Behind the overwhelming Toprak Razgatlioglu who has reissued at Donington Park the Grand Slam already achieved in Misano, who scored the most points in the fifth round of the World Championship World SBK Superbike?
There are two of them in a pocket handkerchief, but the similarity ends there…
On the one hand, Nicholas Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) scored 42 points on British soil (4th-2nd-2nd), a completely solid score, especially for a rookie, but which, in reality, hardly satisfies the former leader of the championship. His press releases are full of positive terms, but their unusual brevity betrays the doubts and dissatisfaction that now reign in Borgo Panigale...
“I'm quite satisfied, even if this weekend the sensations with the bike are not at the level of the previous rounds. I had some problems at the front, but that didn't stop me from having a good race, even though it was my first time at Donington with the Panigale V4R. »
“I'm very satisfied, especially since the weekend didn't start in the best way. We worked very well with the team who I would like to thank. We improved session after session and today I felt comfortable on the bike. It was impossible to be with Toprak, so I can say that we achieved the best possible results. »
With just one point less in his pocket (2nd-5th-3rd, alex lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) is on the contrary generally happy, despite his “demotion” on the first starting grid. Not only to have proven to be the fastest local driver at home, but also to flourish by compensating with vigor at the start of Jonathan Rhea.
“I felt quite confident on Friday as the bike was working well, and in FP3 this morning we tried some race settings and my pace was strong until the end of the session. In Superpole, I was fast enough to be on the front row, but I hit the limits of the track and the green paint at T9, with a qualifying tire on the rear. It was my mistake, but that small difference took us from third to ninth on the grid. I thought maybe this was my chance to get a good result, and I tried to get a good start and stay at the front. It wasn't easy to overtake, so I was waiting for the guys in front to make a mistake. Scott made one, I was able to pass, Bulega got out of the way a little and I went inside. When the track was clear my lap times were fast, I was pretty consistent, but I was a little worried when Bautista got close at the end, because we know how fast he is at the end of the races. I felt good, the bike felt good. The front end was moving a bit, so maybe we can improve that for tomorrow. But I have to settle for second place today, because Toprak had a race like no other. »
“In this morning's Superpole race, with less fuel on board and some drivers using the 'X' rear tire, everyone was fast. From third or fourth to fifteenth place, almost everyone had the same speed. So it's quite stressful. If you didn't attack, you were attacked! It was quite difficult because I was tenth on the first lap and it was difficult to overtake. But I was fifth at the end, which allowed me to move up one place on the grid for the second race. In the last race I got stuck behind Scott Redding, who was trying to go, but was probably sliding a little more than me. I tried to move forward and passed him, but up front, Nicolo Bulega did a great job taking second place. He was very consistent. Every time I gained a little ground, he had enough in his pocket to move away. The race was a bit boring in terms of action, but we were still at the limit, with times in 1'26. I'm happy with this second podium and I think we had a good weekend, even if we started a little behind on the grid. I'm happy enough with this weekend. »
Two similar scores but two different objectives, generating two different assessments, Ducati having to defend its title, Kawasaki simply having to do the best after the defection of its leader...
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