Superbike – Misano – FP1: Razgatlioglu shows his intentions

The Yamaha rider finished first in the first free practice session in Italy, ahead of Michael Ruben Rinaldi and Garrett Gerloff.

Removed from the calendar last year following the overhaul of the championship due to the health crisis, Misano is making its comeback in Superbike this weekend. An absence noted as the Marco Simoncelli circuit, located on the Adriatic coast and whose first edition dates back to 1991, is one of the essentials of the championship of motorcycles derived from the series.

It was therefore with enthusiasm that the drivers found their feet under the magnificent Italian sun. This is all the more true for the residents of Ducati, whose factories in Borgo Panigale are only located a little less than 150 km northwest of the route, and on which they have carried out numerous tests.

 

Summary of the results of the 2021 edition:

 

WSBK Superbike Misano	June 2019	June 2021
FP1	1'36.029 Jonathan Rea	1'34.848 Toprak Razgatlioglu
FP2	1'36.021 Michael van der Mark
FP3	1'46.484 Loris Baz
Super poles	1'34.596 Jonathan Rea
Race 1	Rea, Sykes, Bautista
Warm Up	1'35.814 Jonathan Rea
Superpole race	Bautista, Lowes, Haslam
Race 2	Rea, Razgatlioglu, Haslam
All time lap record	1'34.596 Jonathan Rea

 

An experience which immediately turned into an advantage during FP1, with the stage's regional Michael Ruben Rinaldi (a native of Rimini, a coastal town very close to the circuit), immediately taking the reins of the session. The Italian driver has in fact taken the lead ahead of Toprak Razgatlioglu, currently second in the championship and still looking for a first success this season despite good consistency displayed over the first two rounds.

The Turkish driver then pushed his advantage by setting the best time of the session in 1'34.848, right under Rinaldi's nose. Third place went to Garrett Gerloff, another Yamaha representative, while Chaz Davies, Axel Bassani and Tito Rabat split the positions up to sixth place.

 

 

Kawasakis in retreat

The Kawasakis were more discreet during these FP1, with Jonathan Rea finishing in eighth place, almost a second behind the benchmark set by Razgatlioglu. Alex Lowes, for his part, did not even manage to enter the top 10, leaving Álvaro Bautista, winner of the Superpole Race here during the last edition in 2019, and Michael van der Mark to beat him to the punch.

Scott Redding finished the session in 12th place, just ahead of the best placed French driver, Lucas Mahias, who himself is ahead of Tom Sykes. You then have to go down to 20th row to find Christophe Ponsson.

 

Superbike – FP1 results:

Classification credit: WorldSBK.com