The riders of the WorldSSP 600 in the group picture – most of them rode their bikes for the first time at all or at least never at all in Motorland Aragon for their current team.

Review of the first day of the WSBK season opener

Shortly after the FIM trampled the rules of fairness with their unequal treatment of BMW and Kawasaki with their unequal treatment of BMW and Kawasaki when setting the new maximum revs, just two days before the first free practice session, it finally took to the track on Friday in Aragon. Of course, everyone was curious to see if and how well the Kawasaki’s could keep up with their opponents despite their handicap. The question of the BMW M-1000RR was also open in terms of its competitiveness. In fact, at the tests in Aragon two weeks earlier, it hadn’t looked promising for their drivers. That’s why everyone was excited about the first training sessions.

Presentation of the WorldSBK before the first weekend of the belatedly beginning season in Motorland Aragon with in the middle and number 1 the reigning and 6-time world champion Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki ZX-10RR). Unfortunately, only 3 days before the start, the FIM caused a veritable scandal when it came to setting the maximum engine speed. On the left in the picture the drivers on the BMW, which is clearly preferred together with Ducati and Honda.

The first laps
In FP1 it was initially Johnny Rea and Alex Lowes who dictated the pace, but of course it wasn’t about chasing the best times. Rather, it was primarily important for all drivers to find a good racing setup under the current conditions. Only shortly before the end of the first free practice session did some drivers like Toprak, Garrett, Chaz and Michael Ruben attack and make it into the top five. Tom Sykes, on the other hand, was already sitting comfortably in the BMW box after his seventh-best time in the end, indulging in a refreshing sip. The most important thing on the first laps was that there were no injuries and that the riders in the back third were able to get used to their bikes, some of which were completely new.

Alex Lowes (Kawasaki ZX-10RR) was the man who set the tone for a good half of the first free practice. Just ahead of his team-mate Jonathan Rea, he led for a long time, until in the end some competitors were still on the hunt for a quick time. However, like the Northern Irishman, the Lincoln man renounced it (© Kawasaki Racing Team).

Most of the “handicapped” did well
Believe it or not, Lucas Mahias, as WSSP vice world champion, sat in Aragon for the second time a week after Misano on the new Kawasaki. His deficit of 2.338 seconds on Razgatlioglu’s best time to date was more than respectable under these circumstances. Just like Isaac Viñales, who is just in front of him. Leandro Mercado, Samuele Cavalieri and Loris Cresson, on the other hand, had a lot more trouble in the beginning. But this was to be expected for those “handicapped” due to inadequate preparation. Eugene Laverty should actually also be counted among the handicapped, as he did not go out on the track until halfway through FP1 and was still less than one and a half seconds behind the fastest time. The Northern Irishman is only sitting on his BMW M-1000RR for the second time, you have to consider.

The first heavy take-off of the day came from Michael van der Mark, the BMW newcomer. His M-1000RR was still smoking and was lying on the tire wall behind it when the man from Gouda in the Netherlands got up in the gravel to check on his bike. It happened after almost 10 minutes in the second free practice and then red flags came.

When the tension rose in FP2
It was the reigning world champion who made the best use of the first 10 minutes, as proven by his time of 1’50.690. Behind Jonathan Rea, Bautista was ahead of Lowes, Bassani, Redding, Toprak and Davies when the red flags came. After van der Mark’s crash in Turn 8, the marshals had to do some work before the second free practice session could be continued. In the end, Chaz Davies was the fastest on the GoEleven Ducati, but with a time that was significantly higher than that of Toprak in the morning. The BMW drivers were noticeably far behind and, not entirely unexpected, the two HRC Honda’s with Bautista and Haslam were far ahead. There were hardly any surprises, except for perhaps Axel Bassani on P9. The rookie at the Motocorsa Ducati showed an impressively strong performance. It won’t be until Saturday whether the followers and BMW fans have to worry. In any case, 19th place is not what many expected from the German after Day 1.

Leon Haslam in the HRC Honda box – he and the Fireblade CBR-1000RR-R SP are there, as expected, as is his team-mate Alvaro Bautista. If it continues like this on Saturday, the two will be among the candidates for the podium.

WorldSBK’s first day in numbers

With Toprak, a Yamaha is ahead of a Ducati and another Yamaha with Gerloff, but that doesn’t mean anything after the first day. Unlike in MotoGP, for example, the times on Friday in the WSBK have no influence at all on the outcome of the Superpole and thus the race. That’s why it gets really exciting for the first time on Saturday morning at 11 a.m. local time when it comes to the starting grid. We are almost certain that exactly then there will be numerous shifts compared to the following ranking list.

P, No, Rider, Nat, Team, Bike, Time FP1, FP2, (Gap, previous), Laps, Average, LL
1 54 T. RAZGATLIOGLU TUR Pata Yamaha with BRIXX WorldSBK Yamaha YZF R1 1’49.952 1’51.202 1’49.952 166,229 37
2 7 C. DAVIES GBR Team GoEleven Ducati Panigale V4 R IND 1’50.260 1’50.400 1’50.260 0.308 0.308 165,765 31
3 31 G. GERLOFF USA GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team Yamaha YZF R1 IND 1’50.442 1’51.238 1’50.442 0.490 0.182 165,491 34
4 22 A. LOWES GBR Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK Kawasaki ZX-10RR 1’50.498 1’51.037 1’50.498 0.546 0.056 165,408 33
5 1 J. REA GBR Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK Kawasaki ZX-10RR 1’50.834 1’50.690 1’50.690 0.738 0.192 165,121 28
6 21 M. RINALDI ITA Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Ducati Panigale V4 R 1’50.741 1’51.179 1’50.741 0.789 0.051 165,045 34
7 45 S. REDDING GBR Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Ducati Panigale V4 R 1’51.203 1’50.780 1’50.780 0.828 0.039 164,986 36
8 19 A. BAUTISTA ESP Team HRC Honda CBR1000 RR-R 1’51.049 1’50.814 1’50.814 0.862 0.034 164,936 33
9 66 T. SYKES GBR BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team BMW M 1000 RR 1’50.842 1’52.061 1’50.842 0.890 0.028 164,894 27
10 91 L. HASLAM GBR Team HRC Honda CBR1000 RR-R 1’50.907 1’51.000 1’50.907 0.955 0.065 164,798 29
11 60 M. VAN DER MARK NED BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team BMW M 1000 RR 1’50.966 1’52.377 1’50.966 1.014 0.059 164,710 19
12 47 A. BASSANI ITA Motocorsa Racing Ducati Panigale V4 R IND 1’51.584 1’51.231 1’51.231 1.279 0.265 164,318 37
13 53 T. RABAT ESP Barni Racing Team Ducati Panigale V4 R IND 1’51.245 1’52.306 1’51.245 1.293 0.014 164,297 35
14 94 J. FOLGER GER Bonovo MGM Racing BMW M 1000 RR IND 1’51.285 1’52.492 1’51.285 1.333 0.040 164,238 24
15 3 K. NOZANE JPN GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team Yamaha YZF R1 IND 1’51.376 1’52.238 1’51.376 1.424 0.091 164,104 33
16 50 E. LAVERTY IRL RC Squadra Corse BMW M 1000 RR IND 1’51.428 1’51.981 1’51.428 1.476 0.052 164,027 25
17 55 A. LOCATELLI ITA Pata Yamaha with BRIXX WorldSBK Yamaha YZF R1 1’51.902 1’51.781 1’51.781 1.829 0.353 163,509 38
18 23 C. PONSSON FRA Alstare Yamaha Yamaha YZF R1 IND 1’51.952 1’53.594 1’51.952 2.000 0.171 163,259 29
19 32 I. VINALES ESP Orelac Racing VerdNatura Kawasaki ZX-10RR IND 1’52.139 1’52.099 1’52.099 2.147 0.147 163,045 30
20 44 L. MAHIAS FRA Kawasaki Puccetti Racing Kawasaki ZX-10RR IND 1’52.290 1’52.444 1’52.290 2.338 0.191 162,768 35
21 36 L. MERCADO ARG MIE Racing Honda Racing Honda CBR1000 RR-R IND 1’55.769 1’54.965 1’54.965 5.013 2.675 158,981 20
22 84 L. CRESSON BEL TPR Team Pedercini Racing Kawasaki ZX-10RR IND 1’57.673 1’55.572 1’55.572 5.620 0.607 158,146 25
23 76 S. CAVALIERI ITA TPR Team Pedercini Racing Kawasaki ZX-10RR IND 1’56.076 1’55.741 1’55.741 5.789 0.169 157,915 21

Supersport 600 – most of the favourites at the front

While old master Michel Fabrizio had dared to do a lot before the start of the season, he apparently landed on the ground again on Friday. Already in FP1 he was only twenty-first and in the second free practice, he was looked for among the best in vain. While Randy Krummenacher had missed the entire FP1 with technical problems, it went as expected again in the afternoon. Together with his compatriot Dominique Aegerter, the 2019 world champion can be counted among the favourites for the 2021 season in contrast to the chubby Fabrizio. Even if he wasn’t among the fastest on the first day, Phillipp Öttl is definitely one of them. Likewise, Federico Caricasulo, Niki Tuuli, Jules Cluzel, Steven Odendaal and Raffaele the Pink. Manuel Gonzalez, Federico Fuligni, Hannes Soomer, Luca Bernardi and Christopher Bergman also made a good impression on Friday. On Saturday we will see who will be ahead in Superpole and then in the first race in the afternoon.

Phillipp Öttl (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) – as third in the World Championship, the German is one of the most promising drivers this season. Like some WorldSBK riders, he held back on Friday, but points are only awarded on the second day, so that still has little to say.

WorldSSP 600 in numbers

P, No, Rider, Nat, Team, Bike, Time FP1, FP2, (Gap, previous), Laps, Average, LL
1 66 N. TUULI FIN MV Agusta Corse Clienti MV Agusta F3 675 1’54.394 1’54.997 1’54.394 159,774 34
2 4 S. ODENDAAL RSA Evan Bros. WorldSSP Team Yamaha YZF R6 1’54.467 1’55.330 1’54.467 0.073 0.073 159,672 29
3 5 P. OETTL GER Kawasaki Puccetti Racing Kawasaki ZX-6R 1’54.828 1’55.574 1’54.828 0.434 0.361 159,170 32
4 16 J. CLUZEL FRA GMT94 Yamaha Yamaha YZF R6 1’55.047 1’55.431 1’55.047 0.653 0.219 158,867 33
5 94 F. CARICASULO ITA GMT94 Yamaha Yamaha YZF R6 1’55.081 1’55.657 1’55.081 0.687 0.034 158,820 35
6 77 D. AEGERTER SUI Ten Kate Racing Yamaha Yamaha YZF R6 1’55.330 1’55.683 1’55.330 0.936 0.249 158,477 33
7 71 C. BERGMAN SWE Wojcik Racing Team Yamaha YZF R6 1’55.475 1’55.968 1’55.475 1.081 0.145 158,278 32
8 21 R. KRUMMENACHER SUI EAB Racing Team Yamaha YZF R6 1’55.489 1’55.489 1.095 0.014 158,259 17
9 70 M. ALCOBA ESP Yamaha MS Racing Yamaha YZF R6 1’55.528 1’56.299 1’55.528 1.134 0.039 158,206 26
10 3 R. DE ROSA ITA Orelac Racing VerdNatura Kawasaki ZX-6R 1’55.673 1’55.533 1’55.533 1.139 0.005 158,199 32
11 38 H. SOOMER EST Kallio Racing Yamaha YZF R6 1’55.569 1’55.828 1’55.569 1.175 0.036 158,150 27
12 23 D. PIZZOLI ITA VFT Racing Yamaha YZF R6 1’55.855 1’56.866 1’55.855 1.461 0.286 157,759 31
13 81 M. GONZALEZ ESP Yamaha ParkinGo Team Yamaha YZF R6 1’56.385 1’55.870 1’55.870 1.476 0.015 157,739 29
14 22 F. FULIGNI ITA VFT Racing Yamaha YZF R6 1’55.999 1’56.449 1’55.999 1.605 0.129 157,563 31
15 29 L. BERNARDI RSM CM Racing Yamaha YZF R6 1’56.426 1’56.058 1’56.058 1.664 0.059 157,483 29
16 34 K. MANFREDI ITA Altogo Racing Team Yamaha YZF R6 ESS 1’56.712 1’56.264 1’56.264 1.870 0.206 157,204 27
17 95 V. TAKALA FIN Kallio Racing Yamaha YZF R6 1’56.303 1’56.614 1’56.303 1.909 0.039 157,152 32
18 61 C. ONCU TUR Kawasaki Puccetti Racing Kawasaki ZX-6R 1’57.331 1’56.783 1’56.783 2.389 0.480 156,506 32
19 6 M. HERRERA ESP Biblion Iberica Yamaha Motoxracing Yamaha YZF R6 ESS 1’56.795 1’56.808 1’56.795 2.401 0.012 156,490 28
20 2 L. MONTELLA ITA Chiodo Moto Racing Yamaha YZF R6 ESS 1’57.085 1’58.169 1’57.085 2.691 0.290 156,102 29
21 36 T. GRADINGER AUT DK Motorsport Yamaha YZF R6 ESS 1’57.145 1’57.774 1’57.145 2.751 0.060 156,022 30
22 84 M. FABRIZIO ITA G.A.P. MOTOZOO Racing by Puccetti Kawasaki ZX-6R 1’57.593 1’57.252 1’57.252 2.858 0.107 155,880 32
23 99 D. WEBB GBR WRP Wepol Racing Yamaha YZF R6 1’58.059 1’59.318 1’58.059 3.665 0.807 154,814 20
24 19 P. SZKOPEK POL Yamaha MS Racing Yamaha YZF R6 1’58.146 1’58.556 1’58.146 3.752 0.087 154,700 26
25 42 S. FROSSARD SUI Moto Team Jura Vitesse Yamaha YZF R6 ESS 1’58.223 1’58.460 1’58.223 3.829 0.077 154,599 31
26 55 G. HENDRA PRATAMA INA Ten Kate Racing Yamaha Yamaha YZF R6 1’58.323 1’58.403 1’58.323 3.929 0.100 154,469 28
27 24 L. TACCINI ITA Orelac Racing VerdNatura Kawasaki ZX-6R ESS 1’59.621 1’58.629 1’58.629 4.235 0.306 154,070 32
28 45 S. KAWASAKI JPN G.A.P. MOTOZOO Racing by Puccetti Kawasaki ZX-6R ESS 2’02.053 2’02.311 2’02.053 7.659 3.424 149,748 35

Motorland Aragon route map

WorldSBK has been racing in Aragon since 2011 and the first win was won by Marco Melandri on a Yamaha, while Aprilia ace Max Biaggi won the second run. The following year, the two Italians won again, but in reverse order and Melandri on a BMW. In the following two years it was first Davies and then Sykes on Kawasaki, which each took a double victory.

Schedule for the first race weekend of 2021

Unless otherwise mentioned, applies to all images (© WorldSBK).