Jonathan Rea tops opening day in Portugal | WSBK

2019 WorldSBK

Round 10 – Portimão

Jonathan Rea topped the opening day of practice for the tenth round of the Superbike World Championship overnight in Portugal. 

The Northern Irishman also displayed metronomic consistency as he headed championship rival Alvaro Bautista.

Jonathan Rea – P1

“This morning the track was a little bit green and the kerbs were a little bit slippery, but the track has now ‘rubbered-in’. I feel we have improved the bike a little bit from the tests we did recently, but we can still improve a little bit more for tomorrow. We have just a few areas to improve and this morning we worked on the different rear tyre options we have for the race. This afternoon I worked on finding a rhythm and putting some laps on a tyre. The consistency looked very good. For day one, I feel quite good with the bike.”

Alvaro Bautista – P2

“Today was a very positive day because, as I had problems with my shoulder in the tests two weeks ago, it was important to verify my physical condition and luckily everything went OK as the pain was a lot less. In the afternoon we did more laps than in the morning because it was important to work on the setup and tyre choice in the hot conditions that for sure we will also find in the race. I’m optimistic, I’ve got a good feeling with my Panigale V4 R and physically I feel quite good.”

Third position was held by Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team), having topped the test at Portimao in August. The British rider, who won’t remain at the Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team for 2020, was out to prove a point and ended the day just 0.120s adrift of top slot.

Alex Lowes – P3

“It’s always the same here in Portimão, with the track conditions changing as the temperature goes up. But today was the best I’ve felt here in the hotter conditions, so it was a good second practice session. We tried something right at the end that didn’t quite work as we were expecting, but it’s been really positive with plenty of laps on used tyres. There are still a couple of areas in which I’d like to improve, such as on corner exit where I need to be a bit smoother when the track temperature is higher and the surface is a little bit greasy. We’ll have a look through the data tonight to see if we can find some improvements, but I’m happy to be back on the bike and looking forward to tomorrow.”

Pata Yamaha team-mate Michael van der Mark was also looking strong, finishing the day in fifth place to make it two Yamahas inside the top five.

Michael van der Mark – P5

“It’s been a solid opening day here in Portugal. The first session this morning was a good one for us, even if the track didn’t feel the same as it did at the test here last month. But that’s typical Portimão and not unexpected. I struggled a little bit with the front feeling on the bike, so it’s also been challenging, especially this afternoon with the increase in track temperature. We’re still working to improve our pace in the heat, but the best set-up for this is proving a little elusive at the moment. But we’re definitely going in the right direction because the feeling with the bike improved at the end this afternoon. We have a few ideas to try tomorrow, but we’ll be ready to race.”

Leading the Independent charge in fourth was Toprak Razgatlioglu.

Without a ride so far for 2020, Markus Reiterberger (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) quietly reminded everyone of his capabilities with a sturdy seventh place overall. Reiterberger was just under three-tenths clear of his teammate Tom Sykes, who crashed in FP1. The 2013 WorldSBK champion was one of just five riders who improved their times in FP2, although he was still only 12th.

Markus Reiterberger – P7

“Today was a good day, overall P7 which is not so bad and just only +0.500 behind the front guys. This morning I enjoyed my riding and tested out the tyres which gave us a good direction to work in. This afternoon it was really hot which made It difficult continue the same lap times as this morning so we focused on getting the balance of the bike and the tyre wear. Tomorrow we will try to work on the brake stability but for sure I will be again pushing for the top 10.”

Tom Sykes – P12

“I think P12 is not where we are realistically, that result was from this morning where we didn’t push and obviously the conditions were better. This afternoon in race conditions I was very happy with the changes we made to the BMW S 1000 RR and gained some good information, so overall I’m feeling quite comfortable and confident in those hot conditions which for me is the real preparations for the race tomorrow.”

Day One WorldSBK Combined Times

Supersport Report

A greasy track surface at the Algarve International Circuit meant that there was very little in terms of improvements in the World Supersport FP2. However, there was plenty of intrigue regarding how Randy Krummenacher (BARDAHL Evan Bros. WorldSSP Team) would cope with his injury after a big FP1 crash. The Swiss rider was toppled overall, with teammate Federico Caricasulo slamming in a late time to end the day on top.

Federico Caricasulo top in FP2 and overall, as he blasted in a lap time in the closing stages of the session to go ahead of his teammate. Krummenacher’s crash resulted in left knee injuries, meaning that he took it steady in FP2 and ran for most of the session in fifth place. In the final ten minutes, Krummenacher improved his time but in the end, it was only good enough for second. Jules Cluzel (GMT94 YAMAHA) elevated himself to second in the session but was third overall. It was Yamahas locking out the top three positions.

However, it was Ayrton Badovini (Team Pedercini Racing) who took fourth position on the overall combined session times, as the former WorldSSP race winner looked to close the gap further at a track Kawasaki have always gone well at. Fifth place belonged to Isaac Viñales (Kallio Racing), with both him and Badovini improving in the latter stages of the session, pushing former WorldSSP champion Lucas Mahias (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) down into sixth place.

Further back, seventh position was in the capable hands of Raffaele De Rosa (MV AGUSTA Reparto Corse), who had a less eventful outing in the afternoon, following technical problems in the morning. 2019 WorldSSP revelation Hikari Okubo (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) was in eighth place and flying the Japanese flag well, whilst completing the top ten were fellow Kawasaki rider Kyle Smith (Team Pedercini Racing) and Frenchman, Corentin Perolari (GMT94 YAMAHA).

The top Honda was Jules Danilo (CIA Landlord Insurance), fractionally missing out on the top ten in 11th. Wildcard rider Miquel Pons (H43 Team NOBBY TALASUR-BLUMAQ) was a respectable 14th, whereas Dani Valle (MS Racing) debuted in World Supersport with 18th.

World Supersport Day One Combined Times

Supersport 300 Report

With temperatures increasing in the afternoon, time Improvements for the WorldSSP300 class weren’t guaranteed, as various riders ended the day out of position and with work to do ahead of the remainder of the Acerbis Portuguese Round. Not improving on his morning time, Scott Deroue’s (Kawasaki MOTOPORT) effort would see him comfortably clear of the chasing pack going into Saturday. Is his championship challenge coming back to life?

At the head of the field on combined times, Scott Deroue made great progress as he is keen to keep his championship hopes alive. The Dutchman set the best time in FP1B and was good enough to place him top overall. With less than 10 minutes to go in FP2B, Andy Verdoïa (BCD Yamaha MS Racing) improved to go second overall. In third position was championship leader Manuel Gonzalez, who can mathematically win the title this weekend. He was one of a handful of riders to improve in FP2B.

Galang Hendra Pratama (Semakin Di Depan Biblion Motoxracing) was strong in fourth, although he will have a 12-place grid penalty on Saturday after his Tissot Superpole, should he make it through in the top 30. Completing the top five was Frenchman Hugo De Cancellis (Team Trasimeno Yamaha), as he improved late in the session. Ukrainian rider Nick Kalinin (Nutec – RT Motorsports by SKM – Kawasaki), was in sixth place, looking to achieve his country’s first back-to-back podiums in WorldSSP300.

Having a strong first day in Portugal was Italian youngster Filippo Rovelli (Kawasaki ParkinGO Team), as he goes in search of his first points of the season. He was marginally ahead of reigning WorldSSP300 champion Ana Carrasco (Kawasaki Provec WorldSSP300). Completing the top ten were Borja Sanchez (Scuderia Maranga Racing) and Victor Steeman (Freudenberg KTM Junior Team) – who set an identical lap time Bruno Ieraci (Kawasaki GP Project), although the Italian’s was done in the morning.

Supersport 300 Day One Combined Practice