I had one good race there so we will see. I’m very relaxed now though, because even with the form of Chaz right now and with 48 points I think we can go to Qatar in a relaxed mood and look to pick up the target there.”
3rd Place
T.Sykes (KAWASAKI): “40 points or 48 points that was finally the difference and we are clutching at straws. The problem is that has allowed Chaz to close up even more and he is in great form. We need to find a better bike, a better set up and hopefully something that can allow me to be aggressive from start to finish like Chaz, because at the moment I feel like I am playing with myself during the race, so really disappointed. Overall third is the best we could manage today and that’s racing. We’ve got to move on from this and get stronger.”
More, from a press release issued by Honda:
Another strong performance for the Honda WorldSBK Team in race two at Jerez
Round 12 – Spain
Circuito de Jerez, Spain
Nicky Hayden and Michael van der Mark have completed the Spanish Round of the FIM Superbike World Championship with another strong performance, as the two Honda WorldSBK riders were fourth and sixth, respectively, at the end of race two at ‘Circuito de Jerez’ today.
Hayden got a good launch from fifth place on the grid and immediately showed some aggressiveness on track, which helped him moving up to fourth place at turn five during the opening lap of the encounter. The competitive rhythm shown in the early stages of the race helped the ‘Kentucky Kid’ consolidate his position, although as the laps went by he seemed unable to stay in contention for a rostrum finish.
The 35-year-old American kept pushing as hard as he could on board his Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade SP machine and – with three laps to go – he had narrowed down to half a second his gap to third place. Nicky kept riding at the limit up to the chequered flag, although he could not get close enough to make a final move on Sykes.
Michael van der Mark maintained his position after the start and, after taking a bit of time to get past some of his rivals, by lap ten he joined Lowes and Guintoli in the battle for fifth place. After elevating himself up to sixth, he tried all he could not to lose touch with his former team mate and – with a really quick final lap of the encounter – he crossed the line 0.5s away from fifth place.
With only the two Qatari races left in the season, van der Mark is still fourth in the championship standings, 23 points ahead of Hayden in fifth.
Nicky Hayden 69
4th
It wasn’t an easy race, especially in the beginning, because the guys ahead were just too fast for me. Chaz got to the front quicker today and during the first laps, with new tyres, I just couldn’t run at their pace. On used tyres my bike was working really well, so I was able to chip away at them and bring that gap back, but it was a little too late. On the last lap I just wasn’t close enough to put a wheel in anywhere. The team did a great job this weekend because the bike worked really well around here; I’m just a little frustrated that I wasn’t able to be faster in the beginning to go with them. Also, at the end of the race, if you want a podium you need to step up and make something happen, but today I just couldn’t do it. Two fourth places are not the end of the world, but certainly a couple of podiums would have been nicer.
Michael van der Mark 60
6th
I’m quite disappointed with today, to be honest. This morning we tried something with the bike that I was sure could have helped us during the race, although during warm up it didn’t look like that. I got a great start to the race but unfortunately I had a small electronic issue that cost me many places. My pace during the race was not exhilarating but not too bad either and, in the end, I was almost as fast as the podium guys and I could even see them in the distance. I’m surely not happy, because I know I could have been much closer to the podium, but now we need to know what happened and get ready for the last round.
Pieter Breddels
Technical Manager
It was a good day for us. We made a few changes in the morning, but nothing major. We decided to go with different tyres with Nicky, both at the front and rear, and in the second part of the race it worked really well for him. Unfortunately, this tyre combination did not allow him to stay with the leaders at the beginning, but towards the end he was on the rear wheel of the Kawasaki ahead so really close to a podium position. Overall, he rode really well and did a great job. Michael’s bike had a bit of a hiccup at the start that lasted only a short while, but that was enough to cost him several places. He rode very well and was able to recover some of them again, up to the point when he got really close to fifth. Sixth place is not too bad, considering the small issue he had at the start, so all in all we’re happy with our performance this weekend and we are looking forward to the last round in Qatar.
More, from a press release issued by MV Agusta:
A BITTER SUNDAY FOR MV AGUSTA REPARTO CORSE AT JEREZ
When the race day ends, the curtain fell on the last European round of MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship, with Team MV Agusta Reparto Corse’s rider Leon Camier crashing after only two laps from the start in WorldSBK Race 2, while Jules Cluzel finishes 6th and come close to the 2nd position in WorldSSP Championship Standings.
WorldSBK – Race 2
In the morning Warm Up Leon Camier got the 8th time, only less than 1 second from the leader Tom Sykes. When the lights go out on the WorldSBK Race 2, Camier immediately started his battle for the top 10 positions but unfortunately he was forced to pull back after only two laps because he crashed in turn 8, while he was riding in 8th position.
Leon Camier, currently 8th in Championship Standings, will be back on track on October 28-30, in Qatar, for the latest round of this WorldSBK season.
WorldSSP – Race
It was a difficult race’s start for Jules Cluzel, that went off fast from the front row but lost 4 positions and found himself fighting into the top 10 area. At the end of the 19 laps of the Andalusian track, the Team MV Agusta Reparto Corse’s Frenchman crossed the finish line in 6th position and – thanks to the 10 points he got in the race – he is now at -3 points from his rival Randy Krummenacher, currently 2nd in Overall Standing; a very thin gap, that Jules will try to close during the next and final round of WorldSSP in Qatar.
Leon Camier #2 WorldSBK – I am little bit frustrated to be honest because I expected to be better. We made several changes for the race and I felt I had a good rhythm but in the end I lost the front and I still don’t know why. Losail would be a thought track for us becauseit doesn’t fully suit our bike but I will do the best I can for the championship
Jules Cluzel #16 WorldSSP – I expected a difficult race and so it was. We had some acceleration problems but in the end I managed to close near the 5th position. Anyway, I tried to do the best race possible and now we are only 3 points away from the 2° position in Overall Standings. I really like Losail circuit and we will work hard to find new solutions and have a good race.
More, from a press release issued by Pata Yamaha:
Fifth for Guintoli and Podium for Tuuli as WorldSBK Bids Farewell to Europe
Sylvain Guintoli concluded the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship’s final race at the Circuito de Jerez in fifth position this afternoon with a confident ride on his YZF-R1. Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK teammate Alex Lowes also showed fighting form to take seventh.
A strong start from Guintoli instantly saw the Frenchman jump two positions off the lights before quickly securing another as the opening lap got underway. Crossing the line in sixth, narrowly behind his teammate, he ran with consistent pace as he maintained position before making his move on lap 10 to enter the top five. Improving his stride as the race progressed, Guintoli came close to bridging the gap to the riders in front, consolidating his fifth position at the flag to collect 11 points and bringing his championship total to just four behind his fellow Pata Yamaha challenger.
Launching from the line as the weekend’s second race began, Lowes immediately found himself in sixth position and fighting hard with Giugliano for fifth. Making the move on the Italian just two corners in, the British rider held strongly in the top five for the opening laps before a small technical issue began to affect his performance. As the afternoon’s rising temperatures peaked at 37°C, Lowes managed the situation with his YZF-R1 to the best of his ability but was unable to match his previous pace, his teammate taking advantage at mid-race distance. Continuing the fight as the race developed, Lowes unfortunately lost out again as van der Mark made a late charge, crossing the line in a solid seventh.
Niki Tulli began his FIM Supersport World Championship battle by immediately aiming for the leading pair as the lights went out, running closely behind in third from the first corner. Quickly taking second on his YZF-R6 from the championship leader on lap two he was promoted to the front at the start of lap three as Krummenacher fell at turn one. Scuffles for position ensued, with the young Finn maintaining his hold for the majority of the race before Sofuoglu took charge on lap 14. Holding off the competition from behind, Tuuli claimed his third podium in as many races with a consecutive second position, alongside the fastest lap of race – a 1’44.355 on his third revolution.
Guintoli and Lowes will remain in Jerez for tomorrow’s official championship test before the Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team prepares to travel to Qatar’s Losail International Circuit for the concluding races of 2016, in two weeks’ time.
Sylvain Guintoli
Race: 5th / +10.762 / 20 laps. Championship: 12th / 112 points
“It was an interesting day as we tried a completely different setting this morning – that didn’t go well but at least we knew what not to do! We went the other way for race two which was an improvement from yesterday and allowed us to start a bit faster. The pace in the second half was also very good, catching up with the front group. Unfortunately at the end I ran out of front grip as I was pushing very hard and nearly crashed many times. Overall it has been positive as we finished closer than we have recently, the pace was good and more than everything I have enjoyed myself riding the YZF-R1 today. I felt really on the limit with the machine and to find that rhythm again is really important for me, so a good day for us!”
Alex Lowes
Race: 7th / +16.413 / 20 laps. Championship: 11th / 116 points
“I’m quite disappointed overall with the race because I think the YZF-R1 had really good pace, especially when the temperatures came up. I think we had a good chance, not necessarily at the podium, but a chance to be a lot closer to the fight. I felt quite good and got a decent start, it’s always how it falls on the first couple of corners, but the first three or four laps I felt quite good and then I had a small problem that was preventing me from shifting correctly. I lost my concentration for a bit and was struggling to shift, but rather than retire the bike I chose to ride as well as I could in the situation. The team have worked well all weekend, it was a shame about my mistake yesterday in the first race, and like I said I think the R1 had really good pace and was probably the most competitive it has been all year, so even though we have a seventh place I still feel really disappointed overall.”
Paul Denning ? Team Principal
“A positive race for the team and for the YZF-R1 here in Jerez today and yet it could have been even better. Sylvain is now back to full fitness and it is starting to show in his confidence and in his consistency over race distance. Despite starting ninth on the grid he forced his way forwards and rode an impressive and accurate race, finishing only four seconds off the podium and closer on lap 20 to second place than we were at the end of lap five. This is a positive indication that the overall performance is going in the right direction.
“For Alex the race was also very solid on paper, with a strong performance shown in the opening laps, but unfortunately he was held back from the third lap with a small technical issue. Alex’s execution over race distance showed great commitment, which, as ever, we thank him for but we know given the circumstances it could have been a lot better.
“The 2017 season begins tomorrow with a full day’s test and today’s potential is a good base to start from.”