#CatalanWorldSBK – Day 3 roundup: World Superbike, World Supersport, World SSP300

 In News, World Superbikes

World Superbike

Race 2 from MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship’s was full of drama and intrigue at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya as Chaz Davies (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) claimed his first win of the 2020 season and became the seventh different winner in 2020, while American rookie Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Junior Team) claimed his maiden World Superbike podium at the Acerbis Catalunya Round.

Davies was able to get to the front in the early stages of the races before taking the lead and controlling the race, withstanding pressure from Tissot Superpole Race winner Michael van der Mark (PATA YAMAHA WorldSBK Official Team) after the pair passed each other in the first half of the race. Van der Mark then fell into the clutches of Gerloff after the American made a sensational start from fifth place to run in the top three, putting pressure on van der Mark all race.

Gerloff passed van der Mark for second place on the last lap but a mistake from Gerloff on Lap 10 allowed the Dutchman through for second; Gerloff coming home in third place. Davies held on to win his 31st race in his career, equalling Colin Edwards on the all-time list of winners. Gerloff’s podium means he becomes the first American to stand on the WorldSBK podium since Nicky Hayden in 2016.

Championship leader Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) extended his lead at the top of the standings with fourth place, finishing five seconds clear of Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team). Scott Redding (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) finished in sixth place after being passed by Sykes with just a couple of laps to go. Rea had lost ground at the start, but was able to regroup to finish in fourth place and take a 51 point lead into the next round at Magny-Cours.

Eugene Laverty (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) secured his best result of the season with seventh place as he showed more impressive pace, ahead of Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) in eighth. Leon Haslam (Team HRC) was the sole Honda rider in Race 2 and finished in ninth, with Loris Baz (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) in tenth after losing lots of ground at Turn 1 at the start.

Jonas Folger’s (Bonovo Action by MGM Racing) impressive wildcard weekend continued as he battled his way from the back of the grid to 11th place; Folger not setting a time in Tissot Superpole and missing out on a top nine starting grid for Race 2 by the smallest of margins. Federico Caricasulo (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Junior Team) was 12th after starting from the back of the grid; Caricasulo penalised for irresponsible riding in the Superpole Race after a collision with Haslam

Lorenzo Zanetti (Motocorsa Racing) scored points after being called up to the Championship on Friday evening with 13th place while Takumi Takahashi (MIE Racing HONDA Team) and Xavi Fores (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) completed the points-scoring positions.

Alvaro Bautista (Team HRC) did not start the race following a technical issue on the sighting lap; the Spanish rider, who was declared fit following his dramatic highside crash in the Tissot Superpole Race, pulling off the track shortly after leaving the pit lane. Samuele Cavalieri (Barni Racing Team) crashed out in the early stages, while Sylvain Barrier (Brixx Performance) and Valentin Debise (OUTDO Kawasaki TPR) had a coming together on Lap 17 while battling for 15th place. Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Team GOELEVEN), who had been running in the top four for the majority of the race, had a technical issue in the latter stages of the race forcing him to retire from the race on Lap 19.

World Supersport

A fightback in the race after a poor start allowed Andrea Locatelli (BARDAHL Evan Bros. WorldSSP Team) to be crowned World Champion in the 2020 FIM Supersport World Championship after battling his way from fifth to the front of the field at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya for the first ever Acerbis Catalunya Round.

Locatelli had started from pole position but found himself down in fifth place after the opening handful of laps with Locatelli not taking risks in the early stages, despite falling behind Lucas Mahias (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing). It would take until Lap 5 for Locatelli to start making moves, first passing Raffaele de Rosa (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) into Turn 1 before he passed Corentin Perolari (GMT94 Yamaha) a lap later.

The title-winning move came on Lap 9 as he made a move on both Mahias and Philipp Oettl (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing); Locatelli forcing Mahias wide and onto the run-off between Turns 1 and 2 although Oettl was able to pass Locatelli shortly after. Locatelli then extended his gap at the front to just over two seconds as he secured victory and the World Championship.

Mahias finished the race in second place, meaning Yamaha secured the Manufacturers’ Championship with Mahias finishing second onboard his Kawasaki. Mahias was joined by teammate Oettl on the podium, with Mahias getting past Oettl with a handful of laps to go but unable to close the gap to Locatelli.

De Rosa secured a fourth placed finish, less than a second away from the podium, with Steven Odendaal (EAB Ten Kate Racing) in fifth, his first top five since Portimao Race 2 as the South African continues to impress in WorldSSP. Isaac Viñales (Kallio Racing) finished in sixth place, finishing ahead of Manuel Gonzalez (Kawasaki ParkinGO Team); the 2019 WorldSSP300 Champion penalised three seconds for track limits infringements.

Perolari fell down the order in the latter stages of the race to finish in eighth place with Danny Webb (WRP Wepol Racing) in ninth; the British rider securing another top ten finish – his fifth in the last six races. Estonian Hannes Soomer (Kallio Racing) completed the top ten, finished just over a second behind Webb.

Peter Sebestyen (OXXO Yamaha Team Toth) just missed out on a top ten finish with 11th place with Axel Bassani (Soradis Yamaha Motoxracing) in 12th place; the highest placed WorldSSP Challenge rider as he finished less than a tenth ahead of WorldSSP Challenge rider Kevin Manfredi (Altogoo Racing Team) in 13th. Race 1 winner Andy Verdoïa (bLU cRU WorldSSP by MS Racing) finished in 14th place as Loris Cresson (OXXO Yamaha Team Toth) completed the points.

There was a collision on the run down to Turn 1 at the start between Can Öncü (Turkish Racing Team) and Patrick Hobelsberger (Dynavolt Honda) with Hobelsberger taken to the medical centre for a check-up before being diagnosed with a left hip contusion and suspected pelvic injury. He will be transferred to hospital for further assessments. Galang Hendra Pratama (bLU cRU WorldSSP by MS Racing) crashed on Lap 2 of the race while Kyle Smith (GMT94 Yamaha) and teammate Oscar Gutierrez came together on the same lap; all three riders retiring from the race.

World SSP300

The drama went to the final corner on the last lap in FIM Supersport 300 World Championship as the Championship visited the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya for the first time with Yuta Okaya (MTM Kawasaki MOTOPORT) claiming his and Japan’s first victory in WorldSSP300 during the Acerbis Catalunya Round.

A Turn 10 collision between Unai Orradre (Yamaha MS Racing), Bahattin Sofuoglu (Biblion Motoxracing Yamaha WorldSSP300) and long-time race leader Tom Booth-Amos (RT Motorsports by SKM-Kawasaki) separated out the front group meaning Okaya was able to claim victory. Orradre was able to continue in the race but finished in 26th place while Sofuoglu came home in tenth as Booth-Amos retired.

Okaya had been running at the front throughout on the 10-lap race and made the race-winning move on the last lap to claim the stunning victory, heading off teammates Scott Deroue and Jeffrey Buis as MTM Kawasaki MOTOPORT claimed a podium lockout during Race 2; with Deroue closing in on Buis in the Championship standings. Deroue had to come through the Last Chance Race to make the main races and battled his way through the grid to get to the podium in Race 2 as he showed strong pace throughout.

Koen Meuffels (MTM Kawasaki MOTOPORT) continued the team’s success as he finished in fourth place, the team claiming a 1-2-3-4 finish. Meikon Kawakami (Team Brasil AD 78) finished the race in fifth place as the highest-placed Yamaha rider, finishing just over a tenth away from a podium finish. Inigo Iglesias Bravo (Scuderia Maranga Racing) secured a top six finished; under a tenth away from Kawakami.

Hugo de Cancellis (Team TRASIMENO) was another who fought his way through the Last Chance Race to secure a seventh place finish, just ahead of Ukrainian rider Nick Kalinin (Battley-RT Motorsports by SKM-Kawasaki) in eighth, Adrian Huertas (ProGP Racing) in ninth and Sofuoglu finishing in tenth despite the last-lap crash.

Race 1 podium finisher Samuel di Sora (Leader Team Flembbo) finished in 11th place as he scored more points in Barcelona, with Daniel Mogeda (OUTDO Kawasaki TPR) in 12th, Mika Perez (2R Racing) in 13th, with wildcard Angel Heredia (DEZA-ISMABON Racing Team) and Paolo Grassia (Team CHIODO Moto Racing), who started from the front row, completing the points-scoring positions.

There was a five-rider incident at Turn 10 on Lap 2 of the 10-lap race with Alejandro Carrion (Smrz Racing – Willi Race), Johan Gimbert (GP Project), Kevin Sabatucci (Kawasaki GP Project), Kim Aloisi (ProGP Racing) and Ton Kawakami (Yamaha MS Racing) with Aloisi and Kawakami able to continue in the race. Filippo Rovelli (Kawasaki ParkinGO Team) also did not finish the race, while Bruno Ieraci (Kawasaki GP Project) crashed out on the final lap.

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