Gordon Ritchie | August 30, 2020
Sunday
WorldSBK Race Two
Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team) was involved in a fight with Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) for the race win at one stage in the final Motorland Aragon WorldSBK contest but he took the full points after some flawless and high paced final laps.
Davies was 1.280 seconds down after the 18th and final lap but the sensation of the race was a third place finish for the full works Honda of Alvaro Bautista (HRC Honda). Moving around in the corners more than his immediate rivals, Bautista used all his experienced and his plainly fast engine to record the first podium for Honda since race one at Magny Cours in 2016 – with Michael van der Mark on board.
After a masterful opening win yesterday Scott Redding (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) was only fourth, 5.445 seconds down on Rea, who re-took the championship lead in some style.
Lots of passes and changes of fortune led to some great midfield action again as Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Team GoEleven Ducati) moved himself up to fifth place, clear of the top Yamaha rider Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team).
A second good showing for Honda came with Leon Haslam winning a truly giant fight for the top ten places. Leon was seventh and then Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team), Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team), Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha), Xavi Fores (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) and finally Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) were covered by just over one second across the line.
In the championship itself, Rea now leads by ten point with a total of 189. Redding is second with 179, Razgatlioglu 124, Davies 120 and van der Mark 110.
2020 Aragon WorldSBK Results—WorldSBK Race Two
1 |
Jonathan Rea |
(Kaw) |
|
|
2 |
Chaz Davies |
(Duc) |
+1.280 |
|
3 |
Alvaro Bautista |
(Hon) |
+3.599 |
|
4 |
Scott Redding |
(Duc) |
+5.445 |
|
5 |
M. Ruben Rinaldi |
(Duc) |
+6.687 |
|
WorldSSP Race Two
WorldSSP is the gift that just keeps on giving for Andrea Locatelli (BARDAHL Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha) as he won his seventh race in a row in his new class for 2020, and set a new lap record of 1’54.034 in the process. His margin of advantage at the flag was 2.190 seconds.
Jules Cluzel (GMT94 Yamaha) was second in the 15-lap race, after lots of mid race pressure from eventually fourth placed Lucas Mahias (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing).
Raffaele De Rosa (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) went from fifth to third in the final few laps to score another MV podium.
With Mahias outgunned for power by De Rosa, he was followed home by his team-mate Philipp Öttl (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) in fifth place.
At home, Isaac Vinales (Kallio Racing Yamaha) was a lonely sixth.
Corentin Perolari (GMT94 Yamaha) got the better of Steven Odendaal (EAB Ten Kate Yamaha) for seventh.
British rider Danny Webb (WRP Wepol Racing Yamaha) scored another strong finish today in ninth, winning a fight with three other riders, including young talent Manuel Gonzalez (Kawasaki ParkinGO Team), Peter Sebestyen (OXXO Yamaha Team Toth) and Federico Fuglini (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) – who all finished in that order.
In the championship, Locatelli has 175 points, Cluzel 130, Mahias 86, Öttl 76 and Perolari 72.
2020 Aragon WorldSBK Results—WorldSSP Race Two
1 |
Andrea Locatelli |
(Yam) |
|
2 |
Jules Cluzel |
(Yam) |
+2.190 |
3 |
Raffaele de Rosa |
(MAV) |
+2.479 |
4 |
Lucas Mahias |
(Kaw) |
+2.925 |
5 |
Philipp Oettl |
(Kaw) |
+7.393 |
Saturday
Superbike race one
Scott Redding (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) won a tense 18-lap race one at Motorland after a slight mistake from Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team) lost him the tow of the leading Ducati rider and also allowed eventual second place finisher Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) to get close enough to make his pass on Rea stick to the end.
Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team) and then Rea were the first lap leaders, with eventual winner Redding joining them up front.
Lowes was to suffer a spectacular highside with 14 laps of the 18 to go, sliding down the middle of the track as the following riders passed him on both sides. He walked away largely unhurt.
In a race with several fallers and retirees Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Team GoEleven Ducati) was fourth, winning a fight with Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) fifth.
Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) was sixth but 18 seconds down, with front row qualifier Loris Baz (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) seventh. Xavi Fores (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) had a best of season eighth, Federico Caricasulo (GRT Yamaha) placed ninth and early prospect Leon Haslam (HRC Honda) rounded out the top ten.
Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) was an early retiree and his team-mate Eugene Laverty (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) took a ride through penalty for not re-entering pitlane after he had fallen in the warm-up lap, but went straight to the grid. Alvaro Bautista (HRC Honda) and Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha) were also fallers.
2020 Aragon WorldSBK Results—Race One
1 |
Scott Redding |
(Duc) |
|
2 |
Chaz Davies |
(Duc) |
+0.304 |
3 |
Jonathan Rea |
(Kaw) |
+2.123 |
4 |
M. Ruben Rinaldi |
(Duc) |
+7.453 |
5 |
M. van der Mark |
(Yam) |
+8.365 |
Supersport race one
Andrea Locatelli (BARDAHL Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha) has single-handedly re-written the winner’s handbook in the WorldSSP class, having secured wins in every race he has competed in during his rookie season. So far, six of them, with only the more experienced Jules Cluzel (GMT94 Yamaha) even close to fighting for any length of time.
Cluzel was second and another rookie rider, Philipp Öttl (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing), third for his second podium of the 2020 season.
Fourth, after passing the former world champion Lucas Mahias (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) was the perennially-best MV rider, Raffaele De Rosa (MV Agusta Reparto Corse).
Steven Odendaal (EAB Ten Kate Yamaha) won a close final lap fight with Isaac Vinales (Kallio Racing Yamaha) for sixth place at the 5.077km long Aragon circuit.
Yet another rookie to this class, Manuel Gonzalez (Kawasaki ParkinGO Team), was eighth, and a season best of ninth was the reward for Danny Webb (WRP Wepol Racing Yamaha). Corentin Perolari (GMT94 Yamaha) completed the top ten riders at Motorland on Saturday. One more WorldSSP race to come on Sunday 30 August, and then another whole Motorland Aragon race weekend next week – officially titled the Teruel Round.
2020 Aragon WorldSBK Results—WorldSSP Race One
1 |
Andrea Locatelli |
(Yam) |
|
2 |
Jules Cluzel |
(Yam) |
+3.221 |
3 |
Philipp Oettl |
(Kaw) |
+5.206 |
4 |
Raffaele de Rosa |
(MVA) |
+6.387 |
5 |
Lucas Mahias |
(Kaw) |
+10.563 |
Superpole
Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team) stuck in the best WorldSBK lap of all time at Motorland in Tissot-Superpole qualifying, with a 1:48. 860 that took him to a landmark 25th career Superpole ‘win.’ It was his second pole of 2020, and his second in succession.
0.171 seconds behind Rea privateer Loris Baz (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) secured the second grid spot after riding just behind Rea, proving again the potency of rider, team and their individually prepared R1 Yamaha.
A cosmopolitan front row in terms of machinery was completed by the crimson Aruba.it Racing Ducati of Scott Redding, 0.304 seconds from Rea.
In terms of top speeds in this session, Rea reached 312kmph, Baz a lowly 308kmph and Redding a strong 321kmph.
Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team) was fourth and will head up the second row of the grid. Continuing in his role of one of the top 2020 rider on a privateer bike Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Team GoEleven Ducati) was fifth fastest and the second row featured the first of the HRC Hondas, belonging to Leon Haslam, who was recovering well from a tough Friday.
Alvaro Bautista (HRC Honda) was right behind his team-mate in seventh,
Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) was eighth, Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) a disappointed ninth and another ever-improving American privateer Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha) tenth, on a largely 2019 spec bike.
Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) looked well on his way to competing for yet another career pole but he fell at turn eight, when his first sector pace was under that of even Rea’s new track best.
2020 Aragon WorldSBK Results—Superpole
1 |
Jonathan Rea |
(Kaw) |
|
2 |
Loris Baz |
(Yam) |
+0.171 |
3 |
Scott Redding |
(Duc) |
+0.304 |
4 |
Alex Lowes |
(Kaw) |
+0.365 |
5 |
M. Ruben Rinaldi |
(Duc) |
+0.396 |
Friday
With the temperatures rising in the afternoon session at Motorland Aragon the times set in the morning FP1 session were the ones that counted most, as Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) reasserted his Motorland credentials with a 1:50.543 after action concluded.
Second quickest was Italian pocket rocket Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Team GoEleven Ducati).
Jonathan Rea (KRT) was third fastest overall and quickest rider in the afternoon session, from his crashing team-mate Alex Lowes who missed a final chance to improve his hot track lap time.
Alvaro Bautista (HRC Honda) was a surprise fourth in the morning and also in the combined Friday times, but then had some machine issues later in the day that held back further progress.
Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) was fifth and top BMW rider. It was up to privateer Loris Baz (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) to be top Yamaha competitor today, in sixth place overall.
Despite his late fall in the afternoon session Lowes was seventh overall, with Scott Redding (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) eighth – but very fast in the hot afternoon conditions.
Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) was ninth and his team-mate Toprak Razgatlioglu tenth. Leon Haslam (HRC) was another faller and ended up 11th. American Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha) completed the top 12 riders in a field of 23.
2020 Aragon WorldSBK Results—Friday
1 |
Chaz Davies |
(Duc) |
1:50.543 |
2 |
M. Ruben Rinaldi |
(Duc) |
+ 0.058 |
3 |
Jonathan Rea |
(Kaw) |
+ 0.193 |
4 |
Alvaro Bautista |
(Hon) |
+ 0.222 |
5 |
Tom Sykes |
(BMW) |
+ 0.383 |
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