Jonathan Rea leads the WorldSBK test
HRC MotoGP test rider Stefan Bradl by far the fastest on the track …
Images by GeeBee / 2Snap
Reigning world champion Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) hit the track early on a warmer second day of testing in Jerez. The four-time world champion returned to the top of the timesheet with a benchmark of 1’39.160 to top the regular WSBK runners after testing a number of small updates to the ZX-10RR pace setting.
Jonathan Rea
“That was positive, very positive. I felt a lot better on the bike today and we got some good results on tire usage. The track was really green yesterday and I struggled with it a little. Pirelli brought some other tires that we had to include in the plan today. Other than that, we just kept working on the suspension setup and found some big improvements. We keep working on the electronics, but we don’t do too much fine-tuning. We played around a bit with the wheelbase length. We had a clear direction in the last winter test and in some ways I preferred the bike. Here I only sacrificed a bit of steering effort and after that we tried today to make the bike a little more maneuverable. I enjoyed the day and started driving with a smile on my face. Finding good improvements during the day kept motivation high and the track was in much better shape. I felt like I was over a lap and we are really well positioned in terms of constant pace. “
Jonathan Rea
Also on the track was HRC MotoGP test driver Stefan Bradl, the German finished the day a little faster than the Kawasaki ZX-10RR with WorldSBK equipment from Pirelli. Bradl is only 8 thousandths of a second ahead of Rea on the production-based machine.
Stefan Bradl – HRC MotoGP test rider
There would certainly have been some effort between the two of them trying to set the pace as the top dog, and the times an interesting comparison too, pointing to the comparable performances between the Pirelli WorldSBK runners and the MotoGP Michelin …
Stefan Bradl – HRC MotoGP test rider
Alex Lowes was second best with 1: 39.372 as he made further progress with the Pata Yamaha YZF-R1 and completed 102 laps on the Andalusian circuit today.
Alex Lowes
Alex Lowes
“It was a good two days here in Jerez. I drove my best lap today on a qualifying tire. I did a 1’39.8 on the race tire, so I found half a second in qualifying, which is pretty good because I think the gap isn’t as big as it used to be. The bike felt good in qualifying trim and we did a good long run in race trim. The new track surface was pretty hard on the tires, especially the front, but it’s good to have that information now before the race. We tried a lot of things on the bike today and confirmed some of the changes we made yesterday which was positive given the changed track conditions. This afternoon we worked on the front of the bike and at the beginning we went a little in the wrong direction, but then came back and saw an improvement, so a real test day. I am now looking forward to Portimão, where we will test what we have learned here on a completely different track. Many thanks to the team and Yamaha for the work they have done over the winter; it definitely seems to have paid off. “
Alex Lowes
His teammate Michael van der Mark worked on improving his motorcycle’s acceleration and testing new parts for the YZF R1 machine. His team mate Michael van der Mark finished in seventh place with a fastest lap time of 1: 40.145.
Michael van der Mark
“It was a really positive test. For me it was important to see how my wrist was doing after the winter break and I feel very good about it. I will definitely be fully fit again when we get to Phillip Island for the first race. After the track was cleaned up yesterday afternoon we tried so many things on the bike with some big improvements that I really like and I think Alex feels the same way. Obviously a lot of hard work has been done over the winter and it is good for the people who have done their job when their efforts are rewarded at the first test of the season. I am satisfied with what we have achieved here in Jerez and am now looking forward to Portimão. “
Pata Yamaha
Focused on getting more comfortable on his new bike, Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) had a positive two-day test as he was also just 0.342 seconds behind his teammate in third place. The Briton was quick on both days and built confidence with the ZX-10RR.
Leon Haslam
“This test was really good. We took some big steps and played around with a lot of setup and adjusted my style very comfortably. From a racing tire perspective, I’m really happy. I’m a little frustrated because I made a mistake with a qualifying tire. I was less than a tenth behind until the last split and then made two mistakes in both qualifications that I used. So in qualifying I was actually slower, but the lap time with the racing tires was really positive. To finish third with a racing tire, that makes me very happy. “
Leon Haslam
Toprak Razgatlioglu (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) continued to impress, the Turk finishing fifth fastest.
Toprak Razgatlioglu
Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) made an important step forward with his Ducati Panigale V4 R in fourth place.
Alvaro Bautista
Alvaro Bautista
“It was a positive couple of days. After the winter break, it was important to get back on track, to adjust to the speed again, but also to get used to the new bike. The new asphalt made it a little harder for us. The grip was very low and so were the temperatures, so that we couldn’t find a good feeling on the first day. However, today we managed to work better. The track improved and it was warmer outside. We’re still focused on the riding position and basic setup in general. We tried some changes that I liked and now we’re going to do more evaluations in Portimão, a route I don’t know, so it’s going to be very interesting. “
Alvaro Bautista
The Spaniard had a busy day gathering as much information as possible and designing the best basic setup for his brand new Ducati machine.
Ducati Panigale V4R
On the other side of the pit, Chaz Davies sat out during the day’s opening hours and hit the track later that afternoon, only doing a few laps and finishing the day in tenth. Davies felt some back pain after the fall on Wednesday and decided to take it slow as he wants to get back to full strength for the next pre-season test that will take place in Portimao later this month.
Ducati Panigale V4R
Chaz Davies
“Today we focused on the engine and in the end the lap time was okay given the short time we had on the track, but I think we could have made bigger improvements. Unfortunately it was a difficult day. Yesterday I only felt a few pains in my back. It had nothing to do with the crash, but it got worse overnight. I managed to get treatment twice so I could do a few more laps, which was very important. It seems that we are going in the right direction. The next stop is Portimão, a completely different route, and the top priority will be to complete our full program before heading to Australia. “
Chaz Davies
The independent team drivers Michael Rinaldi (BARNI Racing Team) and Eugene Laverty (Team Goeleven) finished ninth and twelve. The two worked together with their new teams and provided valuable feedback, which is also used by the factory team to improve their Ducati beast.
Ducati Panigale V4R
Continuing to adapt to a new team structure, GRT Yamaha WorldSBK rider Marco Melandri had a busy day doing a total of 87 laps on his Yamaha, finishing eighth overall.
Teammate Sandro Cortese was slowed down by a small fall early in the morning. The German got away from the accident on his feet, but had to wait for his bike to be recovered and repaired before returning to the track in the afternoon and setting the sixth fastest time.
Towards the end of the day, BWM Motorrad WorldSBK riders Tom Sykes and Markus Reiterberger finally equipped their new S 1000 RR machines with timing transponders. They recorded the 14th and 15th best times.
BMW S 1000 RR
At the WorldSSPriders, Federico Caricasulo (BARDAHL Evan Bros. WorldSSP Team) was in the lead on day two, while Frenchman Lucas Mahias (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) was second just 0.222 s behind him.
Maria Herrera
Maria Herrera made her class debut and also tested aboard MS Racing’s Yamaha YZF R6. The Spaniard focused on familiarizing herself with the new bike and finished her second day of testing with a fastest lap time of 1: 46.957, the debutante being the slowest of the 12 World Supersport riders to hit the track.
Maria Herrera
While some of the WorldSBK and WorldSSP riders who participated in the two days have finished the Jerez test, now ahead of the first round of the 27th of the 2019 FIM Superbike World Championship in Australia.
WSBK Jerez Day 2 Unofficial times
- Stefan Bradl (HRC MotoGP test team) 1m39,152
- Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) 1’39.160
- Alex Lowes (Official Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) 1’39.372 +0.212
- Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) 1’39.502 +0.348
- Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 1’39.620 +0.460
- Toprak Razgatlioglu (Turkish Puccetti Racing) 1’39.942 +0.782
- Sandro Cortese (GRT Yamaha Team) 1’40.075 +0.915
- Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) 1’40.145 +0.985
- Marco Melandri (GRT Yamaha Team) 1,40,469 +1,309
- Michael Ruben Rinaldi (BARNI Racing Team) 1,40,540 +1,380
- Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 1’40,621 +1,461
- Leandro Mercado (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) 1,40,794 +1,634
- Eugene Laverty (Team Goeleven) 1,40,879 +1,719
- Jordi Torres (Team Pedercini Racing) 1’41.066 +1.906
- Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) 1’41.206 +2.046
- Markus Reiterberger (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) 1’41.231 +2.071
- Alessandro Delbianco (Althea MIE Racing Team) 1’42.353 +3.192