WorldSBK heads to Argentina for the first overseas round of 2022
What to look out for in San Juan
Championship P1 – 448 points
Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Ducati – Racing)
Bautista’s best result at the Argentinean venue is a race win back in 2019 when he was riding for Ducati.
In 2021, a tenth place in Race 2 was his best result.
After the Pirelli Portuguese Round, he leads the Championship standings with a 56-point advantage over Razgatlioglu.
“The next race is in Argentina; sincerely, three years ago with Ducati I won on my first time there. But then I had some problems in the other races so… let’s see. It’s a tricky track because the conditions are very different from one day to another. We have to be ready for all kind of conditions and adapt as best as we can and just try to enjoy as we are doing and do our best!”
Championship P2 – 392 points
Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK)
Razgatlioglu is a race winner at the Circuito San Juan Villicum. In 2021, he won Race 1 and the Tissot Superpole Race.
He has been on the podium in seven races out of eight that have been staged in San Juan.
He extended his gap to Rea to 26 points for second place in the standings.
“Now, I’m looking to Argentina. I know it’s not an easy track for anyone because the Ducati again is very strong. I also remember that Alvaro was very strong in Argentina in 2019, but this year is different. We’ll keep fighting for the win. Now I’m focused on Argentina, and we’ll try our best.”
Championship P3 – 366 points
Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK)
Rea has four races in San Juan, his last win was in Race 2, 2019. He is the most successful rider here as he claimed victory in four of the first five races run.
In 2021, he claimed three podium places, but was without a win for the first time.
The six-time WorldSBK Champion is on a winning drought of 18 races, his longest since 2012-2013.
“Argentina is a cool round to go to, all the flyaways are to be honest. The different cultures, different tracks… Argentina especially because it doesn’t have a lot of track activity, so the track is always quite green. So, we have to understand what conditions we’ll face when we go there. Step by step throughout the weekend, I’ll work with the team trying to get a good package and be able to fight. I expect a tough weekend, there is a very long straight there. I will try to make myself as small as possible down there but there is plenty of other places at the track where I’m sure we can exploit our strengths of the ZX-10RR.”
Championship P4 – 232 points
Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it Ducati Racing)
A third place in Race 1 in 2021 is Rinaldi’s best result in San Juan.
Having missed the podium at Portimao, he will be chasing his first win of the season in Argentina.
“I really like the track. I want to go there. It’s a pretty fun track. Also, it feels good to go outside of Europe, because it will be our first overseas this season. For sure, I need to score a podium and score points, but I think race by race, and not about fourth place in the standings.”
Championship P5 – 196 points
Andrea Locatelli (Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK)
Locatelli’s best result in San Juan is a sixth place in the 2021 Tissot Superpole Race.
In 2021, it was his first visit to the circuit.
“It feels like quite a new track for me because I just rode there last year for the first time. In the end, it wasn’t an easy weekend for us in Argentina, but now we arrive with more confidence after Barcelona and Portimao because, maybe the result in the race is not so good but we were faster and stronger. So, this is a good point to arrive in Argentina. I’m motivated and I’ll try to push and to understand the track as fast as possible again. I’ll push to have a good rhythm and to fight to finish in a good position. This is my objective; it won’t be easy. We’ll try it and we’ll focus to work and prepare for next week.”
Championship P6 – 189 points
Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK)
Lowes has a top five finish at the Argentinean track. In 2021, his best result was a fourth place in Race 1.
“Obviously it’s a relatively new to the calendar the last few years, a great addition to me. I think the track is great, I love the layout. Obviously, it doesn’t get used too much so on Friday, it’s always a bit slippery and you have to be careful. Last year, I was a bit injured, but I have a good first race finishing fourth, even with the injury, so I’m quite optimistic this that I can carry on my good form and challenge for a podium. But like I said, it’s an event, a race and a track that I really enjoy, and honestly, I cannot wait to get out there!”
To keep an eye on:
Team HRC’s riders, Iker Lecuona and Xavi Vierge will race for the first time at the Circuito San Juan Villicum.
In 2021, BMW’s best result at San Juan was Michael van der Mark (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team)’s fifth place in the Tissot Superpole Race, whilst he finished sixth in Race 1 and Race 2. It will be Scott Redding’s first Argentinean round with the BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team.
Argentinean rider Marco Solorza (TPR Team Pedercini Racing) will race for the Italian team for the Motul Argentinean Round. In 2021, he already took part in the WorldSBK Argentinean Round with an 18th place as his best result; he’ll target the points-scoring positions for his home round.
More on worldsbk.com
Championship standings (after Race 2 – Round 9)
1. Alvaro Bautista (ESP) Ducati (448 points)
2. Toprak Razgatlioglu (TUR) Yamaha (392 points)
3. Jonathan Rea (GBR) Kawasaki (366 points)
