There is great satisfaction in the house Ducati for the success of Alvaro Bautista in Race 1 a Phillip Island, with the Spaniard dominating from the middle three quarters of the race in wet track conditions. Thanks to this victory, the reigning world champion won the first round of the 2023 season, triumphing in front of an applauded Jonathan Rea (2nd despite a gearbox problem and author of the record for the most rounds held in Superbike, equal to 378 races) and Toprak Razgatlioglu.
The Yamaha rider, who started from pole position right in front of Bautista, was unable to defend the lead from the lightning-fast start of the number 1, who then commented on his race once the ceremony on the podium was over: “I’m very happy with this victory also because we managed to get it in extremely different conditions to those of the tests – he has declared – we didn’t have reference data and for this reason it was important to stay focused, especially in the first laps, to understand the track well, to identify the limit. We got a nice victory, the best way to start the season. To be honest, however, I hope to be able to race tomorrow in dry conditions”.
What a start of the season😱🌧️🤦🏼♂️ happy with my performance & from all my team!💪🏼
Good morning😱🌧️🤦🏼♂️ happy with my performance and my team!💪🏼#AB19 #TheDefense #keepworking #AUSWorldSBK #ForzaDucati pic.twitter.com/HSG9cHVaHy— Alvaro Bautista Arce (@19Bautista) February 25, 2023
Totally different story, however, for Michael Rinaldi. The rider from Rimini, who started from sixth position on the grid, had difficulty managing his stay in at least the top 10, slipping down to the 14th square the final: “It’s certainly not the best way to start the season – commented – we came to this race with great confidence but the weather has changed the cards on the table and in these conditions right from the first laps I was unable to get the right feeling with the bike. There are moments in which it is necessary to remain calm and not try to overdo it, risking making mistakes that could jeopardize subsequent races. I’m sure that tomorrow we can go back to the positions where we showed we can stay during all the tests”.
Big smiles for the Aruba.it-Ducati team, finally also in the Supersport category. In the latter, Nicholas Bulega gave the first success in the history of the Italian team astride his Panigale V2. A far from obvious victory especially due to the rain that fell during the reconnaissance lap and the subsequent red flag. Despite the track being dry at times at the restart, Bulega opted to keep the wet tyres, making an exceptional comeback which was confirmed by the victory.
#Superbike #Bautista #start #season #FormulaPassion.it