More, from a press release issued by Dorna:
Maria Herrera does the double at the opening WorldWCR round
Race 2 Highlights:
Spanish rider Maria Herrera (Klint Forward Factory Team) triumphed in an electrifying second WorldWCR race at the Misano World Circuit
Herrera, Sara Sanchez (511 Terra&Vita Racing Team), Ana Carrasco (Evan Bros Racing Yamaha Team) and Beatriz Neila (Ampito / Pata Prometeon Yamaha) built an early lead, this compact quartet battling it out for the podium positions throughout the twelve-lap thriller
The final lap proved decisive, Herrera and Sanchez breaking away from their rivals and fighting all the way to the line for the victory, with Maria snatching the win by just 0.085 of a second
Carrasco and Neila were embroiled in their own duel for third, a contest ultimately won by Ana, who crossed the line 0.047 of a second ahead of fellow Spaniard Beatriz
Local rider Roberta Ponziani (Yamaha Motoxracing WCR Team) ran a solitary race to round out the top five
Based on their fastest lap times in Saturday’s Race 1, it was Carrasco, Sanchez and Ponziani who formed the front row of the 23-strong Race 2 grid
Suffering from acute gastroenteritis, Alyssia Whitmore (Sekhmet Motorcycle Racing Team) was ruled unfit to compete in Race 2. Mia Rusthen (Rusthen Racing) and Jessica Howden (Team Trasimeno) were unfit following injuries sustained in Saturday’s Race 1
Astrid Madrigal (ITALIKA Racing FIMLA) and Chun Mei Liu (WT Racing Team Taiwan) crashed out of the race, while Emily Bondi (YART Zelos Black Knights Team) was forced to retire
Championship Standings:
Herrera’s double win at this inaugural WorldWCR round sees her leading the championship with 50 points
Sanchez and Carrasco each have a tally of 36 points after the first two races, followed by Neila and Ponziani, both with 24.
Key Points:
Pole position: Maria Herrera (Klint Forward Factory Team) – 1’49.390
Race 1 winner: Maria Herrera (Klint Forward Factory Team)
Race 2 winner: Maria Herrera (Klint Forward Factory Team)
Race fastest lap: Beatriz Neila (Ampito / Pata Prometeon Yamaha) – 1’47.961 (Race 2)
More on worldsbk.com
P1 | Maria Herrera | Klint Forward Factory Team
“That was a tough race! It was difficult to pass Sara and I thought she might win, but I was able to stop the bike a little later and get past her in the end. I didn’t expect to win both the weekend’s races, to be honest and so I’m very pleased with these first results. With this bike, I think the potential is in your riding style. I didn’t make any changes to the bike over the weekend, as my goal was to learn and understand the bike and the championship. It was a nice battle today, I think, the group all pushing to the max. Hopefully, moving forward with the championship, we can grow this group of riders running at the front.”
P2 | Sara Sanchez | 511 Terra&Vita Racing Team
“My goal this year is to try and win the championship or at least be on the podium in every race, so I’ve achieved my objective here at Misano. The last lap was so tough; I tried to pass Maria through the long corner but then she got back past me. It wasn’t so easy with the tyres in the hot conditions today, and the bike tended to slide out of the corners, but it was the same for everyone and I did my best to manage the situation. I was pleased to be in the fight this weekend, and particularly against someone with Maria’s experience. Now we’ll focus on preparing for the next round at Donington.”
P3 | Ana Carrasco | Evan Bros Racing Yamaha Team
“I’m not happy with third place but I think I did all I could today. I had some problems with front chatter right from lap one, particularly through the first sector, and was losing a lot there with respect to Maria. I tried to push but the front kept closing on me, so it was difficult to maintain that pace. I thought I might still be able to challenge for the win, but I lost ground when Neila passed me and couldn’t make up that time. The most I could do was pass Neila at the end for third. Starting the season with two podiums is quite good anyway, especially after a long time not racing, and so I have to be satisfied. Now we’ll focus on Donington where I hope we can take another step and fight for the victory again.”
More, from a press release issued by Sekhmet Motorcycle Racing Team:
Dobbs becomes first US woman to score World Championship points
The American racer comes home in P15 in second race of the WorldWCR championship in Misano, Italy
Misano, 16 June 2024
Sekhmet Motorcycle Racing Team rider Mallory Dobbs has become the first ever American woman to score championship points in motorcycle circuit racing, after finishing the second race of the inaugural World Women’s Circuit Racing weekend in P15 at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli on Italy’s Adriatic coast.
Dobbs bounced back from a tough start to the weekend and was able to deliver a strong performance on Sunday to round out her very first weekend racing outside the USA by becoming the first woman in the history of circuit racing to do so.
She spent most of the race battling for P12 until another racer crashed while trying to defend from the American’s attacks, costing her a little bit of time and meaning that she had to settle for 15th and a little bit of history-making to kick off her season.
Unfortunately, her teammate Lissy Whitmore had a less successful day, with the British racer declared unfit on Sunday morning due to illness.
The team will regroup next month for the second round of the WorldWCR series at the UK’s Donington Park, with action set to get underway on 12th July.
Maddi Patterson, Team Principal
I always knew we were destined to make history. To finish first, you must first finish. Step one: completed. Mallory is quick, competitive, and finding her groove again while re-learning all she knows as she transitions from national racing to the world championship stage.
She just became the first American woman to score a world championship point, and I hope this achievement boosts her confidence as we look forward to Donington next month.
Lissy was unwell today, which was unfortunate. However, she’ll be back on her feet for Donington and made great strides this weekend.
I’m immensely proud of both my riders. Just focus on the things you can control.
Mallory Dobbs, #14
P15
The 12 laps went by so quickly because it was a battle all race long. There was a group of four of us all within the same lap time and going back and forth all race long. Unfortunately I had someone crash in front of me while trying to make a pass. That cost me a little bit of time, trying to chase the group. The draft is definitely really important at this track, especially for our bikes, so I just kept pushing. The goal today was just to finish the race and get some points, and we did both of those things.
The race weekend has been pretty chaotic, with three restarts yesterday and all the red flags. It definitely felt like everyone was putting a lot of pressure on themselves, and you could definitely feel the anxiety in the air starting that first race. Racers know what it feels like to be there, and that feeling was very heightened yesterday. Today was a little bit better, with a few less shenanigans.
It’s been a lot to take a bite out of, the first time here in Europe racing. I feel like I have a good understanding of it, having raced at a national level in MotoAmerica, but obviously here it’s a little different. All things considered, we learned a lot, and we’ll be in a better position for Donington.
