If anyone had any doubts about Toprak Razgatlioglu's choice to race with BMW, they were dispelled today with the Turk's majestic victory in the Superpole Race. Sunday in Barcelona opened with the short race that left us in suspense until the checkered flag and saw a great battle between the BMW standard bearer, Alvaro Bautista and Andrea Iannone, second in the final after having overtaken the reigning champion.
The heart-pounding final lap made the victory an unknown until the end, because at the last corner Razgatlioglu slipped “Valentino Rossi-style” onto Bautista, who was in the lead. It seemed to be over when at the last moment Iannone slipped between the two, taking second position just 75 thousandths behind the winner. Third at the finish line was the reigning champion, who took the podium after a start to the race that seemed more opaque.
On a track like Barcelona which is very aggressive for the tyres, it was also important to manage in the Superpole Race, and the top three did it very well. Iannone, back in great form, managed to stay in the leading positions from the traffic lights to the checkered flag, while Razgatlioglu and Bautista seemed more in difficulty in the initial stages, but they were just preparing for the great show they gave us in the final stages of competition.
Nicolò Bulega, however, missed out on the podium, having tried until the end but then remained in fourth position. Behind the Ducati rookie was Alex Lowes, very incisive in the first laps but falling back in the final and only fifth. The Kawasaki Brit battled with his brother Sam Lowes in the early stages, but rider Marc VDS did not get beyond 11th place after leading the race.
If the Kawasaki in the hands of Alex Lowes conquers the top 5, it still struggles a lot with Axel Bassani, who is only 14th in the Superpole Race. Jonathan Rea did little better, 13th with Yamaha and in the midst of a crisis. The six-time world champion was never able to stay in the fight and also fell behind his teammate Andrea Locatelli, who was also in difficulty and only eighth. Sixth Michael van der Mark ahead of Danilo Petrucci, eighth with the Ducati of the Barni team. The GRT pair closes the top 10, with Remy Gardner and Dominique Aegerter in ninth and tenth position respectively.
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