WSBK Portimao Superbike FP1: Alvaro Bautista is in a hurry, but a BMW appears

On the ups and downs of the Algarve, Alvaro Bautista was fast but, with new soft tires, Garrett gerloff pushed the BMW to its limits.

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Alvaro Bautista took the first Superbike session at Portimao by the horns. One more small step and the Ducati rider will be able to celebrate his second world championship in a row. Very fast, determined, during meetings in the box, he even gave technical instructions to his track engineer Giulio Nava.

The session record seemed to be in play, but Garrett gerloff appeared and set the fastest lap at the last minute: 1'40.763, four tenths better than the championship leader. The BMW on a dry lap is still fast, the Texan having won the Superpole two rounds ago at Magny Cours, in France. Garrett gerloff was very good, approaching the Portimao reference: on the race lap, the reference to beat is 1'40.135 established by Jonathan Rhea. This same Northern Irishman is the holder of the general record, 1'39.916 signed in Superpole, on extra soft tires.

Gerloff is very strong
BMW takes the lead with a final Garibaldian outing of Garrett gerloff, which goes below the 1'41 mark for two laps in a row: the first in 1'40.8, the second attempt signs the best time of the morning. It wasn't a time on soft compound, because as you read below, the SCX will only be available from tomorrow for qualifying. With the SC0, certainly brand new, the German four-cylinder has taken a big leap forward, making good use of its super engine. Scott Redding, who will be in the same garage as the Texan in 2024, is eighth but lost nine tenths.

Qualifying tires not available
Pirelli has been very conservative in allocating the types of tires available. Portimao is not the most demanding circuit on the calendar, but the loads to which the tires are subjected should not be underestimated. It was therefore decided not to use the super soft SCQ, which is normally used for qualifying and the Superpole race of only ten laps. Here, the softest tire on the list will be the SCX, which is usually the go-to tire for long Superbike races. For the record, it was the one that was used the most last weekend at Motorland Aragon. The SCX will only be used for qualifying and sprint races, while the two long races will feature the SC0 (medium) and the SC1 development tire marked A1126, built with special structural features to withstand the constraints imposed by the tracks more demanding.

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Paolo Gozzi