Ducati 1-2 in WorldSBK Superpole race

2023 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship

Round One – Phillip Island

World Superbike Superpole Race

The track was mainly dry when World Superbike competitors lined up on the grid for the first Superpole race of season 2023. The whole field on slicks and on the softest standard option available at both ends, SC1 front and SC0 rear. The track temperature just over 30-degrees, the ambient 20-degrees and the race distance ten laps amounting to a 44.45 kilometre contest.

Razgatlioglu started from pole positio alongside Bautista and Aegerter but it was the Ducati man that led them through turn one for the first time ahead of the Turk while Jonathan Rea moved up into third place at Southern Loop.

Razgatlioglu through to the lead at turn four, Bautista second, Rinaldi then passes Rea for third place.  Dominique Aegerter then punted Jonathan Rea wide and the Northern Irishman was shuffled all the way back to ninth place and in the midst of the pack.

At the end of lap one it was Bautista, Lowes, Razgatlioglu, Rinaldi, Aegerter, Remy Gardner in sixth ahead of Oettl and Locatelli.

The top five were very tight  but Gardner had been pushed wide and lost a little ground on them through the second lap.

Aegerter was taking no prisoners. Pushing past Rinaldi, but the Ducati man got him back to stake his claim on that fourth position once again.

Rinaldi under Toprak at turn one to move up to third place with seven laps to run then immediately started attacking Lowes for second place. Bautista had now stretched away to the tune of a full-second.

Michael Rinaldi then made it a Ducati 1-2 after getting the better of Alex Lowes. They still had Razgatlioglu, Aegerter, Gardner and Locatelli in close company with less than a second covering that six.

Razgatlioglu stole third place from Lowes around the back of the circuit as the race reached its midway point. Rinaldi had now started pulling away from that group.

Remy Gardner and Dominique Aegerter then clashed at turn four and both Yamaha men went down. The Australian had the rear come around as he tried to go up the inside of his GRT Yamaha team-mate.

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Alvaro Bautista was unfettered up front and had a 1.5-second lead over his Aruba Ducati team-mate with four laps to run.

Razgatlioglu and Lowes were tussing over third position and Locatelli also had his hat in that ring while Peter Oettl and Jonathan Rea tried to join that party.

Toprak finally managed to inch away from Lowes whose fourth position then came under a determined attack from Andrea Locatelli.

Alvaro Bautista the clear winner, Michael Rinaldi second and Toprak Razgatlioglu rounds out the podium. Bautista put in two 1m29s in that race.

On the final lap Lowes and Locatelli started swapping positions but Lowes managed to hold on to that fourth place when it mattered at the chequered flag.

Phillipp Oettl managed to hold Jonathan Rea at bay on the final lap to clinch sixth place.

Iker Lecuona showed good race pace but lost too much ground early on, finishing eighth ahead of Alex Bassani while Michael van der Mark rounded out the top ten ahead of Danilo Petrucci and Xavi Vierge.

World Superbike Superpole Race Results

World Superbike Championship Points

Phillip Island WorldSBK/ASBK Race Schedule