The ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team rider was one of the few front runners to use the harder rear tyre during the shorter 10 lap race but took the lead at Turn 1 on Lap 2 and was never challenged there after. Razgatlioglu held a comfortable three second lead by the time he took the flag and celebrated his milestone victory
From the middle of the front row Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) once again made a good start. He held onto second position for the first half of the race before Petrucci and Michael van der Mark (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) came past him. On the final lap Lowes was able to surprise van der Mark at Turn 8 and held off his former teammate to the line by just 0.021s
While it was another hat-trick for Razgatlioglu this was a challenging race. A clash with Alex Lowes on Lap 6 saw the right wing ripped off the BMW. With the balance of his bike changed Razgatlioglu struggled in the longer corners and was under attack from Bautista and Bulega
Bautista was the closest challenger but the Spaniard crashed at Turn 5 on Lap 15. Having been able to set the fastest lap of the race the Ducati rider was charging and chasing down Razgatlioglu’s lead. Having taken the lead Razgatlioglu shot back at Turn 4 before Bautista’s mistake. The double World Champion was chasing his first win since the Superpole Race at Assen. The Ducati star remounted but finished outside the points
There were eight changes of the lead over the course of the 20 lap race. For the first time since 2021 Michael van der Mark led a race with the BMW rider eventually finishing in seventh position after a race long battle with Petrucci and Jonathan Rea (Pata Prometeon Yamaha)
Bulega continued his run of finishing on the podium at every round this season. The reigning WorldSSP champion started from fifth position on the grid but dropped to sixth position at one third distance before recovering through the leading group to get into the podium positions at half distance. After Bautista’s crash it was Bulega’s turn to carry the baton for Ducati and while he led the race he wasn’t able to claim the win. Just 0.035s separated Bulega from a second win of the season
Alex Lowes led three laps and was running comfortably in fourth position when Bautista crashed. Elevated to the podium he opened a gap of 2.5s to Iannone at the flag. The Englishman now trails Bautista by just ten points for third in the standings
Andrea Iannone (Team GoEleven) enjoyed a strong day. Having finished ninth in the Superpole Race the rookie was able to have a combative race in the evening to finish as the leading Independent Rider in fourth position
In the championship Razgatlioglu holds a 92 point lead from Bulega with Bautista a further ten points adrift. BMW leads the manufacturers standings by 20 points from Ducati
P1 | Toprak Razgatlioglu | ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team
“This race was very difficult. It wasn’t easy to ride with the strong wind but I kept fighting. In the last sector I was struggling and I was always slower in the last corner. I gave it everything, and we won again. This is my 13th win in a row and my 54th in total. I’m very happy after today. It’s been an incredible weekend for me and the team. Everybody is working very hard and we want to continue like this for the next race in Magny-Cours!”
P2 | Nicolo Bulega | Aruba.it Racing – Ducati
“This was one of the most difficult weekends I’ve had this season. I felt sick all weekend but I never gave up. I tried to improve every time I was out on the bike. My team did a great job too. Unfortunately, I lost the battle with Toprak. There was almost nothing between us at the end but this was my first race weekend here in WorldSBK. I’m happy. It’s always nice to be on the podium.”
P3 | Alex Lowes | Kawasaki Racing Team
“This is a track that I enjoy. IThe bike works really well here but, onestly, it was a hard race for us. The wind changed and it was so physical. The bike was moving a lot but I think I had some strong areas of the track all weekend. That was great because I was able to make some overtaking moves. Against the two Ducatis and Toprak I just didn’t have the speed. I made a couple of mistakes too because the bike was moving so much. The braking was a bit inconsistent for me but I’m not going to complain too much! To have two podiums today is fantastic for the team.”
DNF | Alvaro Bautista | Aruba.it Racing – Ducati
“The feeling with the bike is coming back. Yesterday, we had a very bad start but finished second. I was the second fastest on track in the Superpole Race. In Race 2 I lost a lot of ground at the start but the feeling was similar to yesterday. The conditions were a bit tricky today because the wind was too strong. I understood more or less how the wind was affecting the track but the feeling with the bike was good. Today was the first time this season that I really felt strong. At that moment, I thought maybe I could relax for a few laps and then attack but it’s been a long time since I’ve fought for victory, so I wanted to put on a bit of a show. I wanted to have some fun, and play a little with Toprak. Unfortunately, in Turn 5, he passed me and went a bit wide. I tried to get back to the line but I lost the front. It’s a bit of a pity because the performance was really good. Now, we need to reset and start fresh with this feeling on the bike.”
WorldSBK Race 2 Results
1. Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team)
2. Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) +0.035
3. Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) +6.299
4. Andrea Iannone (Team GoEleven) +9.715
5. Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) +11.318
6. Jonathan Rea (Pata Prometeon Yamaha) +11.428
Championship Standings
1. Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) 365 points
2. Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati) 273 points
3. Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati) 223 points
WorldSBK Tissot Superpole Race Results
1. Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team)
2. Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) +2.980s
3. Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) +3.251s
Montella ends Huertas winning streak
A fourth win of the season from Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) capped off a near perfect weekend for the Italian rider. Having started from pole position, courtesy of his fastest lap in Race 1, he led the early laps before championship leader Adrian Huertas (Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team) came through to take the lead
A crash at Turn 5 for Huertas on Lap 9 saw the Spaniard drop outside the points before recovering to score points in 12th position. That limited the damage in the championship but having led by 41 points going into Race 2 it now stands at 20 points with five rounds remaining
Stefano Manzi (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing) profited from Huertas misfortune to take second position in the race. It was a Yamaha battle for the runner-up spot on the podium with Valentin Debise looking much stronger in Race 2 to fight with Manzi. The Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha Team rider claimed his third rostrum finish of the season
A five rider battle was headed by Lucas Mahias (GMT94 Yamaha) after a race long battle with Glenn van Straalen and Can Oncu before Marcel Schroetter and John McPhee joined in during the closing laps. A clash with McPhee saw Schroetter given a one place penalty and dropped to eighth position for the rider in fifth in the championship standings
Race 2 winner: Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team)
Race fastest lap: Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team)– 1’43.578s
WorldSSP Race 2 Results
1. Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team)
2. Stefano Manzi (Pata Prometeon Ten Kate Racing) +5.897s
3. Valentin Debise (Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha Team) +9.487s
4. Federico Caricasulo (Motozoo ME AIR Racing) +12.436s
5. Lucas Mahias (GMT94 Yamaha) +19.187s
6. Glenn van Straalen (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing) +19.912s
Championship Standings
1. Adrian Huertas (Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team) 260 points
2. Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) 240 points
3. Stefano Manzi (Pata Prometeon Ten Kate Racing) 219 points
Double top for Gennai as Veneman takes the championship lead
A double win for Mirko Gennai (MTM Kawasaki) was hard fought after a race long battle at the front of the field. A five rider group group away from the pack in the early stages and traded the lead six times before Gennai established himself at the front. A winning margin of two tenths of a second vaulted Gennai to fourth in the championship standings
It was a one two for the MTM Kawasaki team with Loris Veneman also taking the championship lead for the first time. The Dutch rider narrowly pipped Julio Garcia Gonzalez by just two thousands of a second
For much of the race it seemed that the KOVE Racing Team could have a chance of their first win in WorldSSP300. Eventually Garcia Gonzalez and Marc Garcia had to settle for third and fourth at the flag
Championship leader Inigo Iglesias retired from the race in the early stages. The Fusport-RT Motorsport by SKM-Kawasaki rider left Portugal without scoring any points. The Spanish rider, winner of two races this year, is now ten points behind Veneman
WorldSSP300 Race 2 Results
1. Mirko Gennai (MTM Kawasaki)
2. Loris Veneman (MTM Kawasaki) +0.214s
3. Julio Garcia (KOVE Racing Team) +0.216s
4. Marc Garcia (KOVE Racing Team) +0.300s
5. Elia Bartolini (Yamaha Motoxracing WorldSSP300 Team) +0.388s
6. Daniel Mogeda (Team#109 Retro Traffic Kawasaki) +7.334s
Championship Standings
1. Loris Veneman (MTM Kawasaki) 139 points
2. Inigo Iglesias (Fusport-RT Motorsports by SKM-Kawasaki) 129 points
3. Aldi Mahendra (Team BrCorse) 128 points
WorldSBK will return for the Motul French Round on September 6th - 8th at the Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours.