FIM Supersport World Championship
Sepang International Circuit, Malaysia
May 15, 2016
Race Results (wet conditions, all on Pirelli tires):
1. Ayrton BADOVINI, Italy (Honda CBR600RR), 14 laps, Total Race Time 33:22.944, Best Lap Time 2:21.636
2. Zulfahmi KHAIRUDDIN, Malaysia (Kawasaki ZX-6R), -0.050 second, 2:21.752
3. Gino REA, UK (MV Agusta F3 675), -0.980 second, 2:21.574
4. PJ JACOBSEN, USA (Honda CBR600RR), -1.250 seconds, 2:21.142
5. Kyle SMITH, UK (Honda CBR600RR), -5.035, 2:22.214
6. Kenan SOFUOGLU, Turkey (Kawasaki ZX-6R), -8.234, 2:22.248
7. Jules CLUZEL, France (MV Agusta F3 675), -17.802, 2:21.403
8. Randy KRUMMENACHER, Switzerland (Kawasaki ZX-6R), -20.300, 2:22.395
9. Alex BALDOLINI, Italy (MV Agusta F3 675), -21.563, 2:23.014
10. Federico CARICASULO, Italy (Honda CBR600RR), -26.285, 2:22.877
World Championship Point Standings (after 6 of 12 races):
1. Sofuoglu, 96 points
2. Krummenacher, 79
3. Cluzel, 67
4. Smith, 57
5. Jacobsen, 56
6. Rea, 52
7. Baldolini, 51
8. Caricasulo, 48
9. Badovini, 41
10. Khairuddin, 40
More, from a press release issued by Dorna WSBK Press Office:
WorldSSP: Duel to the Finish for Badovini and Khairuddin
Home hero just misses out on victory in Sepang as Ayrton Badovini withstands last lap attack
Local rider Zulfahmi Khairuddin kept raucous home fans on their feet at Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia, as the WorldSSP rookie went from his P5 grid slot to both lead the race and challenge for the victory on the last lap. On the final corner, Fahmi just lost out to Ayrton Badovini, as the Italian managed to cut back on the inside to beat the Malaysian over the line by a whisker. GRT rider Gino Rea, after good pace all weekend, made good on his grid position after initially leading and completed the podium in P3.
In a Race postponed until after WorldSBK due to weather conditions at a rainy Sepang, it was British GRT rider Rea who got the best start, rocketing away into the lead in front of reigning Champion Kenan Sofuoglu. The Turk’s teammate Randy Krummenacher lost ground in the first lap to cross the line tenth after Lap 1, with local hero Zulfahmi Khairuddin making up places from P5 on the grid to duel with Sofuoglu and close down on then race leader Gino Rea.
The new asphalt at Sepang was drying out as home hero Khairuddin leapt through into the lead at the final corner on Lap 3 to head a WorldSSP race for the first time. The conditions mixed up the World Supersport grid for an exciting race of nervous apexes, with the home hero shining and Ayrton Badovini taking an incredible win to add to the host of different riders to have topped the tables in WorldSSP so far in 2016.
Honda’s PJ Jacobsen got another good haul of points in P4 as the American kept cool under pressure, and was the lead rider in the group of key Championship rivals. Reigning Champion and points leader Kenan Sofuoglu suffered more in the conditions than his pace in the dry had shown, crossing the line in P6 as wet weather specialist and Assen winner Kyle Smith took his CIA Landlord Insurance Honda into the top 5 and past the Turk in the closing stages.
MV Agusta Reparto Corse title hopeful Jules Cluzel took a good amount of points in P7, just ahead of WorldSSP rookie and Sofuoglu’s teammate Randy Krummenacher as the two men fight to catch the Turkish points leader in the title standings. Alex Baldolini had a solid ride for a top ten finish in P9, as fellow Italian Federico Caricasulo closed out the top ten to gain another good result in his rookie year.
WorldSSP will be back on track at Donington Park in two weeks time, for Round 7 of the 2016 Championship.
More, from a press release issued by CIA Insurance Honda:
Fifth for Smith at Sepang
Sun, 15 May 2016
CIA Landlord Insurance Honda’s Kyle Smith finished 5th in today’s World Supersport Race at Sepang in Malaysia, beating all the riders currently ahead of him in the Championship. Once again the weather dictated the schedule as a tropical storm hit the circuit just before the race was due to start leading to it being postponed until after the World Superbike race. Kyle made up an incredible 10 places at the start of the race and rode home to 5th on a drying track. Kyle closes the gap to 3rd placed Jules Cluzel to only 10 points in the Championship standings going on to the Team’s home round at Donington Park in two weeks time.
Kyle:
“It’s been a very positive day, I’ve had a difficult weekend not finding the set up but luckily it rained for the race which favours me a little bit. I felt on the limit for most of the race so I rode it back to 5th which I’m happy with, I’ve managed to salvage some really valuable points and the important thing to me is the Championship.”
Hikari Okubo achieved his aim of scoring his first Championship points finishing in 15th position.
Christoffer Bergman and Stefan Hill realised their shared objective of a top twenty finish coming home in 18th and 20th respectively.
CIA Landlord Insurance Honda Team Manager, Simon Buckmaster:
“For Kyle to finish 5th, maintain 4th and close the gap to ten points in the Championship from qualifying 15th is a positive thing. At the start of the race it was very wet and he had the pace. As it as it dried out our setting was probably a little soft and he didn’t quite have the pace to challenge for the win. Hikari has not ridden much in the rain so to score his first Championship points in a wet race shows his progression as the season has gone on. Christoffer was ok at the start of the race but as the track dried his setting was too soft on the rear and he dropped back. Stefan had a solid weekend, to finish in the top 20 will rebuild his confidence and he can look forward to Donington Park. All in all it’s been a good weekend for the team and we look forward to our home round.”
More, from a press release issued by Honda:
Jacobsen finishes just off the podium at Sepang after an amazing comeback
Round 6 – Malaysia
Sepang International Circuit, Malaysia
PJ Jacobsen finished today’s sixth-round FIM Supersport World Championship race in fourth place at the Sepang International Circuit after running out of laps following an outstanding comeback in the latter stages of the 14-lap wet encounter. Despite missing out on a podium finish by less than three tenths of a second, the Honda WorldSSP Team’s rider moves up one place in the championship standings and now sits fifth.
After a by-the-book initial starting procedure, with a wet race declared and drops of rain falling in sector two, the rain intensified and all riders chose to change the rear tyre according to the new weather conditions. The overall length of the race was reduced by one lap (from 14 to 13) and the riders went for a second warm-up lap, before red flags were deployed when the rain then came down heavily.
The race finally got underway at 17:15, almost three hours later, as it was scheduled after the World Superbike race 2. Jacobsen lost a couple of places on the opening lap and struggled with a lack of visibility, especially in the early part of the encounter. After getting the better of Kenan Sofuoglu for fourth place, in the final three laps the 22-year-old American put together an outstanding recovery as he bridged the gap to the front-runners by lapping one second faster than his rivals ahead. On the final lap, Jacobsen was simply just not close enough to get in the mix for podium placings.
Patrick Jacobsen 2
4th
The circuit conditions were a lot different to Friday’s: it was greasy and dirty and I struggled a lot with visibility. I don’t think Kenan Sofuoglu ahead of me was able to see well either, because he was constantly sticking his head out of the bubble of his bike. Once I got by and was able to at least see again on some parts of the track, I tried to charge as hard as I could and everything felt good. Unfortunately it was just a little bit too late. It was quite disappointing because I tried really, really hard and in the last three laps I tried to catch up at least with Gino Rea and get on the podium, but I just couldn’t get the job done. Nevertheless, we took a good bunch of points and that’s always a positive.
Pieter Breddels
Technical Manager
PJ was careful at the start of the race – maybe because he had the Assen race still in his mind – and that meant that he got caught up in the middle of the pack and had a bit of a difficult time in trying to get past Kenan. The run he had in the last three laps was amazing: too bad there wasn’t another lap available, because that would have allowed him to make a last push for the podium. We were surely hoping for more, but fourth is definitely not a bad result. The Honda CBR600RR performed really well in the wet and that’s a good sign for Donington, a circuit known for its changeable weather.
More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki:
Wet Track Decides All For Battling Kawasaki Riders
After heavy rains and high winds caused the delay of the start of the FIM Supersport World Championship race at Sepang until after the Superbike race, Kawasaki Puccetti Racing riders Kenan Sofuoglu and Randy Krummenacher finished sixth and eighth respectively. Local rider and series regular Zulfahmi Khairuddin (Orelac Racing VerdNatura Kawasaki) was second in a thrilling fight for the race win.
The rain that struck the circuit with such force on Sunday meant that the WorldSSP race got underway at 17.16, not the scheduled 14.20.
Such conditions held back any plans for a race long push for the lead by Sofuoglu, despite running second for a time. He used all his skills to defend his championship position and in finishing sixth he slightly extended his advantage over his own team-mate in the points rankings.
Krummenacher pushed as hard as he dared in the wet conditions early on but with some other riders taking their chances earlier in the 14-lap race he was to finish eighth, scoring eight championship points.
Local star Khairuddin had the crowd on its feet on many occasions, making a last corner move to try and win the race but losing out by just 0.050 seconds to race winner Ayrton Badovini.
Kenan and Randy remain first and second in the championship table, with Sofuoglu on 96 points and Krummenacher on 79 after six rounds. Khairuddin is now tenth overall, with 40 points.
In the manufacturers’ standings Kawasaki has a 20 point advantage over the next closest rival.
Kenan Sofuoglu: “We had quite a lot of bad luck today. We were in pole position, and the fastest, but just before the race we had rain. It was OK but they delayed the race. The final race was wet but when it rains you know it is really wet on the track. This was somewhere between wet and drying. It was very slippery and you could see on the podium people who were just going for a top three, because this was a chance for them. They took their chances but we have to take care of the championship. This is why I looked who was in front of me and all except PJ Jacobsen were not my championship competition. He made just a few points more, so not a problem.”
Randy Krummenacher: “I was very surprised at the speed the others went at early on. This race was a big learning process for me. For sure around halfway through the race I started to trust more and push more and did similar lap times on the front guys. It took too much trust for me to push more. The bike was very, very good but my mind said it was impossible to push so hard.”
Christian Gamarino (Team GoEleven Kawasaki) was 11th and well in the points. Ondrej Jezek (Team GoEleven Kawasaki) placed 17th. Lachlan Epis (Response RE Kawasaki) was 19th and Nacho Calero (Orelac Racing VerdNatura Kawasaki) 21st.