WorldSBK heads to Australia with Rea in the lead

WorldSBK and WorldSSP riders completed the final day of testing around Autodromo do Algarve in Portimao, which hosted the final two-day European pre-season test before the 2019 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship season, Yamaha Finance round kicks off at Australia’s Phillip Island on February 22-24, 2019.

A stronger wind blew at the Portuguese rollercoaster race track, but riders didn’t back down and aware of the importance of every single hour of testing available, they took to the track early in the morning to make their final arrangements ahead of the WorldSBK season opener at Phillip Island.

Jonathan Rea – Image by 2snap

Both the days saw stiff competition with many riders and four different manufacturer bikes contending the top spot till the very last minute of on-track activity, showing off similar paces.

But in the end, it was reigning World Champion Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing WorldSBK Team) who came out on top at the end of the two days, despite suffering a small crash on the final minutes of on-track activity. Working on finding a good base setup for his Kawasaki ZX-10RR, the Northern Irishman was happy with the improvement made with his crew during the off-season, and he now looks forward to Australia to see where they really stand.

On the other side of the garage, Leon Haslam was more than pleased in ending the European Winter test in fourth position. Returning to the WorldSBK championship after four years, the British rider was able to find back his confidence with the WorldSBK machine over the four days of testing at Jerez and Portimao.

Leon Haslam – Image by 2snap

Bringing on the fight to Rea and the green machines, Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) continued with his stunning pace also on Day Two at Portimao, as he closed in second position 0.959 s behind Rea. Together with his teammate Michael van der Mark, who finished fifth, the Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team riders successfully completed their program, as they worked on confirming the new parts tested during the days before.

In the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati garage Chaz Davies and Alvaro Bautista were able to make consistent progress working on the base setup of the all-new Ducati Panigale V4 R.

Alvaro Bautista – Image by 2snap

Testing different tyres and many aspects of his new bike, Alvaro Bautista set an outstanding fastest lap time of 1’41.934, taking the third spot of the timesheets, on a race track with such unique features, that he barely knows. Team-mate Chaz Davies who was still struggling with back pain put in 42 laps on the V4 R today and finished a tough test in 11th position.

But it wasn’t just the green, blue and red machines to impress at Portimao. BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team rider Tom Sykes put in a sensational lap today, conquering the sixth spot in 1’42.246.

Tom Sykes – Image by 2snap

The British rider was surprised by how close they were, considering they are still in their development phase. Also, Markus Reiterberger, who worked on the geometry of the bike and on testing different tyres, completed a positive test finishing tenth overall. After their sixth day on track with the new BMW S1000RR, which colours were revealed today live on their social media channels, the BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team can now head to Australia with a lot of confidence after their positive work.

Markus Reiterberger – Image by 2snap

Continuing to adapt to the WorldSBK bike, 2018 WorldSSP World Champion Sandro Cortese (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) set the seventh fastest lap time, while teammate Marco Melandri closed eighth overall.

Toprak Razgatlioglu (Turkish Puccetti Racing) had a strong pace on both days as he closed in ninth position. The Turkish rider worked on improving his feeling on board the Kawasaki ZX-10RR that will only be updated into the 2019 version at Phillip Island. Working also alongside a new crew chief, it was a positive two-day test for the young rider and his team.

Eugene Laverty – Image by 2snap

It was a tally two-day test for Independent team riders Michael Rinaldi (BARNI Racing Team) and Eugene Laverty (Team Goeleven), both working on the development of their Ducati Panigale V4 R. The Italian rider closed in twelfth position, while Laverty, who still have a lot of work to do with his new team, finished thirteenth.

Developing the new Honda CBR1000RR, 2019 WorldSBK rookie Alessandro Delbianco finished fourteenth after two days trying to get acquainted with the WorldSBK machine.

Alessandro Delbianco – Image by 2snap

Jules Cluzel (GMT94 Yamaha) set the fastest lap time among the WorldSSP riders who were also out testing in Portugal. The Frenchman closed 0.573 secs ahead of the MV Agusta F3 675 of Italian rider Raffaele De Rosa (MV AGUSTA Reparto Corse) and 0.879 ahead of Frenchman Lucas Mahias (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing).

The teams will now move their operations to the southern hemisphere and Australia, with the final pre-season test at the thrilling Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit Monday and Tuesday February 18 & 19 for all world superbike and world supersport riders.

Jules Cluzel – Image by 2snap

Just days later the field will kick off their 2019 championship at the island, with the opening Yamaha Finance round from Friday February 22-Sunday February 24 launching the new format with three WorldSBK races including the new ten lap midday Sunday sprint; WorldSSP racing and support racing from Australian Superbike, Australian Supersport and Australian Supersport 300 as the local championships launch their season. Tickets available at www.worldsbk.com.au or Ticketek.