WSBK Superbike Catalonia, it's official, there is no longer any mutual respect between Jonathan Rea and Alvaro Bautista: and what will it look like on the track?

The WSBK resumes its championship this weekend in Catalonia in an atmosphere which has deteriorated between two of the three protagonists for the crown, in this case Jonathan Rea and Alvaro Bautista. Their collision in race 2 of the last round at Magny-Cous brought their relationship into open conflict which will certainly continue for a while. The two pilots recognized that they no longer had mutual respect for each other. And what will it look like on the track?

The title in WSBK is currently played by three since, to the two mentioned above, we must add the name of the reigning World Champion Toprak Razgatlioglu. The paradox is that the latter, known for his virile excesses, does not find himself in turmoil, while there has been, since Magny-Cours, a real dispute between the official Kawasaki and its factory counterpart Ducati who was ready to drag the rival six-time World Champion before the court to have repair...

The sponge on these incidents did not pass when arriving in Catalonia. On the contrary, the break is claimed and assumed between the two men. Jonathan Rea says thus: “ about the incident with Bautista, from my side nothing will change because I have to fight so hard to be there in this incredible battle right now with two other strong rivals, but of course the atmosphere deteriorated a little with a lot of things happening and said in the heat of the moment ».

Jonathan Rea: “ I lost a lot of respect for him and the way he handled the situation »

He adds : " there's a point where you're overtaking a driver and in that kind of case there's a point of impact and you have to prepare as the guy on the inside. It was a clear movement, not an intentional blow to clear him. He knows it. At the moment the championship is so competitive with different manufacturers that we have to step up. The team knows this and we work very hard to try to do it ". And he ends with his words without any ambiguity: “ I lost a lot of respect for him and the way he handled the situation. I came to apologize immediately after and they were completely accepted. However, I saw the fallout afterwards and the things that were said, which are completely false ».

Alvaro Bautista replied laconically: “There is no special relationship. He told me his point of view and I told him mine, but that's it. Races are races and the past is the past. Jonathan and I were not best friends in the paddock so the relationship will remain the same! ". The reunion in the race risks being electric...