WSBK Superbike Estoril: The forces present and the program

The Superbike World Championship arrives this weekend in Estoril in Portugal for the third clash of the twelve planned for this 2022 season.

It is therefore in the vicinity of Lisbon that Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) will try to defend its current leadership of 18 points on Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK). Even if the latter and the title holder Toprak Razgatlioğlu (Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK) had a blank result in the Netherlands, the domination of the #19 Panigale is not only due to its consistency, since the Valencian has already obtained three victories this season.

The Spaniard has never raced with the Ducati on this track, which still remains a question mark despite his good results obtained in MotoGP. However, he remains optimistic and even laughs at the mishaps that befell his opponents at Assen...

“We are all very motivated for this race. After the round in the Netherlands, where the sensations with the bike were really excellent, there is a great desire to get back on the track and try to regain those sensations straight away. The Estoril circuit is a bit of a special circuit: lots of very demanding braking zones, several stop and gos, a beautiful and long last corner. I have had good results in the past even though I have never ridden this circuit with the Ducati. As always, we will try to get the most out of each race.
I think Johnny and Toprak are both very aggressive, and we've seen a lot of fights in the past. Fortunately, nothing happened like in Assen. I think they need to be calmer, especially because if they start to fight in the race, they become more and more aggressive with each overtake. For me, it's definitely not a problem; They can fight as much as they want! We will see more duels between them, and I hope to be there to fight for good results. At the moment, I'm really enjoying this Championship; I feel so strong, physically and mentally. I think it's one of the best moments, not only in WorldSBK, but also in my career. I feel stronger than ever and even more ambitious than before. »

To regain its status as a world leader, Jonathan Rea must extract the maximum from his Kawasaki ZX-10RR, which he did last year at Estoril with two victories there and at Assen before crashing with his Turkish rival. He has drawn a line under this unfortunate incident and remains the favorite of this Portuguese round from which he could well emerge at the top of the general classification...

“Unfortunately, we ended up in the same place: I don't want to be a diva and start blaming or creating animosity about this. It happened, but it didn't have to. There could have been a little more caution on both sides, but we are drivers, I understand that. I actually saw Toprak just before this interview. I have no hard feelings towards him, he's a really good guy and I can put that aside. But I can also put on my helmet and face it shoulder to shoulder on all the circuits in the world. It's unfortunate that we both crashed. It was a fact of racing and of course there is a difference of opinion. I respect his, but it probably didn't need to happen.
Last year here we were able to improve and I felt good with the ZX-10RR, so I'm excited to see what we can do this weekend.
It was nice to have a little break but honestly after the first week off the track I'd rather be back. It's always nice to keep the momentum going when the feeling with the bike is good, but it was also nice to spend time at home, continue training and visit the North West 200 last weekend. It was cool to see such a big event in Northern Ireland and the support from motorcyclists for what I do is incredible, even in a pure road race. Now I'm pretty excited to go to Estoril. It's a very cool circuit and I like the layout. I had some great memories there, especially in 2020. Winning my sixth WorldSBK title was an incredible feeling. To be honest, this weekend I really didn't ride very well because we had some difficulties, but in 2021 we were much better. We were able to achieve very good results and be competitive. We were able to figure out how to operate our Ninja ZX-10RR there. Of course, this year we will find a new and improved machine. During the first races of the season, I felt very strong on the bike and very consistent. This weekend it will be very important to continue driving. Apart from a DNF in Race Two at Assen, we didn't leave the podium, or even the first two places, which shows our strength. »

Toprak Razgatlioğlu still chasing his first victory of the season and the 45 points that separate him from the Spanish leader. A difficult situation for the reigning champion who had no other choice than to attack as much as possible to try to repeat his two victories from 2020 on the same track, or failing that his three podiums from last year.

“I forget Assen now. It’s a racing fact. First it was my mistake, because I widened a little, but not off the track, and normally Johnny looks at me. He had a little more space on the track and he didn't use it, and we hung on. There was no contact. I am very happy that we are here again after a long break. Like last year, I will do my best again, because I love this track. For Yamaha, it's very good. I'm trying to fight for victory again. On this circuit we are normally fast, but this year I think we are faster. We will see because the race is always different. »

We will also observe the good performance of Andrea Locatelli (Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK) who ultimately concedes only 9 points to his famous teammate, confirmation of the possible upward spiral of the Spanish rookie Iker Lecuona (Team HRC), even if the latter has never competed in Estoril, the performance of Scott Redding (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) who remains in a top 5 at Assen, from his teammate Michael van der Mark who will undoubtedly have been able to take advantage of this month of vacation to consolidate his broken leg, or to Loris Baz (Bonovo Action BMW) which twice came close to the top 5 in the Netherlands.

Hours (French times):

Friday May 20

10:45-11:15 – WorldSSP1 Free Practice 300
11:30-12:15 – WorldSBK Free Practice 1
12:25-13:10 p.m. – WorldSSP Free Practice 1
15:15-15:45 – WorldSSP2 Free Practice 300
16:00-16:45 – WorldSBK Free Practice 2
17:00-17:45 – WorldSSP Free Practice 2

Saturday May 21

10:00-10:30 – WorldSBK Free Practice 3
10:45-11:05 – Superpole WorldSSP300
11:25-11:45 – WorldSSP Superpole
12:10-12:25 – WorldSBK Superpole
13:40 p.m. – WorldSSP300 Race 1 (12 lap race in dry weather or 10 lap race in wet)
15:00 – WorldSBK Race 1 (21 laps)
16:15 p.m. – WorldSSP Race 1 (18 laps)

Sunday, May 22

10:00-10:15 – Warm up WorldSBK
10:25-10:40 – Warm up WorldSSP
10:50-11:05 – Warm up WorldSSP300
12:00 – WorldSBK Superpole Race (10 laps)
13:30 p.m. – WorldSSP Race 2 (18 laps)
15:00 p.m. – WorldSBK Race 2 (21 laps)
16:15 – WorldSSP300 Race 2 (12 lap race in dry weather or 10 lap race in wet)

WorldSBK World Championship standings: