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[WSBK] Race 1: Eighth consecutive victory for Johnny Rea at Assen

by | April 21, 2018

During the fourth race of the Superbike World Championship, Alex Lowes took the first pole position of his career in WSBK, and the first for Yamaha since his return to the category in 2016.

The starting grid was quite interesting with four brands represented in the first four positions: Yamaha with Alex Lowes, Kawasaki with Jonathan Rea, Ducati with Xavi Fores and Aprilia with Lorenzo Savadori.

In the absence of Leon Camier, who missed out due to a chest concussion in Aragon, the best start was to the credit of Xavi Fores, ahead of Alex Lowes, Jonathan Rea and Michael van der Mark. Rea took first place ahead of Lowes, Fores, van der Mark and Melandri. Loris Baz was tenth.

Rea and Lowes opened up a slight gap ahead of Fores, van der Mark and Melandri. Chaz Davies moved up to sixth position. Michael van der Mark set the best lap in 1'35.248.

Johnny Rea trailed van der Mark by 0.4, ahead of Lowes, Fores, Davies, Melandri and Sykes.

Rea tried to widen the gap, but van der Mark closed in on him. Lowes was 0.7, Fores 1.1 and Davies 1.5 ahead of Melandri. The two official Yamahas remained threatening compared to the leader's Kawasaki. Michael Rinaldi fell without seriousness in turn 7.

The leaders remained very grouped, with Rea ahead of van der Mark, Lowes, Davies and Fores. Michael van der Mark managed to overtake Rea for first position.

Van der Mark, Rea and Davies managed to open up a small gap on Davies, Fores, Melandri and Sykes. The leading trio had a 1.3 lead. Loris Baz was ninth.

At halfway, Rea, Davies and van der Mark were joined by Fores. Tom Sykes in fifth was closing in at 1.4. Loris Baz took the lead of the second peloton in seventh place, 7 seconds behind the leader.

Rea and Davies battled it out for first place, closely followed by van der Mark, Fores and Sykes. Rea still led with Davies behind him, 0.4 ahead of van der Mark and 1.7 ahead of Sykes. Loris Baz was seventh at 10 seconds.

Van der Mark took second place from Davies. Tom Sykes was fourth in this group of leaders. Rea was ahead of van der Mark by 0.3, Davies by 0.7 and Sykes by 0.9.

On the final lap, Johnny Rea took his 57th victory ahead of Michael van der Mark, Chaz Davies, Tom Sykes and Xavi Fores. Loris Baz finished seventh. It was Johnny Rea's eighth consecutive victory at Assen.

Race 1 results:

1 2 1 J. REA GBR Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK Kawasaki ZX-10RR 21 1'35.480 288,0 1'34.112 286,5 25 139 1
2 7 60 M. VAN DER MARK NED Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team Yamaha YZF R1 21 0.981 1'35.248 288,0 1'34.873 284,2 20 87 4
3 8 7 C. DAVIES GBR Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Ducati Panigale R 21 1.282 1 35.337 292,7 1 34.986 288,0
4 6 66 T. SYKES GBR Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK Kawasaki ZX-10RR 21 1.413 1 35.645 291,1 1 34.840 284,2 13
5 3 12
6 5 33 M. MELANDRI ITA Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Ducati Panigale R 21 14.903 1'35.467 295,1 1'34.838 289,5 10 106 3
7 10 76 L. BAZ FRA GULF ALTHEA BMW Racing Team BMW S 1000 RR 21 17.301 1 35.834 288,0 1 35.541 282,0 9
8 13 36 L. MERCADO ARG Orelac Racing VerdNatura Kawasaki ZX-10RR IND 21 21.482 1'36.127 287,2 1'35.854 282,7 8 24 13
9 9 81 J. TORRES ESP MV Agusta Reparto Corse MV Agusta 1000 F4 21 21.938 1 36.054 288,0 1 35.099 282,7 7
10 11 54 T. RAZGATLIOGLU TUR Kawasaki Puccetti Racing Kawasaki ZX-10RR IND 21 24.939 1 35.873 285,0 1 35.858 283,5 6
11 14 40 R. RAMOS ESP Team GoEleven Kawasaki Kawasaki ZX-10RR IND 21 27.049 1 36.628 281,3 1 35.982 274,8 5
12 1 22 A. LOWES GBR Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team Yamaha YZF R1 21 33.226 1'35.341 291,9 1'34.066 288,0 4 74 7
13 16 34 D. GIUGLIANO ITA Milwaukee Aprilia Aprilia RSV4 RF 21 35.630 1 36.731 288,0 1 36.417 285,0 3
14 15 99 P. JACOBSEN USA TripleM Honda World Superbike Team Honda CBR1000RR IND 21 38.480 1 36.308 296,7 1 36.199 287,2 2
15 4 32 L. SAVADORI ITA Milwaukee Aprilia Aprilia RSV4 RF 21 38.604 1 36.090 289,5 1 34.739 285,7 1
16 17 68 Y. HERNANDEZ COL Team Pedercini Racing Kawasaki ZX-10RR IND 21 44.690 1 36.550 284,2 1 36.478 281,3
17 18 37 O. JEZEK CZE Guandalini Racing Yamaha YZF R1 IND 21 51.135 1 37.395 282,7 1 36.734 282,0

Provisional ranking of the World Championship:

Photos © Kawasaki and worldsbk.com

Best result of the year for Loris Baz in the Netherlands
The BMW driver scored all nine points for seventh place at the finish of the first race in Assen. 
Loris Baz, who had failed a few thousandths of the Top 10 on the evening of the opening day in the Netherlands, ultimately managed to secure a place in Superpole 2 at the end of the repechage session. Credited with a time of 1'35.541, the Frenchman qualified tenth on the starting grid for the first round.
Author of an average start, Loris Baz had to jostle during the first laps within the peloton fighting for eighth place before taking control on the ninth lap. Taking advantage of a problem from Alex Lowes after having crossed the halfway mark, the representative of the Althea BMW Racing team then inherited seventh position, closely followed by the Aprilia of Lorenzo Savadori who made a mistake for a few moments later.
Mission accomplished for Loris Baz who scored his best result at Assen since his return to action in WorldSBK. With this performance, the Haut-Savoyard consolidates his tenth place overall, two lengths behind the ninth, Toprak Razgatlioglu, and will lead the second row on the grid for the second round which will kick off on Sunday at 13 p.m. local).
Loris Baz (Race 1 — 7th) :
“It was a good day! I managed to reach Superpole 2 while clocking times of 1'35, which is positive. During the session, I didn't feel very comfortable with the qualifying tire compared to the others who use it at every event. I also made a mistake in my first flying lap by passing a neutral point which forced me to cut my effort. I set my time on the second lap, but my tire was not in the best condition then, especially in the last sector. It's already great to have qualified in the top ten. In the race, I again had an average start, but I managed to catch up on the first lap. I lost a little time getting rid of Savadori and Razgatlioglu. Once in front of them, I was able to set a fairly fast pace until the end. I was gradually coming back to Melandri, but it was a bit tight. I finished 17 seconds behind the leader, but excluding the start and finish I think I was 12 or 13 seconds behind, which means we have made significant progress. BMW, the team and I have done excellent work since the opening weekend, both on the electronics and on the chassis. Tomorrow, I will start from fourth position and I will try to take advantage of it to stay at the front and have a solid race. We are in the right direction and I am delighted. »