Live blog for WorldSBK Saturday in Estoril
On the first day, like in Aragon the weekend before, Jonathan Rea was surprisingly cautious for his circumstances. This was no surprise in particular because the Circuito do Estoril is the track on which he made two mistakes within two days at the season finale last year. The reigning world champion is not considered one of the most intelligent of all drivers for nothing, because he usually only risks a lot if it pays off. On Friday, however, there is nothing to win in the WSBK, the sausage will only be on the agenda later on Saturday morning, when the starting grid will be contested in the Superpole. And that’s exactly what we’re standing in front of.
Rider voices before Saturday
In addition to the world championship leader, his team-mate Alex Lowes was also very confident before the first race. The Englishman stated that he was feeling much better than last October and that he was in good spirits for Saturday. The two BMW works drivers also have hope for this, even if Sykes had to accept a fall and this time van der Mark suffered a technical problem in his place against Aragon. By the way, Toprak Razgatlioglu didn’t knock such big slogans in front of our eyes and ears on Friday, as some relevant portals claim. The fact that he should have said that he would like to win all three races at once doesn’t look like the humble Turk at all. According to the official statement, he is looking forward to the race and looks forward to it positively, but nothing more.
The third free practice on Saturday
It was driven much faster than on the first day and suddenly the Toprak, considered by many to be a top favorite, can only be found on P10. Perhaps at some point some should learn from this not to always praise the day before the evening. In addition, the Superpole is about the sausage, i.e. the starting grid and points can only be won in the first race in the afternoon.
P, No, Rider, Bike, Time(,Gap), km/h
1, 45, REDDING Scott, Ducati Panigale V4 R, 1’36.389, , 322
2, 31, GERLOFF Garrett, Yamaha YZF R1, 1’36.509, +0.120, 319
3, 1, REA Jonathan, Kawasaki ZX-10RR, 1’36.591, +0.202, 324
4, 22, LOWES Alex, Kawasaki ZX-10RR, 1’36.686, +0.297, 321
5, 21, RINALDI Michael Ruben, Ducati Panigale V4 R, 1’37.214, +0.825, 320
6, 7, DAVIES Chaz, Ducati Panigale V4 R, 1’37.259, +0.870, 319
7, 66, SYKES Tom, BMW M 1000 RR, 1’37.281, +0.892, 318
8, 55, LOCATELLI Andrea, Yamaha YZF R1, 1’37.362, +0.973, 319
9, 53, RABAT Tito, Ducati Panigale V4 R, 1’37.416, 1.027, 325
10, 54, RAZGATLIOGLU Toprak, Yamaha YZF R1, 1’37.416, 1.027, 320
11, 50, LAVERTY Eugene, BMW M 1000 RR, 1’37.486, 1.097, 320
12, 94, FOLGER Jonas, BMW M 1000 RR, 1’37.660, 1.271, 318
13, 44, MAHIAS Lucas, Kawasaki ZX-10RR, 1’37.770, 1.381, 311
14, 19, BAUTISTA Alvaro, Honda CBR1000 RR-R, 1’37.797, 1.408, 324
15, 91, HASLAM Leon, Honda CBR1000 RR-R, 1’37.858, 1.469, 321
16, 60, VAN DER MARK Michael, BMW M 1000 RR, 1’37.945, 1.556, 319
17, 47, BASSANI Axel, Ducati Panigale V4 R, 1’37.977, 1.588, 320
18, 32, VINALES Isaac, Kawasaki ZX-10RR, 1’38.853, 2.464, 314
19, 3, NOZANE Kohta, Yamaha YZF R1, 1’38.917, 2.528, 315
20, 23, PONSSON Christophe, Yamaha YZF R1, 1’39.749, 3.360, 313
21, 76, CAVALIERI Samuele, Kawasaki ZX-10RR, 1’40.620, 4.231, 305
22, 84, CRESSON Loris, Kawasaki ZX-10RR, 1’40.715, 4.326, 309
The Superpole of the WorldSSP
The riders are on the track and in a little over a quarter of an hour we know the starting grid of the WorldSSP 600, while the smallest class has a break in Estoril. With three minutes to go, Caricasulo is ahead of Öttl, Cluzel, Odendaal and Aegerter. Randy Krummenacher, on the other hand, can only be found on P10 and Niki Tuuli is only eighth. Time is up and Caricasulo is on pole position. Behind Öttl, Odendaal, Cluzel, Aegerter, De Rosa and Tuuli. Krummi only on starting position 11.
P, No, Rider, Bike, Time(,Gap), km/h
1, 94, CARICASULO Federico, Yamaha YZF R6, 1’39.973, , 281
2, 5, OETTL Philipp, Kawasaki ZX-6R, 1’40.094, +0.121, 283
3, 4, ODENDAAL Steven, Yamaha YZF R6, 1’40.184, +0.211, 282
4, 16, CLUZEL Jules, Yamaha YZF R6, 1’40.219, +0.246, 283
5, 77, AEGERTER Dominique, Yamaha YZF R6, 1’40.291, +0.318, 281
6, 3, DE ROSA Raffaele, Kawasaki ZX-6R, 1’40.458, +0.485, 280
7, 66, TUULI Niki, MV Agusta F3 675, 1’40.554, +0.581, 284
8, 38, SOOMER Hannes, Yamaha YZF R6, 1’40.567, +0.594, 282
9, 29, BERNARDI Luca, Yamaha YZF R6, 1’40.664, +0.691, 283
10, 81, GONZALEZ Manuel, Yamaha YZF R6, 1’40.772, +0.799, 282
11, 21, KRUMMENACHER Randy, Yamaha YZF R6, 1’41.040, 1.067, 281
12, 61, ONCU Can Alexander, Kawasaki ZX-6R, 1’41.331, 1.358, 285
13, 34, MANFREDI Kevin, Yamaha YZF R6, 1’41.550, 1.577, 272
14, 71, BERGMAN Christoffer, Yamaha YZF R6, 1’41.556, 1.583, 278
15, 70, ALCOBA Marc, Yamaha YZF R6, 1’41.596, 1.623, 279
16, 84, FABRIZIO Michel, Kawasaki ZX-6R, 1’41.678, 1.705, 279
17, 22, FULIGNI Federico, Yamaha YZF R6, 1’42.036, 2.063, 278
18, 23, PIZZOLI Davide, Yamaha YZF R6, 1’42.067, 2.094, 279
19, 42, FROSSARD Stephane, Yamaha YZF R6, 1’42.106, 2.133, 277
20, 95, TAKALA Vertti, Yamaha YZF R6, 1’42.296, 2.323, 280
21, 55, HENDRA PRATAMA Galang, Yamaha YZF R6, 1’42.675, 2.702, 281
22, 24, TACCINI Leonardo, Kawasaki ZX-6R, 1’42.779, 2.806, 276
23, 6, HERRERA Maria, Yamaha YZF R6, 1’42.831, 2.858, 276
24, 2, MONTELLA Luigi, Yamaha YZF R6, 1’42.994, 3.021, 273
25, 15, MCMANUS Eugene James, Yamaha YZF R6, 1’43.350, 3.377, 276
26, 19, SZKOPEK Pawel, Yamaha YZF R6, 1’43.681, 3.708, 271
27, 45, KAWASAKI Shogo, Kawasaki ZX-6R, 1’44.652, 4.679, 282
First interviews
Steven Odendaal had hoped to make it to the front row, but it wasn’t easy, as he protested in front of the microphone. Now he is happy to be able to start from the front row, and he is hoping for a podium in the first race. Philipp Öttl is also very satisfied despite a few mistakes he made. With second place on the grid, he is now hoping for two good races on Saturday and Sunday afternoon. Federico Caricasulo is of course very satisfied after his first Superpole, the ninth of his career. He worked a lot on the Race pace with his team, as he said on the record and of course he was very happy with the result. As a pole sitter, he will start the race as the favourite for the first time of the season in the afternoon.
The Superpole of the WorldSBK
The riders are on the track and we are curious whether Alvaro Bautista will at least this time sit on the HRC Honda after 3 falls on Friday. Jonathan Rea drove the first fastest time, before Toprak was 0.222 seconds faster shortly thereafter. However, the time of the Turk is cancelled shortly afterwards due to the exceeding of the track limits and now, after a short best time from Lowes before Redding, Johnny Rea is again leading. There are still a good 9 minutes on the clock. Lucas Mahias set the second-best time for the time being in the shadow of Rea, but the Northern Irishman spotted the French behind him and took off the gas on the lap that followed. Behind on P3 Gerloff in front of Lowes, Redding, Laverty and Rinaldi. After everyone was in the pits, it is now time for the last attack for the best time for everyone. Redding sets a new absolute best when there are still three and a half minutes on the clock. After 28 pole positions in his career with the one at the season opener, this time it’s number 29. Redding and Lowes complete the front row. Behind Toprak, Gerloff, Sykes, Rinaldi, Laverty and Mahias. Only on P13 is Folger ahead of van der Mark, Haslam and Davies.
P, No, Rider, Bike, Time(,Gap), km/h
1, 1, REA Jonathan, Kawasaki ZX-10RR, 1’35.876, , 320
2, 45, REDDING Scott, Ducati Panigale V4 R, 1’36.047, +0.171, 324
3, 22, LOWES Alex, Kawasaki ZX-10RR, 1’36.054, +0.178, 321
4, 54, RAZGATLIOGLU Toprak, Yamaha YZF R1, 1’36.164, +0.288, 318
5, 31, GERLOFF Garrett, Yamaha YZF R1, 1’36.350, +0.474, 318
6, 66, SYKES Tom, BMW M 1000 RR, 1’36.369, +0.493, 318
7, 21, RINALDI Michael Ruben, Ducati Panigale V4 R, 1’36.532, +0.656, 321
8, 50, LAVERTY Eugene, BMW M 1000 RR, 1’36.604, +0.728, 321
9, 44, MAHIAS Lucas, Kawasaki ZX-10RR, 1’36.863, +0.987, 314
10, 53, RABAT Tito, Ducati Panigale V4 R, 1’36.892, 1.016, 325
11, 55, LOCATELLI Andrea, Yamaha YZF R1, 1’37.031, 1.155, 321
12, 19, BAUTISTA Alvaro, Honda CBR1000 RR-R, 1’37.032, 1.156, 326
13, 94, FOLGER Jonas, BMW M 1000 RR, 1’37.128, 1.252, 320
14, 60, VAN DER MARK Michael, BMW M 1000 RR, 1’37.193, 1.317, 320
15, 91, HASLAM Leon, Honda CBR1000 RR-R, 1’37.399, 1.523, 326
16, 7, DAVIES Chaz, Ducati Panigale V4 R, 1’37.422, 1.546, 320
17, 47, BASSANI Axel, Ducati Panigale V4 R, 1’37.501, 1.625, 321
18, 3, NOZANE Kohta, Yamaha YZF R1, 1’37.611, 1.735, 316
19, 32, VINALES Isaac, Kawasaki ZX-10RR, 1’38.512, 2.636, 316
20, 23, PONSSON Christophe, Yamaha YZF R1, 1’38.854, 2.978, 317
21, 84, CRESSON Loris, Kawasaki ZX-10RR, 1’40.008, 4.132, 313
22, 76, CAVALIERI Samuele, Kawasaki ZX-10RR, 1’40.288, 4.412, 304
The first interviews after the Superpole
Alex Lowes is very surprised that it went so well in the end. At first, he had some instability with his bike, but now he’s obviously very happy with row 1 and is looking forward to the races. Redding spoke of quite a bit of wind, but all in all he is very satisfied and after starting from the back last year, P2 is of course excellent. He’s looking forward to hopefully consistent races, the first of which will be in a few hours. Pole sitter Johnny Rea felt very good and is of course absolutely satisfied, even if the conditions were very different. But starting from the very beginning is of course a perfect start for the first race of the weekend at 2 p.m. local time (synonymous with GMT).
The first race of WorldSBK
It was quite surprising at what modest starting position Jonas Folger (P13) ended up in front of Michael van der Mark (both BMW), Leon Haslam (HRC Honda) and Chaz Davies (GoEleven Ducati) in the Superpole. After the warm-up lap it starts. After a slight slide in Turn 1, Rea has to be content with P3 behind Redding and Toprak. Behind him Rinaldi and Mahias. A little later, Rinaldi passes Rea, while in the front Redding and Toprak have a slight lead over the duo behind. In turn 1, the reigning world champion grabs the Italian again and tries to get closer to the two leaders. Lowes is now on P5, ahead of Gerloff, Laverty and Mahias, followed by BMW works drivers van der Mark and Sykes. Rea is just over a second behind leading Redding, but Toprak is not far ahead of him in P2 either. Mahias fell back to P10 and was pushed out of the top 10 by Rabat shortly afterwards. Behind the French Bautista, Sykes and Locatelli.
After the first third of the race
Cavalieri fell at Turn 7 and Toprak is back at the leader, while Rea is now almost 2 seconds behind. Laverty has just crashed into Turn 4. The next crashed one at Turn 7 is Alex Lowes, who is lying on the ground and there are dark faces in his box. It looks like Rea can get a little closer on the SC0 tire than there are 11 laps left to do. The two in front of him use the softer mixture, as was heard shortly after the start. Davies is now on P6 behind Rinaldi and Gerloff, behind him van der Mark, Bautista, Rabat and Locatelli. Rea gets closer and closer to the leadership duo and soon a trio forms at the top together with Redding and Toprak.
The last third of the race begins
When there are still 7 of 21 laps to be driven, the order in the top ten has not changed. Rea isn’t quite up to the two in front of him yet, but it’s only a little over half a second. Always in the first sector the world championship leader loses something to the two Redding and Razgatlioglu in front of him, but with 5 laps to go he is not far behind. Rinaldi has now got company from Gerloff. Now the first three are close together when the fourth to last lap begins. Gerloff is now on P4 and is past Rinaldi, while a battle for victory begins at the front, in which Rea almost passed Toprak at the start-finish. Redding looks safe on P1, while Toprak seems to be holding the Kawasaki drivers back a little while there are still 2 laps to go. As they move into the final round, it looks like a sure win for Redding, while Rea is held up again by Toprak when he was almost over.
The race is over
Redding wins ahead of Toprak and Rea, who couldn’t get past the Turk. Gerloff came fourth ahead of Rinaldi, Davies, van der Mark, Bautista, Rabat and “Loca”. World Cup leader remains Rea, ahead of Redding and Razgatlioglu. The losers are primarily BMW and Honda, with only one driver each in the top ten, but neither in the top six.
P, No, Rider, Bike, Time(,Gap), km/h
1, 45, REDDING Scott, Ducati Panigale V4 R, , , 321
2, 54, RAZGATLIOGLU Toprak, Yamaha YZF R1, 0.877, +0.877, 318
3, 1, REA Jonathan, Kawasaki ZX-10RR, 0.915, +0.038, 323
4, 31, GERLOFF Garrett, Yamaha YZF R1, 9.518, 8.603, 320
5, 21, RINALDI Michael Ruben, Ducati Panigale V4 R, 13.636, 4.118, 324
6, 7, DAVIES Chaz, Ducati Panigale V4 R, 17.177, 3.541, 322
7, 60, VAN DER MARK Michael, BMW M 1000 RR, 19.316, 2.139, 319
8, 19, BAUTISTA Alvaro, Honda CBR1000 RR-R, 20.185, +0.869, 324
9, 53, RABAT Tito, Ducati Panigale V4 R, 25.625, 5.440, 326
10, 55, LOCATELLI Andrea, Yamaha YZF R1, 27.772, 2.147, 319
11, 47, BASSANI Axel, Ducati Panigale V4 R, 30.349, 2.577, 320
12, 91, HASLAM Leon, Honda CBR1000 RR-R, 35.722, 5.373, 324
13, 44, MAHIAS Lucas, Kawasaki ZX-10RR, 35.885, +0.163, 313
14, 66, SYKES Tom, BMW M 1000 RR, 36.887, 1.002, 320
15, 3, NOZANE Kohta, Yamaha YZF R1, 45.434, 8.547, 318
16, 94, FOLGER Jonas, BMW M 1000 RR, 46.472, 1.038, 320
17, 32, VINALES Isaac, Kawasaki ZX-10RR, 51.132, 4.660, 310
18, 50, LAVERTY Eugene, BMW M 1000 RR, > 1′, 18.756, 324
19, 22, LOWES Alex, Kawasaki ZX-10RR, > 1′, +0.015, 320
20, 84, CRESSON Loris, Kawasaki ZX-10RR, > 1′, 16.783, 311
RT, 23, PONSSON Christophe, Yamaha YZF R1, , , 314
RT, 76, CAVALIERI Samuele, Kawasaki ZX-10RR, , , 307
The first interviews after the Race
It wasn’t easy, this time I had to try to just finish. I’ve never been on the podium here, so it’s a success. We’ll still have to optimize a few small things, and then I’m confident for Sunday, said Jonathan Rea after his third place. Toprak was very happy with his start, but in the second sector he kept losing to the winner. Towards the end he had quite a drop with the tires and still he is happy with P2. But on Sunday he wants to try to win again. Redding was feeling very good, but as he said on record, he didn’t have a lot of trust at times. Nevertheless, he probably made the right decision with his choice of the softer SCX tire, but he probably wanted to try the harder SC0 on Sunday.
The WorldSSP 600 Race
After the start, Odendaal leads in front of Caricasulo, Öttl and Cluzel, while Niki Tuuli only leaves the pit lane due to his punishment from Aragon. At the end of the home stretch, the German passed the Italian and is now behind the South African in P2. After 2 of 18 laps nothing has changed at the front and behind Cluzel is Gonzalez in P5, ahead of Aegerter, De Rosa and Soomer. The latter then increased two places and fell back to P9, while Krummenacher was only twelfth. On lap three Öttl takes the lead and Cluzel attacks Caricasulo, but cannot get past the Italian. The first 6 drivers are close together and also Raffaele De Rosa, who is on P7, is not far behind, with Luca Bernardi behind him. Caricasulo has just fallen and the fight for the top is over for him. The 2019 vice world champion had a similarly bad start to the season as his former conqueror and teammate Randy Krummenacher, who was only on P11.
The second half of the race
Tuuli has meanwhile reached position 21 and still has the chance to get into the points in the last 7 laps. The group of 6 at the top has decreased to five after Caricasulo’s fall and Öttl is still leading ahead of Odendaal and Cluzel. Behind now Aegerter in front of Gonzalez with a slight residue. Each of the top 5 drivers has a chance of victory, while De Rosa on P6 tries desperately to close the gap of around 1.5 seconds in front of him. The German, who is still at the top, has never won, but was third on the podium in his 2020 rookie year when he finished third. Tuuli is already on P14 and the Finn may even have a chance of making the top ten, as strong as his lap times are.
The last third of the race
Can Öncü stopped with his Kawasaki, everything points to a technical problem. Aegerter puts pressure on the third Jules Cluzel in front of him and manages to pass the French in turn 1. But a little later the man with the number 16 is again in position 3 and all five drivers are still in question for victory 4 laps before the end from the leading group. In the third to last lap, Öttl is still in the lead ahead of Odendaal and Cluzel. De Rosa will certainly not make it into the first 5 on his own. Now Odendaal has taken over the command again and Öttl is second at the start-finish, but grabs the South African again in front of Turn 1 when there are still 2 laps to go. When the top group goes into the last lap, it looks like a duel between Öttl and Odendaal, while the South African takes the lead and Aegerter to Cluzel behind.
The race is over
The winner is Odendaal ahead of Öttl and Aegerter was overtaken by Cluzel before the chequered flag. Tuuli made it to 11th place in the end and is one of the candidates for the top 5 on Sunday, provided he stays seated. Krummenacher still makes it into the top ten with P9, but the 2019 world champion from Switzerland does not seem to play a role in the fight for this year’s title.
P, No, Rider, Bike, Time(,Gap), km/h
1, 4, ODENDAAL Steven, Yamaha YZF R6, , , 283
2, 5, OETTL Philipp, Kawasaki ZX-6R, 0.350, +0.350, 281
3, 16, CLUZEL Jules, Yamaha YZF R6, 0.750, +0.400, 284
4, 77, AEGERTER Dominique, Yamaha YZF R6, 0.765, +0.015, 286
5, 81, GONZALEZ Manuel, Yamaha YZF R6, 1.023, +0.258, 282
6, 3, DE ROSA Raffaele, Kawasaki ZX-6R, 4.519, 3.496, 280
7, 29, BERNARDI Luca, Yamaha YZF R6, 7.442, 2.923, 285
8, 38, SOOMER Hannes, Yamaha YZF R6, 9.624, 2.182, 280
9, 21, KRUMMENACHER Randy, Yamaha YZF R6, 11.696, 2.072, 282
10, 71, BERGMAN Christoffer, Yamaha YZF R6, 19.197, 7.501, 282
11, 66, TUULI Niki, MV Agusta F3 675, 23.673, 4.476, 278
12, 94, CARICASULO Federico, Yamaha YZF R6, 28.832, 5.159, 285
13, 70, ALCOBA Marc, Yamaha YZF R6, 30.330, 1.498, 279
14, 42, FROSSARD Stephane, Yamaha YZF R6, 34.147, 3.817, 281
15, 23, PIZZOLI Davide, Yamaha YZF R6, 34.269, +0.122, 280
16, 84, FABRIZIO Michel, Kawasaki ZX-6R, 34.544, +0.275, 283
17, 95, TAKALA Vertti, Yamaha YZF R6, 35.970, 1.426, 283
18, 24, TACCINI Leonardo, Kawasaki ZX-6R, 36.922, +0.952, 282
19, 6, HERRERA Maria, Yamaha YZF R6, 36.927, +0.005, 279
20, 55, HENDRA PRATAMA Galang, Yamaha YZF R6, 37.898, +0.971, 283
21, 2, MONTELLA Luigi, Yamaha YZF R6, 57.290, 19.392, 280
22, 15, MCMANUS Eugene James, Yamaha YZF R6, 59.529, 2.239, 278
23, 19, SZKOPEK Pawel, Yamaha YZF R6, > 1′, 10.332, 271
24, 45, KAWASAKI Shogo, Kawasaki ZX-6R, > 1′, 12.239, 277
RT, 34, MANFREDI Kevin, Yamaha YZF R6, , , 272
RT, 61, ONCU Can Alexander, Kawasaki ZX-6R, , , 283
The first Interviews after the race
Cluzel says it went a little better, but it was a fierce fight with Domi Aegerter towards the end. He will try everything to do even better on Sunday than third in the first race. Öttl is satisfied with second place for the time being and also with his pace. He had tried to control the race from the front, but unfortunately that didn’t work out for him. Tomorrow he wanted to try again, and he was away from the microphone. Winner Steven Odendaal is of course overjoyed after his hat trick. It was anything but easy, but he thanks him for the work of his team and despite shoulder problems it would have been enough.
This live blog is closed now, and we will continue with a new one tomorrow.
Stand in the WorldSBK and WSSP 600 world championships
Circuito do Estoril
The combined schedule of Mugello MotoGP and WorldSBK Estoril
Unless otherwise mentioned, applies to all images (© WorldSBK).
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