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More, from a press release issued by Dorna:
#AragonWorldSBK – Day 3
Rea resists Davies pressure for Aragon Race 2 victory
Jonathan Rea takes his second win of the Aragon Round as Alvaro Bautista claims his first podium for Team HRC
It was a thrilling battle for MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship as Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) reclaimed his Championship lead with a 10 point gap after Race 2 victory at MotorLand Aragon for the Prosecco DOC Aragon Round, despite a late-race mistake allowing his rivals to close in on the reigning Champion.
Rea had started the race from pole position and, despite pressure from Scott Redding (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) in the early corners, was able to pull away from the chasing group. Rea led every lap throughout the race despite a mistake on Lap 14 which allowed Chaz Davies (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) to close the gap from around two seconds to just two tenths. Despite Davies attempting a move into Turn 1 on Lap 15, Rea held on to take victory by over one second ahead of Davies. Alvaro Bautista (Team HRC), who started the race from fourth, got ahead of Redding in the early stages, claimed his first podium for Honda and Honda’s first podium since Magny-Cours in 2016; Bautista and Honda showing good pace throughout the weekend.
Redding would finish the race in fourth place after being passed by Bautista and Davies, but the British rider also had to make a move on Michael van der Mark (PATA YAMAHA WorldSBK Official Team) on Lap 4 to help secure fourth place. Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Team GOELEVEN) made it three Ducati machines in the top five with fifth place as he also got by van der Mark, with the Dutchman finishing in sixth place.
Leon Haslam (Team HRC) made it two Hondas in the top seven with a seventh-place finish after a titanic battle with a group of five riders. Toprak Razgatlioglu (PATA YAMAHA WorldSBK Official Team) claimed eighth place with Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) in ninth and Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Junior Team) completing the top 10. There was just one second separating Haslam, Razgatlioglu, Lowes and Gerloff.
Xavi Fores (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) had a strong result in 11th place, finishing less than a tenth of a second behind American rider Gerloff as part of the group of five riders fighting for seventh place. Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) was the lead BMW rider in 12th place as the final rider in that battle; Federico Caricasulo (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Junior Team) finishing around three seconds behind Sykes in 13th. Eugene Laverty (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) and Maximilian Scheib (ORELAC Racing VerdNatura) completed the points with 15th.
Sylvain Barrier (Brixx Performance), Christophe Ponsson (Nuova M2 Racing), Takumi Takahashi (MIE Racing Althea Honda Team) and teammate Lorenzo Gabellini all finished the race while Loris Baz (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) retired from the race following a crash on Lap 4 of 18 at Turn 15; the French rider unable to re-join the race following the incident where he came off on his bike on his own. He was not the only non-finisher as Marco Melandri (Barni Racing) who retired with a technical issue and Roman Ramos (OUTDO Kawasaki TPR) retired from the race on the penultimate lap.
P1 Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK)
“I can’t believe the pace; I didn’t expect that. We kept the bike the same as yesterday, just changed the front tyre. We went for the SC1 front compound instead of the harder one and in this hotter temperature it seemed to work a little bit better. At the end, Chaz was coming, and I made a massive mistake in the last corner. I went in fourth gear and had no engine braking to stop me. I thought I was going to go down, but I just couldn’t get that last shift. I lost the position as Chaz came through, but I knew I needed to go straight back past and put my head down because I had a little bit extra.”
P2 Chaz Davies (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati)
“I got a poor start and left myself with work to do. I was able to pull Jonny in and it was kind of similar to yesterday in that we didn’t have much tyre left at the end, front and rear. It seemed like Jonny was able to dig in during those last couple of laps. Full credit to him because he did a good job. I was on my limit; I couldn’t do anything more. I think I cooked everything coming through the pack and that’s all the bike had. I’m really happy with that, it was a solid weekend. The bike, in many ways, is feeling pretty solid and it’s a good base to start from for next weekend.”
P3 Alvaro Bautista (Team HRC)
“The test helped us to make a step forward, but everybody tested here so we’re all in the same condition. I’m so happy with this podium as this is the result of the hard work we are doing. We are on the way to our target, which is to win. We are still a bit far away, but I am so happy. I want to thank HRC, Honda and my team. My mechanics worked hard during the weekend because we had a lot of problems and they spent a lot of time working on my bike, so they deserve this podium.”
More, from a press release issued by Yamaha:
Van der Mark Breaks Aragón Podium Duck in Superpole Race
Michael van der Mark took a fine third place finish for the Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Official Team with Rizla in the Tissot Superpole Race, at the fourth round of the FIM Superbike World Championship held at MotorLand Aragón today.
It was the Dutchman’s first podium at the Spanish venue following a quintet of fifth places aboard his Yamaha R1 since 2017. The performance also heralded a step forward for the Pata Yamaha team at the Aragón circuit, who have worked hard to find solutions to prolong tyre life and find grip in the prevailing conditions this weekend.
Van der Mark was then able to start Race 2 from the front row of the grid and quickly pushed through to second place behind eventual race-winner Jonathan Rea. However as grip levels dropped, he found himself unable to hold the position for the full race distance and eventually settled for a strong sixth-place finish.
Toprak Razgatlıoğlu took valuable points to retain third in the overall Riders’ Championship standings with incredibly hard-fought seventh and eighth-place finishes in the two races. The 23-year-old was disappointed with the results, particularly after visiting the podium on a regular basis during the previous three rounds, but provided WorldSBK TV broadcast viewers with thrilling entertainment in Race 2, being embroiled in a wheel-to-wheel, five-way battle over seventh for nearly 10 laps.
This concludes the first of two back-to-back events at the Spanish venue, with the Pirelli Teruel Round scheduled to begin this Friday, 4 September, starting at 10:30 local time (GMT+2) for Free Practice 1, where the Pata Yamaha team will work to make further improvements for both riders to fight for the podium.
Michael van der Mark – SPRC: P3 / R2: P6
“I think we can be quite happy with today’s performance, this morning in Warm Up we tried something a little different on the bike and it felt better compared to yesterday. In the Superpole Race I had a lot of fun, there was some good action and I felt strong. I was missing a bit of grip at the end, but I was really happy to finish on the podium for the first time at Aragón. For Race 2, we had a good bike for the long distance and from the start I was really fast and managed to get up to second place. From there, Johnny was a bit too quick to catch! As soon as my grip dropped, I struggled a lot on the exit of the corners and one-by-one people started passing me, so that’s why we finished sixth. Despite this, I think we are going in the right direction. We made some good progress and the best thing is that we have a lot of data from this weekend which we can use for the next one.”
Toprak Razgatlıoğlu – SPRC: P7 / R2: P8
“Today, I think this has been my worst weekend this year even though we finished and collected points in every race. We tried a different set-up for rear grip after yesterday, in the Superpole Race it didn’t feel too bad, but it did not work for me during Race 2 and so this is the result. Now I will look ahead with my team for next week here at Aragón and work to find another approach to try and fight at the front.”
Paul Denning, Team Principal
“As we’ve said before, Aragón has not been the strongest hunting ground for the Yamaha R1 or for Michael in the past, so to see him put in such a strong ride in the Superpole Race and to finish on the podium was very satisfying. That set him up nicely for a competitive Race 2 this afternoon – having forced his way to second position, things were again looking very positive. But, ultimately a slight lack of outright performance made it difficult to stay with the podium contenders over the full 18 laps. Nonetheless, it was a strong weekend for Michael and with a few further improvements, he and his crew are looking forward to next week. Toprak’s day was challenging, with seventh and eight places in the two races but he never gave up and as always, his spectacular riding style gave the fans watching from home a lot of entertainment. There is a lot to do both for Toprak himself, who unfortunately has not achieved his “normal” level of performance at this circuit, and for his crew and engineers to find a solution that allows him to show his full potential. His efforts mean that he still sits third in the championship having scored important points, so these races, while a bit disappointing, could be important come the end of the season.”
More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki:
Rea Scores Two Strong Wins
Jonathan Rea (KRT) lifted both WorldSBK winners’ trophies at Motorland Aragon today to retake the championship lead and continue along his strong seam of form. Alex Lowes (KRT) recovered from a painful crash on day one to record a sixth and then a ninth place today.
After finishing third in the opening WorldSBK race on Saturday Rea exceeded even his own expectations to win not just the 10-lap Superpole race but the full 18-lap race two. Jonathan has now won seven of the 12 races this season on his Ninja ZX-10RR.
Rea continued his impeccable winning form in the 2020 season’s 10-lap Tissot-Superpole races earning him not only more valuable maximum championship points but a repetition of the pole position start he enjoyed in both race one and the sprint. Lowes was a battling sixth in an entertaining sprint race for the off-podium finishing positions.
The second full distance race of the weekend, officially called race two, was a front-running display of sheer determination and pace from Rea. With his main championship rival Scott Redding finishing fourth Rea had to fight off the challenge of multiple-Aragon race winner Chaz Davies after running wide and allowing his rival to close up.
Rea continued to keep up his relentless pace to ease away and took a margin of victory of 1.280 seconds. This was his 80th WorldSBK race win since he joined Kawasaki in 2015 and the 95th of his entire career. He crossed the line in demonstrative style after one of the most impressive race wins of his long and hugely successful WorldSBK career.
The second race was a tougher one for Lowes, taking part in his second race of the day after his big Saturday fall. He showed his usual grit and determination in a multi-rider fight, moving up from 12th on lap one to ninth on the final lap despite not feeling 100% confident in his front end set-up.
After the latest compelling and unpredictable WorldSBK round, which marks the halfway point of the ‘new normal’ season, Rea has 189 points, Redding 179, Razgatlioglu 124, Davies 120, Michael van der Mark 110 and Lowes 102.
The Teruel Round is next up for the WorldSBK riders but it will be held at the same Motorland Aragon circuit, between 4 and 6 September.
Jonathan Rea, stated: “In the Superpole race I made an OK start but then Loris Baz came on the inside, so I got a little bit flustered. I knew I had to keep the rhythm really fast in the beginning because it was a good opportunity. Using the softer SCX tyre for the sprint race has a lot of potential but we did not do so many laps on it in practice, and the conditions were not as hot. So, thanks to my team because Pere and all the guys gave me a really good set-up. In race two I went wide at one point and that gave Chaz the chance to attack in turn one but I wanted to attack him back straight away and set my own rhythm. I knew I could push and put my head down again. I did not expect the pace I had today in race two; I was so surprised. I knew I could be fast and the Superpole race gave me a lot of confidence. When I could really get stuck into the 1’50 laps, and keep that load going at the beginning of the race, it was easier to manage when the tyre would drop. I learned from race one yesterday.”
Alex Lowes, stated: “I was quite happy for the Superpole race and was fourth for most of it, but just lacked a bit of speed at the end, when Alvaro Bautista and Chaz passed me. They were a bit quicker and I could not fight them off after the crash yesterday. We made a change with the front of the bike for the long race today and I did not feel comfortable. I was sort of fighting the bike. I was involved in quite a big battle, which was fun, but not in the positions that I want to be battling for. It was hard because I was not as confident in the front and it was sliding a lot so I could not be too aggressive. We put some points on the board and we have a few days now to get some good result in Aragon again next weekend. Well done to Johnny and the guys today, bouncing back from yesterday’s race. He did a fantastic job, so we know the Ninja ZX-10RR can do it, so we need to put our heads together before the next weekend to give myself a little bit more confidence with a better set-up.”
Xavi Fores (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) was 12th and 11th today, to sit 13th overall. Maximilian Scheib (Orelac Racing VerdNatura Kawasaki) was 14th and then 15th, scoring points each time to finish up 19th overall at the end of the weekend. Roman Ramos (Outdo Kawasaki TPR) could not build on his points score from Saturday, finishing the Superpole race 19th and then retiring from race two. He is 22nd after competing in only two rounds of the four run so far.
More, from a press release issued by Aruba.it Racing Ducati:
#AragonWorldSBK Race-2. Excellent race for Chaz Davies (P2) who fights for victory until the last lap. Following a precious second place in Superpole Race, Scott Redding struggles to find grip and finishes fourth.
After the stunning 1-2 set on Saturday, Chaz Davies gives another podium to the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team by finishing second in Race-2 after fighting with Rea (Kawasaki) for the victory until the last lap. Scott Redding instead has to settle for fourth position at the end of a difficult race.
Chaz gains positions on the grid thanks to the fifth place in the Superpole Race. The Welsh rider’s start is not incisive but since the first laps, his progression is exciting. Between the fourth and the sixth lap, he attacks Redding, Bautista (Honda) and Van der Mark (Yamaha) to chase Rea. His race pace is solid and with four laps to go, he puts pressure on Rea. Chaz manages to fight for the first position then finishing second.
The second place in the Superpole Race allows Scott Redding to start from P2. The English rider tries to stay with Rea but the feeling with the rear tire is not the same it was in Race-1. Halfway through the race Scott is in fifth position and attacks Van Der Mark to close in P4 under the checkered flag.
Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati)
“I’m very happy with the way things went this weekend. It is clear that the first place has another value but I am really satisfied with the work done by the team that put me in a position to be competitive since Friday. Unfortunately, the start was not the best and in the first laps, I had to fight with the group. Then I was able to lap with a good race pace and to fight with Jonny (Rea) until the last corner. We will get back on track with solid foundations next week end”.
Scott Redding (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati)
“Unfortunately I struggled a lot since the very first laps to make the rear tire work well. I was never able to find the grip that would allow me to push with the right rhythm. In the next two days, we will have to work to understand if it was a problem with the bike or just a tire that didn’t work in the best way, also because Chaz went very fast. I find it hard to accept to win race-1 and finish fourth in race-2”.
Serafino Foti (Team Manager Aruba.it Racing – Ducati)
“It is clear that after Saturday’s 1-2 we expected something more today. But all in all, we brought home a good result and valuable points that allow us to stay firmly in the fight for the Championship standings. Chaz’s race was solid even if a bad start forced him to push hard to recover without being able to handle the tires for the final attack. Scott didn’t manage to be as incisive as in Race-1 and for this reason, in the coming days, we will try to analyze the data in order to improve our performance in view of the next weekend on this track”.
More, from a press release issued by BMW Motorrad Motorsport:
BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team ends difficult first Aragón weekend.
After a disappointing Saturday at MotorLand Aragón (ESP), BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team worked hard overnight which saw them make some improvements. Despite the difficult starting position in Sunday’s race, this progress enabled them to finish in the points. Tom Sykes (GBR) crossed the finish line in 12th, his team-mate Eugene Laverty (IRL) finished in 14th.
Sykes and Laverty started the Superpole Race on Sunday morning from 14th and 18th on the grid. Sykes moved up into 11th place right at the start but was pushed aside in the turmoil entering Turn 8 and was forced to swerve through the gravel. Unfortunately, he collided with Leandro Mercado (ARG) as he returned to the track, who fell and unfortunately injured himself. Sykes finished the Superpole Race in 15th place, with Laverty right behind him in 16th. In the second main race on Sunday afternoon, the two riders finished in the points after starting near the back of the grid, Sykes in P12 and Laverty in P14.
This coming weekend sees BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team in action again at the same track, with part two of the FIM Superbike World Championship (WorldSBK) double header at MotorLand Aragón.
Shaun Muir, Team Principal
“After yesterday’s disappointments the guys worked really hard overnight and I have to thank the whole team for that. The guys went out this morning in warm up and put in a solid session. The Superpole Race was always going to be a problem from that far back, we have not got a lot to fight with on the long straights as we know, and that carried into the race. I think Eugene did well to consolidate some results as his confidence was low after the issue yesterday, so I have to applaud him for his efforts. He buckled down and he can sleep on that and come back stronger next week. With Tom starting from so far back he was getting mixed up with guys that are stronger in other areas than him. I think when Tom had the clear track, and a gap, he could reel off those low 1’51 lap times. As soon as he got in the company of everyone else, he was in a battle with nothing to fight with so it was quite predictable where he would end up. He could maybe have squeezed into the top 10 but we just wanted to consolidate these results and concentrate on the race here next week.”
Tom Sykes
“It was a shame in the Superpole Race. Chaz Davies made a miscalculation in one corner which pushed me out wide and left me nowhere to go. This is a shame as Tati Mercado got injured in the aftermath which is something you never want to see. Race two was frustrating, we had certainly had the pace to get away from the guys, but we had those limitations on the straights which undid all the hard work we did in the corners catching them up.”
Eugene Laverty
“The weekend as a whole has been so tough, which I didn’t see coming. Starting down the grid made it difficult, but we just didn’t have the pace. However, finally today we found what we needed so we were able to make progress with the bike in the final race two. So that at least gives us some direction for next week in Aragón, but we have lost an entire weekend.”
More, from a press release issued by Barni Racing Team:
Unfortunate Sunday for Melandri at Aragon
Aragon (SPA), 30 August 2020. A contact during the first lap of the Superpole Race that forced him to race the whole Superpole Race without the wing of his Ducati Panigale V4 R and a retire due to a technical problem in Race 2. The Sunday of Marco Melandri and Barni Racing Team has the bitter taste of a weekend full of troubles for the team from Bergamo. The Barni Racing Team brings home only two points from the Aragon weekend thanks to the fourteenth place obtained in Race 1 on Saturday.
Superpole Race
During the warm up in the morning, which ended with the 14th fastest time, Melandri was able to improve his feeling with the bike, but his Superpole Race was affected by the crash that involved Sykes and Mercado on the first lap: to avoid the bike of the Argentinean rider that remained in the middle of the track, Melandri came into contact with Barrier and the wing of his Ducati flew away. The stability problems caused by the loss of the aerodynamic appendix prevented him to push, but not to finish the race in seventeenth position.
Race 2
Even more unfortunate was the epilogue of Race 2, in which Melandri was forced to stop for a technical problem just when he was recovering in the middle of the group. On lap 10, while he was in fourteenth position with the same pace of the rider involved in the fight for the top 10, Melandri was forced to finish his race at turn 16 due to a technical problem.
The World Superbike Championship will stay in Aragon to compete next weekend in the Pirelli Teruel Round – fifth round of the Championship – on the same circuit of MotorLand.
Marco Melandri
Superpole Race: P17 – Race 2: DNF
“Today bad luck has raged against us, but regardless of this we are still not fast enough. Even if we have made some progress since yesterday we still lack something to fight with riders in front of us. For sure having a second round in the same circuit next week could be a positive aspect because we will start from the setup we found today and we will try to be more competitive.”
Marco Barnabo, Team Principal
“After all the setup problems of this weekend the technical problem we suffered in Race 2 was not needed. This morning we had made a decisive step forward compared to yesterday, but we were unlucky in both races: first of all the contact after few corners of the Superpole Race then the technical problem in Race 2 that prevented us to finish a race that until then had been growing. Luckily, next week we are back on track again on the same circuit and we had the chance to make up for it again.”
More, from a press release issued by Go Eleven Racing:
DON’T STOP ME (US) NOW!
Don’t stop me now, I’m having such a good time, Queen sang in 1978. Nothing better represents the magic moment of the Go Eleven team and Michael Ruben Rinaldi, now firmly in the top five positions since the restart of the Championship. And on Sunday in Aragon another crazy race saw the 24 year old from Romagna as the protagonist; excellent comeback after a complicated Superpole Race, amazing fight with Toprak and Van Der Mark Yamahas, fifth place and another Top Independent won!
In the Warm Up the cool temperatures affected the performance on the track. Michael tested the SCX at the rear, setting a good race pace at 1.50 high, proving he could be in the game in the two races to come.
The Superpole Race, the Achilles’ heel for Go Eleven, starts with a temperature of about 25 degrees of asphalt. As happened yesterday, the different conditions allowed the Yamahas to get back into the game for the main positions. Michael wasted some time in the scrum of the first two laps, fighting with Toprak and Gerloff, then, as soon as the tyre got used, he went after the group in front of him, setting a “crazy” pace. 1.49.820 recorded on the penultimate lap, two tenths from Rea’s fastest lap, a sign that the competitiveness of our bike increases as the laps go by. In the final he manages to pass Baz and Haslam, taking home two points and achieving the eighth box for Race 2 grid. Some positions lost compared to Superpole, but the important thing is to stay in the first three rows, also considering that, usually, the strength of the V4-R Go Eleven is from the middle of the race onwards.
In Race 2 Michael starts well, immediately recovering that row lost in the Superpole Race. Usual scrum, usual show and usual lost of time compared to the first 3 in the first laps. The fight with Toprak, once again, was hard, exciting and correct, with a perfect overtaking at turn 5. After being in frontof the Turkish talent, already his rival at the time of the Stock 1000, Rinaldi was able to set a good race pace, being for a few laps the fastest rider on the track: this allowed him to go after Scott Redding. The British was riding a few tenths slower than Michael, but the Go Eleven rider was able to close the gap without having the chance to attack him. As a photocopy of yesterday’s race, in the last laps he attacked Van Der Mark, passed him and left him in place, finishing in the slipstream of Scott. Fifth position just six seconds from the first, a good feeling found on the bike and, for the fifth consecutive time Top Independent. And now the ranking is starting to get interesting, Michael is seventh in recovery on the fifth. Aiming for the top 5 final is not wrong, you have to believe in it and continue at this pace!
Don’t stop us now!
Michael Rinaldi (Rider):
“I am very happy with this weekend because it was essential to confirm our potential; to achieve a fourth and a fifth place, twice Top Independent is really nice and positive. Today I am happier than yesterday, not for the position but because we were faster, we were able to improve the bike and this was important. For the next Round, which will also take place here at Motorland, we will try something different to find those few tenths we need to fight for the podium”
Denis Sacchetti (Team Manager):
“Today’s result makes me even happier, because the gap from the leader has been reduced compared to yesterday. Michael was about 6 seconds faster than himself and there is no better as it shows how close we are getting! Next Sunday we will still be on this track, so we have the opportunity to work on the data collected in these two races to improve even more, and it will be important because none of our rivals waits us. Michael is in great shape, always very constant and incisive, also in the team there is a beautiful feeling … I hope Friday arrives soon!”
More, from a press release issued by GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Junior Team:
Aragón day 3: the GRT team closer and closer to the leaders
The last day of the first of the two Spanish weekends showed the good continuity of
the GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Junior Team riders, who continued to make progress
compared to the previous days.
After the good sensations found on Saturday, Sunday began with the Warmup, in which Caricasulo continued on his growth path, setting the 11th time, while Gerloff, put in difficulty by the crash in race 1, was only 17th. In the Tissot Superpole Race the Italian, who started from 16th place, climbed up to 11th place, while his teammate , still looking for the right feeling, limited the damage by finishing 13th. In race 2, however, both drivers were fast and consistent: the American entered the battle within the second group, crossing the line tenth just 21 seconds behind the winner, with the Italian slightly behind, 13th at 25 seconds. In view of the second of the two rounds at the Aragón circuit , scheduled for next weekend, today’s performance bodes well.
Gerloff is happy to be able to get into a fight with some of the best in race 2, but he knows
that seventh place would have been within his reach if only he had had a few more laps
available: “I’m happy to have finished the weekend with a positive note. Surely
yesterday’s crash affected me a bit, especially this morning. Still in the Superpole Race
I didn’t feel the bike perfectly under my control, I lost some ground in the first laps and
unfortunately I have not brought home a great result. But I found confidence again, and the team also worked very well, completely rebuilding the bike after the accident, and putting me in a position to do well with some good modifications. In race 2 I started quite badly, but I had a very good feeling and in the end I managed to reach the group where
Toprak (Razgatlioglu), Sykes, Haslam, and Lowes were battling for seventh place. I am
satisfied to be able to take them back, and to have been able to fight with them, even if in the end I finished tenth, a good result but not what I aspire to. To have reached only a few
10th from seventh place gives me great motivation for next weekend. Our goal is to take a small step forward to stay a little closer to the leading riders, but it was nice to finish this weekend well, and we will take these good feelings with us for the next one. ”
Caricasulo is also very satisfied with his performance on Sunday, although his
final position has worsened compared to yesterday: “Today was a positive day, because we have constantly improved not so much our position as our gap from the leader and
our pace. race. We have collected a lot of data especially in race 2, which will be a lot
useful to improve the next weekend. Overall I am satisfied with our work, and
we will try to do our best in these days to be even more ready next week.”
As usual, the Technical Coordinator Damiano Evangelisti, more than on the final position, emphasizes the further reduction of the gap from the first: “A positive weekend for us ends. This morning, in the Superpole Race, Federico made a good comeback, finishing 11th and keeping a great pace. For Garrett, on the other hand, it was a slightly more difficult race, because he had to recover the feeling lost in yesterday’s crash. However, he defended himself, and finished 13th. Race 2 was also excellent, in which Garrett got a good tenth place, while Federico was unable to stay in the same group as his teammate just due to a mistake in turn 1. In any case, as we always say, the position final for us is relative: in today’s race we took the shortest gap from the leaders of the whole season. It means that we are working well, the kids are growing up, and we have taken a good direction. We also gathered a lot of information, we know where both guys still need to improve, and we have another event available on this track next week. We will analyze the data, talk with the riders, and plan the next weekend in the best possible way, in which, in addition to improving the race pace further, we will aim to go faster in qualifying. Once again I want to thank the whole team who, as usual, worked impeccably. Now there is a few days of rest and then we will focus on next weekend. ” and we have another event available on this track next week. We will analyze the data, talk with the riders, and plan the next weekend in the best possible way, in which, in addition to improving the race pace further, we will aim to go faster in qualifying. Once again I want to thank the whole team who, as usual, worked flawlessly. Now there is a few days of rest and then we will focus on next weekend. ” and we have another event available on this track next week. We will analyze the data, talk with the riders, and plan the next weekend in the best possible way, in which, in addition to improving the race pace further, we will aim to go faster in qualifying. Once again I want to thank the whole team who, as usual, worked flawlessly. Now there is a few days of rest and then we will focus on next weekend. ”
After today’s results, the two GRT rookies have moved up in the world rankings: Gerloff is now 12th, with 28 points, while Caricasulo, 14th, has 22. Already from next weekend there will be a new opportunity to bring home others points, with another round on the Aragón track. FP1 will start on Friday 4 September at 10:30, while the second free practice session will follow at 15.
