Gordon Ritchie | June 12, 2022
Alvaro Bautista extended his championship lead to 36 points over Jonathan Rea after winning races one and two at the Misano round of the WorldSBK Championship, June 11-12. A perfect weekend for Bautista, however, was thwarted by Toprak Razgatlioglu who won the 10-lap Superpole race. It was the defending champ’s first win of the season.
Race One
Alvaro Bautista celebrates the race-two win. Photos: Gold & Goose
After some determined riding in the early laps, Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team) took a lead over his championship rivals Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) and Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team), but it would be Bautista who had the final pace and grip to go all the way to a rendezvous with his fifth race win of 2022.
His pace on a used tire, with track temperatures over 130°F, was so strong he set a new lap record of 1’34.221 on lap 19 of 21.
Rea was second, eventually 5.128 seconds behind Bautista, but the main drama of the race unfolded just behind the top two.
Slowly dropping back as the laps unfolded one-time leader Razgatlioglu dropped back and then retired on the final corner with seven laps still to run, with what appeared to be an electrical issue, given the lack of steam or oil coming from his machine.
That misfortune for the 2021 champion promoted Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) to a podium place in third, with privateer Axel Bassani (MotoCorsa Racing Ducati) a strong fourth in his home race. The latter was easily the top Independent Rider in race one.
Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team) was in fifth place, overhauling Andrea Locatelli (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team), who was the top Yamaha finisher in sixth place.
Xavi Vierge (HRC Honda) was a respectable seventh, and top Honda, with Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha) eighth.
Almost 20 seconds behind the leaders, Iker Lecuona (HRC Honda) was ninth, with the best BMW rider being Scott Redding (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) in 10th.
Superpole
Toprak Razgatlioglu (1), Alvaro Bautista (19) and Jonathan Rea battle in the Superpole race. Razgatlioglu went on to win for the first time this season.
Razgatlioglu took his first win of the year by dominating the 10-lap Superpole race from the front, beating Bautista by just over two seconds.
Rea made a good fist of trying to keep Bautista behind him, but he had to let the Ducati rider go and even had to keep himself on top form to ensure fourth place rider Vierge finished behind him.
Lecuona was fifth, at a furious pace as he passed some of his rivals. Both Honda riders had used the absolutely softest rear tire option, the SCQ qualifier, for the first time in a race situation. Designed to be more than a one-lap option in Superpole, and ultimately a potential sprint race tire for those who could work it out well enough, it was a shock that anyone could use the tire so well in a 10-lap race at this stage of its introduction.
In sixth place was Locatelli, Bassani was seventh and Lowes was eighth.
Gerloff finished at the tail end of the group of riders headed up by Locatelli, while Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) won a late battle with Scott Redding (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) for 10th place.
Race 2
Rea (65) finished off the weekend off the podium despite running among the leaders early in the race.
After having to give best to Razgatlioglu in the sprint race at Misano, Bautista got back into the winning groove in race two, beating Toprak by an eventual 7.194 seconds.
The remarkable pace of Bautista was on display again but only after some serious early battles.
Razgatlioglu and Bautista were able to break away after Rinaldi had overtaken early contender Rea.
Rinaldi would hold on to a distant third, but Rea would drop back as the race progressed and ended up off the podium and almost 15 seconds behind Bautista.
In fifth place, Lecuona had another battling and successful ride, after his team-mate Vierge crashed out of contention at turn 11, and was taken to the medical center for checks.
Locatelli was sixth, after a late pass on Bassani.
Lowes would have been sixth but for a long lap penalty that saw him lose two places very close to the end of the hot 21-lap race.
Redding was ninth and Loris Baz (Bonovo Action BMW) 10th. Gerloff crashed out early in the race.
In the championship points, Bautista has 220, Rea 184, Razgatlioglu 141, Locatelli 108, Lecuona 99, Rinaldi 92 and Lowes 75.
– Gordon Ritchie
FIM WorldSBK Championship
Pirelli Emilia-Romagna
Misano Circuit
RESULTS (June 11-12)
WorldSBK Race 1
| 1. |
Alvaro Bautista |
(Duc) |
| 2. |
Jonathan Rea |
(Kaw) |
| 3. |
Michael Rinaldi |
(Duc) |
| 4. |
Axel Bassani |
(Duc) |
| 5. |
Alex Lowes |
(Kaw) |
| 6. |
Andrea Locatelli |
(Yam) |
| 7. |
Xavi Vierge |
(Hon) |
| 8. |
Garrett Gerloff |
(Yam) |
| 9. |
Iker Lucuona |
(Hon) |
| 10. |
Scott Redding |
(BMW) |
WorldSBK Superpole
| 1. |
Toprak Razgatlioglu |
(Yam) |
| 2. |
Alvaro Bautista |
(Duc) |
| 3. |
Jonathan Rea |
(Kaw) |
| 4. |
Xavi Vierge |
(Hon) |
| 5. |
Iker Lucuona |
(Hon) |
| 6. |
Andrea Locatelli |
(Yam) |
| 7. |
Axel Bassani |
(Duc) |
| 8. |
Alex Lowes |
(Kaw) |
| 9. |
Garrett Gerloff |
(Yam) |
| 10. |
Michael Rinaldi |
(Duc) |
WorldSBK Race 2
| 1. |
Alvaro Bautista |
(Duc) |
| 2. |
Toprak Razgatlioglu |
(Yam) |
| 3. |
Michael Rinaldi |
(Duc) |
| 4. |
Jonathan Rea |
(Kaw) |
| 5. |
Iker Lucuona |
(Hon) |
| 6. |
Andrea Locatelli |
(Yam) |
| 7. |
Axel Bassani |
(Duc) |
| 8. |
Alex Lowes |
(Kaw) |
| 9. |
Scott Reading |
(BMW) |
| 10. |
Loris Baz |
(BMW) |
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