Gordon Ritchie | September 19, 2021
WorldSBK Race Two
A heavy crash between Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) and Lucas Mahias (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) saw Sykes taken to hospital after suffering a concussion. Medical attention for the prone Sykes brought out the red flags to halt proceedings.
A 19-lap re-run was started without Alex Lowes (KRT) after he had also been involved in a crash in the first attempted run, suffering an unspecified wrist injury after being hit by his own bike and then a following rider, thankfully at relatively low speed.
The early fight was tough between eventual race winner Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati), Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team) and the seemingly perennially competitive Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team).
Toprak had to settle for second at the end as Rinaldi had more tyre and more pace – and a piece of random red and white barrier tape wrapped around his forks for many of the final laps, which had blown across his path as he chased Razgatlioglu.
Third place went to the rapidly advancing Scott Redding (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati), who was only just ahead of the fast Honda of Alvaro Bautista (HRC Honda), who just missed out on a second Catalunya podium.
Andrea Locatelli (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) was fifth, and just four seconds from the winner Rinaldi.
Rea was struggling from mid race distance onwards and got swamped in passing riders for a time, but he made stand in sixth place to finish seven seconds from the race win.
Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha) was top Independent Rider in seventh, Axel Bassani (MotoCorsa Racing Ducati) was eight, Michael van der Mark (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) ninth and Kohta Nozane (GRT Yamaha) tenth.
Chaz Davies (Team GoEleven Ducati) could not ride after his earlier crash but has not suffered any fractures according to his team.
In the championship fight Razgatlioglu retook the lead – by one point – from Rea, 399 to 398. Redding is on 339, Rinaldi 218, Locatelli 201 and Lowes 192.
2021 Catalunya WorldSBK Results—Race Two
1 |
M. Ruben Rinaldi |
(Duc) |
|
2 |
Toprak Razgatlioglu |
(Yam) |
+ 3.030s |
3 |
Scott Redding |
(Duc) |
+ 3.207s |
4 |
Alvaro Bautista |
(Hon) |
+ 3.415s |
5 |
Andrea Locatelli |
(Yam) |
+ 4.306s |
WorldSSP Race Two
Manuel Gonzalez (Yamaha ParkinGo Team) won an incredibly close Race Two in the WorldSSP division but had to work hard on every lap to stay in contention at times, in what was another cast iron classic middleweight contest.
A determined early push from Can Öncü (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) saw him take the lead on lap four, coming through from an early fifth place.
A Yamaha v Kawasaki battle saw both early leaders, Gonzales and Randy Krummenacher (CM Racing Yamaha) take on Oncu and eventually Raffaele De Rosa (Orelac Racing VerdNatura Kawasaki). The privateer Kawasaki rider moved into second with still less than half race distance completed.
Öncü was to fall at T5 on lap eight, with the new lap record pace of 1’45.486 his only reward.
Gonzalez ran wide with five laps to go, and lost even a podium place for a time.
Niki Tuuli (MV Agusta Corse Clienti) passed Krummenacher and took the podium fight to the eventual top two Gonzalez – a winner again after his Magny Cours success – and De Rosa in a heartbreaking second place.
The top three were covered by just 0.095 seconds after a dramatic last few corners.
Krummenacher was fourth, 0.568 seconds down, with Marcel Brenner (VFT Racing Yamaha) fifth and Federico Caricasulo (Biblion Iberica Yamaha MotoxRacing) sixth.
Steven Odendaal (BARDAHL Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha) was seventh and early podium contender Philipp Öttl (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) only eighth.
Glenn van Straalen (EAB Racing Yamaha) was ninth and Patrick Hobelsberger (Bonovo MGM Racing Yamaha) tenth.
Dominique Aegerter (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) had to miss the WorldSSP round in Catalunya but still leads the championship with an unchanged 302 points, with Odendaal still second on 257 points.
2021 Catalunya WorldSSP Results—Race Two
1 |
Manuel Gonzalez |
(Yam) |
|
2 |
R. De Rosa |
(Kaw) |
+ 0.021s |
3 |
Niki Tuuli |
(MVA) |
+ 0.095s |
4 |
R. Krummenacher |
(Yam) |
+ 0.568s |
5 |
Marcel Brenner |
(Yam) |
+ 6.159s |
WorldSBK Superpole Race
A neutralized first attempt at a Tissot-Superpole race was stopped on lap four as Chaz Davies (Team GoEleven Ducati) and Lucas Mahias (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) crashed hard at Turn 11. Davies was taken for medical checks.
The BMW duo of Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) and Michael van der Mark (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) were both earlier fallers in the neutralised ‘race’ as VDM lost the front and ran Sykes off track at speed, with Sykes eventually falling and both riders out of the restart.
An eventual five lap Race One was recalled under the quick restart rules.
A clash between Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team) and Andrea Locatelli (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) saw Locatelli down as they went for the same pice of asphalt, with Kohta Nozane (GRT Yamaha) also falling and Scott Redding (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) being pushed wide, to finish an eventual 15th.
The early action between Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team) and Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) was immense, and started before the first turn as they clashed elbows on the main straight from the green light.
Rea and Razgatlioglu would continue this approach for the first few turns but after Razgatlioglu ran wide Rea had enough advantage to hold on to the lead all the way, winning by just 0.211 seconds.
The arguably bigger story was behind the top two, as Alvaro Bautista (HRC Honda) took his first podium of the year and his first for Honda since Motorland last year.
Rea’s tenth win of 2021 saw him gain another three points on Razgatlioglu.
Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team) was fourth, Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) fifth and Saturday podium rider Axel Bassani (MotoCorsa Racing Ducati) sixth, despite a massive morning warm-up crash.
Leon Haslam (HRC Honda) was seventh and the top ten was rounded out by Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha), Christophe Ponsson (Gil Motorsport Alstare Yamaha) and Leandro Mercado (MIE Racing Honda Team).
2021 Catalunya WorldSBK Results—Superpole Race
1 |
Jonathan Rea |
(Kaw) |
|
2 |
Toprak Razgatlioglu |
(Yam) |
+ 0.211s |
3 |
Alvaro Bautista |
(Hon) |
+ 2.771s |
4 |
Alex Lowes |
(Kaw) |
+ 2.948s |
5 |
M. Ruben Rinaldi |
(Duc) |
+ 3.428s |
Saturday
WorldSBK Race One
An amazing series of events followed on from the first unwanted one, as rain re-appeared shortly before the start of the opening WorldSBK Race of the Catalunya weekend.
The full wet race was astoundingly unpredictable from the off, as early leader Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) was soon joined and then overtaken by Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team), but only after some full risk passes and re-passes between the championship protagonists.
With the rain action as a leveller in some regards Rookie privateer Axel Bassani (MotoCorsa Racing Ducati) got involved in fights with Razgatlioglu as they both passed Rea on lap before lap 13.
Rea seemed to be losing drive as the race wound down.
Razgatlioglu, in the 60th Anniversary Yamaha red-and-white paint scheme, looked to have the race deservedly won but his bike finally and dramatically quit on him, leaving Bassani out front for three laps.
He came with three laps of winning but the advancing Scott Redding (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) was to come past and ease his way to a remarkable race win, as he had been outside the top ten at one stage.
A stunning Ducati 1-2-3 saw Redding and first time podium rider Bassani joined by the battling Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati), for a Bologna triple that seemed impossible after a relatively tough Friday for most Ducati riders.
Rea re-took the championship lead from the luckless Razgatlioglu with his fourth place today, and he was followed home by Michael van der Mark (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team), who looked the likely winner until his push through the leading riders was halted as he lost rear drive in the wet. He was fifth, the consistent and combative Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team) sixth.
Leon Haslam (HRC Honda) came through for seventh, from pole man Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) in eighth.
Alvaro Bautista (HRC Honda) and Chaz Davies (Team GoEleven Ducati) rounded out the top ten places, in a race that saw Kohta Nozane (GRT Yamaha) the top R1 finisher in the special red and white paint scheme, as Andrea Locatelli (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) was 12th and Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha) a faller in the wet on the warm-up lap.
Rea is now six points ahead in the championship, with the ten-lap Superpole race and a full Race Two still to come on Sunday.
2021 Catalunya WorldSBK Results—Race One
1 |
Scott Redding |
(Duc) |
|
2 |
Axel Bassani |
(Duc) |
+ 1.577s |
3 |
M. Ruben Rinaldi |
(Duc) |
+ 2.326s |
4 |
Jonathan Rea |
(Kaw) |
+ 4.554s |
5 |
M. van der Mark |
(BMW) |
+ 6.518s |
WorldSSP Race One
Just as soon as things got started in the 18-lap WorldSSP Race One, the rains came and all in the field on slicks were left with a decision to make. To change tires or battle on after they had started in the dry?
The vast majority came in to change to wets, catching up to the only leading rider still on slicks throughout, Loic Marie Benoit Arbel (Andotrans Team Torrento Yamaha).
The track would dry out again as the rains eased off and Arbel would drop to tenth but then finish sixth as a reward for his gamble.
With no Dominique Aegerter (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) this weekend Steven Odendaal (BARDAHL Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha) led the chasing pack behind Arbel for a while but it was Randy Krummenacher (CM Racing Yamaha) who was first to pass the long time leader, on lap seven, and then run away to win by over 16 seconds. And not from Odendaal.
Both Odendaal and Philipp Öttl (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) were penalised for not adhering to the mandatory Pit Intervention Time of 1’21 seconds, coming out too soon after changing to wets. Odendaal’s loss was 25 seconds, which ruined his chance to score strong points in his great rival’s absence.
The Race One podium was thus completed by Manuel Gonzalez (Yamaha ParkinGo Team) and Friday fast man Raffaele De Rosa (Orelac Racing VerdNatura Kawasaki).
Fourth was the ever-aggressive Can Öncü (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) and fifth Öttl, despite his two second penalty.
With Arbel sixth, Hannes Soomer (Kallio Racing Yamaha) was seventh.
The penalty applied to Odendaal put him eighth today, Peter Sebestyen (Racing Team Hungary Yamaha) ninth and the top ten rounded out by Glenn van Straalen (EAB Racing Yamaha).
One more WorldSSP Race to go at Catalunya on Sunday.
2021 Catalunya WorldSSP Results—Race One
1 |
R. Krummenacher |
(Yam) |
|
2 |
Manuel Gonzalez |
(Yam) |
+ 16.226s |
3 |
R. De Rosa |
(Kaw) |
+ 16.273s |
4 |
Can Öncü |
(Kaw) |
+ 22.273s |
5 |
Philipp Oettl |
(Kaw) |
+ 32.844s |
Superpole
Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) did a classic wait and pounce lap in Tissot-Superpole to set the new track best at the revised Montmelo circuit, with his 1’40.408 set right at the end of the session.
Sykes’ lap was fully 0.286 seconds faster than the next best rider Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha with Brixx) and over half a second faster than the previous perfect Superpole man-machine in 2021, Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team).
Sykes has now taken pole in WorldSBK 51 times.
The second row for Race One and the Sunday Superpole race will be headed by Scott Redding (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) from Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team) and rookie of the season, Andrea Locatelli (Pata Yamaha with Brixx).
A pressurized last lap from Leon Haslam (HRC Honda) saw him make up for losing his previous best lap after – exceeding the track limits – and finally qualify seventh.
A very strong day for the factory bikes saw Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) go eighth fastest and Michael van der Mark (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) ninth, completing row three of the grid.
Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha) was the top Independent Rider in tenth place, with Axel Bassani (MotoCorsa Racing Ducati) just one position behind. A suddenly improved Kohta Nozane (GRT Yamaha) was 12th from the 22 riders at Catalunya, one position up on Chaz Davies (Team GoEleven Ducati).
2021 Catalunya WorldSBK Results—Superpole
1 |
Tom Sykes |
(BMW) |
1:40.408s |
2 |
Toprak Razgatlioglu |
(Yam) |
+ 0.286s |
3 |
Jonathan Rea |
(Kaw) |
+ 0.513s |
4 |
Scott Redding |
(Duc) |
+ 0.570s |
5 |
Alex Lowes |
(Kaw) |
+ 0.678s |
Friday
WorldSBK
Championship leader Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) pushed himself into an early lead on Friday at Catalunya, with a best lap time of 1’42.369 on the revised layout of the Barcelona – Catalunya circuit.
Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team) was second fastest in the combined times, but only fourth in the afternoon session, even running into the gravel near the end.
Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) improved to third overall and was second in the afternoon session, making him top Ducati rider on the day.
Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) fell early in the second free practice session, after losing the front into Turn Five. He still ended up in fourth place due to his fast morning time, and get going again for the final few laps of FP2.
Andrea Locatelli (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) was fifth overall today but was also a late faller in FP2; without significant injury. Alex Lowes (KRT) was sixth on day one. Alvaro Bautista (HRC Honda) fell late in FP2, at the same final turn as Locatelli. Bautista was finally 11th but his team-mate Leon Haslam (HRC Honda) was seventh, completing the full set of five competing manufacturers inside the top seven places.
Michael van der Mark (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team), drawing smoke from his rear tyre at the remodelled Tun 10 to 11 left hand curve, was to finish eighth. Scott Redding (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) moved into ninth place thanks to his FP2 time, just over half a second from Razgatlioglu.
Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha) completed the top ten riders in the combined times at a warm and sunny Barcelona.
2021 Catalunya WorldSBK Results—Friday
1 |
Toprak Razgatlioglu |
(Yam) |
1:42.369 |
2 |
Jonathan Rea |
(Kaw) |
+ 0.050s |
3 |
M. Ruben Rinaldi |
(Duc) |
+ 0.217s |
4 |
Tom Sykes |
(BMW) |
+ 0.239s |
5 |
Andrea Locatelli |
(Yam) |
+ 0.246s |
WorldSSP
Long time WorldSSP runner Raffaele De Rosa (Orelac Racing VerdNatura Kawasaki) proved to be fastest rider of all on day one of WorldSSP action at Barcelona – Catalunya.
Having changed teams recently, former World Champion Randy Krummenacher (CM Racing Yamaha) was second fastest, just 0.067 seconds from De Rosa’s best time.
Magny Cours race winner Manuel Gonzalez (Yamaha ParkinGo Team) was third quickest today.
In the absence of championship leader Dominique Aegerter (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha), who is away on contracted duties racing an E-bike, Steven Odendaal (BARDAHL Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha) was fourth. All top four riders set their best times in the afternoon’s FP2 session, but in fifth place Philipp Öttl (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) had to rely on his morning time for his overnight top five ranking.
Niki Tuuli (MV Agusta Corse Clienti) was sixth, Magny Cours podium teenager Can Öncü (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) was seventh despite a crash, and Patrick Hobelsberger (Bonovo MGM Racing Yamaha) eighth.
A remarkable youngest ever WorldSSP race winner in the wet last year at Catalunya, Andy Verdoia (GMT94 Yamaha), was ninth today as Federico Caricasulo (Biblion Iberica Yamaha MotoxRacing) rounded out the top ten places.
Jules Cluzel (GMT94 Yamaha) was not allowed to ride after his concussion suffered in a multi-rider crash at Magny Cours.
2021 Catalunya WorldSSP Results—Friday
1 |
Raffaele De Rosa |
(Kaw) |
1:45.620s |
2 |
R. Krummenacher |
(Yam) |
+ 0.067s |
3 |
Manuel Gonzalez |
(Yam) |
+ 0.109s |
4 |
Steven Odendaal |
(Yam) |
+ 0.161s |
5 |
Philipp Oettl |
(Kaw) |
+ 0.278s |
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