Motul FIM Superbike World Championship

Motorland Aragon

Alcaniz, Spain

April 14, 2018

Restarted Race One Results (all on Pirelli tires):

1. Jonathan Rea, UK (Kaw ZX-10RR), 17 laps, Total Race Time 31:38.578, Best Lap Time 1:50.716

2. Chaz Davies, UK (Duc Panigale R), -1.450 seconds, 1:51.079

3. Xavi Fores, Spain (Duc Panigale R), -1.473, 1:50.756

4. Marco Melandri, Italy (Duc Panigale R), -6.108, 1:50.663

5. Michael Van Der Mark, Netherlands (Yam YZF-R1), -8.932, 1:51.341

6. Tom Sykes, UK (Kaw ZX-10RR), -9.450, 1:51.327

7. Alex Lowes, UK (Yam YZF-R1), -9.985, 1:50.922

8. Michael Rinaldi, Italy (Duc Panigale R), -19.303, 1:50.888

9. Toprak Razgatlioglu, Turkey (Kaw ZX-10RR), -26.081, 1:52.122

10. Roman Ramos, Spain (Kaw ZX-10RR), -26.325, 1:52.461

11. Loris Baz, France (BMW S1000RR), -26.571, 1:51.850

12. Jake Gagne, USA (Hon CBR1000RR SP2), -26.858, 1:52.125

13. Davide Giugliano, Italy (Apr RSV4 RF), -27.219, 1:52.403

14. Yonny Hernandez, Colombia (Kaw ZX-10RR), -28.340, 1:52.413

15. Lorenzo Savadori, Italy (Apr RSV4 RF), -28.400, 1:52.090*

16. PJ Jacobsen, USA (Honda CBR1000RR SP2), -30.799, started from last on grid, 1:52.653

17. Ondrej Jezek, Czech Republic (Yam YZF-R1), -58.926, 1:53.641

18. Leandro Mercado, Argentina (Kaw ZX-10RR), -6 laps, DNF, crash, 1:52.452

19. Jordi Torres, Spain (MV Agusta F4 RC), -17 laps, DNF, no lap time recorded*

20. Leon Camier, UK (Hon CBR1000RR SP2), -17 laps, DNF, no lap time recorded*

21. V. Leonov, Russia (Kaw ZX-10RR), DNS

*crashed in first portion of restarted race

More, from a press release issued by Red Bull Honda World Superbike Team:

Twelfth place for Gagne in Aragón Race 1

Aragón Round

MotorLand Aragón, Spain

Jake Gagne equalled his best position of the year in a closely-contested Race 1 at Aragón as the American rider claimed twelfth place, while his fellow Red Bull Honda World Superbike Team rider Leon Camier was unfortunately involved in an incident on lap 3 which called an early finish to his race.

Having qualified in ninth and thirteenth place respectively, Camier and Gagne were primed for a good fight in dry conditions for Race 1. Camier got a good start and found himself as high as fifth place on the opening lap, however while running in eighth place he was involved in an incident at turn 11. Following the incident, Camier was treated by medical staff on site and although he is fully conscious with full movement of his limbs, he was taken to hospital in nearby Alcañiz for further assessment. At this stage there is no indication whether he will be fit to participate in Race 2 tomorrow.

The incident involving Camier resulted in the race being red flagged and after the restart, a shortened 17-lap race got underway with Gagne resuming his push for a top-ten position. Gagne managed to keep a consistent pace throughout the race and ultimately was just half a second from a top-ten place, crossing the finish line in twelfth place and adding another four points to his points tally for the season.

The next session is tomorrow’s fifteen minute Warm Up session at 09:35 local time (GMT +2) before Race 2 gets underway at 13:00.

Jake Gagne 45

It was great to get a full race under my belt here in Aragón and I enjoyed having some close racing in that big group of riders. As well as scoring more points, I was able to learn a lot about which sections of the circuit we’re strong in and where we need to improve, so we’ve now got a lot of information on how to change some settings to improve things for Race 2. It’s a real shame that Leon was caught up in an incident, it’s never nice to see riders get hurt so I wish him a speedy recovery.

Kervin Bos

Team Manager

Today with the dry weather we tried to make up for lost time and improve our settings in FP4 and qualifying and we were looking forward to putting up a good fight in the race. Unfortunately, today we saw the unpleasant side of racing with the incident Leon was involved in, but thankfully he appears to have no serious injuries but has been taken to hospital for further assessment. I would like to commend the circuit and medical staff for their prompt actions after the incident. On the positive side, it was great to see Jake put in a good race and he was just a few tenths from a top-ten place, however P12 matches his best result of the year. We have some adjustments we can make in Warm Up to help him fight for more points in Race 2, so we’ll once again push to the maximum tomorrow.

More, from another press release issued by Red Bull Honda World Superbike Team:

Update on condition of Leon Camier from Aragón WorldSBK

Aragón Round

MotorLand Aragón, Spain

In an incident during Race 1 at the Aragón WorldSBK round, Red Bull Honda World Superbike Team rider Leon Camier was injured. Leon was attended to by Clinica Mobile staff at MotorLand Aragón circuit and afterwards was sent to Alcañiz Hospital for further assessment. Following the hospital’s prognosis, the Red Bull Honda World Superbike Team can confirm he will not participate in Race 2 of the Aragón WorldSBK round and provide the following update on Leon’s condition:

Leon has been diagnosed with a closed chest injury: a fracture of the posterior ribs 9, 10 and 11 on his left side with a lung contusion. His condition is stable.

Leon is conscious and in good spirits and the team would like to thank all his fans and supporters for their well wishes.

More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki:

Masterful Race One Win For Rea In Spain

Jonathan Rea (KRT) demonstrated all his race craft and experience to win his second race of the season from a front row grid position in a restarted WorldSBK race, finally heading off a battling group of Ducati riders. Front row qualifier Tom Sykes (KRT) could not translate his strong pace into passing opportunities and slipped from fourth to seventh, before recovering a place on the final lap to finish sixth.

Despite a relative lack of top end power, because of limits on the maximum revs allowed under the new 2018 technical regulations, Rea found that constant improvements to his set-up through the practice sessions, and a wise tyre choice for the cool track conditions, allowed him to break the sometimes strong challenge of others and win by 1.450 seconds.

The planned 18-lap race was stopped after a few laps, after a three rider collision, making the eventual 17-lap restart a nervous time for all. Rea led for 13 of the 17 laps, but most crucially at the end. He upped his pace with a clear track ahead and takes a 14 point championship lead into race two, on Sunday 15th April.

Sykes was also well in contention in the early laps of Saturday’s race but the combination of not quite enough corner exit acceleration to overtake, and other riders holding him up in the corners, saw him drop back from the leading group. He still pushed all the way to the flag for a top six finish and ten more valuable championship points.

Sykes will now look to find a set-up and a strategy to overcome his first day issues and get into contention for a podium finish on Sunday at the 5.077km circuit in Spain, when significantly warmer weather conditions than today are expected to arrive.

Jonathan Rea, stated: “These track conditions suited us perfectly today. The tyres worked well in these weather conditions. I managed to find a good rhythm and I was confident, especially at the end of the race, when I knew we would be strong. I saw this race as our chance from the start. I thought that all the cards were on our side, so I just tried to be clean. I made a couple of little mistakes, and when Xavi Fores came past me it more about trying to understand where he was strong, and then improve. Mid corner, I feel like our bike is a little bit stronger. So all that first section of the track, where it is more flowing, I felt really strong. I am enjoying riding the bike.”

Tom Sykes, stated: “A strange race and I am obviously disappointed but I am struggling in some places. When I get in a group I have so much potential in a lot of areas of the track, but I find myself running into the back of other riders. It looks like we are taking a lot of good things from our chassis. We have worked hard and we are taking the best from our bike set-up. But we are giving away too much in acceleration. So many times our corner entry and speed is very good but we cannot get out of the turns as well. Even in the slipstream, on this very, very long straight downhill, I can only start to keep the same speed in the last 50 to 100 metres. It takes all that time to build up our speed. With a few laps to go I got a little bit of clear track and made a 1’51.6 lap time. On the lap before I was on the back of another rider and I was one second slower. Jonathan has done a good job. I think the secret for me now is to try to keep towards the front because the moment you have three bikes in front and couple behind, when I try to line up the guy in front I get passed by the guy behind. We need to really try to understand that now and not let it affect us.”

More, from a press release issued by Aruba.it Racing Team:

The Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team on the podium in Race 1 at Aragon with Chaz Davies (2nd), 4th place for Melandri

After a positive start to its campaign in Friday’s free-practice, the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team took yet another podium with Chaz Davies in Race 1 at Aragon (Spain), home of the third round of the 2018 WorldSBK championship. The Welshman, who started from 11th position due to a crash during Superpole, showed his character by storming back through the field – twice, due to a restart – until he reached the leading group, then defended second position under the checkered flag.

Marco Melandri rode another solid race, in which he registered the fastest lap after taking pole position. The Italian consistently rode at the top, but unfortunately faced a small issue braking into turn 1 in the last lap, which caused him to briefly go off the track, and settled for fourth position.

Michael Ruben Rinaldi enjoyed a strong debut with the Aruba.it Racing – Junior Team, as he rode within distance of the leading group for half the race to finish in eighth position. The Aruba.it Racing – Ducati and the Aruba.it Racing – Junior Team will resume action on Sunday, April 15th, at 09:45 (CET) for a warm-up session ahead of Race 2, which is scheduled to start at 13:00 local time.

Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #7) – 2nd

“It was a good race. To start from 11th isn’t ideal but I made two good starts and took my time to let the race come to me. Eventually, I just started pressing a little bit more and got closer to Marco and Xavi. I was struggling to find an opportunity but I put it together in the end. It was a fun battle with them in the last lap. I wasn’t feeling 100 percent with the bike today but I learned a lot. We’ll try to put it to good use and come out swinging tomorrow.”

Marco Melandri (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #33) – 4th

“Today’s race was a bit complicated. In the beginning I was struggling in some areas, while in the end I was faster. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to pass effectively. Each time I crossed lines with Forés, the bike was moving a bit and I couldn’t finish the move. I had a big wobble coming out of the last corner in the penultimate lap, which penalized me while braking into turn 1. It’s unfortunate, because our potential is higher, so I’m keen to bounce back on the podium tomorrow.”

Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing – Junior Team #21) – 8th

“I’m happy with this first race. Until half-way through, I was riding close the leading group and with a similar pace. Then, since I’m not used to manage tires over this distance, I dropped the pace a bit. Anyway, to finish 8th at my debut is a good result.”

Marco Zambenedetti, Technical Coordinator on track for Ducati Corse

“It’s been a hard race, with both our riders capable of fighting for the win practically until the end. Chaz was penalized by the crash during Superpole, while Marco couldn’t fight back after going wide into turn 1, but both showed to be capable to fight for the top step of the podium and we’ll try to improve ahead of Race 2.”

More, from a press release issued by Gulf Althea BMW:

Eleventh for Gulf Althea BMW at Aragón

Alcaniz (Spain), Saturday 14 April 2018

The first race of the of the SBK weekend took place in dry conditions at the Motorland Aragón circuit and, for the Gulf Althea BMW Racing team, it proved to be a real battle. Facing a tough task from 19th on the grid, Loris Baz was able to put up a good fight, crossing the line eleventh. In the first Stock1000 qualifying of the season, Alessandro Delbianco finished in tenth position.

Superpole 1: thanks to a fast lap completed in the opening stages, Baz immediately placed first and was performing well. Unfortunately though, a crash two minutes from the end prevented him from being able to consolidate a solid result. The Frenchman closed ninth, meaning a seventh row start for the race.

SBK – Race 1: Baz, nineteenth on the grid, made up a number of positions off the line, twelfth after one lap, but unfortunately the race was brought to a halt on the following lap after three other riders were involved in a crash. After a quick restart, the race resumed a few minutes later. Baz again got away well, back up into twelfth through the opening corners. Earning another two places during the central phase of the race, the Frenchman retained a strong pace, part of a compact group that battled it out to the line. Oscillating between ninth and eleventh place, Baz crossed the line eleventh.

STK1000 Qualifying: after having set a very fast time of 1’53.296 in the morning’s third free practice session, closing sixth, Delbianco was back on track for the afternoon’s qualifying. Despite a small crash early on in the session, the Italian worked hard with his technicians throughout what remained of the 30 minute qualifying. Continuing to lower his times, he set a best of 1’53.743 to position tenth at the session’s end. The Gulf Althea BMW rider will therefore start from row four of the grid for tomorrow’s race.

Loris Baz:

“Another difficult day. Superpole didn’t go to plan at all. We had found something at the start but then I made a mistake with the cold front tyre. It wasn’t easy to start from where we did on the grid. I made a strong start to the race though, and was lying P8, but then we had the red flag. After the restart, I didn’t make quite as good a getaway but I was able to fight back and was battling for P9. My strategy was to try to get past my rivals in the final stages but a contact with Ramos caused me to lose some time and so in the end I closed eleventh. I think we’ve improved and made a good step with the chassis anyway and tomorrow I’ll try my best to improve on our performance.”

More, from a press release issued by Dorna WSBK Pres Office:

#AragonWorldSBK – Day 2: Rea scores massive win in restarted Race 1

KRT rider increases lead at top of championship after crash forces early red flag

Rea lead the way over the line after a tough battle at MotorLand Aragon

Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) had mixed feelings about his bike throughout Friday and the Saturday Superpole, but in Race 1 of the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship Round Three he put to bed any worries he or his team may have had with a dominant performance at MotorLand Aragon. The reigning champion increases his lead to 14 points now, after Marco Melandri (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) could only come in fourth.

The race was red flagged after three laps, after a collision involving Leon Camier (Red Bull Honda World Superbike Team), Jordi Torres (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) and Lorenzo Savadori (Milwaukee Aprilia). The Honda rider was immediately taken to the medical centre for evaluation, while Torres and Savadori exited the track on their own feet, although the Spaniard could not make the restart in time.

Before the incident, a wild start had completely turned over the starting grid for Race 1. Poleman Marco Melandri moved down to fifth in lap one, with Rea taking the lead ahead of Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team), up from fifth. Behind them, Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) had made an extraordinary start, coming through from 11th to 4th in just one lap, and beating Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) on the next lap to move into provisional podium positions.

After the restart, it was Rea again at the top, leading the first half of the new race bar one lap from Lowes. The champion later found himself under pressure from Xavi Fores (Barni Racing Team), who made his move over the Northern Irishman with just nine laps to go, taking the lead in front of his home fans. But, ultimately, Rea found his moment a couple of laps later, racing away from the Spaniard and taking his second win of the season.

The final laps displayed an extraordinary three-way Ducati fight for the podium, between Fores, Melandri, and Davies, up the field again. With Melandri going long with two laps to go, it was a fantastic race to the finish between Davies and Fores, exchanging places throughout the final lap and with the Welshman just squeezing ahead at the checkered flag.

Behind them, Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) came in fifth, leaving him in a promising position for Race Two. The British pair of Sykes and Lowes followed in sixth and seventh, with Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing – Junior Team) taking a good eighth position on his WorldSBK debut.

At the back, a thrilling battle emerged for ninth, and thus a privileged starting position in tomorrow’s Race Two. At the end, it was Toprak Razgatlioglu (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) who came in ahead of the pack, with three more riders less than a second away.

P1 – Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK)

“It was a good race, I want to thank all my team as it’s their home race – we have a lot of team friends here and they gave me a good bike. After Friday morning’s FP1 I was throwing the toys out the pram, but step by step we worked in a good way and this morning we were fast in FP4. But today it was good with the temperatures, to keep the tyres cool and tomorrow we need to keep an eye on the temperature to see what our pace is like.”

P2 – Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati)

“It was an all red battle at the end! But I was really happy with the last few laps. It was a really hard race starting from 11th on the grid, I didn’t really have anything extra to give and I gave it all. To be honest it felt like I was struggling a bit and it felt like I made the best out of what I had. Congratulations to the other guys, it was a hard fought race.”

P3 – Xavi Fores (BARNI Racing Team)

“It was a funny race overall, we had a good fight overall with Jonny, Marco and Chaz. At the end I was struggling in the last four laps so I was pushing hard to defend the second place, but on the last lap Chaz overtook me on the rear straight. Anyway it was a good result because yesterday I felt bad with the bike in these conditions, but I am happy with this result and I look forward to tomorrow.”

More, from a press release issued by Barni Racing Team:

Spectacular race at Aragon, Forès on the podium at home race

Alcañiz, 14th April 2018. Race 1 at Motorland Aragon circuit It was a spectacular race for the Barni Racing Team. Xavi Forés ended third (only 23 thousandth far from second) and for him and the team is the third podium in five race. In front of his home fans the Spaniard is absolutely the protagonist of the race which was restarted due to a rag flag at lap.

Back on the box Forés changed his choice on the rear tyre and choosing the soft he made the the right decision. Started well from the fourth spot of the grid Xavi manage to overtake immediately Sykes at lap 1, than Lowes (lap 4) and Melandri (lap 8). Thanks to a very fast pace, exactly at half race Forés managed to overtake even Rea and the Ducati Panigale #12 lead the group for four laps sending fans in delirium. Five laps before the checkered flag Forés suffered for exhaust rear tyre and Rea re-overtake him, but Xavi was able to win the fight with Melandri. In the last lap, with lots of spin at the back of his machine the flagbearer of the team from Bergamo was catch by Davies and the Britain won the duel under the checkered flag.

Despito of this it was a great result form Barni Racing Team, even sweeter for Forés who was able to ride spectacularly at his home track. He’s now fourth in the overall standings with 76 punti, overtaken by Davies, but closer to Melandri (80). The fifth, Lowes is furter down of 19 points.

Marco Barnabò, Principal Manager

“It was the best race ever and I have to thank a lot Xavi who was able to ride under the problems. This weekend we were in late, we changed a lot of things on the bike but the rider said he had only to take confidence with the bike and he did. The key was the change of the rear tyre between the two race, with hard we would have been not competitive, but with soft we knew we would have been problems at the end of the race. The hazard has succeeded”.

Xavi Forés, #12

“I’ve never test tyre in a long run so I was worried. In the last four laps I suffered lot of spin in the back and when Jonny overtake me again I was not able to follow him. I expected the down of the rear tyre and because of that i tried to push hard from the beginning. I would be in the front pack at the end to play for the podium and it works”.

More, from a press release issued by Pata Racing:

Pata Yamaha Battle Hard in Race 1 at Aragon

Race

The Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team fought valiantly during a two-part Race 1 at Aragon on Saturday at Round 3 of the 2018 Motul FIM Superbike World Championship. Michael van der Mark backed up his pace in the mixed conditions on Friday by qualifying in ninth. In the original race, he didn’t enjoy the best of starts but was on a charge when the red flag came out on lap 4. In the restarted race, he showed excellent consistency despite not having the best feeling with his R1 to cross the line in a solid fifth place. His teammate Alex Lowes qualified strongly in fifth on the grid and enjoyed two electric starts, taking the lead in the restarted race and battling at the front before experiencing a slight issue that saw him dropping back through the field. The 27-year-old recovered superbly to fight back and finish in a battling seventh place.

Van der Mark had ended Friday’s practice in seventh overall on the timesheets with a 1:51.347 after displaying good pace in both the wet and dry. On Saturday morning, the 25-year-old Dutch rider ended FP4 in fifth place before going on to enjoy a promising SP2 that saw him qualify in seventh for Race 1 after setting a 1:49.863, just 0.320s off pole. When the lights went out in the original race, he shot up the inside into Turn 1 but missed his braking marker and ran wide, dropping back to 13th. Undeterred, he scythed his way through the field and was up to sixth when the red flag came out on lap 4. In the restarted 17-lap race, he enjoyed a much better start, battling in the leading group of eight riders right from the off. He built up his rhythm and started to make his way through the pack, passing his teammate for fifth on lap six.

Unfortunately, he was suffering from a slight difficulty on corner entry which meant he could not chase down the leaders but the 2014 WorldSSP Champion showed excellent consistency to cross the line in fifth place and collect 11 championship points. This now means he is just one point behind his teammate Lowes in the overall standings in sixth with 56 points from the first five races. Van der Mark will line up on the grid in the middle of the front row tomorrow, hoping that he can add to his 2018 podium tally after his superb ride to second in Race 2 at Thailand.

Lowes showed good progress on the opening day, ending Friday’s practice in sixth overall by incredibly setting exactly the same time as his teammate (1:51.347). Trying a few setup tweaks in FP4, he ended the session in P4 with a 1:51.510. Feeling confident heading into SP2, the British rider improved to an excellent 1:49.853 to start Race 1 from fifth on the grid, just 0.010s quicker than his teammate as, once again, they were almost inseparable. He enjoyed a superb start in the original Race 1, flying up to second by the first corner and battling for the lead with Jonathan Rea before the red flag came out. In the restarted race, it was a case of déjà vu as once again he got a sensational start and was once again battling at the front with Rea. Taking the lead on lap 2 he looked as if he would battle for the victory but, unfortunately, he started to suffer with a chatter issue on his Pata Yamaha R1 that saw him drop down to seventh by lap 6.

Showing excellent composure, he worked out a way to ride around the problem and battled back to sixth, before just losing out to Tom Sykes on the final lap and crossing the line in hard-fought seventh place to collect nine points. This sees the 2013 British Superbike Champion maintain fifth in the championship standings with 57 points and he will be working hard with his team overnight to solve the issue with his bike to allow him to fight for his second podium of 2018 – after storming to third in Buriram – from fourth on the grid in Sunday’s Race 2.

The Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team return to action on Sunday morning for Warm Up at 9:35 am local time (CEST) in Aragon, with Race 2 due to kick off at 1 pm. Check out the full Race 1 results.

Michael van der Mark

Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team – 5th +8.932s

“First of all, I was really happy with Superpole! We seemed to struggle this year and last year with qualifying and today we gained a lot with the qualifier and I finished the session in sixth, which I was quite happy with. We reduced the gap significantly to the guys at the front and I was close to Alex, so I was really happy with that. For the first race, I had a good start but missed my braking point into Turn 1, ran wide and I was coming back through the field when the red flag came out. After the red flag, in the restarted race I had a slight issue when back-shifting so, it was difficult. I had a really good start but then I had to find a way to ride the bike to manage the issue. With this problem, we must be really happy to have finished in P5 but we will fix the issue for tomorrow and then I hope we can fight for the podium!”

Alex Lowes

Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team – 7th +9.985s

“My starts and the opening laps have been something I have struggled with so far this year. Today I got two go’s at them and I did them both quite well, unfortunately, that is where the positivity ends because the race was quite tough. I don’t really know why, but after the first few laps, I started to struggle with chatter on corner entry that was catching me out quite a lot and didn’t allow me to ride the bike the way I wanted. I went into damage limitation mode from there on in, tried to be as consistent as could, focused on not making mistakes, and tried to get the bike to the end. It was a tough race but it was the best I could do so we will have a look with the guys and try again tomorrow. In general, I am really strong at the end of the races, today I was strong at the start, so let’s try to improve the problem I had today and fill the bit in-between! If we can do that, we shouldn’t be too far away from the top guys tomorrow!”

Paul Denning

Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team Principal

“Race 1 here in Aragon was, honestly, disappointing. It was a strong effort by Michael and Alex to perform at the very front but, unfortunately, both riders had a couple of restrictions which limited the result to less than we hoped for. There were some positives, significantly improved starts for Alex, twice with the restart, and very few mistakes by either rider, plus strong consistency to make sure we scored good points but the ultimate performance over race distance wasn’t enough and we will be doing everything we can to give Michael and Alex an improved R1 for tomorrow and achieve a better result.”

More, from a press release issued by Milwaukee Aprilia:

Giugliano leads home double points finish for Milwaukee Aprilia in red-flagged Race 1

Milwaukee Aprilia rider Davide Giugliano led home teammate Lorenzo Savadori in a double points finish for the team at Aragon after a restart in Race 1

A disappointing Superpole saw Davide and Lorenzo start P14 and P10 respectively, with a crash for Lorenzo in Superpole 2 preventing him from chasing a faster lap. Both riders had confidence for the race though, with rain holding off despite grey skies over MotorLand Aragon. On the race start they each made up places, Lorenzo starting Lap 2 in P9 after a pass on Torres and Davide taking P12 after he passed Baz and Rinaldi ran wide.

On Lap 3 Lorenzo was chasing Camier hard for P8, but a crash for Camier at Turn 11 left Lorenzo and the chasing Torres with no room for avoiding action as all three riders hit the ground. The racing incident brought out the red flag, allowing Lorenzo to return to the box as his crew prepared the spare bike.

A quick restart procedure gave the teams limited time to prepare for the restart, but the spare bike was fired up in time for Lorenzo to head out and join the grid. With 17 laps left to contest the whole field was eager to make progress, and Davide and Lorenzo were quickly in the the thick of the action.

Davide made the most of his first racing start to adapt for the second half, and made rapid progress from P17 to pass Jacobsen for P16 on Lap 4. He held position and took a further three positions, passing Mercado, teammate Savadori and Hernandez all within 6 laps. He came home in P13 less than a second from P9 to take 3 points in an impressive finish for his debut with Milwaukee Aprilia.

Lorenzo struggled to adapt to his second bike, as an issue with his front brake impeded his progress. With his collarbone still healing from Round 1 he was in pain after the crash, but marched on and was able to finish P15 with a single valuable point.

With a morning warm up ahead of Race 2, the team now have a good opportunity to prepare the Aprilia to deliver strong results on Sunday.

Warm up begins on Sunday 15th at 09:35 local time (GMT +1) ahead of Race 2 at 13:00.

Shaun Muir – Team Principal

“It was an unlucky start for Lorenzo in the race to be caught up in the crash at Turn 11, and we’re all wishing Leon [Camier] a speedy recovery. The crew did a really good job to get his spare bike ready in time for the restart. Of course with his collarbone still healing he was sore after coming off, so to bring the bike home with points was a good gauge for him to build on tomorrow.

On Davide’s side I’m really impressed with his professionalism and his attitude, and he’s been working really well with the guys. He started the race tentatively having had very limited track time here, but he was within a second off P9 at the end. For him to come from P17 to finish P13 with a bike that doesn’t yet feel like home was a good result. We’ve got some good changes to make on the bike tomorrow so we expect him to perform well in Race 2, and I think a top ten is within his grasp.”

Davide Giugliano #34 – Aprilia RSV4-RF

Superpole 1 result:

1’51.632 – P14 on grid

Race 1 result:

P13 – 3 points

Race 2 grid:

P15 – Row 5

“In the Superpole I didn’t feel totally confident to push 100%; the bike is still new to me and I didn’t want to risk a crash trying for a really fast lap. I was quite happy with the lap and it was good to try the qualifying tyre.

I felt very good going into the race. In the first three laps before the crash I was trying hard to focus on holding position and not pushing too hard. It was better to stay calm and gain experience with the bike and understand how it behaved.

On the restart I felt a lot more confident. I was able to fight with other riders and made some good passes, and to finish with points in my first race with the team was really good. Tomorrow I feel positive for the race, it’s important that I get a better start and for sure I can mix with the guys in front for more points.”

Lorenzo Savadori #32 – Aprilia RSV4-RF

Superpole 2 result:

1’50.809 – P10 on grid

Race 1 result:

P15 – 1 point

Race 2 grid:

P12 – Row 4

“I had a problem in the morning Free Practice and the bike was really difficult to ride. I lost some time because of that and my set-up was not really where I wanted it to be. I tried to push in Superpole, but then I crashed at Turn 2.

I started the race P10 which was not great, but my start was good. I was holding P9 but on lap 3 Camier crashed in front of me and I had no space, so I hit his bike by mistake and went down. I hope Leon is OK after the accident and that he can race tomorrow, because it was not a nice crash.

During the red flag the guys got the spare bike ready for me, but when I started there was an issue with the front brake and the set up was not as comfortable for me as the first bike. From there the race was really difficult and I didn’t have much pace. We know the areas we can work on for Race 2, points today were good but I think we can have a better result tomorrow.”