[WSBK] Buriram Race 2: Bautista wins race interrupted by red flag

As at Phillip Island, MotoGP parachute rider Álvaro Bautista once again triumphed in Saturday's race in Thailand. Four victories in four races, Luigi Dall'Igna's Panigale V4 R showed undeniable supremacy, despite the efforts of Johnny Rea and his Kawasaki. But the Northern Irishman thinks that it is not impossible that he will respond to the Iberian this Sunday during this short race 2 of 10 laps, less hard according to him for the front tire.

After Race 1, Alvaro Bautista was not triumphant. Not to mention the incident dealt with elsewhere, the Spaniard specified “I didn't feel comfortable with the bike: it went well in the morning but in the afternoon I had difficulty braking in the corners. And when accelerating, I also suffered a little. Despite that, I still won and I'm happy even if the feeling wasn't perfect.”

According to Jonathan Rhea, during Race 1, “ I felt really good with the bike and we got the maximum, so I'm looking forward to Race 2. I was really proud of my effort and I enjoyed it. I love riding at this level, but unfortunately the result doesn't reflect that effort. We can make a little improvement, but I think we got the best of our package on Saturday. In the end there was no reason to continue, so I started thinking about bringing in 20 points. Second place on Saturday was the best I could do and I was happy to take it home. I'm excited for Sunday, especially for the sprint race, because I feel like I can ride at this intensity for ten laps without a problem and maybe we can fight to the end ».

For the right tires, go to Aragon

For this Race 2 of 10 laps – regardless of the length of the circuit – Pirelli has decided to manufacture tires adapted to this distance. They would also be useful in the event of a normal race shortened by a red flag. But when the decision to organize this 10-lap race was taken last winter, all the tires intended for the first two overseas races had already left by boat in containers. And no one wanted to add the transport of dozens of additional envelopes by air. It was therefore decided that the first two rounds of Phillip Island and Buriram would be contested with normal racing tires, that is to say capable of covering the total distance of a race. The tires intended for 10 laps will appear (transported by trucks) during the next event in Aragon from April 5 to 7.

BMW confident

On the side of BMW for Tom Sykes et Markus Reiterberger (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team), the Briton was the first to take the lead over Jonathan Rhea (Kawasaki Racing Team) on the Asian track in 2016. His German teammate scored his best result in WorldSBK there, with a fifth place the same year. For Sykes, “ It's always great to come and ride at the Buriram circuit, confides the 2013 WorldSBK Champion. My goal this weekend is of course to continue the development of the new BMW S1000RR. I feel confident, but looking at our races at Phillip Island, one of my only concerns is the two long straights with the lack of speed we are suffering from. However, the chassis of the BMW S1000RR is very good and capable of competing with the rest of the field. I can't wait to get started this weekend and hope we can continue to progress like we did over the winter. »

Markus Reiterberger quickly got his bearings back at BMW in WorldSBK, finishing 13th in the first and 12th in the second at Phillip Island. Ranked among the top ten on three occasions at Buriram out of four races, the German intends to return to the Top 10 for the first time since his ninth place during his home event at the Lausitzring in 2017. “ I really like Thailand, says Reiterberger. Firstly because I achieved my best result in the Superbike World Championship there with a fifth position in 2016. Secondly, because this track suits my riding style. There are many areas where you have to brake hard, which is my strong point and something the new RR is very good at. We just have to try not to waste too much time on the long straights while trying to compensate in the curves. We all work very hard and I believe Thailand will be a good hunting ground for us. The heat will be a challenge for everyone, but we are well prepared and I think we can have a good weekend. We found a positive direction in Phillip Island, which we will now follow to Thailand. »

To Marco Melandri, who defends the colors of GRT Yamaha Supported WorldSBK, “ I'm really happy to return to Thailand. It's a circuit that I really like, even if it's not the most technical circuit on the calendar. On paper it may not be the best track for us, as there are two long straights and we are still lacking a bit in that area, but I think the high temperatures we are expecting this weekend could work in our favor. I feel good and confident after the first round in Australia and I feel better and better day by day with the bike and the team, so let's get started and see what happens. It will also be interesting to see how things go without prior testing at the Chang International Circuit, to see if everyone is as fast as at Phillip Island ».

His German teammate Sandra Cortese (GRT Yamaha Supported WorldSBK) had its first participation at the Chang International Circuit last year, “ but I was obviously participating in WorldSSP. Now I'm in WorldSBK and I can't wait to see how the R1 feels on this track. I'll just try to learn as quickly as possible. We don't have any testing before the race weekend like we did in Australia for the first round of the season, which will make finding a good initial setup even more difficult. But at Phillip Island we were working in a good direction and achieved our goal of finishing all three races in the top ten, so I'm sure we can continue working in the same way this weekend in Thailand. The heat will be a major factor, with forecasts for extremely high temperatures promising, but I'm completely pumped about this weekend.”

According to Luigi Dall-Igna, why the gap between Álvaro and Chaz Davies is it so important right now? “ Chaz faced problems this winter and therefore was unable to train properly, get familiar with the bike or find a good setup for the first races. It's just a matter of time. We saw in Australia that he recovered physically. We just need a little time on the track to find the right setup and balance. »

At the time of departure, Álvaro Bautista started from pole position and rubbed shoulders with Johnny Rea and Alex Lowes on the front row. Sandro Cortese fourth made up the second row with Leon Haslam and Tom Sykes. On the third row, Marco Melandri preceded Eugene Laverty and Chaz Davies.

Fastest to start the 10-lap sprint race was Johnny Rea ahead of Álvaro Bautista, Alex Lowes, Marco Melandri, Leon Haslam and Michael van der Mark. Bautista quickly overtook Rea and broke away in his company ahead of Lowes, Melandri and Haslam.

Bautista opened up a gap of 0.4 over Rea, with Lowes at 0.8, Haslam at 1.8, then van der Mark and Melandri at 2.3. Rea remained in contact with the Spanish leader, but on the other hand Lowes went to 1.1 and Haslam to 2.6 ahead of Melandri at 3.0.

At the halfway mark, Bautista was 1.2 ahead of Rea, while Lowes third was 1.9 behind. The gap was then significantly larger with van der Mark at 4.4, Haslam at 4.6, Melandri at 5.3 and Cortese at 5.7.

1.7 behind Bautista, Lowes was closing in on Rea at 0.4, when suddenly the red flag was shown. There was a minor fall in turn 3 for Leon Camier (knee), Warokorn (cranial trauma) and the race was declared over.

Race 2 Results:

Provisional classification of the Superbike World Championship:

Video: Camier and Kiyonari are warmly welcomed by Thai fans

Photos © worldsbk.com & manufacturers