Motul FIM Superbike World Championship
Chang International Circuit
Buriram, Thailand
March 12, 2017
Restarted Race Two Results (All on Pirelli tires):
1. Jonathan Rea, UK (Kaw ZX-10RR), 16 laps, Total Race Time 25:02.029, Best Lap Time 1:33.675
2. Tom Sykes, UK (Kaw ZX-10RR), -4.078, 1:33.725
3. Marco Melandri, Italy (Duc Panigale R), -4.195, 1:33.644
4. Alex Lowes, UK (Yam YZF-R1), -10.005, 1:33.883
5. Jordi Torres, Spain (BMW S1000RR), -14.733, 1:34.389
6. Chaz Davies, UK (Duc Panigale R), -16.972 seconds, 1:34.444
7. Nicky Hayden, USA (Hon CBR1000RR SP2), -20.543, 1:34.473
8. Xavi Fores, Spain (Duc Panigale R), -24.283, 1:34.996
9. Roman Ramos, Spain (Kaw ZX-10R), -24.864, 1:34.933
10. Markus Reiterberger, Germany (BMW S1000RR), -26.008, 1:34.627
11. Alex De Angelis, San Marino (Kaw ZX-10RR), -27.599, 1:34.944
12. Ricardo Russo, Italy (Yam YZF-R1), -34.800, 1:35.334
13. Ondrej Jezek, Czech Republic (Kaw ZX-10R), -47.090, 1:35.930
14. Ayrton Badovini, Italy (Kaw ZX-10R), -47.695, 1:35.913
15. Eugene Laverty, Ireland (Apr RSV4), -81.916, crash, 1:34.359
16. Leon Camier, UK (MV Agusta F4RC), –6 laps, DNF, mechanical, 1:34.560
17. Randy Krummenacher, Switzerland (Kaw ZX-10RR), -11 laps, DNF, retired, 1:35.097
18. Stefan Bradl, Germany (Hon CBR1000RR SP2), -11 laps, DNF, crash, 1:34.628
19. Michael van der Mark, Netherlands (Yam YZF-R1), DNS
20. Lorenzo Savadori, Italy (Apr RSV4 RF), DNS (crashed in first portion of race)
World Championship Point Standings (After 4 of 26 races):
1. Rea, 100 points
2. Davies, 70
3. Sykes, 62
4. Lowes, 49
5. Melandri, 45
6. Fores, 34
7. Torres, 29
8. TIE, Van Der Mark/Camier, 27
10. Hayden, 21
11. TIE, Laverty/Reiterberger, 15
13. Ramos, 13
14. De Angelis, 12
15. TIE, Savadori/Krummenacher, 10
17. Bradl, 8
18. TIE, Russo/Josh Brookes, 4
20. Jezel, 3
More, from a press release issued by Dorna WSBK Press Office:
Chang International Circuit Day Three
Fourth successive win for dominant Rea
Rea takes advantage of restarted race in Buriram
The second round of the 2017 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship concluded with another superb victory for Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team) on Sunday at the Chang International Circuit, with Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) and Marco Melandri (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) also on the podium.
In a restarted fourth race of the season, Rea took a brilliant win by just over four seconds from Sykes, to continue a brilliant start to the season for the Northern Irishman. Sykes made it a Kawasaki one-two with a last lap move on Melandri.
In the original Sunday race a big crash for Lorenzo Savadori (Milwaukee Aprilia) at turn 12 just after a technical fault saw the red flag come out due to track conditions, with debris left on track by the Italian’s accident.
After a quick restart procedure the riders did battle over 16 laps, with
Rea taking control as he got away from the front of the grid, which was based on the positions at the end of the fourth lap of the earlier curtailed race.
In the first race start Rea had shot up from ninth on the grid to soon contest the lead with Melandri who had started well from pole, with the World Champion taking over from the Italian at the front on the fourth lap. After the race restart Melandri could not hold Rea back with the Kawasaki man charging away as the laps progressed, with Sykes eventually also getting the better of the Ducati man.
Thanks to a perfect start to 2017 defending champion Rea now leads the championship by 30 points from Davies, ahead of the third round of the season at Aragon in three weeks time.
Meanwhile, the Motul Thai Round was a successful weekend for Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) who finished Sunday’s race six seconds off the podium in fourth, having finished sixth in Race 1. Spaniard Jordi Torres (Althea BMW Racing Team) followed the Englishman across the line for fifth.
An solid performance by Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) after the restart saw him fight through the pack from 19th to eventually finish sixth – having gone down on lap three at the third corner in the initial race, losing the front end and rejoining at the back of the field.
Nicky Hayden (Red Bull Honda World Superbike Team), Xavi Fores (BARNI Racing Team), Roman Ramos (Team Kawasaki Go Eleven) and Markus Reiterberger (Althea BMW Racing Team) completed the top ten.
Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) missed out on the points due to technical issues with his bike, which meant he was unable to take part in the restarted race.
Stefan Bradl (Red Bull Honda World Superbike Team) unfortunately crashed out at turn 12 after five laps of the restarted contest and did not finish, whilst Randy Krummenacher (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) had to retire midway through the 16-lap second race of the afternoon due to a mechanical issue.
Eugene Laverty (Milwaukee Aprilia) crashed out of fifth under pressure from Torres at turn 6 with eight laps to go, whilst Leon Camier (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) was advised by the marshals to stop six laps from the end of the race with smoke pouring from his MV Agusta 1000 F4 machine.
The WorldSBK riders return to action over the 31st March – 2nd April weekend at the aforementioned Pirelli Aragón Round, the third round of the 2017 season.
Top Three:
1st Jonathan Rea – Kawasaki Racing Team
“This is my best ever start to the season, I’m feeling good with the bike. I was so nervous about the ninth place start to be honest because this track is so hard to pass, especially with the speed of the Ducati’s. I’m really lucky that I had sector three pretty dialled in, and by T4 I put my head down and managed to snap Marco after three or four laps. This is a massive thanks to all my team, theyve been working relentlessly so these race wins are for them.”
2nd Tom Sykes – Kawasaki Racing Team
“We struggled all weekend a little bit, I’ve been working hard over the winter to try and overcome some limitations. I just had to change the way I ride and it shows, because on the last lap I did my fastest lap of the race. Today was hot, greasy conditions which normally work against us but we are trying. We kept going until the last lap and managed to get second position so overall not a bad weekend.”
3rd Marco Melandri – Aruba.it Racing – Ducati
“To be back on the podium is huge, but it was a very tough race, and we were passed two times with the same pass! I was struggling with the front break for the first few laps I knew Sykes was going to pass, because the lever was touching my hand when I was braking, so I knew he was going to be very strong. Thanks to my team and I can’t wait to be back on the podium again.”
More, from a press release issued by Althea BMW Racing:
Fantastic performance by Torres and Althea BMW at Buriram
Buriram (Thailand), Sunday 12 March 2017
The second round of the 2017 Superbike World Championship concluded today at the Chang International Circuit in Buriram, Thailand. In a race conditioned by both the sweltering temperatures and a red flag, the Althea BMW Racing team achieved an excellent result, crossing the line fifth with Jordi Torres who put Davies behind him. Tenth for Markus Reiterberger.
Superbike – Race 2 – fourth on the grid, Torres lost ground off the line and was lying eighth after the first lap. The Spaniard made up three places in the initial stages but the race was then stopped with a red flag after a crash for Savadori left oil on the track. Reiti, further back during the opening laps, was lying 15th when the race was interrupted.
Almost half an hour later, the race was restarted (16 laps), with riders lining up in the positions they held at the end of lap four, so Torres from seventh, Reiti from fifteenth place. This time, Jordi got away well, sixth through the opening stages behind Laverty. Thanks to a consistent pace, the Spaniard was in fifth at the mid-race point, a position that he was able to hold all the way to the line, giving Davies no chance to get past him through the final laps. An important result for the Italian team after some inconveniences this weekend.
Reiti was able to make up a few positions in the first half of the race and was lying eleventh. Passing several riders in the final phase, the German reached the top ten today, crossing the line tenth.
Two rounds into the 2017 championship and Torres lies seventh in the standings with 29 points while Reiterberger is 12th with 15 points. BMW positions fourth in the manufacturer’s classification with 32 points, while Althea BMW also lies fourth in the team rankings (44 points).
Jordi Torres:
“In the first ‘heat’ we started well and I was making good progress so it was pity about the restart after Savadori crashed because we were in fifth place at the time. After the restart, from seventh, I started to push and got into a really good rhythm, getting past several riders. I gave 100% in the race, more even, as I knew Davies was closing in on me at the end, and we were able to finish fifth, a great result, which I’m very pleased with.”
Markus Reiterberger:
“Top ten sounds OK but there were also several crashes for other riders. The first laps were again not so good. I ran a little wide in traffic early on and lost too much time there. Then I was following Krummenacher and was worried when I saw him losing water. After he moved away, I tried to focus as much as possible and maintain a constant pace, which wasn’t so bad. I definitely need to work on my performance through the opening laps though, and also improve my feeling with the bike. I’m feeling positive and thank my team for their hard work here this weekend.”
More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki:
FOUR WINS FOR REA AFTER THAILAND DOUBLE
Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team) continued his perfect start to the latest FIM Superbike World Championship campaign on the Ninja ZX-10RR by taking his second win of the weekend today and his fourth in succession. Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) had his best finish of the year in second place, in a second race, which was shortened to 16-laps after a red flag was shown early in the first attempted running.
After taking pole position and the first race win at the Chang International Circuit Jonathan Rea had to make two race starts today, just like his peer group. In the only race finish that mattered Jonathan scored his fourth win in a row, giving him a perfect score of 100 points so far and a championship lead of 30 over Chaz Davies.
Having won both Superpole contests this season, at Phillip Island and Chang, Rea has also grown his career win total to 42 after his second race success. His margin of victory in race two proved to be just over four seconds, from his own team-mate Sykes.
Sykes rode with consistency and determination again and in a copy of the Saturday’s race in Thailand he passed Marco Melandri right at the end, this time for second place and not third. A grandstand finish gave Tom his third podium of the season, and third place overall in the championship rankings, with a total of 62 points.
With the second race start based on where the riders finished the red flagged race, Rea and Sykes launched off the front and second rows respectively for the real 16-lap contest.
In the Manufacturers’ Standings, Kawasaki’s lead was extended to 24 points after two rounds. The next WorldSBK event will take place at Motorland Aragon in Spain, with racedays on Saturday 1st and Sunday 2nd April.
Jonathan Rea, stated: “The best start to a season ever in my career. It is important to maximise these points when we can because it is how I built my championships in the past. When we can win, make sure we win, and then we can try and consolidate. These four victories are nearly halfway to my win tally from last year already! It is a good start and I just feel comfortable on the bike. We took the bike set-up we had from Phillip Island to here and it just pretty much worked. That is unheard of, so I have a good bond with the bike. There are still some areas we need to improve for the coming races but KHI are working hard on this. We expect to improve the bike again in the next races.”
Tom Sykes, stated: “The race win was not on today but second place was, so it was all about making the smartest move possible at the end. I could see Marco had some limitations so on the last lap I knew I had a margin. He was faster than me in the twisty section before the last corner so I had to put the lap together. Finally on the last lap on my dashboard there was 1’33.7, which was the fastest of my whole race. We still have to find a little bit more from our package. I am slowly getting there and consistency has pretty much been there. We keep closing the gap but we need to try and close it a bit faster.”
More, from a press release issued by MV Agusta:
UNLUCKY RACE DAY FOR TEAM MV AGUSTA REPARTO CORSE AT CHANG CIRCUIT
The hot sun shining on the Buriram’s sky, 400 km north east of Bangkok (Thailand), and the high temperatures provided the venue for this Sunday race day on the Chang International Circuit, with the team MV Agusta Reparto Corse not collecting the expected results on track, due to the double retirement in WorldSBK (Camier) and WorldSSP (PJ Jacobsen).
WorldSBK – WU, Race 2
Thanks to the yesterday’s 8th position got in Race 1, Team MV Agusta Reparto Corse’s rider started today from the 5th place on grid. When the lights goes out on the Thai track, Camier is immediately very fast and keep fighting for the top 5 area until the race is red flagged due to a crash, when Leon was in 5th position.
At the restart, the race has been shortened on 16 laps and Camier start taking advantage of the excellent chassis of his MV Agusta F4RC, fighting among the top 6 positions. But a problem with the oil pressure force the British rider to pull back after 6 laps. Leon Camier is currently 8th tied in the Championship standings.
WorldSSP – WU, Race
After setting the fastest time in the morning’s WarmUp, PJ Jacobsen was immediately fast at the start of the WorldSSP Race, managing to pass a few riders in the early corners. Unfortunately, a technical problem after only 2 laps forced the American to an early return to the pit box, postponing his fight for the Championship to the next race .
The MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship will take place again from March 31 to April 2 on the Aragon circuit, in Spain, for the third round of the season and first European race.
Leon Camier #2 WorldSBK Rider – Honestly I am happy how the bike was working in the race and I think we made some good steps with the chassis this weekend. But I am very disappointed no to finish the race as I felt really good and strong on the bike. After the restart the bike setting was really good too, but when I was fighting with Torres I felt oil on my foot and it was getting slippery and then we got black flagged.
Patrick PJ Jacobsen #99 WorldSSP Rider – Today wasn’t so good for the team and myself but I am sure we can win races and we can be on the top positions soon, as we showed in Phillip Island. We will move on to Aragon and we hopefully can be back winning races and fighting for the championship.
More, from a press release issued by Red Bull Honda World Superbike Team:
Hayden wraps up Thai Round with a seventh place finish
Chang International Circuit, Thailand
The second round of the 2017 FIM Superbike World Championship has drawn to a close, with Nicky Hayden claiming his best result of the season so far, a seventh place in front of the Thai crowd at Chang International Circuit. His Red Bull Honda World Superbike team mate Stefan Bradl crashed out at turn 12 during the sixth lap and could not continue the race.
The initial race came to an early end on lap six, when Savadori suffered a technical problem that led to a high-side at turn 12; red flags were deployed and a new 16-lap race was called by World Superbike Race Direction.
With the new grid based on official race positions from the end of lap four, Hayden launched himself off eighth place, while Bradl was five slots back in 13th. Both riders enjoyed a good start to the new encounter and joined a five-strong pack battling for fifth place.
On lap six, Bradl lost the front of his Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade SP2 while running in tenth place and closing in on his team mate. Hayden, on the other hand, moved up a couple of positions during the central part of the race and maintained his seventh place until the chequered flag.
The World Superbike championship will return to action in three weekends at the MotorLand Aragón circuit in Spain.
Nicky Hayden 69
7th
The bike worked much better after the red flag and I was actually able to do my best lap-times of the weekend. We had a couple of good laps and I was quite consistent; I found myself in that group fighting for fifth place but then Leon’s bike started to blowing some smoke and all I did was trying to stay out of trouble. That cost me some time and when he retired I had already lost touch to Chaz for sixth place, so after that it was a lonely race for seventh. Things went a little bit better than yesterday but there is still a lot of work to do to close the gap with the leaders. Hopefully we’ll be able to get up there as soon as possible.
Stefan Bradl 6
DNF
Unfortunately today I made a mistake and crashed: when Davies got past I did my best to stay with him but I hit the brakes a little bit too late and didn’t release them early enough before ending up on the bump in the middle of turn 12. It’s a shame, because we could have easily have scored another top-10 result if not better. Now we must stay focused and keep working hard ahead of Aragón: we are heading to the European part of the season and I hope we can make some bigger improvement before the next race.
Pieter Breddels
This morning we tried a couple of changes and they worked out OK, especially with Stefan. At the restart of the race, both riders were able to ride at a much more consistent pace: their feeling with the bike improved a bit from yesterday and so did their overall performance. Stefan was closing in on Nicky when the crash happened, but he did look like he could have battled for a good result today. Nicky rode a great race and if he wasn’t held up towards the end, he might have battled for a higher position. Overall, progress was made but and we’re still not where we want to be, however we have some more time to prepare ourselves ahead of the next race at Aragón.
More, from a press release issued by Aruba.it Racing Ducati:
Third place for the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team in Race 2 at Buriram with Marco Melandri, Chaz Davies is 6th
After finishing in second position in Race 1 with Chaz Davies, the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team stepped on the podium again in Race 2 of the 2017 WorldSBK Championship at Buriram (Thailand) with Marco Melandri. The Italian took third place at the end of race split in two by red flags on lap five. Chaz Davies, who restarted from last position on the grid after a crash, showed tenacity by climbing back to sixth position under the checkered flag.
After a strong start, Melandri and Davies respectively took second and third position early on, behind the winner Rea. On lap 3, however, Davies lost the rear at turn 3 when he was just behind his teammate and rejoined the pack in last position. Shortly after, the race was interrupted due to oil on track.
At the restart, Melandri managed to set a fast and consistent pace despite some lingering issues under braking, and defended the second position until the last corner, losing it by only thousandths of a second. Davies, on the other hand, mounted a strong comeback from 19th on the grid but wasn’t able to set his usual lap times due to some issues with the throttle. Nonetheless, the Welshman finished in sixth position.
After two rounds, Davies (70 points) and Melandri (45 points) are respectively second and fifth in the championship. The Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team will resume action in Aragon (Spain) for the third round of the 2017 WorldSBK Championship, scheduled for March 31 – April 2.
Marco Melandri (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #33) – 3rd
“This has been a good weekend for us. In such difficult conditions, on a new track for me, it feels good to be close to the front. Being passed at the very last turn in both races isn’t ideal, but I struggled with braking since the first free-practice session and it wasn’t possible to be more aggressive in what is the most critical corner of the circuit. That said, the team has done a great job. We still lack something, but we have some good ideas and we’ll keep pushing at 100 percent to reach our rivals. I expect to do so already in Aragon.”
Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #7) – 6th
“I was following Marco but I misjudged his speed a little bit so I went to the outside. For me the rear always locks there, but that time it did it more than usual, perhaps because I was on a dirty part of the track, and couldn’t recover the grip. Finishing sixth is a salvage after the crash, but we could have been close to the podium at the restart. Unfortunately, we had some issues with the throttle after some parts were changed for safety. Still, we have many more points than after two rounds last year, and now we’ll go to more favorable tracks. The championship is long.”
Serafino Foti, Team Manager
“This has been a tough weekend, mostly because of the high temperatures. It’s unfortunate that Chaz crashed in Race 2. Still, we were lucky because the red flags allowed us to collect precious points with him. Chaz is a fighter, and I’m sure he will be back at the top in Aragon. Marco rode a strong race. Unfortunately he missed second place at the last corner, but he deserved the podium despite having struggled to stop the bike all weekend. We’re happy with his season start: he’s always been with the frontrunners, and his feeling with the bike is growing every day. We need to stay focused and work hard to improve ahead of Aragon, a track where we’ve always been competitive.”
More, from a press release issued by Pata Yamaha:
Fourth In Race Two Wraps up Thailand For Pata Yamaha And The YZF-R1
Alex Lowes scored strongly in the second race at the Chang International Circuit this afternoon, taking fourth place at the flag and with it fourth place in the championship standings after two rounds. His Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK team mate Michal van der Mark ran out of fortune on Sunday after his good showing in the opening race on Saturday, retiring after a technical issue intervened.
After the first planned 20-lap race was red-flagged due to oil on the track, the final full-point race was run over 16 laps of the 4.554km long circuit in Thailand. Thanks to his pace, and consistency from his machine, Lowes ran in fourth position throughout. He had made some set-up changes to his R1 after the first attempted race but found them a little less to his liking and he ended up in a lonely fourth place, ten seconds from the winner.
It was a day of tough luck for van der Mark, especially after finishing in fifth place and top Yamaha rider in race one. After the red flag, when returning to the box, an oil leak was evident on the bike. In the given 10 minutes before the race restart the team was not able to fully determine the reason for the leak and decided, for safety reasons, to not let Michael re-enter the track.
In the championship itself Lowes is fourth with 49 points, five points ahead of the rider immediately behind. Michael is now eighth, having been up to sixth place on Saturday after race one.
Alex Lowes
Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team Rider
“Overall it was a good weekend for me. The team did a great job with the bike! I didn’t have the best first two or three laps so I lost the connection with the front group when Eugene Laverty passed me but I managed to get past him again, but the front group were just too fast. Perhaps if I would have been there at the start, I could have challenged them a bit more. The two flyaway races have gone well for me overall, and it has been a solid start of the season. I feel confident for Aragon. There is still a lot I can improve in myself and there are things the team can improve on the bike, so we can go away for a couple of days rest and then start working toward the next race.”
Michael van der Mark
Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team Rider
“We had a technical problem with the bike in race two, which was a pity after all our good work. In the morning warm up we tried something on the bike set-up but I was not so keen on it so we went back to a set up almost similar to what we had yesterday. Then we had a red flag. It was a shame because yesterday was really good. I had a feeling that today would be the same, or even better, for both Alex and myself, but that is racing. At least this weekend I was fast from the start and hopefully we can continue this kind of form in Moorland Aragon.”
Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team Principal
“Despite the technical fault for Michael this afternoon we have to look at the Thai weekend in context. We can conclude it was another positive step forward for Yamaha’s WorldSBK project as well as for the performance of the team and the YZF-R1. We feel extremely sorry for Michael, he and his crew deserved more after a fantastic race yesterday, but this is motorsport. We have to accept that problems can occur and when they do we learn from them. Thanks to Michael for his very professional attitude, this is much appreciated by everybody.
Alex rode a very good race today even though he hasn’t felt quite fully at home with the setting all weekend. I think the crew improved just a little bit more for this afternoon and especially the first part of the race before the red flag it looked like a podium challenge might be possible. The restarted race wasn’t as easy in the first couple of laps and a gap to the front three developed that was impossible to pull back. Thanks to everybody at Yamaha for their support and partnership and to the crew for all their hard work. It has been a solid start to the season.”