Brits dominate Donington WorldSBK
Kawasaki’s Tom Sykes invigorates his 2015 season by taking the Donington WorldSBK double and equalling the great Carl Fogarty’s record of six wins at the English circuit. Team mate, Jonathan Rea came home for second in both battles, while Ducati’s Chaz Davies took third in each encounter to deliver carbon copy UK podiums at Britain’s world superbike event of the year.
Race One: Sykes takes the Donington opener
Sykes has won the opening 23 lap WorldSBK race at Donington Park in dry but cold and overcast conditions after a race long fight with his KRT team mate Jonathan Rea. The pair swapped positions for virtually the whole race after getting the better of early leader Leon Haslam (Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils).
The final podium place went to Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati SBK Team) who also passed Haslam, who finished 4th, with six laps to go.
Ayrton Badovini (BMW Motorrad Italia) showed incredible pace in the closing stages to snatch 5th at the flag from Alex Lowes (Voltcom Crescent Suzuki) who was a solid 6th.
Jordi Torres (Apriilia Racing Team – Red Devils) finished 7th on his Donington race debut ahead of reigning champion Sylvain Guintoli (Pata Honda World Superbike Team), Leon Camier (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) and David Salom (Team Pedercini) who were 8th, 9th and 10th respectively.
The final point scorers were Leandro Mercado (Barni Racing), Nico Terol (Althea Racing), Roman Ramos (Team Go Eleven), Randy de Puniet (Voltcom Crescent Suzuki), and Niccolo Canepa (Grillini SBK Team).
Michael van der Mark (Pata Honda World Superbike Team) crashed out early on while Davide Giugliano (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati SBK Team) made an unscheduled pit stop to change tyres, the Italian, who started on the front row finished 17th and out of the points.
Race One Donington WorldSBK results
1 Tom Sykes 33m59.865s GBR KAWASAKI Kawasaki Racing Team
2 Jonathan Rea +3.743s GBR KAWASAKI Kawasaki Racing Team
3 Chaz Davies +15.140s GBR DUCATI Aruba.it Racing-Ducati Superbike Team
4 Leon Haslam +18.304s GBR APRILIA Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils
5 Ayrton Badovini +20.362s ITA BMW JR Racing Team
6 Alex Lowes +20.848s GBR SUZUKI Voltcom Crescent Suzuki
7 Jordi Torres +21.807s ESP APRILIA Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils
8 Sylvain Guintoli +24.346s FRA HONDA Pata Honda World Superbike Team
9 Leon Camier +30.570s GBR MV MV Agusta Reparto Corse
10 David Salom +39.074s ESP KAWASAKI Team Pedercini
Race Two: Lap Records tumble as Sykes dominates race 2, to take 24th career win
Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) made it two wins from two starts as he dominated WorldSBK race 2 to equal Carl Fogarty’s six race wins. The former champion has now won every race at the 2.5 mile circuit for the last three years. He made it a clean sweep, adding the fastest lap in race two to the Tissot-Superpole that he secured Saturday, winning by over nine seconds.
Tom Sykes #66 – Kawasaki Racing Team – Race 1 – 1st Race 2 – 1st – “A full set this weekend – two race wins, pole position and a new lap record. After some battles in race one I had a clean start in race two and I went a little bit faster down Craner and into the Old Hairpin to stop any passes, and away we went. When I saw that the gap was increasing I just had to be careful in how to manage the race. I was really happy with the race performance because Marcel my crew chief and all the boys have been working really well. It is good to win all the last six races here at Donington. We are getting there now and I am able to do a little bit more of what I want to with the bike.”
Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team) saved what could have been a huge crash as rounded Coppice Corner on lap two, the championship leader lucky not to fall. He regrouped with some great overtaking moves to salvage 2nd ahead of Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati SBK Team) who finished 3rd for the second time today.
Jonathan Rea #65 – Kawasaki Racing Team – Race 1 – 2nd Race 2 – 2nd – “I did not accept defeat before the races but if there is one place where my team-mate was going to really excel it was here. I had a big moment in race two and I was really lucky. When I found a rhythm I realised that Tom was on a different racetrack today but I could finish second because I knew the pace of the Kawasaki in the second part would be strong. The points gap is now in three figures, which I cannot believe. It is incredible, so we just need to keep doing the same.”
Chaz Davies #7 – Aruba.it Ducati – Race 1 – 3rd Race 2 – 3rd – “I’m really pleased with today’s results. The weekend wasn’t easy but we worked hard and to finish both races on the podium here is very positive. Today we simply weren’t on the same level as the Kawasakis and doing any better than third was difficult. In race two I had a small problem off the line that fortunately sorted itself out right away. We can only be happy, especially considering the fact that this has always been something of a bogey track for me. Thanks to my whole team for their great work this weekend and now we’ll focus on the next races.”
Davide Giugliano (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati SBK Team) was 5th after being passed by Leon Haslam (Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils) on the penultimate lap. The British rider overcoming the pain and discomfort of cracked ribs to finish 4th.
Leon Haslam: “I’m fairly pleased with the results today considering my conditions. Obviously I would have liked to have been on the podium for my fans, but I think that in the end two fourth places are the most we could have aimed for. I started well in both races and then I started feeling the fatigue. In spite of it all, even here we showed that we are in the game. I’m looking forward to some tracks that are more favourable for us so I can perform at my best. Now we’ll start thinking about Portimão, a track which should cater well to my RSV4.”
Davide Giugliano (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Superbike Team #34) – 17th, 5th – “Of course I’m very disappointed with the race 1 result. I was really struggling with the grip and so decided to come into the pitlane and get the rear tyre changed. Doing this meant I lost too much ground and there was no way to catch up once back on track, but at least we understood what the problem was. In race 2, I was hopeful that I’d be able to do better but from mid-race the grip dropped off and I was unable to ride as I wanted to. A pity because I was sure we had everything set to be able to complete two strong races here at Donington.”
Alex Lowes (Voltcom Crescent Suzuki) claimed another strong 6th after running 3rd in the early stages.
The top ten riders were rounded out by Jordi Torres (Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils) and Sylvain Guintoli (Pata Honda World Superbike Team) who battled race long, as they had in the opening encounter. Ayrton Badovini (BMW Motorrad Italia) was in the top ten again in 9th with Matteo Baiocco (Althea Racing) 10th.
Jordi Torres – 7th and 7th – “The truth is that I’m pleased with these two seventh places. I started from way back but I fought in both races, bringing home important points on a difficult track. We knew that it would be hard here. The English riders are doing very well and they are on their home pitch at Donington, but we managed to improve in each session. This is a strange track because it brings out both our strong points and our weaknesses, so finding an optimum setup for the RSV4 wasn’t a simple thing. Portimão will also be a new track for me, but since it is more uniform and smooth I think it might make life easier.”
Sylvain Guintoli – 8th & 8th – “It’s was a weekend to assess quite a lot of new parts and there are some good points to take from it. In the second part of the lap we were doing some quite good times and we gained stability under braking. We managed to be quite fast there so that’s good, but there are still areas where we struggled. In race two we managed to keep a much better pace at the end of the race. It was not faster at the start but much faster and more constant at the end, so that’s an improvement. I also had a good battle with my ex-bike and unfortunately just lost that by a tiny bit! The front runners were quite a long way from us today, but we have to keep fighting and keep improving the package for the rest of the season. We’ll keep the new frame and swingarm for Portimao to develop it more there.”
Roman Ramos (Team GO Eleven), David Salom (Team Pedercini), Leandro Mercado (Barni Racing), Randy de Puniet (Voltcom Crescent Suzuki) and Santiago Barragan (Grillini SBK Team) were 11th to 15th respectively.
Leon Camier (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) crashed out of 6th at the Esses, while Nico Terol (Althea Racing) crashed out a potential 11th at the half way point. Both riders were unhurt.
Michael van der Mark – DNF & DNF – “There’s not really much to say because it’s been the most disappointing weekend for me on a superbike. I felt like we made some progress during each session except in Superpole yesterday when I could not get the qualifying tyre to work. That left me quite a long way back on the grid so I was pushing hard in race one to make up some places when I crashed. I’m not sure what the problem was in race two but there was a technical problem with the front of the bike that meant I could not continue. It’s a shame but we will learn from these issues as we always try to and move forward to Portugal.”
Round 7 of the eni FIM Superbike World Championship will take place in Portugal at the Portimao circuit in two weeks.
Race Two Donington WorldSBK results
1 Tom Sykes 33m52.649s GBR KAWASAKI Kawasaki Racing Team
2 Jonathan Rea +9.772s GBR KAWASAKI Kawasaki Racing Team
3 Chaz Davies +12.304s GBR DUCATI Aruba.it Racing-Ducati Superbike Team
4 Leon Haslam +15.601s GBR APRILIA Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils
5 Davide Guigliano +15.779s ITA DUCATI Aruba.it Racing-Ducati Superbike Team
6 Alex Lowes +23.136s GBR SUZUKI Voltcom Crescent Suzuki
7 Jordi Torres +26.674s ESP APRILIA Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils
8 Sylvain Guintoli +27.206s FRA HONDA Pata Honda World Superbike Team
9 Ayrton Badovini +31.469s ITA BMW JR Racing Team
10 Matteo Baiocco +34.659s ITA DUCATI Althea Racing
WSBK Championship Leader Board after Donington WorldSBK round six
1 Jonathan Rea 280 pts GBR KAWASAKI Kawasaki Racing Team
2 Leon Haslam 179 pts GBR APRILIA Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils
3 Tom Sykes 178 pts GBR KAWASAKI Kawasaki Racing Team
4 Chaz Davies 155 pts GBR DUCATI Aruba.it Racing-Ducati Superbike Team
5 Jordi Torres 117 pts ESP APRILIA Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils
6 Sylvain Guintoli 92 pts FRA HONDA Pata Honda World Superbike Team
7 Matteo Baiocco 72 pts ITA DUCATI Althea Racing
8 Alex Lowes 71 pts GBR SUZUKI Voltcom Crescent Suzuki
9 Leandro Mercado 70 pts ARG DUCATI BARNI Racing Team
10 Michael van der Mark 67 pts NED HONDA Pata Honda World Superbike Team
World Supersport – Sofuoglu takes Donington – fourth win of season
British wildcard, 17 year old Kyle Ryde, snatches 3rd
The 6th round of the World Supersport championship has been won after 20 hard fought laps by Kenan Sofuoglu (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing), as cooler temperatures descended at Donington Park.
Starting from pole, the Turk was initially overhauled by rival Jules Cluzel (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) before regrouping and retaking the lead to win for the 4th time in 2015, extending his championship lead in the process.
Despite piling on the pressure Cluzel would eventually finish 2nd, taking the lap record in his efforts to chase down the Kawasaki mounted Sofuoglu.
17 year old British wildcard Kyle Ryde (Pacedayz European Trackdays) had the huge crowd on their feet with his aggressive riding, the youngster climbing onto the last step of the podium in 3rd ahead of Lorenzo Zanetti (MV Agusta Reparto Corse). Ryde fighting until the end with the hard charging Italian.
PJ Jacobsen (Kawasaki Intermoto Ponyexpres) finished a lonely 5th ahead of the second British wildcard Luke Stapleford (Profile Racing) who was 6th.
Sam Hornsey (Profile Racing), Gino Rea (CIA Landlords Insurance Honda), Niki Tuuli (Kallio Racing) and Andy Reid (CORE Motorsport Thailand) completed the top ten.
Aiden Wagner retired on lap 17 but still made some strides forward with the Intermoto Kawasaki while Glenn Scott took 16th place on the AARK Honda. A great recovery from the Mangrove Mountain (NSW) rider who suffered a massive highside during qualifying on Saturday.
WSS Donington Park – Race
1 – Kenan Sofuoglu Kawasaki Puccetti Racing
2 – Jules Cluzel MV Agusta Reparto Corse +0.891
3 – Kyle Ryde Pacedayz European TrackDays Yamaha +7.968
Standings (6 of 12 rounds completed)
1 – Kenan Sofuoglu Kawasaki Puccetti Racing – 130
2 – Jules Cluzel MV Agusta Reparto Corse – 85
3 – PJ Jacobsen Kawasaki Intermoto Ponyexpres – 79
Superstock 1000
Lorenzo Savadori (Nuova M2 Racing Aprilia) has come out on top in the 15-lap, FIM Superstock 1000 Cup race at Donington Park as he crossed the line 2.8s ahead of fellow Italian Roberto Tamburini (MotoxRacing BMW), with other Italian Raffaele De Rosa (Althea Racing Ducati) completing the podium. The 2014 runner-up lead the encounter from lights to flag, pulling away in the early stages and managing the advantage up to the chequered flag. This is the third win in a row for the 22 year old from Cesena, who enjoys now a 30 point lead atop the standings as the series reaches its halfway point.
Former STK1000 race winner Jeremy Guarnoni (Team Trasimeno) edged out other Yamaha rider Kev Coghlan (Team MRS) for fourth, while Imola podium finisher Ondrej Jezek (Triple-M by Barni Ducati) was sixth ahead of Kevin Calia (Nuova M2 Racing Aprilia), Fabio Massei (EAB Racing Ducati) and Luca Salvadori (Althea Racing Ducati), with Dutchman Tony Covena (EAB Racing Ducati) rounding out the top-10.
Bryan Staring struggled with set-up all weekend but salvaged 12th place in the race and is currently eighth in the championship standings.
Hungary’s Peter Sebestyen (Team Pedercini Kawasaki), Sylvain Barrier and Michele Magnoni (G.M Racing Yamaha) all crashed out of the encounter. Barrier managed to remount his YZF-M1R only to finish 19th, while Magnoni has been transported to the Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham after being diagnosed with a right shoulder dislocation and a humerus fracture.
Superstock 1000 Donington Park Race Results
1. L. Savadori (ITA), Nuova M2 Racing, 22’39.058
2. R. Tamburini (ITA), Team MotoxRacing, 2.893
3. R. De Rosa (ITA), Althea Racing, 5.242
4. J. Guarnoni (FRA), Team Trasimeno, 10.612
5. K. Coghlan (GBR), MRS Yamaha, 10.783
6. O. Jezek (CZE), Triple-M by Barni, 16.531
7. K. Calia (ITA), Nuova M2 Racing, 18.799
8. F. Massei (ITA), EAB Racing Team, 23.831
9. L. Salvadori (ITA), Althea Racing, 29.153
10. T. Coveña (NED), EAB Racing Team, 29.222
11. C. Bergman (SWE), MG Competition, 32.839
12. B Staring (AUS), Team Pedercini
Superstock 1000 Donington Park Championship Standings
1. L. Savadori (ITA), 95 pts
2. R. Tamburini (ITA), 65 pts
3. O. Jezek (CZE), 53 pts
4. K. Coghlan (GBR), 50 pts
5. R. De Rosa (ITA), 49 pts
6. J. Guarnoni (FRA), 37 pts
7. F. Massei (ITA), 32 pts
8. B. Staring (AUS), 22 pts
9. K. Calia (ITA), 21 pts
10. T. Coveña (NED), 21 pts
Orellana extends EJC lead at Donington Park
The fourth round of the 2015 Pata European Junior Cup, powered by Honda, took place at Donington Park in the UK this afternoon with series leader Javier Orellana notching up his third win of the season.
With 30 riders taking to the 4.023km Donington Park circuit on identical Honda CBR650F machines, Orellana was well placed from pole position to avoid a first lap crash which accounted for four of the leading riders, including Emanuele Pusceddu, who was victorious last time out at Imola in Italy.
Spaniard Orellana battled the remaining nine laps with French rider Guillaume Raymond but was able to open up a three-second gap by the time the chequered flag was waved. Raymond finished second with Italian rider Paolo Grassia third.
Orellana has now opended a 27-point cushion at the top of the table at the halfway point of the season, with Grassia moving up to second place at the expense of the unfortunate Pusceddu, who slips to third.
In the FIM European Women’s European Cup, local wildcard rider Charlie Oakland enjoyed a good battle with New Zealand’s series leader Avalon Biddle who emerged ahead of her rival in the final reckoning and continues to lead the championship.
Javier Orellana – “I’m really, really happy, because it was a perfect race for me. In my mind I never thought I would be able to open such a gap. I started from pole position and I wanted get to the front as fast as possible because always on the first lap it is a little crazy. In fact, I got second position behind Raymond and we were leading for two or three laps. Then, with three laps to go I pushed for a really fast lap and I was able to open the gap to get my third win of the year. I saw the first lap crash on the big screen but I didn’t know it was Emanuele until I got to the podium. Of course it’s not good for him but it means a 28 point championship lead for me.”
Gerry Bryce – series director – “Another spectacular EJC race but the pack was split after an early crash in the left-hander at Craner Curves, which catches out so many riders in so many classes because it’s the first time on the left side of the tyre. Unfortunately we lost four of the front runners in that group, which left a battle between Javier and Guillaume. In the end Javi had that little bit extra to push and take the win and with it a commanding lead in the championship. Sadly for Emanuele Pusceddu he was injured, thankfully not too seriously but we’ll have to see how that affects the title race. Wildcard Charlie Oakland had a great race in the Women’s European Cup but Avalon Biddle showed again that she seems to be the favourite in that class. All in all, a great European Junior Cup weekend.”
2015 Pata European Junior Cup, powered by Honda
Race Results – Round four, Donington Park, UK – Sunday, 24 May
1 J Orellana (ESP)
2 P Grassia (ITA)
3 G Raymond (FRA)
4 D Laville (FRA)
5 S Wilford (GBR)
6 D Loureiro (POR)
7 A Coppola (ITA)
8 I Fernandez (ESP)
9 I Cipriettii (ITA)
10 H Soomer (EST)
2015 Pata European Junior Cup Championship standings after four of eight rounds:
1 Orellana 91, 2 Grassia 64, 3 Pusceddu 57, 4 Raymond 53, 5 Laville 40, 6 Soomer 37, 7 Coppola 29, 8 Ciprietti 27, 9 Fernandez 17, 10 De Gruttola 24.
