Toprak and Bautista share Sunday wins at Portimao

2022 FIM Superbike World Championship
Round Nine – Portimao, Portugal

WorldSBK Superpole Race

Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK) took a stunning victory in the Superpole race on Sunday at Portimao. The battle lasted all ten laps during the race with Razgatlioglu winning by just 0.123s ahead of Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) at the end of the race.

Razgatlioglu took the holeshot at the start of the race to move into the lead of the race but was under constant pressure from Championship leader Bautista, who moved from fourth to second at the start of the race.

Bautista looked to move past Razgatlioglu on every lap, using the Ducati power down the pit straight to blow past the Yamaha, but Razgatlioglu resisted this into the Turn 1 braking zone every time to hold on for victory by just 0.123s.

Six-time Champion Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) had initially been in the fight for victory but dropped back as the race progressed, finishing in third place and more than a second back from Bautista. It means the front row for Race 2 will be made up of Razgatlioglu, Bautista and Rea.

Rea finished just half-a-second clear of team-mate Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) with Lowes in fourth place.

Garrett Gerloff (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) crashed out of the race at Turn 3 and was taken to the medical centre for a check-up following the crash.

WorldSBK Superpole Race Results

WorldSBK Race Two

While Toprak Razgatlioglu managed to fend off the advances of Alvaro Bautista in the Superpole race, it was the Spaniard who came out on top in the final race of the day, taking his first win of the weekend to extend his Championship lead.

Rea had taken the early lead of the race into Turn 1, while Bautista dropped to third and Razgatlioglu was second.

On Lap 7, Razgatlioglu made a move on Rea at Turn 1 to move into the lead while, two laps later at the same corner, Rea moved back into the lead as Razgatlioglu dropped to third behind Bautista.

As the halfway distance approached, Bautista made a move at Turn 10 to take the lead, while Razgatlioglu followed him into second place after passing Rea.

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Razgatlioglu then set about closing in on Bautista and made a move on the Championship leader at Turn 13 on Lap 14, but, at the start of the next lap, Bautista was able to pass the reigning Champion down the pit straight to re-take the lead.

From there, Bautista was able to open up a gap of over two-seconds to Razgatlioglu as he took his 28th win and Jonathan Rea rounded out the podium.

Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) took fourth place after starting the race fighting over the podium places but losing ground as the race progressed. Rinaldi had to battle with Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) with the British rider claiming fifth spot, only 0.573s down on Rinaldi, as Lowes took his third top-five finish of the Portuguese Round.

Andrea Locatelli (Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK) rounded out the top six as he finished in sixth place, but almost seven seconds down on Lowes after 20 laps.

Scott Redding (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) took seventh place as he battled his way up the order, finishing just under a second clear of Xavi Vierge (Team HRC). At the halfway point of the race, Redding was battling with Iker Lecuona (Team HRC) but a crash for Lecuona at Turn 14 dropped him down the order to 22nd place, where he finished.

Garrett Gerloff (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) was ninth, three-tenths behind Vierge, although he was able to get the better of his 2023 teammate, Loris Baz (Bonovo Action BMW) as the Frenchman rounded out the top ten.

The final point went to two-time American Superbike champion Jake Gagne (Attack Performance Yamaha Racing) who finished in 15th place on his return to WorldSBK.

Bautista leaves Europe and heads to Argentina with a 56 point lead over Razgatlioglu.  The Argentine round will be held on the weekend of October 23, before WorldSBK then heads to Indonesia on November 13, ahead of the Phillip Island finale on November 20. 

WorldSBK Race Two Results

WorldSBK Rider Quotes

Alvaro Bautista

“A very good result. I am very happy. We encountered a few more difficulties than at the weekend in Barcelona also because we knew that Toprak and Johnny would be very strong on this circuit. As always we came with no expectations but it’s clear that I would have signed to go home with two second places finish and a win. The classification? I’ve been saying it since the start of the season: my goal is to have fun racing this bike. Then in Australia we will do the maths”.

Toprak Razgatlıoğlu

“Speaking first about this morning, because I am really enjoying the Superpole Race! Bautista passed me in the straight and then I passed him again many times – but the afternoon, the second race Alvaro is improving and he came back very strong again, and I am not easily passing him. I keep fighting for the win and I understand last three laps the front tyre is locking so I say okay, second position is enough because every lap, I catch him, and the last corner exit he go again – you know – the straight is crazy because his bike is very fast. I am happy, we are second position and we take good points for the championship, also I say thanks to my team because incredible job this weekend. We start very strong with two wins and second position finish today, this is not good enough but anyway, we are happy. My strategy is working perfect for the Superpole Race but in second race it was not quite enough! Again podium, and we keep fighting for the win – now I am looking at Argentina. It will not be easy, we know Ducati is very strong there but I try my best.”

Andrea Locatelli

“The Race 2 rhythm was really fast again and I think I lost the possibility to stay with Alex and the front group after the second or third lap when Bassani crashed. In the end though, it was another positive weekend overall, we have good confidence with the bike and we know what we need to do. We have more info now and here we were stronger and we bring home some more points, so now we look forward to prepare for next week. This year, the level of WorldSBK is becoming higher – we are riding really fast every race. For me, it is not easy to be honest, I want more and we need to keep working. For sure I don’t have as much experience with the superbike, it’s just my second year but we have a good base and the aim is to keep pushing to take the maximum results.”

Michael Rinaldi

“I am satisfied with today’s race also because we managed to overcome the problems we experienced yesterday, after having skipped FP3 completely. There’s only a little bit of regret left for the last six laps because the tyre drop was very noticeable. Compared to last year, however, on this track we have made an important step that confirms the good work we are doing”.

Jonathan Rea

“I was really on my limit today. In Race Two, when I was at the front I tried to step back a little bit to manage the tyre and not take so much risk. But when Alvaro came past and went to the front his pace was fast. I also saw the urgency of Toprak to try to disrupt Alvaro’s rhythm a little bit. That was just keeping me in the fight but as soon as he got some clear track that was him gone. Then I thought Toprak may come back to me, so I kept my rhythm, but it wasn’t enough. I really struggled in T14, getting into and around it, and when the tyre dropped it was even worse. No regrets; I did my best and just got beat by better guys today. I was frustrated to be that far back but that is our reality.”

Alex Lowes

“It was good today. From morning warm-up I made a slight change with the front forks and it felt good. In the Superpole race I was coming back to Jonathan and I actually felt a bit stronger than him then. In Race Two I kept the bike the same but on a full tank of fuel I had some big locks from the front end straight away, so that put me off for five or six laps. That didn’t allow me to go with the front guys. From the mid part of the race, if I was there at the front, I had the same pace as Jonathan for the second part. Apart from that, I have to be happy. I pushed to the end, I was catching Rinaldi, and that was as much as I could have done. I feel good on the bike, we just need to keep trying to improve.”

Garrett Gerloff

“The crash in the Superpole Race was a real shame. I had a good feeling on the bike and I strongly believe we could have had a strong result, which would’ve meant a better starting position for Race 2. Anyway, I had a good getaway in the second race but someone forced me wide and I had to recover from 17th. We had really good pace and at least we scored a decent amount of points, which is not too bad considering. I’m a bit disappointed because I believe we could do more, but we’ll take away the positives. I’d like to say a massive thank to the guys for rebuilding the bike after the sprint race, they did a super job once again.”

Xavi Vierge

“This weekend was positive for us in many aspects, even though the results don’t totally reflect our potential. We were able to significantly improve our feeling compared to yesterday and it’s just a shame we missed out on P9 in the sprint race by just a fraction of a second, because starting from the third row, rather than the fifth, would have made things easier in race 2. Anyway, it was as it was. I didn’t make a bad start anyway and was able to maintain good, consistent pace and finally achieve a solid result. I really think we did a good job overall – we collected a lot of information and are going in the right direction for the future. In the short term we need to improve in qualifying so to have more cards to play in the race. As always, thanks to the squad for their hard work and total commitment.”

Iker Lecuona

“It was a hard weekend for us, but I’m happy and appreciate the way HRC and the team reacted and found a solution to some issues we were facing. Yesterday we struggled a lot in the hot conditions, and so we changed the bike’s setup ahead of today’s races. I felt really good in warm-up; the pace was there, and I could make some strong laps. Then I made a terrible start to the sprint race and found myself somewhere around twentieth position at the end of the first lap and I lost every chance in that moment. We later understood what happened but, in that moment, all I could do was try and recover as much as possible. I finished twelfth in the end, non a great result but acceptable all things considered. From the Team and Japan they did a great job providing a different mapping for the launch control, as that worked amazingly well in race 2. I was able to make up four places on the first lap and felt good with the bike, the electronics and everything throughout the race. I was chasing Redding and waiting for the best moment to attack him on the final lap and then, I’m not sure how, but I had a small crash at turn 14. I got back on the bike and was way back with no chance to reach the points zone, but I finished the race out of respect for the team and to thank them for their hard work and for the fact they never stop giving their all and positively addressing every difficulty we encounter. Now we’ll focus on Argentina.”

Loris Baz

“We had some great fights in all three races. I think our set-up in the Superpole Race this morning was not perfect, I felt like I had to squeeze the brakes very hard all the time. But I was close to Scott, which is good, until the last lap, where I had a big moment. Overall, it was quite a good weekend considering the issues we had in the beginning. I just hope we’ll soon have a full weekend without any problems, where we can work all the way through the weekend, find a good setup and improve the bike. We can’t blame anyone; we just have been unlucky. I think overseas will now be very different, you never know what to expect. But we made it into the top ten, which is the target. Anyway, I hope we can be in the top five soon.”

Scott Redding

“To be honest, the weekend was not great. We struggled again. Maybe not as much as in Barcelona, but we were still not where we want to be. Our weak point still costs us too much time. There is not much I can do. The guys worked well to give me a better feeling in some areas and helped me with the tyre life, so I was able to be more consistent to the end. But I need performance on the exit of the corner and at the moment there is no solution yet. We still have a lot of work to do, and everyone is working really hard. But sometimes you need to go really deep to come to a solution that makes the difference. We will get there. It just takes time.”

Michael van der Mark

“We made a massive change compared to yesterday with the bike. The warm-up felt okay. In the Superpole Race, I had an amazing start, gained a lot of places, and immediately felt that I had a really good pace. We decided to go with the SC0 tyre to keep the distance and also because I just need more time with the bike. At the end, it was the right choice for us. We were really fast in the Superpole Race. It makes life a little bit easier to start from P8 in race two. I had a good start, just got tangled up in a few moments of the first lap. To be honest, I didn’t have the best grip from the start. I dropped a few positions because I couldn’t stay with the guys in front of me. In the end I had a solid pace, I was not incredible fast but also not slow. I calmed down a bit and got more miles under the belt. It was good to finish the race and to score another few points.”

Jake Gagne

“It was definitely a challenging weekend. Being with some of the best superbike racers in the world and racing on different tyres made for some adjustments that took some time, but we got better and better every single session. For sure, figuring out the bike set-up with the Pirellis was a big part, and trying to figure out how to ride the Pirellis differently was the biggest challenge for me as a rider. But I’m glad we were able to put it all together and be here as a team. We all really learned a lot about the bike and things that we can apply even at home in MotoAmerica. I was able to really push my limits riding with some of these guys and understand different things that we can do with the bike to try and be better. So I’m really happy we made it happen.

“Looking back at the weekend, it was a tough start on Friday. These guys have been coming here for years, so we started a little behind on the first day, but I’m happy that we made progress in every single session. It’s one of those things where now that the weekend is over, we wish we could kind of start over with what we know now and keep building. If we had more track time or another race weekend, we could just continue going faster. Again, I have to say thanks to the team for putting it all together. To be back in the paddock with some of the best superbike racers in the world was a really great experience, and I hope we can try it again sometime.”

Eugene Laverty

“Right now, all we can do is keep working to improve on where we’ve been lately. This weekend, the team did a fantastic job. Instead of trying to do big leaps we’ve worked on our weaknesses to improve the bike. Honestly, in the final race, the bike was the best it has been in a long time. It was doing many things correctly, now we must study the power delivery, as after four laps it seems to be killing the rear tyre and after that we go backwards. We need to dig deep into it and improve this. Because when the tyre is gone after four laps, the 20 laps are really long.

“Last night was such a huge surprise. I was so focused on this weekend, like I’ve approached every weekend for the last 16 years. I got into my routine, and it didn’t matter in my mind that it was the last European round, but suddenly I began to bump into these familiar faces and people had surprised me. My wife Pippa organised a lot of events. In this celebration, it was very nice to see so many of my former teams, my former teammates and of course my current Bonovo action BMW Racing Team. It was also amazing to have Dr. Markus Schramm here as well. To top it all off, there was a bike underneath the cover, and I could see there was a number 50 there and I thought it was a presentation, but when they told me it was my present, I couldn’t believe it. I felt like a kid at Christmas! So, a big thank you to Jürgen Röder and everybody for this event and this incredible gift.”

WorldSBK Championship Points

WorldSSP Race Two

Swiss rider Dominique Aegerter (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) made FIM Supersport World Championship history on Sunday during Race 2 in the Pirelli Portuguese Round as he took a last-lap victory, his 13th of the 2022 season, at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve. It means that Aegerter has now broken the record for wins a season as the reigning Champion extended his Championship lead.

Aegerter’s race-winning overtake came on Lap 17 of 17 at Turn 8, a corner not normally used for making moves, on Federico Caricasulo (Althea Racing) who ended up in fourth place. The pair had been at the head of a long lead group throughout the race, with Aegerter often making his move into Turn 1 under braking but Caricasulo responding with the cutback move into Turns 2 and 3. Aegerter made it stick on Lap 15 but Caricasulo responded at Lap 16 a lap later before the pair engaged in a last-lap scrap for the win.

Aegerter made the move into Turn 1 on the final lap but Caricasulo was able to respond by cutting back into Turn 2 as he searched for his first WorldSSP win in three years. However, Aegerter was able to make his move at Turn 8 to take the lead of the race and the win, his first at Portimao, while Caricasulo dropped to fourth place. He lost out through Turn 9 to Raffaele De Rosa (Orelac Racing VerdNatura WorldSSP) as the Italian battled his way from tenth on the grid to second and then lost another position to Can Oncu (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing).

Dominique Aegerter

“First of all, we had a fantastic race! It was a massive battle with a lot of riders, and I hope the fans enjoyed it. I had a big battle with Federico Caricasulo at the first corner, but I was always wide, and he could accelerate better than me. You never know who would overtake you on the main straight as we were in a big slipstream battle, and each bike and rider was riding different, riding to their strengths in the infield – so it made it very exciting. On the last lap, I tried to overtake him in a different place, and I was able to get my 13th race, breaking the record, but also extending the lead in the championship, which was the main goal.

“It’s been a big effort from everyone to achieve these 13 wins, it’s not only me who rides the bike, but also the commitment of the team, the sponsors, and of course Yamaha. Nothing changes for me going into the final six races, I will approach the races the same as usual and try to fight for the podium or the race win, starting in San Juan where I have great memories of my championship win last year.”

Caricasulo took fourth place at the end of the 17-lap race, finishing just 0.005s behind Oncu as he narrowly missed out on a podium place after running in the lead group throughout the race. He was ahead of Bahattin Sofuoglu (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) in fifth place, with the Turkish rookie ending his WorldSSP Challenge campaign with his joint-best result of the season. He had to fend off a late challenge from Jules Cluzel (GMT94 Yamaha) as the Frenchman battled back from running wide to take sixth place, only 0.100s behind Sofuoglu.

Lorenzo Baldassarri (Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha Team) took seventh place but it was a complicated race for the rookie. He was given a Long Lap Penalty for irresponsible riding after a clash with Niki Tuuli (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) and Race 1 winner Stefano Manzi (Dynavolt Triumph) at Turn 1, which put both Tuuli and Manzi out of the race. Tuuli was taken to the medical centre and diagnosed with a contusion of the fifth finger on his right hand and a right thigh abrasion.

Baldassarri was in the podium fight but came out in seventh place after taking his Long Lap Penalty and finished 3.7 seconds down on Cluzel. Despite the penalty, he was almost two seconds clear of Estonian rider Hannes Soomer (Dynavolt Triumph) in eighth, while Isaac Vinales (D34G Racing) took ninth place.

Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team) took a top-ten finish despite starting from 30th on the grid after being unable to set a lap time in Saturday’s Tissot Superpole session, as the Italian rider fought back for a top-ten finish.

Oli Bayliss (BARNI Spark Racing Team) took 16th place, missing out on points by a few seconds, while he was less than a second clear of Federico Fuligni (D34G Racing9 in 17th.

Oli Bayliss – P16

“Happy this weekend is over, we struggled a lot with set-up over the weekend and I never felt comfortable on the bike. We need to forget about this weekend and start working for Argentina… I know we are better than this.”

German rider Patrick Hobelsberger (Kallio Racing) was 18th after a late battle with Ben Currie (Motozoo Racing by Puccetti); the pair separated by just over a tenth at the end of the race.

Australian wildcard Tom Edwards (Yart – Yamaha WorldSSP) brought his bike into the pits at the end of Lap 5 after he had a technical issue on his machine.

WorldSSP Race Two Results

WorldSSP Championship Points

WorldSSP300 Race Two

The 2022 FIM Supersport 300 World Championship season came to a thrilling conclusion at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve as Italian rider Mirko Gennai (Team BrCorse) claimed his first win in the Championship after he was able to break away from the field during the Pirelli Portuguese Round to win by almost a second.

Gennai took his first victory after fighting at the front of the field, despite dropping down the order after a Turn 3 crash involving two other riders. He was 0.831s clear of 2022 Champion Alvaro Diaz (Arco Motor University Team), while Matteo Vannucci (AG Motorsport Italia Yamaha) took third place.  Vannucci also cemented his status as the top rookie in the WorldSSP300 Championship for 2022.

It had looked like rookie and debutant Devis Bergamini (ProGP Racing) would stand on the podium as he ran in third place into the final corner, but he crashed out on his own to end the race in the gravel trap despite impressing throughout his debut round.

Alex Millan (SMW Racing) took his best result in WorldSSP300 with fourth place, finishing just 0.063s off the podium after a thrilling campaign. It was a tight fight for the podium with French rider Hugo De Cancellis (Prodina Racing WorldSSP300) was in fifth, but just 0.025s behind Millan at the end of the 12-lap race.

Brazilian rookie Enzo Valentim (AD78 Team Brasil by MS Racing) was sixth after a strong result for the Yamaha R3 Cup winner.

Lennox Lehmann (Freudenberg KTM – Paligo Racing) had crossed the line in sixth place initially, but he was demoted one place for a last-lap track limits infringement at Turn 8; the German, who had to start at the back of the grid for a tyre pressure infringement, classified in seventh place.

There was a reduced field for Race 2 in WorldSSP300. MTM Kawasaki decided not to race on Sunday following the crash involving Victor Steeman, meaning Ruben Bijman did not take Race 2 while Yuta Okaya had been declared unfit following a Friday crash.

Harry Khouri (Fusport-RT Motorsports by SKM-Kawasaki) was declared unfit with a low back contusion following a Friday crash, while Wayhu Nugroho (Team BrCorse) and Jose Luis Perez Gonzalez (Accolade Smrz Racing) crashed in Warm Up and were both declared unfit. Nugroho had a right shoulder contusion, right knee contusion and a proximal humerus fracture which was diagnosed at Portimao hospital, while Perez Gonzalez was unfit with a hand contusion and second finger abrasion.

Inigo Iglesias (SMW Racing) crashed at Turn 4 on the opening lap, which dropped him down the order to last place, before he retired from the race at around the halfway mark.

On Lap 6, there was a crash involving Race 1 winner Dirk Geiger (Fusport-RT Motorsports by SKM-Kawasaki), Humberto Maier (AD78 Team Brasil by MS Racing) and Mirko Gennai (Team BrCorse). Geiger was able to re-join the race, as was as Gennai, but Maier retired from the contest. The incident will be investigated by the FIM WorldSBK Stewards after the race.

On the last lap, Troy Alberto (Fusport-RT Motorsports by SKM-Kawasaki) and wildcard Tomas Alonso (Quaresma Racing Team) crashed at Turn 14 which ended their races, with both not classified.

Mirko Gennai – P1

“Finally, I go home with a victory. We’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time! I’m so happy because with five laps to go I was in P20. It’s difficult to overtake the riders in front but in the last two laps, I was able to slipstream my way through and get the win. I don’t have words, I’m so happy. This is dedicated to Victor Steeman. Stay strong!”

Alvaro Diaz – P2

“Today, the race was difficult and the last two laps were crazy. I’m very happy to finish in second place for my last race though. This season was very difficult, but in the end we are champions and I finish it all with a podium. Thanks to my team, Yamaha, and everyone who has supported me!”

Matteo Vannucci – P3

“It was a fantastic battle in Race 2. Unfortunately for me, in Race 1 I crashed with another rider, but finally today I finished third. I’m very happy for this. It was my first time racing on this circuit and the Yamaha was very strong here. Thanks to my team, my fans and my sponsors.”

In the championship standings, with all eight rounds and 16 individual races completed, Diaz ended the season with 259 points, with runner-up Steeman on 180. De Cancellis was third overall with 171, Marc Garcia has 164, and Di Sora 146.

The WorldSSP300 championship in 2022 started out with around half the total number of competing riders as previous seasons, after new regulations were introduced. Despite this the level of competition remained at a very high pitch across the eight rounds and 16 races.

With eight victories split between four riders, this WorldSSP300 season marks Yamaha’s first riders’ and manufacturers’ crowns since the inaugural campaign in 2017.

Andrea Dosoli – Yamaha Motor Europe Road Racing Manager

“It has been a fantastic season for Yamaha in the WorldSSP300 class. First, we had one of our bLU cRU graduates, Alvaro Diaz, win the riders’ title yesterday, and now we end 2022 with our first manufacturers’ championship since 2017. We have really seen a lot of young talent on our R3 bikes this season, with eight victories from four different riders, so it’s thanks to them, as well as the hard work done by the teams, that we can celebrate this title. We have a lot of promising riders coming from our bLU cRU program, so we’re excited to see what they can achieve next year as well.”

WorldSSP300 Race Two Results

WorldSSP300 Championship Points

2022 WorldSBK Calendar