Superbike – Aragón: Rea and Kawasaki in ambush at the end of the first day

Although they did not finish at the top of the timesheet on the first day in Spain, the Japanese machines have already laid a solid foundation for this weekend.

The wait was long, but the Superbike finally resumed its rights this Friday on the Motorland Aragon circuit. And as their status as title holders could have predicted, the performances of Jonathan Rhea and Kawasaki were closely scrutinized during this first day.

And even if the Northern Irishman had to fade away from the competition during the first two free practice sessions, leaving the leadership during the first Toprak Razgatlioglu, and during the second to Chaz Davies, he can still be satisfied with his recovery.

Results to be taken with a pinch of salt

He is in fact one of the rare drivers to have managed to improve his times from one session to the next, while the rise in temperatures observed between the morning and the afternoon made grip precarious. . “ Today the track was a little greasy, there wasn't too much rubber on the asphalt, and the temperatures were high,” explains the six-time World Champion, who views his afternoon results with distance. “ So it was quite different compared to the tests. So we're basically working on that, on understanding the settings better. We're trying to take today's results with a grain of salt as it looks like Saturday will be a bit colder. This five to ten degree window is important. During this first day I felt comfortable on the bike, but I think there are a lot of things to improve in these conditions. We will therefore see what awaits us tomorrow and prepare ourselves to have to adapt. »

Suffice it to say that we will have to keep an eye on the number 1, who is once again putting his crown on the line this year, tomorrow morning notably during the Superpole. Rea thus finished this Friday day just behind his teammate alex lowes in combined times.

The Englishman, who shone last year in his first round under the colors of Kawasaki, winning Race 2 at Phillip Island, occupies fourth place this evening, with a best time achieved for his part in the morning.

 

 

Lowes cautious in the afternoon

But the fact is that, once again, the track conditions were radically different from those observed during the off-season tests, and he did not want to run the slightest risk by attacking at all costs in the post-season. noon when the grip was uncertain. “ We did most of the work here in [offseason] testing, so we didn't have to touch much of the motorcycle,” he admits. “ During this afternoon's session, we had quite high temperatures, and so I just kept doing the laps. In these warmer conditions I didn't cover many laps with the bike because during the winter tests it was always cold. I don't have a lot of experience [in these conditions], and I just wanted to stay on track and try to be a little gentler to understand the machine better in these conditions. I didn't do anything more. It looks like tomorrow it's going to be a little colder again, but we have pretty good settings on the motorbike. »

 

 

With peaks of 28 degrees in ambient air and especially up to 48 degrees on the slopes, and very little wind (conditions that would make French holidaymakers dream), it is clear that the conditions change drastically from those encountered most of the time at Phillip Island, usual host of the first round of the season.

But despite this spring weather, Rea admits to somewhat regretting the atmosphere that usually reigns on the Australian track. “ It was “back to school” today, but there was not the same tension as when we are on Phillip Island for the opening of the championship. Aragon is a track that we are quite used to, because we do a lot of testing here. It's just nice to start season. »

The reigning World Champion, who is close to a 100th victory in the category this weekend (he narrowly missed the mark last year, both during Race 2 at Magny-Cours and during the final in Estoril), will have to get used to it, but his level of performance today already constitutes a good starting point to achieve his objective.