WSBK, Misano J3, Race 2: Rea falls, Bautista triumphs

Loris Baz's return to the World Championship has not gone unnoticed, to say the least. When world leader Alvaro Bautista saw the Ten Kate Yamaha rider right behind him in the first round, he almost lost the third step of the podium.

“We achieved the best time in FP3 in the wet and this was reflected in the race, Loris explained. I managed to get back up quickly and follow Álvaro's wake. He was fourth at the time and there was little point in taking unnecessary risks. When Haslam fell, I worked extra hard to get back in contact, but I was a little short of getting him. So I decided to secure fourth place. I am really happy ! We must not forget where we come from and that a month ago, there was not yet a bike in the team. It did good for the whole team and all the staff. A big thank you to them! Sunday is different in the dry. We must therefore continue to work and look for the right set-up to get as close as possible to the top 5.”

On the Kawasaki side, Jonathan Rhea enjoyed his victory. I had done almost 0 laps on a wet track this season, even in winter testing. The first time we experienced wet weather was during the warmup at Imola. We weren't expecting rain clouds for the race. I was very nervous because we didn't really have a wet setup. So we just tried to maximize our potential, run my own race, and our bike works well in those conditions. It's a very stable bike but the track changed from lap to lap. Sometimes we had a lot of water on the surface, sometimes zero. You need a lot more concentration in a wet race because the bike is moving a lot more underneath you and you need to be very precise, especially with white lines and curves. When Alex passed, I wasn't ready to take the risks to go that fast. When I was leading the race, I tried to manage my pace”.

To alex lowes (sole defender of the Pata Yamaha WorldSBK colors after the withdrawal of Michael van der Mark) who fell this Saturday in the race for the fourth consecutive time, “ After a good test in Misano a few weeks ago and with the speed we showed in Jerez, I was happy to get back on track this weekend. We didn't get the results we hoped for in Jerez, but in Misano I'm sticking to the process of working with my guys that has worked so well for us all year. We showed we had the pace to fight for the podium in Jerez, so we knew we could do the same this weekend in Misano, the atmosphere is always nice when you race in Italy. »

According to Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati), “ We tested in Misano before Jerez, but the conditions were very different from this weekend. So we had no illusions that it would be particularly easy in Italy. Despite the results, I think that with the knowledge from Jerez we have taken a small step forward. We finally found something in the longer, faster corners that Misano also has, so I have to be optimistic. Before the crash in Jerez, I was in the fight for the podium again and I have the feeling that it is getting better and better. It's still longer than I would have liked to master with the Panigale V4 R, but I hope that, from Misano onwards, we can continue to progress ».

To Marco Melandri (GRT Yamaha Supported WorldSBK) « Misano is one of my favorite tracks and this is where we took a big step forward with the R1 in the last test, identifying a setup that works really well with my riding style. After Jerez, where my confidence and pace were improving day by day, the whole team was fully motivated to continue working and improving further. ».

A podium by elimination

We found Johnny Rea on the starting grid in pole position with at his side the surprising Sandro Cortese and Tom Sykes. The second row included Alex Lowes, Alvaro Bautista and Leon Haslam. Michael Ruben Rinaldi was third alongside Michele Pirro and Chaz Davies. Loris Baz qualified sixteenth.

Avec 24° de température pour l’air et de 35° pour la piste, lors l’extinction des feux, le plus rapide à s’élancer pour les 10 tours de la “sprint race” était Jonathan Rea devant Sandro Cortese, Alvaro Bautista, Tom Sykes, Alex Lowes et Leon Haslam. Rea tentait de creuser l’écart mais Bautista le suivait de très près alors que Cortese pointait à 0.8 et Tom Sykes avec Alex Rins à 1.5. Loris Baz était seizième.

Bautista took first place during the second lap, setting the best time in 1'35.217. Cortese at 1.6 held up very well to Sykes and Lowes at 2.5. Chaz Davies had a minor crash in Turn 14.

Bautista gradually distanced Rea with a lead of 0.9 with 6 laps remaining. Cortese was firmly holding third place at 1.9. Lowes in fourth position at 4.9 was threatened by Sykes, Haslam and Razgatlioglu. Baz was fourteenth.

Bautista, Rea and Cortese appeared to be heading towards the three steps of the podium, in that order. On the other hand, Lowes in fourth position had a lot to do to repel the attacks of Sykes, Haslam and Razgatlioglu.

Suddenly Sandro Cortese fell without seriousness in turn 14 while he was having his best race of the year. Then Jonathan Rea fell in turn 10 and immediately started back in sixth position.

Bautista was therefore in the lead after these two falls, 7.8 ahead of Lowes, now second, ahead of Sykes, Haslam and Razgatlioglu. Haslam took third position from Sykes who had a technical problem and had to retire.

Bautista won (for the fourteenth time this year) ahead of Lowes, Haslam, Razgatlioglu, Rea and Melandri. Loris Baz finished twelfth.

Race 2 Results:

Provisional ranking of the World Championship:

Above: Alex Lowes

Video: Sandro Cortese

Photos © worldsbk.com / Dorna, manufacturers and teams