ThePitcrewOnline

Category: Crew On Two

  • Moto2: Second 2019 Pole for Schrotter in Texas

    Moto2: Second 2019 Pole for Schrotter in Texas

    The cancellation of the FP3 sessions for all classes in Austin on Saturday meant that for the Moto2 riders, the day was spent waiting all day for their qualifying session, which came after the other two GP classes.

    A wet pit lane at Cota. Image courtesy of Dynavolt Intact GP

    Despite the lashings of rain all day, Q1 got underway in dry conditions, and Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo) joined Bo Bendsneyder (NTS RW Racing GP), Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Marco Bezzecchi (Red Bull KTM Tech3) in advancing to Q2 to join the fastest fourteen riders from Friday.

    Binder immediately put his extra track time from Q1 compared to those riders directly through to Q2 to good use, as he led the early part of the session, although the fastest riders from day one in Texas built their rhythm, and eventually overhauled the South African’s top time.

    It was Marcel Schrotter (Dynavolt Intact GP) who took pole position, his second of the season after securing first on the grid back in Qatar. The German was dominant on Friday, and continued that into qualifying. Whilst it took him a while to find the confidence in the wind, and after a day of sitting around and waiting, once he found his rhythm he was always going to be difficult to better.

    Alex Marquez, Moto2, Grand Prix of the Americas 2019. Image courtesy of David Goldman/MarcVDS

    That said, Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) got close, and was just 0.058 seconds away from Schrotter’s pole time by the end of the session. Last year’s pole sitter will be hoping he can better translate that qualifying speed into a good race pace than what he managed last year, when he finished second, two seconds shy of the winner Francesco Bagnaia.

    Sam Lowes (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) completes the front row for the Moto2 Grand Prix of the Americas. The British rider has a good history at the Texan track, but has been somewhat under the radar this weekend. After a crash in Argentina, a solid points haul will be important in the race for Lowes.

    Fourth place went to Tom Luthi (Dynavolt Intact GP). He was following Schrotter on the German’s pole lap, and was making a time which could have been good enough for the front row, but a mistake in sector three cost him seven tenths, and any chance of the first row. However, fourth place is not a disaster for the Swiss, who will look to return to the podium after a crash in Argentina.

    Brad Binder ended Q2 in fifth, a good result for the KTM rider on a weekend where the Austrian marque seems to be struggling quite significantly in the intermediate class.

    Speed Up won the 2015 Moto2 Grand Prix of the Americas with Sam Lowes, and a sixth place for Jorge Navarro (Beta Tools – Speed Up) puts him in a good position to fight at the front in the race four years on. The Spaniard has yet to make a serious impression on the Italian frame this season, something he will hope to change in the race.

    Before Friday, Mattia Pasini (Flexbox HP 40) had never ridden a Triumph-powered Moto2 bike. However, he has been fast all weekend in his replacement ride for the injured Augusto Fernandez, and qualified in an impressive seventh place.

    Jorge Martin, Moto2, Grand Prix of the Americas 2019. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM

    Reigning Moto3 World Champion Jorge Martin had a pretty dreadful Friday. The Spaniard spent much of his time on day one in Texas outside of the top twenty. However, after advancing through Q1, the Spaniard was able to put a good performance together in Q2 to qualify in the middle of row three, just under half a second behind Pasini, and a third of a tenth ahead of Simone Corsi (Tasca Racing Scuderia Moto2) who lines up on the back of row three in ninth.

    Luca Marini was quite strong on one lap speed on Friday, ending both sessions in fourth, but qualifying did not go to plan for the Italian, who will start from the head of the fourth row in tenth, ahead of Andrea Locatelli (Italtrans Racing Team) and Marco Bezzecchi, who had his best qualifying in Moto2.

    Row five sees Fabio Di Giannantonio (Beta Tools – Speed Up) line up ahead of Tetsuta Nagashima (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) and championship leader Lorenzo Baldassarri (Flexbox HP 40). The Italian has a poor record in Austin, with a best finish of only tenth. However, after looking reasonably competitive on Friday he would have hoped for a better result in qualifying, but as it is he will need a good start and some good luck to make it through turn one cleanly.

    Bo Bendsneyder enjoyed his best Moto2 qualifying of the season in sixteenth, ahead of Enea Bastianini (Italtrans Racing Team) and Remy Gardner (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team), who has been competitive all weekend, but ruined his qualifying with a nasty crash on the exit of turn nine, and will line up back in eighteenth.

    The fastest rider to not make Q2 was Iker Lecuona (American Racing), who will line up nineteenth, ahead of a disappointing Xavi Vierge (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) in twentieth and Jesko Raffin (NTS RW Racing GP) in twenty-first.

    Joe Roberts (American Racing) will start his home GP from twenty-second, ahead of Khairul Idham Pawi (Petronas SRT) and Somkiat Chantra (IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia) on row eight.

    Philipp Oettl (Red Bull KTM Tech3) will start the race from the head of row nine, alongside Lukas Tulovic (Kiefer Racing) and Stefano Manzi’s replacement Gabriele Ruiu (MV Agusta Idealavoro Forward); whilst the injured Xavi Cardelus (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) and Dominique Aegerter (MV Agusta Idealavoro Forward) complete the grid.

    Neither Dimas Ekky (IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia) nor Jake Dixon (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) set a time, with Ekky cashing out at the beginning of Q1, and Dixon being ruled out after his nasty Friday practice crash due to concussion.

    Featured image courtesy of Dynavolt Intact GP

  • MotoGP: Marquez Continues COTA Reign

    MotoGP: Marquez Continues COTA Reign

    The lack of FP3 sessions made FP4 a crucial session for the MotoGP riders ahead of qualifying on Saturday in Texas for round three of the 2019 season.

    Electrical storms had brought rain and the threat of lightning to the Circuit of the Americas, but by the mid-point of FP4, Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) was out on slick tyres. At one point he had five seconds on the field. That gap came down to two seconds by the end of free practice, but going into qualifying he was the outstanding favourite.

    Before he and the other Q2 contestants were out on track, though, there was Q1, from which Jorge Lorenzo (Repsol Honda Team) and Danilo Petrucci (Mission Winnow Ducati) advanced to Q2, after a late charge from the pair of them which was almost completely unexpected.

    Andrea Dovizioso during Cota qualifying. Motogp 2019. Image courtesy of Ducati

    This was a disaster for Andrea Dovizioso (Mission Winnow Ducati). After making a mistake with the front tyre yesterday in FP2 (the Italian chose the medium front tyre instead of the soft), Dovizioso made another tyre-related error in Q1, deciding to run only one rear tyre for the session. The track improved a lot, though, and in the end it was his teammate, Petrucci, who bumped him out by less than a tenth of a second, much to the disappointment of Davide Tardozzi.

    Mostly, Q2 went as expected. Marquez took pole position, although it was clearly not comfortable for the Spaniard. Two tenths was his advantage over Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) in a surprising second place, but Marquez’ Honda made it difficult for the seven times World Champion, weaving in the straight, which according to Marquez was due to the wind. It was clearly quite violent – his foot came off the foot peg and Marquez himself admitted to rolling the throttle, which is obviously not something the #93 makes a habit of. Nonetheless, his 100% record of setting the fastest time in qualifying at Texas goes on.

    Valentino Rossi during qualifying at the Grand prix of the Americas, Cota. Image courtesy of Yamaha Corporation

    Rossi’s performance was impressive. In FP4 he was quite strong in the mixed conditions he has tended to struggle with in the past, and in Q2 he was able to latch onto Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda CASTROL) for his first properly hot lap (the first attempt by Rossi was ruined by running wide on the exit of turn nine, which put him off line in turn ten and off the track on the exit), and he marginally improved on that time on his second run. Rossi’s worry on Friday was his race pace, but without the chance to try anything new today with the cancellation of FP3 and the mixed conditions of FP4, the warm up will be important for the Italian to try some changes.

    Equally impressive was Cal Crutchlow who qualified third. The Briton has been strong all weekend and has a real chance of the podium tomorrow, so a front row start is important. Also, for Crutchlow, who is without a front row since Assen last year, a clear view of the first corner will be a welcome sight after the disappointment of Argentina.

    Jack Miller (Lamborghini Pramac Racing) has had a bit of a special weekend, one similar to that we see from Marc Marquez. When the Honda doesn’t work, Marc makes it work, and that is precisely what Miller has done this weekend with the Ducati. Miller was the only GP19 to make it through to Q2 direct from free practice (the only other Ducati was his Pramac teammate, Pecco Bagnaia), and even when Petrucci joined him in Q2 after advancing from Q1, Miller beat his teammate of 2018 by just under three tenths, which in 2019 MotoGP terms is a significant margin. One of the Australian’s biggest strengths is his ability to grit his teeth and push on regardless of what the bike is saying to him. Considering the pace of his stablemates this weekend, the feedback the Desmosedici is giving him is presumably not so ideal, but the #43 is able to ride around that and make it do what he wants anyway. Whether Miller can do that for forty minutes tomorrow remains to be seen, but a top three is potentially on the cards.

    Pol Espargaro, MotoGP, qualifying at Grand Prix of the Americas 2019. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM

    Despite Miller’s ignorance of his bike’s apparent problems, it is Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) who was the star ride of Saturday in the Lone Star State. The Spaniard put the KTM fifth on the grid, KTM’s best MotoGP qualifying, with a lap which was undoubtedly seemed like, twenty evaded crashes knitted together for a time which was only three tenths away from the front row. For Espargaro to put KTM only six tenths away from Marc Marquez on a circuit where he is yet to be beaten is an incredible achievement. To make a similar result tomorrow is unrealistic, but there is no doubt that Pol will make the most of the opportunity he has to compare his RC16 with the front running bikes in the beginning of the race tomorrow and, whatever happens, today has made the weekend for the KTM MotoGP squad.

    Maverick Vinales (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) was the rider Espargaro used as a marker for his fifth-placed time. Vinales himself qualified sixth, at the back of the second row. The Spaniard was fast all of yesterday, and was actually the fastest of everyone coming into qualifying, so might be disappointed with a second row start for tomorrow. Either way, the important part for Vinales is the start and the first laps, because he needs to be strong at the start so he can use his strong late race pace.

    It was a better qualifying for Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) compared to two weeks ago, improving nine places on his Argentinian grid slot with seventh place. The Spaniard has been quite quiet this weekend, not making anything spectacular, but he should be there in the race fighting for the podium.

    Joining Rins on the third row of the grid are Petrucci and Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT), the rookie impressing again on the satellite Yamaha, out-qualifying teammate Franco Morbidelli by three tenths.

    Jorge Lorenzo running down the pit lane at Cota, during Q2. Image courtesy of Box Repsol

    After a good run in Q1, Jorge Lorenzo’s Q2 session was compromised at the end of his first flying lap when he suffered the same problem of a chain coming off his RC213V as Marquez suffered in FP4 back in Argentina. Lorenzo parked the #99 RC213V up at the end of pit lane (mimicking Marquez in 2015) and ran back to the Repsol Honda box for his spare bike, but could only manage eleventh from there.

    Last in Q2 was Francesco Bagnaia, who crashed both his GP18 Ducatis, and ended the session frustrated and two seconds off the pace having only clocked one semi-representative lap time.

    As previously mentioned, Andrea Dovizioso failed to make it out of Q1, and the second-placed rider in the World Championship will start tomorrow’s race from a lowly thirteenth. Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) and Takaaki Nakagami (IDEMITSU LCR Honda) will join the Italian on row five tomorrow.

    Row six sees Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) in sixteenth ahead of teammate Andrea Iannone and the impressive Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Tech3) who once again out-qualified Johann Zarco (19th) on the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing RC16.

    Joining Zarco on row seven tomorrow will be Karel Abraham (Reale Avintia Racing) and Hafizh Syahrin (Red Bull KTM Tech3), whilst Tito Rabat (Reale Avintia Racing) will line up alone on the back row.

    Featured Image courtesy of Box Repsol

  • Moto3: Front-Runners Look for Consistency at Technical Round Three

    Moto3: Front-Runners Look for Consistency at Technical Round Three

    It has been two weeks since the Argentinian round of the 2019 Moto3 World Championship, the second round of the series, and now the paddock heads to Texas for the Grand Prix of the Americas.

    After the first two rounds of the season it is Kaito Toba (IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia) who leads the championship on an incredibly low thirty-one points. Despite winning the opening round in Qatar, Argentina did not go quite so well for the Japanese – he was caught up in the incident with John McPhee (Petronas SRT) and Alonso Lopez (Estrella Galicia 0,0) and dropped out of the leading group, so coming away with a tenth place was quite positive for the #27. The Circuit of the Americas, however, has not been a happy hunting ground for Toba in the past, and indeed he has not managed to finish a race in Austin in either of his two attempts.

    Lorenzo Dalla Porta (Leopard Racing) has had a similar start to the season as Toba. The Italian finished second to Toba in Qatar, but was forced wide in turn five on the final lap in Argentina, finishing only seventh. Like Toba, Dalla Porta does not boast a fantastic record in COTA, and has never scored a point in Texas – something he will need to change this weekend after a low-scoring Argentina.

    The third placed rider in Qatar, Aron Canet (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team), also had a poor showing in Termas two weeks ago, finishing in a lowly twelfth. Now lying sixth in the championship, Canet needs a result in Texas to recover some ground in the standings. Fortunately for the Spaniard, COTA has proven to be a strong circuit for him in the past, as he dominated the 2017 Grand Prix of the Americas before a crash in the restarted race cost him what would have been his maiden win.

    With all of the problems for Qatar’s podium finishers in Argentina, Jaume Masia’s (Bester Capital Dubai) victory was enough to see him rocket to third in the standings despite not scoring in Losail. Like Toba and Dalla Porta, Masia has never scored a point in Texas, finishing only twenty-sixth in his debut at the track last year.

    Jaume Masia, winner of the Moto3 race in Argentina 2019. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM

    Joining Masia on the podium in Argentina were Darryn Binder (CIP Green Power) and Tony Arbolino (VNE Snipers). It was Binder’s second podium, and the first in the career of Arbolino, and both will be hoping to continue in that sort of form this weekend, on what is the most technically demanding track on the calendar.

    There is only one rider in the Moto3 field who has won at Texas: Romano Fenati (VNE Snipers). The Italian won in 2016, in what was KTM’s third and latest win at the track, and then again in 2017, as he benefitted from Canet’s fall. Fenati needs a result, too. After looking very strong in preseason, the Italian has amassed just seven points from the first two races, after going 9-16 in rounds one and two.

    Featured image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM

  • Moto2: COTA Awaits for Round Three

    Moto2: COTA Awaits for Round Three

    After two straight wins for Lorenzo Baldassarri (Flexbox HP 40), the Moto2 World Championship heads back to the Americas for round three of the 2019 season, at the Circuit of the Americas in Texas.

    Unfortunately for Baldassarri, COTA has been one of his worst tracks in Moto2. He crashed in his first Moto2 outing at the Austin circuit in 2014; finished twenty-sixth and second-last in 2015; in 2016 he was second-last and twenty-third; he crashed again in 2017; and last year he took his best result in Texas, with a tenth place. This weekend could prove to be a big damage limitation job for the championship leader, but his form in the first two races would suggest he is up to that task.

    Alex Marquez, Moto2, Argenttine MotoGP 2019. Image courtesy of David Goldman/MarcVDS

    Alex Marquez (Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS) has a last name with mixed connotations. Of course, there are benefits to being the younger brother of a seven-times motorcycle Grand Prix World Champion, but the name also brings with it a lot of expectation and pressure, the justification of which is subjective. Arguably, the Marquez name brings the most pressure in Texas, where older brother Marc has never been beaten, and won his first MotoGP race back in 2013. Alex Marquez looked the nailed on winner ahead of last year’s race, before tyre woes in the latter stages saw him finish second to eventual series winner, Francesco Bagnaia. Marquez currently sits sixth in the championship, twenty-five points behind double-winner Baldassarri, after going 7-3 in the first two rounds of the season. With Baldassarri seeming destined to struggle this weekend, the Grand Prix of the Americas could be the chance Marquez needs to announce himself as a championship contender.

    However, it will not just be Marquez who will be looking to break Baldassarri’s 100% record this weekend.

    Remy Gardner (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) has been one of the surprise packages of 2019 so far, just missing out on his debut podium in Qatar, before finally achieving it last time out in Argentina. He looked to be able to win in Termas, but when Baldassarri made his move on the Aussie, he was forced wide, and after that the Italian was able to extend the gap. Such a strong start to the season makes Gardner an outside championship contender at this stage, and he will look to confirm that this weekend.

    Contrarily, almost, Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo), Sam Lowes (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) and Luca Marini (Sky Racing Team VR46) – who were probably the three outstanding championship favourites coming into this season – will be looking to establish themselves in this, the third round of the championship.

    Brad Binder was given a one-place penalty in Argentina for irresponsible riding. The penalty was probably fair, as many of the moves Binder put on his rivals, especially in the closing stages of the race, were past the limit. The penalty meant he finished sixth which, combined with a difficult Qatar, means the South African lies seventh in the championship, thirty-six points off Baldassarri.

    Brad Binder, Argentinian Moto2 2019. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM

    Sam Lowes had an even more disappointing time in Argentina, crashing out early on. He now sits eleventh and forty points off Baldassarri in the championship. Fortunately for Lowes, he has good memories of Texas, as it is where he took, in fine style, his first Grand Prix win back in 2015 on the Speed Up, a result he will be hoping to match this weekend as he looks to recover points to the championship leaders.

    Luca Marini lies just ahead of Binder in the championship, by three points. The Italian has been recovering from a shoulder surgery from last year in the first part of this year. Whether the fitness of the Italian will be improved this weekend is unsure, but the physicality of COTA means that it will be important for Marini to be in a good condition for this weekend, if he is to make a good result.

    What is for certain is that Marini’s Sky Racing Team VR46 teammate, Nicolo Bulega, will not be in COTA at all, due to his physical condition. Bulega pulled out of the Argentina race because of arm pump, and surgery this week will see him miss round three of the series, in the hopes of being close to full fitness in Jerez at the beginning of May.

    Bulega is not the only Moto2 rider absent this weekend, as Augusto Fernandez (Flexbox HP 40) is out after his monster crash in free practice two weeks ago. The Spaniard will be replaced for the American round of the World Championship by Mattia Pasini.

    Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM

  • MotoGP: Another Battle for Second Looms in Austin

    MotoGP: Another Battle for Second Looms in Austin

    The Circuit of the Americas awaits the MotoGP field this weekend, two weeks on from Marc Marquez’ (Repsol Honda Team) dominance of the Argentinian round of the series.

    For round three, the result will likely be little different. Marquez is unbeaten in COTA, and indeed on American soil since 2010. This weekend could see the seven-times champion more dominant than ever, at his best track with the best motor Honda has produced since 2014 in the premier class, and no one seemingly in a position to challenge him.

    Jorge Lorenzo (Repsol Honda Team) of course shares machinery with Marquez, since they both operate out of the same garage. However, the condition of Lorenzo’s scaphoid has potential to restrict his potential this weekend, as the plethora of hard braking points at COTA mean a lot of stress is put through the arms and indeed the wrists of the rider. Any weakness in this area can be exaggerated in Texas, and the direction changes of the first sector exacerbate this even further. In addition to this, Lorenzo’s record in Austin includes only two podiums, the most recent coming back in 2016.

    That 2016 race showed a contrast in fortunes for Lorenzo compared to the two riders who two weeks ago fought for second place pretty much from lights to flag. Three years ago, neither Andrea Dovizioso nor Valentino Rossi finished the race, with Dovizioso being collected by Dani Pedrosa’s Repsol Honda and Rossi crashing out early in the race at turn two, after burning his clutch out on the start.

    Valentino Rossi, hoping to continue his in form 2019 performance at Cota. Image courtesy of Yamaha Corporation

    However, both Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) and Dovizioso (Mission Winnow Ducati) have decent records in Texas, with two podiums each – Rossi’s coming in 2015 and 2017, and Dovizioso’s coming in 2014 and 2015.

    Yamaha have had good results in the last few years in Texas. In fact, apart from 2014, a Yamaha has finished on the podium each year, with Lorenzo (2013, 2016) and Maverick Vinales (2018) adding to Rossi’s aforementioned Texan rostrum appearances. There will be three critical points for Yamaha, this year, in theory, at least. Firstly, it will be important for them to manage the front tyre well, which they failed to do in 2014. Secondly, Yamaha will need to accelerate off the corners well and find perfect traction, as their lack of power will be highlighted on COTA’s series of long straights and hard accelerations. Thirdly, Yamaha will need to find a setup that allows their riders to be strong on the brakes, as the time they lose on the straight will have to be made up getting off it.

    The Ducati has struggled in recent years at COTA, Dovizioso languishing in sixth in 2017, and fifth last year. However, the improvements made by Ducati over the winter have the #04 in line for a better result this year.

    Andrea Dovizioso. Image courtesy of Ducati

    Critically, the Ducati no longer seems dependent on grip for it to be fast. Termas is a famously slippery, dirty track, with a narrow line, and yet Dovizioso was able to fight for second place for the whole race.

    This will be important in COTA, because once more the track has been shaved, like last year, and the condition of the track is questionable, with bumps, holes and cracks still noticeable on the surface. Fortunately, with IndyCar having a race a couple of weeks ago, there shouldn’t be the huge roosts we saw last year, as the Dallara-built single-seaters should have cleaned any rubbish left over from the shaving that was lingering between the stones.

    Several other riders could be in contention for the podium in Texas this year, including Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar), whose then-teammate Andrea Iannone took third place last year on the GSX-RR. Between last year’s victory Marquez and third placed Iannone was Maverick Vinales (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP), who should have also finished second in 2017, but crashed early on, and won his first Moto2 race at COTA in 2014. Additionally, Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda CASTROL) – who had the pace for a clear second place in Argentina – could be well placed to take his second rostrum of the year this weekend.

    Featured image of Marc Marquez courtesy of Box Repsol

  • WorldSBK: Can Bautista be Toppled in Assen?

    WorldSBK: Can Bautista be Toppled in Assen?

    One week on from the third of the 2019 season in Aragon, the Superbike World Championship heads to Holland, and the legendary TT Assen, for round four – part two of the only back-to-back races of this season.

    For the fourth time in 2019, it is Alvaro Bautista (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) who is the man to beat this weekend, having won all nine races – by a fair distance – so far this year. Since Aragon, the Panigale V4R has had 250 revs trimmed off its 16,000 rpm limit, which is unlikely to make much difference. However, what might allow Bautista’s rivals to challenge him this weekend is the layout of the Assen circuit, with no notably long straights meaning peak power is not necessarily so high on the essentials list for the Dutch track.

    Alvaro Bautista, Winner of Race One, Jonathan Rea Second, and Chaz Davis Third. Image courtesy of Ducati

    Instead, a blend of high-speed agility and stability are important in Assen, both of which are demanded by the third and fourth sectors which are both characterised by high-speed corners and direction changes. Fortunately for Bautista, it is clear he is not only fast in a straight line, but he is also fast in the corners, as was demonstrated by his ability to escape from his rivals in Aragon before they arrived at the long back straight at the end of the lap.

    However, Jonathan Rea’s (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) record in Assen means it is expected that Bautista’s greatest challenge yet will come this weekend. Rea is the most victorious rider in Assen, with thirteen wins which stretch back to 2010. In fact, Rea has won at least one race at Assen in every year since 2010, with the exception of 2013, and until race two last year the Northern Irishman had been undefeated at Assen aboard the Kawasaki. To beat Bautista is nonetheless going to be a tough task this weekend for the four-times World Champion, but if it is to happen anywhere, it is going to be Assen.

    Indeed, the race that was not won by Rea last year saw his then-teammate Tom Sykes take the victory, meaning the now-BMW Motorrad WorldSBK rider is the latest WSBK winner in Holland. Additonally, Sykes was extremely close to doubling in Assen in 2013, coming up short to Eugene Laverty – then on the factory Aprilia – in a run to the line in the second race, after dominating the first outing. Perhaps more importantly, though, Assen is arguably the circuit which would most suit this year’s under-powered, brand new BMW S1000RR. Sykes has stressed on many occasions how impressive the chassis on the German bike is, and it could be that the Dutch asphalt, with its chassis-centric layout, could lead Sykes and BMW to their first podium together.

    The Dutch win that Eugene Laverty, now riding for Team GoEleven Ducati, wrestled from Sykes in 2013, is his only WorldSBK win at Assen. The #50 has only one other WSBK podium in Holland, coming in 2012. Laverty and his GoEleven team seemed to make a step forward in Aragon last weekend, and they will be hoping to continue that into this weekend, on a track which should not suit their motorcycle as well.

    In the same sort of situation is Chaz Davies (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati). The Welshman made a good step in Aragon, a track where he has always been successful. Despite a series of mistakes, proving his lack of comfortability with the Panigale V4R, Davies was able to stand on the podium in both of the full-length races last weekend. Davies has five podiums in Assen in the top class of production motorcycle racing, and even challenged Rea for the win in race two back in 2016, before his bike expired. Whilst Assen is not a track where Davies has been as strong in the past as Aragon, the #7 has a decent history in Holland, and will be hoping to back up the progress he made last weekend, this.

    Alex Lowes – Pata Yamaha WorldSBK – R3 Aragon. Image courtesy of Yamaha Corporation

    Yamaha did not so much make progress in Aragon as confirm the progress of previous rounds, as Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK) was able to match the pace of Rea – the benchmark for Yamaha – for almost the entirety of both full-length races. Clearly, though, the YZF-R1 needs to improve in tyre consumption, as Lowes fell back towards the end of both full-distance outings last week. Assen has always been a strong circuit for Lowes. He was strong there back in 2013 in his title-winning BSB year, despite some controversies, and also scored his maiden WorldSBK podium at the Dutch track back in 2014.

    However, it is Lowes’ Pata Yamaha WorldSBK teammate, Michael van der Mark, who will be the main attraction this weekend in Assen. Like Lowes, van der Mark scored his first WorldSBK podium in Assen, in 2015, when he finished third in both races, and has added three further podiums since then – one coming in 2016, and two others last year. Van der Mark will no doubt be out to win this weekend, although – as for everyone else – with the form of Bautista, it is hard to see another victor.

    Featured Image courtesy of Ducati

  • WorldSBK: Bautista Dominates Again for Ninth Win

    WorldSBK: Bautista Dominates Again for Ninth Win

    The final race of the weekend for the Superbike World Championship followed in the same vein as its two predecessors: a dominant winner, with a brilliant fight behind for second place.

    Surprisingly, Alvaro Bautista (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) was able to make the holeshot in race three of the weekend, despite Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) starting alongside him on the front row of the grid. Both of them got good launches, but some wheelie for Rea meant it was Bautista who got to turn one first, and as per the standard of the season, by the end of the first lap the Spaniard was out of reach.

    Alvaro Bautista wins Race 2 at Aragon Round 3 of the 2019 WSBK championship. Image courtesy of Ducati

    Behind, a battle formed Rea, Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK) and Chaz Davies (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati). Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK) was also there in the beginning, although in the end he dropped back, and his place was taken in the train by Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK).

    The four of Rea, Lowes, Davies and Haslam eventually worked themselves a gap to those behind, initially led by an impressive Jordi Torres (Team Pedercini Racing) and then by Eugene Laverty (Team GoEleven) who was unable to close the gap down, which was a surprise after his strong performance on Saturday. Maybe the #50 benefited from the broken winglet.

    Chaz Davis with another podium at Aragon 2019 WSBK. Image courtesy of Ducati

    Between them, the quartet fighting for the final two spots on the rostrum had a fantastic fight. Throughout, though, there was a fair assumption to be made that it was Rea who had the advantage. Davies is still not comfortable with the new V4R, evidenced by his plethora of errors in every race this weekend, despite his good performances and results, and this was mentioned by Rea in parc ferme. In addition, Alex Lowes had been struggling for tyre consumption all weekend and a group battle with three other riders is not conducive to gentle riding that conserves the tyres. Finally, Leon Haslam was still suffering with his wounded ankle.

    In that sense, it should be no surprise that it was Rea who came away with his ninth second place from nine races in 2019. However, considering the Northern Irishman had a less-than-perfect weekend, and struggled somewhat for setup, a third runners-up spot out of three is a good return for the four-times World Champion.

    Third place in the end went to Chaz Davies, who might have had a better chance at second place had he not run wide in turn one on the final lap, allowing Rea through. That mistake was one of many throughout the weekend which prove there is still a lot of work for the Welshman to do with the new Ducati before he is comfortable with it. So, in that way, to end the weekend with two podiums and three top fours is a good positive for #7.

    That left Leon Haslam just off the podium in fourth. Not only the result, but also his competitiveness throughout the race was something of a salvation for his weekend which was blighted by injury, a poor qualifying and a bad start in race one.

    Alex Lowes came home in fifth place, again running out of tyre in the closing stages. However, the Englishman proved this weekend that Thailand was not a fluke, and that the Yamaha genuinely has the potential to compete with Rea and Kawasaki on a regular basis this season, which is a good sign for the Iwata marque.

    Eugene Laverty came home in sixth place for the top ‘independent’ spot, one second ahead of the massively impressive Jordi Torres in seventh. Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK) paid for the poor grid position he received for the final race of the weekend courtesy of being caught up in Michael Ruben Rinaldi’s (BARNI Racing Team) crash at turn one in the Superpole race, and finished eighth, ahead of the aforementioned Rinaldi and Sandro Cortese (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) who completed the top ten.

    Marco Melandri at Aragon 2019 WSBK race 2. Image courtesy of Yamaha Corporation

    Marco Melandri (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) ended his torrid weekend with an eleventh, ahead of Tom Sykes who plummeted down the order after a good opening to the race. Leon Camier (Moriwaki Althea Honda Team) finished in thirteenth, ahead of Ryuichi Kiyonari (Moriwaki Althea Honda Team) and Markus Reiterberger (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK) who was the final points scorer and final finisher in fifteenth.

    Toprak Razgatlioglu (Turkish Puccetti Racing) was the first retirement eleven laps from the flag, and was joined on the side-lines only by Alessandro Delbianco (Althea Mie Racing Team) three laps later.

    Featured image courtesy of Ducati

  • WorldSBK: Bautista Dominant Again for Eighth Win

    WorldSBK: Bautista Dominant Again for Eighth Win

    The Superpole race in Aragon for the third round of the 2019 Superbike World Championship saw Alvaro Bautista (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) take his eighth win of the season, but the battle behind for second was, as in race one on Saturday, hard-fought.

    Bautista, once again, made the holeshot, this time leading from Sandro Cortese (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) and Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK) who jumped Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK) in the first corners of the race.

    Chaz Davis at Aragon, WSBK 2019. Image courtesy of Ducati

    Chaz Davies (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) and Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) also made good starts, although Rea was quite lucky to make it out of turn one after he was clipped by Michael Ruben Rinaldi (BARNI Racing Team) which took the Italian down, and caught Michael van der Mark’s Pata Yamaha as well.

    After a lap, Bautista was gone, but soon after the battle for second was heating up. Lowes soon passed Cortese for second, and the German was soon shuffled further back by Rea and Davies, and then Sykes and Eugene Laverty (Team GoEleven) came through as well.

    Lowes, Rea and Davies soon established themselves as the three riders who would be fighting for the final two spots on the front row for the final race of the weekend.

    Rea managed to pass Lowes with a few laps to go, but was unable to break away from the Yamaha rider, and Lowes came back past a few laps later.

    Alex Lowes at Aragon WSBK 2019. Image Courtesy of Yamaha Corporation

    With two laps to go, Rea almost ran into the back of Lowes’ Yamaha in turn one, and had to run wide. In fact, it was quite impressive from Rea to be able to keep the bike on the track, and not lose a position to Davies who was not so far behind. The reigning champion then closed in on Lowes by three tenths in the third sector, and made his pass on the main straight.

    Although Lowes was able to stick with Rea throughout the last lap. He was unable to get the run out of turn fifteen, that he needed to be able to position himself to pass Rea in the final corner, and had to settle for third.

    Another second was important for Rea, too, in respect to his championship. Of course, he is going to have to beat Bautista on track at some point if he is to win his fifth consecutive championship, but to keep the damage to a minimum is, for the moment, all he can do.

    Chaz Davies came home in fourth, ahead of Tom Sykes who took his second top five of the weekend, in front of Eugene Laverty in sixth and the injured Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) in seventh.

    Jordi Torres (Team Pedercini Racing) was eighth, only 1.7 seconds behind his Kawasaki stablemate, Haslam, and the same distance ahead of Cortese in ninth, whilst Toprak Razgatlioglu (Turkish Puccetti Racing) was tenth and missed out on the front three rows for the second full-length race.

    Marco Melandri (GRT Yamaha) was caught up in the Rinaldi incident at turn one and finished eleventh, ahead of Leon Camier (Moriwaki Althea Honda Team), Ryuichi Kiyonari (Moriwaki Althea Honda Team), Alessandro Delbianco (Althea Mie Racing Team) and Michael van der Mark who got back on his YZF-R1 after he went down in turn one.

    Aside from Rinaldi, the luckless Markus Reiterberger was the only retirement, a mechanical problem putting him out of the race at half distance.

  • WorldSBK: Dominant Bautista avoids battle behind to score seventh straight win

    WorldSBK: Dominant Bautista avoids battle behind to score seventh straight win

    Race one of the third round of the 2019 Superbike World Championship saw a continuation of some of the trends we have seen throughout the season so far, with Alvaro Bautista (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) taking the win, but behind him was a battle, the likes of which we haven’t seen in WorldSBK for a long time.

    Bautista made the holeshot, and he didn’t look back. Despite being challenged by Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK) in the middle of the first lap, the Spaniard was able to hold the S1000RR off until he was able to use the Panigale V4R’s superior power to squeeze out an advantage. Once he had space behind him, no one stood a chance of breaking Bautista’s 100% winning record at the start of his World Superbike career, as the 2006 125cc World Champion stormed to his seventh victory on the spin.

    Alvaro Bautista, leading 2019 WSBK Race One at Aragon. Image courtesy of Ducati

    Behind, though, there was soon a large battle emerging, with the likes of Sykes and fellow front row starter Sandro Cortese (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) being joined in the podium fight by the two Pata Yamaha WorldSBK riders, Alex Lowes and Michael van der Mark, as well as Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK), who was recovering from his worst ever grid position with the factory Kawasaki squad, Chaz Davies (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) and Eugene Laverty (Team GoEleven).

    The battle was fierce from lights to flag, with several riders, notably Lowes, Rea and Davies, taking stints at the front of the group, but no one was able to break away.

    Alvaro Bautista, Winner of 2019 WSBK Aragon Race One, Jonathan Rea Second, and Chaz Davis Third. Image courtesy of Ducati

    However, it took only a few laps for Tom Sykes, who had challenged for the lead on the opening tour, to get shuffled to the back of the group, and become detached off the back, such was his straight line speed deficit on the brand new BMW. Sandro Cortese suffered a similar fate. Whilst both riders were able to stay pretty much in touch with the group, they could not do anything about making progress once they had been expelled from it.

    There was one moment where it seemed Rea would be able to break the pack. The Northern Irishman passed Chaz Davies in turn four and sent the Welshman a little wide. A gap grew slightly from there, but when Alex Lowes passed Davies on the next lap in turn seven he was able to close down Rea and pass him on the entry to the reverse corkscrew, which sent Rea slightly deep and allowed Davies, van der Mark and Laverty behind to all close back in.
    From there, the group became an eight-wheeler, as van der Mark dropped off the back. He eventually dropped behind Sykes too, so it seems the Dutchman ran out of rear tyre.

    That left Rea with Davies, Lowes and Laverty in the fight for the podium. The speed of the Panigale V4Rs of Davies and Laverty put them at a theoretical advantage if it came down to a last lap scrap, which seemed very likely.

    When it came down to it, Lowes had dropped off the back of the two Ducatis in front, who were also slightly detached from Rea in second. It looked like it would be essentially Davies versus Laverty for the final podium position, and in the fight to become the first rider other than Bautista to get on the WorldSBK podium with the Panigale V4R.

    In the end, the battle was ended prematurely. Laverty ran into turn fourteen slightly too fast, clipped Davies, shed what looked to be a knee slider and hit the deck. It was an unfortunate end to what had been a fantastic race from Laverty, who had been competitive all weekend.

    The crash gifted Davies third. He was too far away from Rea to do anything about the reigning World Champion who continued his 100% second place record for 2019, and kept up the perfect damage limitation job his season has morphed into so far this year.

    There was not too much to be excited about for Rea. Whilst he no doubt enjoyed the battle. But dropping another five points to Bautista at a track where he might have hoped to be more competitive and perhaps able to challenge the Spaniard,  will have been something of a disappointment. However, it was a brilliant comeback from a difficult qualifying for the Northern Irishman, who will have to do it all again tomorrow in the ten-lap Superpole race.

    Chaz Davis on his way to Third place in 2019 WSBK Race One at Aragon. Image courtesy of Matteo Cavadini/Ducati

    The podium was an important one for Davies, as it showed he has made some good progress with the V4R. Of course, having the horsepower advantage the new Ducati gives him was helpful in achieving this result, but at the same time it is not correct to say that Rea was able to steam away from Davies in the corners. The Welshman has a way to go with the Ducati before he can say he has extracted the maximum from the bike, but clearly he is working in a good direction towards that.

    Fourth place in the end went to Alex Lowes, who had a solid race but for a couple of mistakes, for example running off track at turn sixteen mid-race. The Englishman will be hoping for a stronger podium challenge at the end of the race tomorrow, but considering his speed in the first part of the race, the Superpole race could present a good opportunity for the 2013 BSB champion.

    Tom Sykes came home in P5, once again in need of some more horses from his BMW. It was clear, though, that the new S1000RR is a sweet-handling machine.

    After dropping back at the end, Michael van der Mark finished sixth, just under one second clear of GRT Yamaha’s Sandro Cortese.

    Sandro Cortese at Aragon WSBK 2019 Race one. Image courtesy of Yamaha Corporation

    Toprak Razgatlioglu (Turkish Puccetti Racing) recovered from a back-row start to finish eighth, and second Kawasaki ahead of Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Racing Team (WorldSBK) who is having a dreadful weekend to this point and will be hoping for a turnaround tomorrow. The reigning BSB champion started from row four, like his teammate Rea, but went backwards and was all but last at the end of the first lap, which ruined his race.

    Jordi Torres (Team Pedercini Racing) rounded out the top ten on his privately-run Kawasaki.

    Leon Camier (Moriwaki Althea Honda Team) was eleventh, ahead of Marco Melandri (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) who arrived in Aragon hoping to solve his straight-line head-shaking problem, but seems to have encountered more significant issues on the YZF-R1. Michael Ruben Rinaldi (BARNI Racing Team) took thirteenth, ahead of Ryuichi Kiyonari (Moriwaki Althea Honda Team) and Eugene Laverty who got back on after his last lap crash to take the final point.

    Markus Reiterberger (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK) was the first retirement, and his race was over on the grid, on lap one, as he collided with Jonathan Rea off the line. Leandro Mercado (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) and Alessandro Delbianco (Althea Mie Racing Team) both also retired on lap one.

    Featured Image courtesy of Ducati

  • WorldSBK: Aragon Awaits for European Return

    WorldSBK: Aragon Awaits for European Return

    Two weeks on from another dominant performance by Alvaro Bautista and his ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati the Superbike World Championship heads to Aragon for the first European round of the 2019 season.

    Six wins from six races mean Alvaro Bautista is clear at the top of the championship by twenty-six points over reigning champion Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK). The Spaniard has no doubt benefited from the power of the new Panigale V4R in the first two rounds of his WorldSBK career, and that advantage in straight line performance is likely to be a distinct advantage at MotorLand this weekend, with its long back straight and high-speed pit straight. It should not be underestimated, though, the way in which Bautista has found speed in the corners with the new Ducati. The V4R in the hands of Bautista is not simply pulling away on the straights and then losing a handful of time in the twisty sections, but Bautista is able to make similar times to Rea and the #1 Kawasaki in tighter sections, and this could be crucial at Aragon.

    The most recent addition to Spain’s armada of world championship-level circuits is famed for its long straight at the end of the lap, but the series of corners which come before that are undoubtedly more important to lap time. Braking stability – both in a straight line and on angle – as well as mid-corner speed, acceleration and agility in direction changes are all important at MotorLand.  It provides one of the most demanding layouts in short-circuit motorcycling.

    Chas Davis at WSBK Aragon in 2018. Image courtesy of Ducati

    The rider who has met those demands most regularly over the past few years has been Chaz Davies (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati). He took his first win in Aragon back in 2013 race one on the BMW, and backed it up in the second race by securing the double. The Welshman also secured the double in 2016, as well as taking the race two wins in 2015, 2017 and 2018. It has not been a perfect start to life with the Panigale V4R, but a positive step for Sunday’s second full-length race in Thailand three weeks ago was clear before a mechanical problem ended his chances. At a track he gets on with so well, this weekend could be the one he needs to discover some more feeling with the new bike, and some confidence to go with it.

    A confident, V4R-mounted Chaz Davies could be the last thing Jonathan Rea needs. The Northern Irishman has yet to defeat the new Ducati in the hands of championship leader Bautista, but has made the perfect damage limitation job so far in 2019: where Bautista has scored six wins, Rea has scored six second places. Quite simply, considering the obvious gap in machinery at the first two rounds, Rea could not have done more to this point in the season. However, if Davies finds pace this weekend and the Panigale is as fast in Aragon as it has been at Phillip Island and Buriram, three more seconds for Rea could become three thirds. However, to become a four-times World Champion, you cannot go into a weekend thinking that second place is the best option. Rea will only have a mind for the victory in MotorLand, although perhaps it will come down to more than the determination of the rider.

    Aside from Bautista, perhaps the standout rider in WorldSBK in Thailand was Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK), taking three third places behind Bautista and Rea. Back in 2016, Aragon was the site of the latest-model R1’s first front row. Despite that, the bike has never achieved a podium in MotorLand, and neither has Lowes, two things the Brit will be aiming to change this weekend after such a positive second round in Thailand.

    This weekend could go one of two ways for BMW. Their bikes suffers a lot in the straights but is fantastic in the corners. The way their weekend goes depends one whether they can make up for what they lose in the drag from turn fifteen to sixteen in the corners, or whether that near-kilometre-long run will see them overwhelmed by their more powerful competitors. As well as their sweet-handling chassis, Tom Sykes’ (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK) record at the Spanish track is on the German manufacturer’s side. The Briton has scored seven podium finishes at Aragon, including two wins back in 2014.

    Featured Image courtesy of Ducati