A dominant victory for Alvaro Bautista in Race 2 for the Pirelli French Round. The Spanish rider won by a wide margin ahead of Razgatlioglu (Yamaha) and Rea (Kawasaki) and defended his championship lead. With three rounds to go in the 2023 WorldSBK season, Bautista’s lead over Razgatlioglu is 57 points.
Unlucky Sunday for Rinaldi after a good podium in Race 1. In the Superpole Race, the Italian rider was unintentionally hit by his team-mate and crashed, finding himself forced to start Race-2 from eleventh position. The start, however, was extremely convincing: Rinaldi recovered several positions and moved up to fourth place. From three-quarters of the race, however, Rinaldi’s pace dropped dramatically as he experienced high difficulty in braking areas, and then he was forced to return to the pits.
Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #1)
“It was a really emotional weekend. After the problem I had in Race 1, in the Superpole Race I was unfortunately involved in contact with Michael. I’m very sorry that he crashed but you have to believe me: I couldn’t do anything to avoid the contact. Race-2 was really good for me as the feeling was extraordinary from the first to the last lap”.
Michael Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #21)
“Despite the fact that today we didn’t get the results I was hoping for, I can still say I’m satisfied with this weekend because right from Friday practice we showed we were very fast. In Superpole Race, I was convinced I could fight for the win. Then, after the impact of Alvaro, I found myself on the ground. It was a pity, of course, but these are things that can happen in racing. In Race 2, on the other hand, after a good start, I felt I had some problems with the bike and I preferred not to risk, coming back to the pits”
- WorldSSP
A triumphant weekend for Nicolò Bulega and the Ducati Panigale V2 of the Aruba.it Racing WSSP team.
After yesterday’s pole position and victory in Race-1, the Italian rider completes a perfect round by dominating Race-2 from the first to the last lap
Nicolò Bulega (Aruba.it Racing WSSP #11)
“I am really very happy. It’s a perfect weekend in which the feeling with the bike has been extraordinary. For this, I thank the team who did an excellent job. In these two days, we were the only Ducati to get on the podium and fight with the Yamaha, which demonstrates the quality of the work done. The championship? I don’t want to think about it: there are three rounds left and I just want to try to have fun, trying to win as many races as possible. See you at Aragon!”.
