WSBK – WSBK Australia: the cards seem very well redistributed for 2020 –

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WSBK Australia: the cards seem very well redistributed for 2020

WSBK - WSBK Australia: the cards seem very well redistributed for 2020 -

The first podium of the 2020 World Superbike season was climbed by the riders of three different motorcycles they rode for the first time in the race: Razgatlioglu on Yamaha, Lowes on Kawasaki and Redding on Ducati ! Champion Jonathan Rea is under pressure … and our Loris Baz is in the game !

Admittedly, Jonathan Rea was jostled at the start of the opening race of the WSBK 2020 by his best enemy Tom Sykes, author of a new record Superpole at the controls of his BMW and a good start. Kawasaki "Number One" fans may cry foul: "it’s racing", as they say…

Mister "Super" Sykes admits to getting carried away on the first lap against Rea: "in turn 3 I almost got out. I didn’t learn the lesson because I was surprised by his slow entry into Lukey Heights. I couldn’t get the bike up and there was contact. I’m really sorry, "said the No. 66 BMW, extremely fast for a few laps but not yet tough enough.

WSBK - WSBK Australia: the cards seem very well redistributed for 2020 -

After a passage in the gravel pit where he was able to demonstrate his crossman skills, Rea joined the track in last position. While trying to steal Rinaldi his 14th place, the Northern Irish Ninja unfortunately fell: "I widened and found myself out of line on bumps, I lost the front and rear simultaneously".

  • MNC special file :
  • World Superbike 2020 :
  • World Superbike 2019 :

For the first time in his career, "Johnny" had to watch the end of the first World Superbike performance as a mere spectator. Winner of the Superpole race on Sunday morning and second in the second round in the afternoon, he left Phillip Island with 32 points (see the ranking at the bottom of the article), 19 less than the leader … his teammate Alex lowes !

A first WSBK race without Rea…

Although involuntarily rid of the five-time world champion, four men fought until the last meters to get on the first podium of the WSBK 2020. And the game of aspirations wanted Michael van der Mark to be finally removed from the final Top 3 for less one hundredth of a second !

WSBK - WSBK Australia: the cards seem very well redistributed for 2020 -

The "rookie" Scott Redding has indeed hoisted his Panigale V4R on the third step of the podium. A great achievement from the reigning British Superbike champion who discovers the Ducati in its World Superbike configuration, with all its electronic arsenal (no traction-control, anti-wheeling or other assistance in BSB).

“I was a little tense because I didn’t know how aggressive these guys would be and they were, as expected. So the race was phenomenal. It was great to be part of it, I didn’t. so did not come back for the spectators, it must have been brilliant ", welcomes the n ° 45 Ducati who also finished third of the two races run on Sunday, still breathless from a first success in WSBK.

34 thousandths of a second ahead of Alvaro Bautista’s replacement for the Bologna Reds, Alex Lowes also shone at the controls of his new bike: riding the factory ZX-10RR, five times world champion with Rea, the n ° 22 finished next to the winner !

WSBK - WSBK Australia: the cards seem very well redistributed for 2020 -

The Yamaha defector also won his first victory in his first weekend: Alex managed to beat his teammate Jonathan in the second round. "I had to be patient because there were many heckling me: Baz touched me several times, then Toprak, then Michael. It was fun, but difficult to find a rhythm", illustrates the excellent Kawasaki rookie who takes first place in the championship.

Third in the provisional standings with 34 points, Toprak Razgatlioglu could however have retained the lead in the championship he held on Saturday evening after winning his very first race on the official R1 – driven last year by Alex Lowes. But the Turkish pilot was unlucky…

Razgatlioglu then Lowes leading the championship

In the final acceleration of the Superpole race, an overly fatigued rear tire forced the Turkish rider to bow to Rea. Is this wear due to Toprak’s overly flamboyant style? Perhaps. In the second round, however, his abandonment after running out of fuel two and a half laps (!) From the checkered flag cannot be blamed. But he will certainly have the opportunity to redo !

WSBK - WSBK Australia: the cards seem very well redistributed for 2020 -

The first round ended with the second smallest difference seen on a World Superbike podium: 41 thousandths of a second separated Razgatlioglu from Redding. The tightest podium in history will be hard to beat: at Monza in 1997, John Kocinsky won with 0.005 sec ahead of Aaron Slight and 0.008 sec over Carl Fogarty. !

Site also points out that the first race of 2020 in Australia saw a fourth manufacturer rise in the Top 5 with a brand new motorcycle: Leon Haslam reassured senior officials in Tokyo by placing the CBR1000RR-R in fifth position at just four seconds of the winner.

"I was able to stay in the leading group until about five laps from the end, after which a lack of grip prevented me from calling", regrets the English n ° 91, however very satisfied overall. performance of his Fireblade. "We just need a smoother distribution of power in the faster turns".

WSBK - WSBK Australia: the cards seem very well redistributed for 2020 -

In a straight line, however, Haslam cannot complain about the Honda: his teammate and WSBK 2019 runner-up (on Ducati) pushed the best speed of the first round to 327.3 km / h. For this, Alvaro Bautista was helped a little by Loris Baz !

Overwhelmed in the home stretch by Alvaro Baustista on the second HRC bike, our immense compatriot – by size and talent! – had to settle for seventh place on Saturday. The No. 76 Yamaha still entered the parc ferme as the best independent rider…

Baz, best independent pilot !

This nice success, the only rider of the Yamaha Ten Kate team reproduced it on Sunday morning and could even have improved it on Sunday afternoon if he had not been hampered by the unlucky Razgatlioglu (read Baz’s statement below) below). His three laps in the lead of the second race – as much as Lowes! – nevertheless suggest very good results in the next races.

WSBK - WSBK Australia: the cards seem very well redistributed for 2020 -

The rest of the championship is unfortunately on hold: like the stars of MotoGP, the stars of the World Superbike may well be deprived of competition in the coming weeks due to the precautionary measures linked to the epidemic of the coronavirus "Covid-19" !

A cancellation or postponement of the WorldSBK event in Qatar scheduled in two weeks could however arrange three riders who were forced to rest on Sunday at Phillip Island: Leon Camier, Garrett Gerloff and Eugene Laverty who changed motorcycles this winter. .. like Razgatlioglu, Lowes and Redding but with less success !

The experienced but damaged Camier, who discovers the Ducati at Barni, has suffered from his left shoulder since his fall in the Aragon tests. The American "rookie" Garrett Gerloff, who discovered the Yamaha at the GRT Junior Team, got up injured after his collision with Sandro Cortese in the first round. And the unlucky Irishman Laverty, who discovers the official team’s BMW, was a little too shaken by his crash during the warm-up.

WSBK - WSBK Australia: the cards seem very well redistributed for 2020 -

Loris Baz (Yamaha n ° 76), 7th in the championship

"It was a great day, but we were very poorly rewarded. During the Superpole Race, we fought for the victory. After some contact, I finally finished seventh, but I really enjoyed myself. The second round, on the other hand, was crazy! Johnny Rea had a rather slow pace in the lead, and I felt comfortable. I was fifth or sixth, I got back up and even led the race several times. to say I had a blast! It had been a while since that had happened, it was really great. Unfortunately, I was scared to death when Toprak suffered from a mechanical problem. He picked up the bike in one of the fastest corners on the circuit and I had to pull straight to avoid it. I managed to get back on the track, but it was already too late. I had lost contact as I occupied third place. I think I was really in a position to fight for victory until last round. I am of course very disappointed, but I am nevertheless satisfied with the week that we have accomplished. We were consistently at the forefront … I had the fastest time in the warm-up again this morning. There are many great things, but our hard work has not paid off. We will only have the 2020 engine from Jerez, but here we are and we fought like lions. It’s only postponed, I’m sure! "

WSBK 2020 ranking after Phillip Island

WSBK - WSBK Australia: the cards seem very well redistributed for 2020 -

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