Motul FIM Superbike World Championship
Donington Park, England
May 25, 2018
Free Practice Three Results (all on Pirelli tires):
1. Jonathan Rea, UK (Kaw ZX-10RR), 1:28.003
2. Tom Sykes, UK (Kaw ZX-10RR), 1:28.207
3. Lorenzo Savadori, Italy (Apr RSV4 RF), 1:28.540
4. Alex Lowes, UK (Yam YZF-R1), 1:28.567
5. Eugene Laverty, Ireland (Apr RSV4 RF), 1:28.650
6. Michael Van Der Mark, Netherlands (Yam YZF-R1), 1:28.768, crash
7. Leon Haslam, UK (Kaw ZX-10RR), 1:28.841
8. Loris Baz, France (BMW S1000RR), 1:29.242
9. Bradley Ray, UK (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:29.257
10. Marco Melandri, Italy (Duc Panigale R), 1:29.275
11. Luke Mossey, UK (Kaw ZX-10RR), 1:29.279
12. Toprak Razgatlioglu, Turkey (Kaw ZX-10RR), 1:29.347
13. Leon Camier, UK (Hon CBR1000RR SP2), 1:29.417
14. Niccolo Canepa, Italy (Yam YZF-R1), 1:29.616
15. Leandro Mercado, Argentina (Kaw ZX-10RR), 1:29.708
16. Chaz Davies, UK (Duc Panigale R), 1:29.719, crash
17. PJ Jacobsen, USA (Honda CBR1000RR SP2), 1:30.087
18. Mason Law, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:30.277
19. Jake Gagne, USA (Hon CBR1000RR SP2), 1:30.377
20. Roman Ramos, Spain (Kaw ZX-10RR), 1:30.460
21. Gino Rea, UK ((Suz GSX-R1000) 1:30.647, crash
22. Ondrej Jezek, Czech Republic (Yam YZF-R1), 1:30.889
23. Xavi Fores, Spain (Duc Panigale R), 1:30.925, crash
24. Michael Rinaldi, Italy (Duc Panigale R), 1:31.558
25. Jordi Torres, Spain (MV Agusta F4 RC), mechanical, no time recorded in FP3
More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki:
Kawasaki 1-2 After Opening Day At Donington
KRT WorldSBK duo Jonathan Rea and Tom Sykes finished the first day of qualifying at their home round with Jonathan fastest and Tom second, after three track sessions which were held in tricky and often-changing track conditions.
After Thursday’s bright and sunny weather the first track action for the WorldSBK riders at Donington Park today started out in wet and surprisingly cold conditions.
With the driest period of the day arriving at the end of the final FP3 session, Sykes was on top until a final fast lap from Rea, with Jonathan eventually ahead by 0.204 seconds in combined times.
Faced with a track surface that was never completely free of damp areas, but featured a drying line, the KRT staff and riders had to constantly adapt as the track got gradually faster, and the lap times improved.
With the KRT riders now into Saturday’s Superpole 2 qualifying session directly, thanks to their class leading performances today, Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) will also join them. He recorded the seventh best qualifying time at his home circuit.
After FP4 and Superpole 1 and 2 tomorrow, race one will take place at 13.15, local time in the UK. Weather conditions at Donington are expected to improve in time for race one.
Jonathan Rea, stated: “The track conditions have not been perfect but this morning was probably the only true wet session. In the second session there was not a lot of water on the track and it was very difficult for the tyre. After that we got a dry last session, albeit a dry line, in FP3. On a lot of the track you had no margin for error, especially turn one. A meter and a half off line was completely wet and damp. I did a good long run in the mid-to-low 1’28s. I feel OK with the bike but it is a compromise in gearing, as in some areas it is too long and in some areas too short. Overall, I think we have to accept that. Tomorrow morning will be important for our final preparations.”
Tom Sykes, stated: “I am happy with our first day, and I am relaxed. But, it has also been absolutely freezing, so after every session I have had a couple of pots of tea! That said, it is one of those days I have enjoyed, even though it was wet this morning. We had a good performance in the first wet session. The second session was held in ‘in-between’ conditions and we also had a good performance. This afternoon was almost dry, and again we had fast lap times considering it was still damp in some areas and the lap times were shifting. I am happy, but we certainly need to improve in some sections. Today I was not willing to push the boat too far in some areas that I normally would push in.”
More, from a press release issued by Barni Racing Team:
Forés hit the ground violently in the free practice at Donington
Donington (UK), 25th May 2018. MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship’s sixth round opened today with three free practice sessions at Donington Park, historical temple for WorldSBK. The Barni Racing Team’s Xavi Forés suffered a crash in the last practice session timed to qualify and he was only 23rd at the end of the day.
Action began in the morning under a typical british weather with rain and low temperature: free practice 1 was full of wet and Forés faced lots of problem looking for a good setup on his Ducati Panigale R.
Second and drier session went better: with dry lines slowly developing around parts of Donington Park, times shortened, Xavi found more confidence with his machine and he improved in each and every outing until the 1’40.116 which brought him in seventh position.
In third and final session of the day the track was completely dry except of wet spots. Due to a dampness Forés tumbled down violently at Redgate corner and waste the opportunity to fight for the top 10 positions.
For the first time in this season the flagbearer of the team from Bergamo will be forced to pass the Superpole 1 in order to fight for a good position in the starting grid.
Marco Barnabò, Principal Manager
«Traditionally we don’t feel conformably in this track and even today happened. In the morning we struggle a lot setting the bike for full wet conditions. When the track become drier we moved a step forward and in the afternoon we believed we could fight for the Superpole 2. Unfortunately the crash arrived when the track was completely dry but – we know – this is racing. Tomorrow morning we will have enough time to prepare well the Superpole, I believe we’ll be back fighting for a good position».
Xavi Forés, #12
«I want to apologize with the team for my mistake. Doubtless it was the hardest day in the season. In the morning I was in trouble, but in the FP2 we found the right way. In the last session breaking on a dampness i made a big mistake. Than it was impossibile to back immediately on track despite the efforts of the team. What happened give me lot of motivation for tomorrow. I really would like to give them a good result, they deserves it».
More, from a press release issued by Aruba.it Racing Ducati:
#UKWorldSBK Day 1: Last gasp lap gives Rea edge in Donington FP3
KRT duo lead way in wild scrap to make Saturday’s Superpole 2
Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) snuck into the top of the timing sheets in tricky conditions
Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) forced through a last twist of the tale at the final Free Practice session of the Prosecco DOC UK Round, with the reigning champion beating Tom Sykes’ (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) best lap in the closing seconds, just as he had done under the rain in FP2.
Friday quickly and surely turned into a constant game of one-upmanship between the pair. With each rider taking one Free Practice apiece, the tie-breaker boiled down to the final seconds, with Sykes appearing to have clinched it at the checkered flag. But it was Rea, who had gone through the gravel a couple of minutes earlier, who ended up taking the lead with a last gasp flying lap. The rivalry between the pair here at their home race bodes well for Saturday and Sunday.
However, the KRT riders cannot take their dominance for granted, with even the smallest of mistakes at Donington potentially ending a rider’s options for the day or, even, weekend. Several of their closest rivals found this out the hard way in a drying final Free Practice session, with Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati), Xavi Fores (Barni Racing Team) and Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) all hitting the ground. For the first two, their crashes mean they’ll have to battle their way through the Superpole 1 tomorrow.
Lorenzo Savadori (Milwaukee Aprilia) shone again in the final session of the day, with the third best lap time. Another automatic Superpole 2 entry for the Italian, who will be desperate to see it translate into more good results throughout the weekend. Behind Savadori, Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) confirmed his good form with the fourth fastest time, ahead of Eugene Laverty (Milwaukee Aprilia) in fifth.
Van der Mark, recovering quickly from his earlier crash, made it through Friday in sixth, with Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) showing his Donington experience with the seventh fastest time. Loris Baz (GULF Althea BMW Racing Team) made it through the checkered flag in eighth.
Making his WorldSBK debut at Donington, Bradley Ray (Buildbase Suzuki) did not disappoint, with the young home talent amazingly closing Friday in ninth position. An astonishing result for the 21-year-old, particularly considering he didn’t take part in FP1.
Closing the top-ten, Marco Melandri (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) barely scraped his way through in tenth, after remaining in the lower end of the timesheets throughout most of the afternoon. He was just 0.004 seconds ahead of another Donington debutant, Luke Mossey (Team Pedercini Racing), who put in an amazing performance, especially after only finding out that he’d be riding at Donington yesterday.
More, from a press release issued by Red Bull Honda World Superbike Team:
Mixed conditions make for a steady start for Camier and Gagne at Donington
UK Round
Donington Park, United Kingdom
Red Bull Honda World Superbike Team riders Leon Camier and Jake Gagne made a measured start to proceedings at Donington Park, the pair finishing in thirteenth and nineteenth places respectively on combined times in Friday practice at the British round of the WorldSBK championship.
Heavy rain and strong winds lashed the Donington Park circuit throughout the day creating challenging conditions, particularly for the opening Free Practice 1 session, before the rain abated allowing dry running with slick tyres in the final session of the day, Free Practice 3.
In the two wet sessions today Camier consistently ran in the top five despite still not having fully recovered from injury, while Gagne also got up to speed in the tricky conditions on the CBR1000RR Fireblade SP2.
However, the dry track surface in Free Practice 3 brought with it an increase in competitiveness within the 25-rider field, with less than a second separating P3 to P13 as the chequered flag was waved. Camier ultimately finished the day thirteenth fastest with a best time of 1’29.417 to be just 1.414 seconds off the top of the timesheets, while Gagne was a further nine tenths adrift – his best time of 1’30.377 seeing him end the day in P19.
Courtesy of their Free Practice results today, both Camier and Gagne will qualify through Superpole 1 at 1045 local time (GMT +1) tomorrow, with Race 1 scheduled to commence at 1315.
Leon Camier 2
It was good to get some track time today in both wet and dry conditions, we were able to make use of the time to continue refining our electronic and chassis settings on the Fireblade. The wet conditions were easier on my body which meant I could run towards the top of the times, but in the dry due to my physical condition I’m still missing that last little bit to make me as competitive as I’d like. Overall, I’m feeling much better than I was at Imola and was able to do quite a few laps today, however we’re still taking it session by session so we’ll see how we get on tomorrow.
Jake Gagne 45
The wet weather in FP1 and FP2 this morning was good to get me into the flow around this circuit and we found a nice setting with the bike so if we get more rain over the weekend we’re in a good place. This afternoon we had a quick forty minute run in the dry which was my first opportunity to try the track on the Fireblade in the dry and through the session I could learn a lot, although it was a bit tricky with some wet spots offline. All in all it was a productive day and if it’s wet or dry we have a good direction to go with on the bike so I’m looking forward to tomorrow.
Kervin Bos
Team Manager
It was a challenging first day today with the changeable weather conditions, we had a lot of sun yesterday but today the wind and rain arrived. The rain at least made it easier for Leon to ease into the weekend with less physical stress on his body and his times were very competitive in the wet. However, we could see in the dry final session that he couldn’t push as hard as he would’ve liked, but he has come on quite well from Imola and the goal is still to race, but as before we will continue to monitor his condition. Jake make good use of his time today and got a positive feeling in both the wet and dry conditions and he and his crew have ideas on where he can improve tomorrow. So overall it was a steady start for the team at Donington, but we have a good direction to head in ahead of Race 1 tomorrow.
More, from a press release issued by Gulf Althea BMW:
A very positive start for Gulf Althea BMW at Donington Park
Castle Donington (UK), Friday 25 May 2018
The Gulf Althea BMW Racing team is on track at Donington Park in the UK for round six of the Superbike World Championship. Riders Loris Baz and Alessandro Delbianco have completed very positive opening practice sessions, working with their technicians to adapt their BMW S 1000 RR machines to the historic English track.
SBK: Despite mixed conditions today, Loris immediately looked at ease on the British track. During the three timed practice sessions, the Frenchman was able to make consistent progress, gradually improving in terms of both his feeling with the bike and his lap times. Already third after session one, which took place on a fully wet track (1’45.236), times came down during subsequent sessions as the track gradually dried out. Baz’s best time of the day thus came during the third and final session, on a dry track, a 1’29.242 that saw him close in eighth position overall. This result means Baz will take part in tomorrow’s Superpole2.
STK1000: in the Superstock class, Delbianco first worked to get used to the track, one he’s never seen before, before focusing on performance now that he feels physically stronger (having fractured his shoulder prior to the Imola round). In the first free practice, the Italian set a best of 1’40.627, closing at the top of the timesheets, almost a second ahead of the second-placed rider. In the afternoon session, and on a dry track, Delbianco improved on his morning’s best by nine seconds to conclude day one in sixth position (1’31.485).
Loris Baz:
“A good day, the best of the season so far in fact. In the wet, I had good feeling with my bike, which was behaving well. I also had chance to better understand the differences between the BMW’s behaviour in the wet and dry conditions. In the final session, it was all a bit of a rush because we needed to get a good time in as quickly as possible, considering that it could have come on to rain at any time. We made a few small changes and finished up eighth, so our first ‘direct’ entry to Superpole2. We’ll see what conditions are like tomorrow but for now I’m pleased.”