Friday wrap from Most WorldSBK/SSP/SSP300

2022 FIM Superbike World Championship
Round Six – Autodrom Most, Most, Czech Republic

Fresh from a triple at Donington Park and a double winner at Most in 2021, Toprak Razgatlioglu was on a mission at Most on Friday. The Turk was spectacular as ever and having finished the opening session of the weekend in second place – having led most of it before he was toppled right at the end – went on to storm to a new lap record on a race tyre in FP2, setting a 1’31.506. Remaining unbeaten until the chequered flag, Razgatlioglu leads the way into the weekend, whilst team-mate Andrea Locatelli moved forwards in the closing stages, finishing seventh in FP2 and overall.

Toprak Razgatlıoğlu – P1

“This morning we started well after Donington Park and the bike feels good immediately. In the first session there was some small setting problem, but in the second session we improve the bike, now I am feeling much better and we are ready to race. The lap time is very positive, a very good lap time and also after 25 laps with the rear tyre, I see 32.3 – this is very good for so many laps on this tyre! I am very happy and I set also the lap record with harder tyre! It is the first time this year we don’t use the X tyre, but anyway most important for me is the race and we are working for this.”

Andrea Locatelli – P7

“A little bit strange day because the feeling is not so bad, but just something small is missing! Also, we work with a different tyre spec compared to normal, so it’s a new compound and we need to understand the feeling. In respect to Donington, for sure it’s another step. We start with a good feeling on the bike and do a good rhythm on the long runs, so I am confident for tomorrow because we understand what we need to do. But also we hope for ok weather tomorrow because probably it will be raining a little bit. But, anyway, we have a good idea about the bike and we will try tomorrow to push for a good Superpole and then we will try to push really hard in Race 1.”

It was a very fruitful showing in the Czech Republic at Most for BMW, with the German manufacturer flourishing as their improvements continue to shine through. Scott Redding (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) had periods at the top of the time-sheets in FP2 and the British rider banged in a stunning 1’31.733 to go second fastest come the end of the day, although he set a long first stint in FP2 with some good pace. Whilst his team-mate for this round Peter Hickman was 23rd, the second-fastest BMW and fastest Independent rider was Loris Baz (Bonovo Action BMW), as BMW enjoyed one of their most promising Friday’s of the 2022 season so far.

Spending much of the afternoon in first and second were Ducati, with Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) initially leading FP2 ahead of his Championship-leading team-mate Alvaro Bautista.

Rinaldi missed the first ten minutes of FP1 but that didn’t stop him finishing in fourth, whilst in the afternoon, he led the way for much of the session before finishing in third place overall, with his best time coming in a longer final stint.

Michael Rinaldi – P3

“I am satisfied because, from the very first laps of FP1, the feeling was immediately positive. Unfortunately, I had to deal with a couple of issues that, both in FP1 and FP2, forced us to lose precious minutes. But these are things that can happen. In the end, we are still third after the first day of free practice and the feeling is good. We need to put all the pieces together to be able to be consistent in all areas of the track.“

For Bautista, he is at Most for the first time aboard Ducati machinery and he spent Friday getting acclimatised to the circuit with the Ducati Panigale V4 R and was in third place for most of the afternoon. At the end of the day, it was fourth for him, Ducati the only manufacturer with two bikes inside the top four after day one in the Czech Republic.

Alvaro Bautista – P4

“We took advantage of FP1 mainly to get familiar with this track on which I have never ridden the Ducati Panigale V4R. We worked a lot to try to figure out what the best tire solution might be for the two long races but we still don’t have a definite answer. It was a very different Friday from the others but in the end, I think the base we can continue to work on is pretty good.”

It really was a day of two halves for Kawasaki, as Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) went fastest in the morning session with a 1’31.8. However, come FP2, Rea, who signed a new deal to remain with KRT until the end of 2024 ahead of the round, was down in fifth with five minutes to go before he headed back out for a time attack run. Team-mate Alex Lowes likewise didn’t feature to strongly in FP1 but was a solid seventh, whilst he was also seventh in FP2 into the closing stages. Come the end of the day and after long race runs had been finished, it was Rea in fifth whilst Lowes secured eighth on the combined times. Both were losing time in the final sector, so perhaps that will be focal area for Saturday’s FP3.

Jonathan Rea – P6

“We had a really positive day, to be honest. I feel much better with the bike set-up here compared to last year. I am much less on the limit and everything feels under control. We worked in the afternoon just on understanding how the tyre was going to drop over distance. We took the same tyre as the morning and kept riding. When we put a new tyre in nearer the end we were testing a new item on the bike as well. This time here, it wasn’t working, but the pace we had this morning was OK. Even this afternoon, on a used tyre, I was there or thereabouts. I think it was a good day one and I feel much better with the track than I did last year. They did a pretty good job with resurfacing in Sector One.”

Alex Lowes – P8

“Today has been unfortunate as I haven’t been feeling 100 per cent, physically. It is not Covid. I just have a lack of energy and a small fever. This limited the laps I could do but I don’t feel like the bike set-up is too far away from where we want it. I was able to ride pretty fast and consistently, all things considered. Right now it’s time to rest up and improve my condition for tomorrow. They’ve done a good job with the track re-surfacing in Sector One of the lap, so it’s a lot nicer to ride this section compared to 2021.”

For a second round on the bounce, it was a new circuit to get their head around for Team HRC, with Xavi Vierge finishing inside the top ten in tenth place come the end of the day. Vierge was down in 13th in the morning but improved considerably in the afternoon to go top Honda, although his team-mate had a slightly more difficult end to his day. A big crash at Turn 6 at the start of the session, Iker Lecuona didn’t get back out, losing vital track time on his Most debut, leaving him 11th on the combined time-sheets going into Saturday.’

Xavi Vierge – P10

“Today was a positive one for us, during which we tackled another new track, one that is very difficult and physically demanding for the riders. But we did a good job with the changes we made between FP1 and FP2. I can feel we’ve gone in a good direction because I was able to be quicker and more consistent during the afternoon session. So I’m happy with today, and the target is to continue in a similar way tomorrow. The weather forecast is not good, and it looks like it will rain all day so we must be ready for whatever conditions we will find both in qualifying and in Race 1.”

Iker Lecuona – P11

“I have to say I’ve had quite a challenging start to the weekend here in Most. Finishing 0.8 of a second from the front in this morning sessions wasn’t so bad, considering I’d never even seen the track on TV, but the feeling was not there, I didn’t feel comfortable on the bike. It was moving a lot, which made it difficult for me to manage the situation and hold the best lines. It was hard to replicate the same laps and be consistent. So, we made a lot of setup changes ahead of FP2 and to be honest I felt good on the first lap, setting a decent time early on despite traffic on track. Unfortunately, on only my second lap out, I lost the rear through the change of direction at turn 7 and suffered a massive high side, hitting the ground very hard. Checks at the medical center have ruled out any fractures thankfully, but I have some pain in my right leg and my back. So now we’ll try and recover as well as we can for tomorrow.”

With Baz as top Independent rider in fifth, the next best was Garrett Gerloff (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team), who after finishing third in FP1, could only manage ninth come the close of Friday action.

Garrett Gerloff – P9

“The morning started pretty well, we made some changes and they worked out nicely. Unfortunately, I struggled a little bit more in the afternoon, we’ll try to understand why and do whatever we need to be quicker tomorrow. Of course, we have to consider the weather – it looks like it’s going to rain, so we should be careful with the track conditions.”

The next best Independent was Axel Bassani (Motocorsa Racing) in 12th place, ahead of Philipp Oettl (Team Goeleven), Lucas Mahias (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) and Eugene Laverty (Bonovo Action BMW), who had the new swing-arm at his disposal for FP2.

Kohta Nozane (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) was a late improver in FP2 to go 16th, ahead of Luca Bernardi (BARNI Spark Racing Team), with the rookie Sammarinese looking stronger than at Donington Park.

In what was one of the best days of his season so far, Hafizh Syahrin (MIE Racing Honda Team) was up in 11th in FP1 but finished 18th on the overall times at the end and suffered a Turn 1 crash, whilst Roberto Tamburini (Yamaha Motoxracing WorldSBK Team) was 19th, ahead of Leandro Mercado (MIE Racing Honda Team).

Home-hero Oliver Konig (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) was 21st ahead of Christophe Ponsson (Gil Motor Sport-Yamaha), whilst Peter Hickman was 23rd ahead of Ryan Vickers (TPR Team Pedercini Racing), who had a crash in the final stages of FP2 but walked away. Wildcard Michal Prasek (Rohac & Fejta Motoracing) was 25th.

WorldSBK Combined Friday Practice Times

WorldSSP

Dominique Aegerter was the only rider to lap in the 1’34s bracket as he posted a 1’34.952s to top FP2 and the combined classification, with his lap time around three tenths quicker than the existing lap record set by now Moto2 rider Manuel Gonzalez in 2021.

The reigning Champion set a series of laps in the closing stages of FP2 to maintain his position at the top of the standings, fending off the challenge of Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team) in second place. The Italian was just 0.080s behind Aegerter at the end of the second 30-minute session, and around half a tenth quicker than Federico Caricasulo (Althea Racing) in third place.

Lorenzo Baldassarri (Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha Team) finished in fourth place, 0.216s down on Aegerter but was one of four riders to lap under the previous lap record of 1’35.213s. Rookie Baldassarri was around two tenths clear of Valentin Debise (GMT94 Yamaha), replacing the injured Jules Cluzel at Most, in fifth place after setting a 1’35.391s. Turkish star Can Oncu (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) was sixth and just under half a second down on Aegerter’s time.

The gap from Aegerter in first place to Steven Odendaal (Kallio Racing) in 12th place was just under a second in the combined classification. Stefano Manzi (Dynavolt Triumph) ensured four of the five manufacturers were represented inside the top ten with seventh place, ahead of Raffaele De Rosa (Orelac Racing VerdNatura WorldSSP) in eighth despite an FP2 crash at Turn 10. Andy Verdoia (GMT94 Yamaha) was ninth overall and the highest-placed rider not to improve his time in FP2, with his best of 1’35.621s coming in FP1.

Glenn van Straalen (EAB Racing Team) is looking to bounce back from a difficult Donington Park two weeks ago and responded with a place in the top ten after Friday’s two Free Practice sessions, finishing in tenth place after posting a 1’35.716s. The returning Niki Tuuli (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) secured 11th place and had been running inside the top ten during FP2, with Odendaal rounding out the top 12 and the final rider within a second of Aegerter. The South African, returning as a replacement rider at Kallio Racing, was also the highest-placed WorldSSP Challenge rider.

2021 WorldSSP300 Champion Adrian Huertas (MTM Kawasaki) was 16th overall after he had an FP2 crash at Turn 10 in the opening stages of the session, costing him valuable running time.

Oli Bayliss’ initial contact with the Most track proved complicated and it was only towards the end of the second session that the young Australian was able to complete a solid lap, which saw him place twenty-first overall and looking for improvement on Saturday.

Oli Bayliss

“We didn’t start out on the right foot in FP1 this time and had to make various modifications between the first and second sessions to improve my feeling with the bike. At the end of FP2 I was finally able to make a good lap though. I have many riders ahead of me, but there’s not a huge hap in terms of lap times. There are just two-tenths between me and thirteenth place so I need to make a perfect lap in Superpole tomorrow in order to start further forward on the grid.”

Unai Orradre (MS Racing Yamaha WorldSSP) was 23rd in the combined classification after a Turn 7 crash during FP1, while team-mates Jeffrey Buis (Motozoo Racing by Puccetti) and Ben Currie were 29th and 30th respectively; Buis had a Turn 2 crash in the closing stages of FP2 while Currie crashed at Turn 15 in FP2.

WorldSSP Combined Friday Practice Times

WorldSSP300

At the venue he claimed victory at in 2021, Dutch rider Victor Steeman (MTM Kawasaki) posted a 1’46.141s in FP2 to top the combined classification for the day, after he also went fastest in FP1, lapping faster than the race lap record and the Tissot Superpole lap record set in 2021.

Steeman’s time was 0.240s faster than home hero Petr Svoboda (Accolade Smrz Racing) in second place with Svoboda, racing as a wildcard this weekend, showing excellent pace on home soil.

Lennox Lehmann (Freudenberg KTM – Paligo Racing) secured third spot at the Autodrom Most on Friday after posting a 1’46.409s in FP2; showing his and KTM’s potential, with KTM claiming victory with Steeman at Most in 2021.

Ruben Bijman (MTM Kawasaki) finished second in FP1 and backed that up with fourth in FP2, just under four tenths back from teammate Steeman at the top of the field, with a late lap from the Dutchman bumping down Mirko Gennai (Team BrCorse) into fifth place after a strong showing in FP2 from the Italian rider. Gennai was just over a tenth quicker than compatriot Kevin Sabatucci (Kawasaki GP Project) in sixth place after posting a 1’46.691s.

Currently running first and second in the Championship, Alvaro Diaz (Arco Motor University Team) claimed seventh spot in the combined classification after improving his lap time in FP2, posting a 1’46.767s to lead title rival Marc Garcia (Yamaha MS Racing) by just 0.008s. A third Spanish rider, Alex Millan (SMW Racing), claimed ninth spot and he was just around 0.020s slower than Garcia while Alessandro Zanca (Kawasaki GP Project) rounded out the top ten.

Dirk Geiger (Fusport – RT Motorsports by SKM – Kawasaki) was 11th in the combined classification despite a crash at Turn 1 in Free Practice 2 with around 17 minutes of the session to go but the German was able to rejoin.

Young Aussie Harry Khouri just missed the top ten in FP1 before ultimately finishing the opening day ranked P19 on the time-sheets.

Jose Luis Perez Gonzales (Accolade Smrz Racing) had a crash at Turn 7 as he returns from injury and he finished in 20th in the combined classification, while the session was red flagged with just under 10 minutes to go following a crash for Inigo Iglesias (SMW Racing) at Turn 13, with the Spaniard taken to the medical centre for a check-up following the crash.

WorldSSP300 Combined Friday Practice Times

Yamaha YZF-R3 bLU cRu Cup Superpole Results

Autodrom Most WorldSBK Schedule
All Times AEST