Alvaro Bautista reaches the milestone of 100 WorldSBK podiums at the end of a race characterised by a very difficult start. The Spanish rider (P6 on the grid) found himself in thirteenth position at the first corner but kept his nerves and began to build his great comeback. Halfway through the race, he was already fourth, and with 6 laps to go, he began a good duel with Petrucci (Ducati) for second place, which he won with three laps to the end. Razgatlioglu (BMW), however, had a one-second lead that could not be recovered.
Nicolò Bulega has to deal with the flu virus that has been limiting him over the weekend at Portimao. However, the Italian rider grits his teeth and stoically finishes the race in seventh place.
Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #1)
“Unfortunately, the start wasn’t the best, and I was in the middle of the group at the first corner. However, I have to say that the feeling with the bike was really good right from the first few laps. I am very happy to have reached 100 podiums in Superbike. I will try to do even better tomorrow, though, with a better start”.
Nicolò Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #11)
“I gave it my all. Unfortunately, my condition wasn’t the best, as I felt quite debilitated, but I still wanted to finish the race even though it was tough. I hope to feel a little better tomorrow and try doing something more”.
WorldSSP
Adrian Huertas takes the Pole Position, but the start is not brilliant. The Spanish rider has to fight first with Oncu and then with Manzi to take second position. However, the gap built by Montella (Ducati) is too wide, and Huertas manages second position to take 20 precious points and maintain the championship leadership (+41 on Montella).
Adrian Huertas (Aruba.it Racing WSSP #99)
“It’s clear that the bad start compromised our chances of fighting for victory. At the same time, though, I want to congratulate Montella and his team for a solid race and a well-deserved victory. We have to fix some details to be more competitive tomorrow”.
