Gordon Ritchie | March 28, 2022
An almost “all-out” private test session was held at Barcelona, March 25-26, with the Catalan venue ultimately set to host round eight of the WorldSBK Championship in late September.
Toprak Razgatlioglu started his year as champion off in perfect style by taking the fastest time in the Catalunya preseason test.
The 2021 Champion and new WorldSBK superstar, Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team), led the combined times with a 1:40.571, set in the first half of the second day. Afternoon rains effectively ended the track action for the 20-plus WorldSBK riders who joined a smattering of Ducati WorldSSP riders.
Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati), back on a V4 R that he won 16 races with during a single Ducati season in 2019, was second fastest overall, thanks to a 1:40.824 set on Friday.
Iker Lecuona (HRC Honda) was the fastest of HRC’s two new 2022 rookies, going third quickest on a much-changed Honda Fireblade technical package in WorldSBK trim.
Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team) was fourth at a test organized originally by his KRT squad. Like HRC, KRT has its WorldSBK racing base in Barcelona.
Texan Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha) was fifth overall and even led one Catalunya session. Like all the Yamaha riders he had some updated electronic solutions and new components on his R1. Catalunya was the venue for his first WorldSBK podium, in 2020.
Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) put the second works Ducati into the top six, but in seventh place overall was new BMW rider Scott Redding (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team). His new teammate Michael van der Mark missed the test after breaking his right lower leg in a bicycle training accident.
Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team) rounded out the top eight, after recovering well from all his 2021 injuries, and like many riders, missing a final chance to put in a fast lap when the rains showed up just after noon on the last day.
Independent rider Lucas Mahias (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) was ninth overall and the second official HRC Honda of Xavi Vierge (HRC Honda) rounded out the top 10. The new Honda rider suffered a subsequent heavy fall, fracturing a rib.
Rookie privateer Philipp Öttl (Team GoEleven Ducati) was 11th, Andrea Locatelli (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) 12th, Eugene Laverty (Bonovo Action BMW) 13th and Kohta Nozane (GRT Yamaha) 14th. 2021-season MotoAmerica rider Loris Baz (Bonovo Action BMW) was 15th, one place up on Ilya Mikhalchik, who stood in for the injured van der Mark at this test.
Former MotoGP rider Hafizh Syahrin Bin Abdullah (MIE Racing Honda Team) had his first taste of WorldSBK machinery, finishing 20th.CN
- Toprak Razgatlioglu (Yam)
- Alvaro Bautista (Duc)
- Iker Lecuona (Hon)
- Jonathan Rea (Kaw)
- Garrett Gerloff (Yam)
