Davies dominates to take double in Germany
Ducati secure double podium with Rea continuing podium run
Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) wrapped up a superb weekend on Sunday with his second victory of the Prosecco DOC German Round in Race 2, whilst Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team) and Marco Melandri (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) also secured podium results.
With light rain falling during the final laps the WorldSBK riders had to focus hard in order to avoid any mistakes and Davies did just that to register a third victory in four races at Lausitzring. Coming from the back of the third row on the grid the Welshman ultimately beat Rea across the line by 2.29s, with Melandri just over two further seconds back having held the lead early in the race.
Despite setting pole on Saturday Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) could not stay with the front three on this occasion and finished in fourth place having started Race 2 in seventh on the grid.
The results saw World Champion and standings leader Rea open up a 70-point gap over his teammate Sykes in the standings with four rounds to go.
Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) just beat Leon Camier (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) to fifth by 0.237s, with five Britons finishing in the top six.
Just behind them on the finish line was Lorenzo Savadori (Milwaukee Aprilia) as the top Aprilia-equipped rider, just trailing Camier by 0.115s in that tight group also involving Lowes.
Jordi Torres (Althea BMW Racing Team), German wildcard Markus Reiterberger (Van Zon Remeha BMW) and Xavi Fores (BARNI Racing Team) completed the top ten. A brave ride by Stefan Bradl (Red Bull Honda World Superbike Team) saw him finish 13th, after he missed Race 1 due to severe elbow pain from a crash on Friday.
Randy Krummenacher (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing), Eugene Laverty (Milwaukee Aprilia) and Pawel Szkopek (Pazera Racing) all crashed out, with Riccardo Russo (Pedercini Racing SC-Project) also suffering a DNF as a late retiree.
The WorldSBK grid return to action in just under a month (15th-17th September) at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve, Portimão, Portugal.
1st – Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati)
“It’s incredible, I knew the second race was going to be tighter, it was hard to come from the third row, I made some good passe out there and had a lot of fun. It was a a case of setting my won rhythm, we had a lot of fast sections but they were quicker than me in other sections and for that reason it was harder to get away, but I made some good passes and got the job done.”
2nd – Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team)
“It was as much as we could expect, I really emptied the tank in that race, the bike is so easy to ride here so I gave it 100% to bring the fight to Chaz. I did all I could to stay with him but he was so fast and I was beaten by a better guy today and we look forward to the next one.”
3rd – Marco Melandri (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati)
“After yesterday I couldn’t believe to finish on the podium today but the team made an awesome job, a few corners it was too slow, I couldn’t open the throttle too much but I am happy with the result and thanks to all the guys.”
#GermanWorldSBK at Lausitzring: Race 2
1. Chaz Davies Ducati
2. Jonathan Rea Kawasaki +2.290
3. Marco Melandri Kawasaki +4.388
Championship Standings after Race 2, Round 9
1. Jonathan Rea (GBR) Kawasaki (381 points)
2. Tom Sykes (GBR) Kawasaki (311 points)
3. Chaz Davies (GBR) Ducati (276 points)
WorldSSP: Morais wins red flagged Lausitzring race
Late drama in Germany in Supersport thriller
The WorldSSP race at the Prosecco DOC German Round saw the red flags come out on the penultimate lap with the victory being awarded to Sheridan Morais (Kallio Racing), with Kenan Sofuoglu (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) and Lucas Mahias (GRT Yamaha Official WorldSSP Team) also taking podium results.
The race standings were taken from the rider positions at the end of lap 17 after a crash on the penultimate lap – the 18th lap of the 4.255km Lausitzring track – which saw Federico Caricasulo (GRT Yamaha Official WorldSSP Team) go down at turn 2, with Mahias also involved.
Mahias was able to remount and was therefore included in the final race results whilst Caricasulo was immediately taken away for medical checkups.
It is therefore a first career win for South African rider Morais, who also took his first pole this weekend, showing great pace on his Yamaha YZF R6 in Germany.
Second place for World Champion Sofuoglu moves him to within one point of the championship lead, which is still just held by Frenchman Mahias, who picked up 16 valuable points in third despite his crash.
The top five at Lausitzring also included Jules Cluzel (CIA Landlord Insurance Honda) and Niki Tuuli (Kallio Racing).
Meanwhile, Lorenzo Zanetti (Team Factory Vamag), Kyle Smith (GEMAR Team Lorini), Anthony West (EAB West Racing), Thomas Gradinger (MPB Racing) and Luke Stapleford (Profile Racing) were all in the top ten.
Alex Baldolini (Race Department ATK#25) and PJ Jacobsen (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) both retired with technical issues, whilst Gino Rea (Team Kawasaki Go Eleven) crashed out and was also forced to retire.
The WorldSSP riders will be back in action in just under a month over the 15th-17th September weekend at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve, Portimão, Portugal.
P1 – Sheridan Morias (Kallio Racing)
“I feel like we had the pace to win the race today, I knew we had what we needed and I felt comfortable. I expected a fight in the last few laps and I was ready for that, but unfortunately just as it started we had the red flag. I just hope Caricasulo is ok but also I am very happy for my team, for Yamaha and for myself.”
More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki:
Rea Second And Sykes Fourth In Germany
The second WorldSBK race of the Lausitzring weekend saw Jonathan Rea (KRT) take the runner-up spot and his team-mate Tom Sykes score a fourth place finish, meaning that the official Kawasaki riders remain 1-2 in the championship standings with four rounds to go.
The Lausitzring weekend ended the summer break in the FIM Superbike World Championship class. In scoring two second places and 40 points in the comeback weekend Rea extended his lead over his own team-mate Sykes to 70 points. Sykes’ opening day podium at Lausitz, and second day fourth place, gave him 29 points in total this weekend.
Sunday’s race in Germany saw Sykes start from seventh place on the grid and Rea eighth, under the new rules which put the podium finishers from the first race onto the third row for race two. As on day one, Chaz Davies won the race, this time by 2.290 seconds.
A good start from today Rea saw him move up to third place on lap one, then take the lead on lap five, being passed by Davies on lap 11. Sykes made a good launch from his third row grid slot but touched the bike of another rider in turn one, losing momentum. Unable to pass other riders easily in the early laps he worked his way to fourth and finished clear of a battling group of riders behind him.
After nine rounds and 18 individual races Rea has 381 points, Sykes 311 and Davies 276. Kawasaki leads the Manufacturers’ Standings by 56 points.
Returning WorldSBK venue Portimao, in Portugal, will host the tenth round of the championship, one month from now.
Jonathan Rea, stated: “Chaz was really solid in race two and his pace was good. When I had really good grip in the beginning I felt strong on the bike but as soon as I started to lose entry-traction the bike became very physical to ride. I was manhandling the bike and this is such a bumpy track. Yesterday’s race started to take its toll a little bit also. I had no big moments but I just tried to rein it in a little bit and I saw that my gap behind to Marco was just moving forward, tenth by tenth, so it was about consolidation at the end. When I lost the edge grip it was just not possible to stay in front but I did try. I am happy with the results from this weekend as the bike has never really worked that well here and we were on the back foot on Friday. So to make the set-up changes we did, and make some big steps, I am really happy with the team – so thanks to them. We came away with 40 points, from Lausitzring, which I am satisfied with.”
Tom Sykes, stated: “Things in that race definitely did not go to plan early on. I got a good start but touched the back of Savadori in turn one, so lost all the advantage of the good start. When I got clear laps towards the end, that’s when I started going towards a normal feeling again. Before that I did not have the confidence to pass the other guys on the brakes and I was suffering every time I tried to line them up. I was just losing out because I could not get off the turns as well as I wanted to. It was an awkward fight all race and I am disappointed that I did not have the confidence to make passes under heavy, heavy braking. I wanted to get on the podium for sure but unfortunately we did not make the best of our situation. We will keep working and there are still four rounds left.”
More, from a press release issued by MV Agusta:
CAMIER NARROWLY MISS OUT ON THE SECOND TOP5 OF THE WEEKEND AT LAUSITZRING
Unpredictable weather conditions and gusty wind welcomed this second and final race day at the EuroSpeedway Lausitz, the German circuit hosting the ninth round of the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship. Team MV Agusta Corse ends this round with Leon Camier getting the 6th position in the WorldSBK race, missing the second top5 of the weekend by just 0.237s.
WorldSBK – Race2
Coming from the 5th place got in yesterday’s Race1, this morning Leon Camier has returned to the track trying to match the Saturday’s great performance. When the light goes out, Leon starts from the first row in the grid and fights for the race’s top positions. After 14 laps, the British moves in 5th place, behind Tom Sykes, fighting for the 4th place. When the sky becomes darker and begins to fall some raindrops, Leon makes a small mistake at the last turn, ending up the race in 6th final position.
WorldSSP – Race
Penalized by a very complicated qualifying heat, because of some problems with his MV Agusta F3 675 bike’s feeling, today PJ Jacobsen kicked off the WorldSSP race from the 14th position. The American, who has already picked up 2 podiums and 3 poles this season, managed to pass several riders before being forced to pull out of the race at the 15th lap due to an electronic problem he suffered from the 2nd lap. PJ’s teammate Alessandro Zaccone closes 14th in the score-point area, 2nd in the ESS internal rank.
Leon Camier #2 WorldSBK – Unfortunately the start wasn’t perfect and I think we have to work on the setting of the clutch for a better start. Despite this, the bike today was perfect again and I had a really good rhythm. I tried to pass Sykes early on and we start battling for the 4th position, his pace was very strong too so I made a little mistake in the last corner and Lowes beat me for the 5th place. I am a little bit frustrated with my mistake but at the same time I am happy with our performance today and I really look forward to the next race in Portimao.
Patrick “PJ” Jacobsen #99 WorldSSP – Today in the race it didn’t start off too good for us. I had a few problems and in the end I had to pull out of the race because of an electronic problem on my bike. Anyway, the team worked really hard and I worked hard too so we must take the positive from this round and move on to the next one.
Alessandro Zaccone #61 ESS – We are definitely far from the positions I expect to be, but I have to say that work on the bike is still moving forward and I hope to get some important results on the final stage of the season. Thanks a lot to all my team and MV Agusta.
More, from a press release issued by Althea BMW Racing:
Althea BMW concludes a tough weekend in Germany
Lausitz (Germany), Sunday 20 August 2017
Althea BMW Racing Team has concluded round nine of the SBK World Championship at the Lausitzring in Germany but results unfortunately failed to meet with expectation. Jordi Torres crossed the line eighth in today’s second Superbike race, Raffaele De Rosa fifteenth, while Marco Faccani closed the Stock1000 race in twelfth position.
Superbike – Race 2 – sixth on the grid thanks to his eighth place finish in race one yesterday, Torres lost a little ground off the line today, tenth through the opening stages. Ninth on lap nine, the Spaniard continued to push to close the gap, earning another position in the latter stages to eventually cross the line eighth.
Like yesterday, De Rosa immediately made up a couple of places, lapping twelfth through the first laps. Thirteenth by mid-race, a constant pace saw the Italian hold that position for the best part of the race, before crossing the line fifteenth.
STK1000 – Race – eighth on the grid, Faccani was ninth through the first laps. Moving into eighth on lap five, Marco unfortunately came into contact with another rider on lap seven, losing several positions and dropping back to 16th. Working hard to catch up, the Althea BMW rider passed a number of riders through the final stages to finish the race in twelfth place.
After nine rounds of the championship, Torres lies ninth in the standings with 109 points while De Rosa has 31 points, to position 18th. In the Stock1000 category, after six rounds, Faccani is fifth with 56 points.
Jordi Torres:
“The race didn’t go too badly. The bike and I both had to give it our all. The pace was insane though and we struggled to keep up. I was able to remain close to, but not right up with the group immediately ahead of me. I had fun and can say I did my best anyway. The bike wasn’t turning as I would like or like the bikes of the fastest guys. We’ll continue to work to try and be more competitive at Portimao.”
Raffaele De Rosa:
“I was able to hold my position at the start and then make up a little ground. On lap six though I had a problem through turn 9 and almost crashed. From there on in there was some strange sliding that meant I struggled to ride the bike – it was really tough to reach the end. We’ve looked at the data and there’s something not right so we need to take a closer look there. I’m sorry as we’d worked well all weekend and it was a pity not to take a good result today. We have to stay strong and continue to work hard.”
More, from a press release issued by Red Bull Honda World Superbike Team:
Bradl returns to action in Germany to claim thirteenth place
German Round
Lausitzring, Germany
The German Round of the 2017 FIM Superbike World Championship has taken place with local hero Stefan Bradl in thirteenth place at the end of the 21-lap encounter at the Lausitzring racetrack. His Red Bull Honda World Superbike team mate for this ninth event of the season, Davide Giugliano, crossed the finish line in 17th position.
After missing the opening race of the weekend due to severe pain in his elbow, which was badly bruised and wounded following an unfortunate crash on Friday, Bradl was able to line up on the grid for race two. The 27-year-old from Augsburg maintained his position at the start and as the race got closer to its halfway point, he entered a battle for 12th place with Leandro Mercado and Raffaele de Rosa. Bradl successfully overtook the latter on lap 19 as he moved up to thirteenth, a position he defended hard up to the chequered flag.
Davide Giugliano did not enjoy a good start as he was down to 20th place on the opening lap. The Italian was able to make his way back to 17th place in the early stages but struggled to keep a competitive pace as the laps went by. In the final part of the encounter, the former STK1000 Champion fended off the attacks coming from Badovini to end the race two positions away from the top 15.
World Superbike will now enjoy another break before the next round of the season, which takes place at Portimão’s Autodromo do Algarve on September 15-17.
Stefan Bradl 6
13th
It was good to take part in the race. I felt OK to ride because when the adrenaline kicks in you don’t feel too much pain. I feel it was the right decision to sit out yesterday’s race in order to be almost fully fit today. Unfortunately, my feeling with the bike today was not perfect, because it was nervous over the many bumps and I suffered a bit on corner exit as well. Surely the lack of track time from not having raced yesterday did not help. I had to keep my pace under control for the most part, but in the final laps I could push a bit more and overtake De Rosa before the finish line. I’m a bit disappointed with this race and obviously for the weekend in general, but I hope for next event we’ll be able to make a bigger step forwards.
Davide Giugliano 34
17th
This morning we made a good step forward in warm up and I was able to lap much faster than I had done over the whole weekend. I felt good with the bike at the beginning of the race and was able to make some passes, but unfortunately after 4 to 5 laps the rear tyre started to wear, so it was impossible for me to keep up that good pace. There isn’t much else to say, really, but I guess this is part of racing. Too bad, because we worked very well this morning and my feeling with the Fireblade had improved significantly from yesterday.
Pieter Breddels
We tried some changes this morning with both riders and they turned out to be quite positive. Stefan’s elbow condition improved from yesterday so he could take part in the race, and he had quite a good start and fought for half the race for 12th place. Unfortunately, the bike was moving a bit too much and he was having a tough time, and he was also struggling with drive out of the corners. Davide had an encouraging first part of the race, but from lap three onwards he started to struggle with rear grip, and data confirmed this issue. We have another break now, which will help us analyse all the telemetry ahead of Portimão. It’ll be interesting to go back to Portugal after the tests we did earlier this year, and the extra day of testing after the round will surely be of great help for us, too.
More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse:
Outstanding Davies does the double in Race 2 at EuroSpeedway Lausitz, resilient Melandri takes 3rd place
The EuroSpeedway Lausitz (Germany) was home to a memorable weekend for the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team, who took a sensational double – the second of the season after Imola – with Chaz Davies. After winning Race 1 on Saturday, the Welshman repeated the feat starting from ninth position. Quickly recovering ground thanks to a strong start, Davies pulled away together with his teammate Marco Melandri and Rea, and took the lead during lap 11. He then made one decisive charge with 5 laps to go, as a light rain started to fall, to take his sixth win of the year.
Melandri also enjoyed a positive Sunday, bouncing back from a difficult Race 1 with a solid third place (his eighth podium of the year) that leaves him hopeful ahead of the next rounds. The Italian, who started from pole position, led the race for the first five laps, fighting for the victory for most of the race and showing significant improvements in terms of overall pace.
After nine rounds, Davies (276 points) and Melandri (218 points) are respectively third and fourth in the championship. The Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team will be back in action at Portimão (Portugal) for the tenth round of the season, scheduled for September 15-17.
Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #7) – 1st
“It was a great race and I loved every minute of it. It was different from yesterday though, as we had to work our way up from third row on the grid. We had a good start and in the first couple of laps we were within sight of the lead, so when I saw Rea making his move I tried to hunt down him and Marco. It wasn’t easy to pass them, but then I just tried to set my own pace, ride clean, and not make mistakes. I was surprised by our rhythm today in the high 1:36 mark, we definitely improved since the tests here a month ago, and it shows the effort everyone is putting in. I’m confident going into Portimão, but we’ll enjoy this double for now and get prepared for another battle.”
Marco Melandri (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #33) – 3rd
“After the issues we encountered yesterday, I wouldn’t have thought we could take the podium here. But, we did a great job together with the team, changing the weight distribution and the overall balance of the bike. The Panigale R was much easier to ride today, and I felt comfortable. Unfortunately, the bike still moved a lot in a couple of corners and I was losing ground under acceleration. I tried to brake deeper to recover, but I made a couple of small mistakes and I decided to secure the podium, thinking back to what happened in Race 1 at Misano. It’s been a positive round: we keep learning new things about the bike, and soon we’ll race on tracks that suit my riding style better. I’m confident ahead of the next rounds.”
Ernesto Marinelli, Superbike Project Director
“It’s been an incredibile weekend. Chaz scored a very important double, especially because today’s pace was so fast, which shows his confidence on the Panigale R. We’re very happy also with the progress made by Marco, who just missed a bit of confidence to fight for the win until the end but recovered strongly after a tough Race 1. I want to thank the team and all the boys in Borgo Panigale for their great effort. We’ll do our best to stay at this level also in Portimão.”