Portimao WorldSBK round gets underway on Friday

2023 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship
Round 11 – Portimao
Friday Practice

It was a strong showing for the factory Ducatis of Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) and team-mate Michael Ruben Rinaldi. Bautista was top for most of the session in FP1 before finishing second but he improved in the afternoon and was comfortably ahead of the opposition by over half a second for most of the session. A 1’40.476 was Bautista’s time initially, quicker than the fastest time of FP1 as times tumbled throughout the second session. For Rinaldi, he was fifth in FP1 before consolidating his top five presence in the afternoon. He went P2 with less than ten minutes to go, albeit not able to get to within half a second of teammate Bautista. At the end of the day, Bautista was top by over a quarter of a second and Rinaldi P3.

Alvaro Bautista – P1

“We did a good job today. This morning, although the feeling was still positive, we chose to use, as usual, a tire solution that we won’t use during the races. In the afternoon, however, we went back to our preferred choice and the feeling was really very good. Do I think about the classification? Not really, I think race by race and I try to do my best. Then we’ll see“.

Michael Rinaldi – P3

“I’m satisfied with how things went today. In FP1 we had some difficulties, especially in braking areas, but with the team we did a great job and the feeling improved a lot in the afternoon. We are still missing something compared to Alvaro’s pace but we still have high confidence“.

Jonathan Rea couldn’t match the speed of the Ducatis in FP2, although the Kawasaki ZX-10RR was right in contention through the twisty sectors two and three. Team-mate Alex Lowes is back in action after missing Aragon and having been declared fit for the Pirelli Portuguese Round, he’ll also be looking for a strong weekend. Rea finished in fourth as the chequered flag waved on Friday whilst Lowes was 14th but less than a second off in a mightily close day one in Portugal.

Jonathan Rea – P4

“I had a positive day and the team made a really good plan to understand and work through the tyre options for tomorrow. Along with these tyre tests we were able to fine tune the set-up the set up on our Ninja ZX-10RR. I enjoyed riding today in Portugal, I always enjoy the track and it was good to see a lot of people here. We had a bit of a breakthrough with the front tyre and I felt stronger with it, especially at the end of the long runs. I think we have understood an area where we can improve in the last part of the races. That was positive, and I want to thank all of the team. We had hot conditions out there and everyone was working really hard. We have a big job to do tomorrow – try to qualify well and then of course the first of the long races will start in the afternoon. We will try to prepare in the best way possible.”

Alex Lowes – P14

“It was good to be back in action after missing some time out with an injury that needed surgery. Today was pretty positive. Everyone is so close now in WorldSBK so when you miss some sharpness it’s easy to be down the grid. I enjoyed riding today and will keep pushing to improve for Saturday.”

BMW were in mighty form once again, particularly with Garrett Gerloff (Bonovo Action BMW) who wrote more headlines for the manufacturer by topping FP1 by over four tenths of a second, although he didn’t improve his time in the afternoon. His 1’40.763 put him second on the combined times, whilst Michael van der Mark (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) was P6 and top of the factory team. Teammate Scott Redding could only manage 16th, one place behind Loris Baz (Bonovo Action BMW).

Gerloff wasn’t the only Independent rider inside the top ten as Remy Gardner (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) took top Yamaha honours with fifth place, a superb effort by the Australian rookie who has been strong in the second half of the 2023 season.

Remy Gardner – P5

“FP1 was a challenging one, struggling with overall grip. During the session I think we found a good way, but we still need to keep working. Our one- lap pace was good, but we are also looking for strong race pace. It was a good first day anyway, we have something to work on for tomorrow. We’ll try to improve the front feeling without compromising the rear grip and then to have a strong qualifying.”

Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) was seventh come the end of Friday as Ducati once again look strong, whilst Gardner’s team-mate Dominique Aegerter was tenth and was back on form after a difficult couple of rounds at Magny-Cours and Aragon.

Danilo Petrucci – P7

“We opted for a different strategy today, choosing not to use a second tyre in FP2. Keeping the same tyre for the whole session, we focused on setup because my feeling isn’t ideal. This track has very uneven asphalt and a lot of undulation which makes the bike unstable, and there’s not much grip. So we worked hard to find traction and stability and I’m pleased because we were near the top of the timesheets until the others put in their new tyres. This means we’re not doing so badly.”

Being joined by Bautista in his final run for a couple of laps, Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK) was in good company but perhaps not in the best position in the overall standings. He was only able to take P8 in FP2 and was behind team-mate Andrea Locatelli, who was one place ahead of him in P7 in what was very much similar to Sunday’s Race 2 at Aragon, although both improved from FP1.

Andrea Locatelli – P8

“The first day in Portimão was a bit different compared to testing at the beginning of this year – in winter conditions! I think we did a really good job for Friday and we understand where we need to improve – coming from Aragon I have a really good feeling and confidence, especially from Sunday. We started FP1 with the set-up from Aragon, but it’s a little bit different here so we just needed to understand which way to go. Also, we don’t have the Pirelli X tyre available, so there is less rear grip – but the feeling is good, we just need to work on some small details tonight, rebalance the bike a bit for this track and I think we can be strong in the races. I believe we can do very well here, so let’s see what is possible tomorrow!”

Razgatlioglu has won two of the last three races at Portimao but in what has seen Razgatlioglu outside the top six for the second consecutive Friday, he’ll hope to come good come Saturday. One thing to note: whilst Razgatlioglu wasn’t necessarily flying in terms of lap time, he certainly was when it came to the jump on the exit of Turn 8! He got big air over the leap, even more than last year!

Toprak Razgatlıoğlu – P9

“Friday was not bad, I started a bit stronger than in Aragon! Still a little bit some problem and we are just trying to improve. Especially, today I check last year’s lap times – some corners we are better, some we are slow. Overall we are a little bit faster than last year, just my problem is the last sector, last long right corner. But in general, I am not focused on the fast lap time. My feeling is good and we made a 20-lap race simulation – the last lap was not so strong but to try 20 laps is good, because after 10 laps I understand the tyre and tomorrow we can improve with the data. I hope tomorrow we come to the front again! The jump today was a bit motocross-style, like a whip – I am not trying more than this, maybe only if we win the race tomorrow!”

Having been inside the top seven in the morning session, as the pace picked up, Iker Lecuona (Team HRC) dropped to outside the top ten and was P11. Lecuona struggled at Portimao last year and the Valencian star will hope that he can make inroads throughout the remainder of the weekend. On the other side of the garage, Xavi Vierge didn’t feature any better as he struggled to just 17th on the combined times but was only 1.2s off.

Iker Lecuona – P11

“Well, not a bad start to the weekend if we consider every aspect of this first day of practice. We felt better in the morning when it was cooler but then, as often happens when the temperatures rise, we struggle more than other riders and are not able to make the same step that they do. On the other hand, it’s also true that we worked with the hard tyre and have not yet found a way to make it work well for us. Anyway, there is a big group of riders within just two or three tenths of a second of each other, we didn’t use a soft spec to make our fast lap, and we made no mistakes over the two sessions. Tomorrow we will try to find something with our base setup that can help me feel less on the limit, as I often did today, so that I can ride more smoothly and more consistently.”

Xavi Vierge – P17

“It has been a little bit of a strange day because in the pre-season test here we felt very strong but today it looks like we are lacking something, at the moment. We were actually able to lap in 42.0 straight away but then we sort of remained stuck there while the others were able to build on their pace. We tried some changes to the setup but are not yet convinced that these are taking us in the right direction, so we must be really clever in terms of our next moves with the setup for tomorrow.”

Philipp Oettl (Team GoEleven) took P12 in what was a more positive day from him, ahead of Axel Bassani (Motocorsa Racing), who is now in his final two rounds with Lorenzo Mauri’s team. Behind them, Lorenzo Baldassarri (GMT94 Yamaha) was 18th and had an incident with Gerloff earlier in the session on the exit of Turn 14, when Gabriele Ruiu (Bmax Racing) was in the American’s eyeline.

Brad Ray (Yamaha Motoxracing WorldSBK Team) was 19th, with Ruiu completing the top 20 ahead of Isaac Vinales (TPR Team Pedercini Racing) and Tito Rabat (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing).

Hafizh Syahrin (PETRONAS MIE Racing Honda Team) took P23 ahead of teammate Eric Granado, whilst Oliver Konig (Orelac Racing MOVISIO) completed the running.

WorldSBK Friday Combined Practice Times

World Superbike Championship Points

WorldSSP

Spanish rider Jorge Navarro had been quick in FP1 and backed that up with a1’43.849s in FP2 as he found around half-a-second compared to his morning time. This put him 0.029s ahead of who had been on a quick final lap at the end of the 45-minute session but lost ground to the pacesetter, while Championship leader Bulega took third and was only 0.034s down on Navarro. With so little to separate the top three on a dramatic Friday, racing on Saturday and Sunday has been set up perfectly as Bulega looks to wrap up the title with a round to spare.

French rider Valentin Debise (GMT94 Yamaha) extended his good run of form to Friday in Portugal with fourth spot, 0.288s down on Navarro, while Stefano Manzi (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) was fifth. Manzi lost valuable running time in the afternoon when he had a Turn 3 crash but, after riding his Yamaha YZF R6 machine back to the pits and his team repairing it, he was able to re-join the session in the final 10 minutes. However, he was unable to improve on his lap time with his best, a 1’44.190s, set in FP1 when he topped the session. Manzi was ahead of compatriot Raffaele De Rosa (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) in sixth with the #3, like Manzi, unable to improve his lap time in FP2. His best was a 1’44.383s.

Federico Caricasulo (Althea Racing Team) took seventh after lapping 0.615s slower than Navarro while it was a rollercoaster day for Lorenzo Dalla Porta (Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha Team). The Italian was ninth in FP1 after he crashed at Turn 10 although he was able to re-join the session and he found around half-a-second in FP2 to take eighth place overall. Marcel Schroetter (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) was ninth with Niki Tuuli (PTR Triumph), declared fit after his high-speed Race 2 Aragon crash, completing the top ten.

Dutch rider Glenn van Straalen (EAB Racing Team) was 11th despite a technical issue in the final few minutes of FP2, finishing ahead of Tom Booth-Amos (Motozoo ME AIR Racing) in 12th. The Brit is in pole position to win the WorldSSP Challenge title which concludes this weekend at Portimao and finished the day as the highest-placed Challenge rider. Can Oncu’s (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) comeback from injury continued with P13, ahead of wildcard Yeray Ruiz (MDR Offitec Yamaha) and Adrian Huertas (MTM Kawasaki), who bounced back from a Turn 8 crash in FP1 to complete the top 15 just ahead of Tom Edwards.

Nicholas Spinelli (VFT Racing WEBIKE Yamaha) was 21st in the classification but will take no further part in the weekend. The MotoE race winner crashed at Turn 15 in FP1 and was assessed at the medical centre, where he was declared fit. However, he did not take part in FP2 and with worsening symptoms of his left hand contusion, was declared unfit.

WorldSSP Friday Combined Practice Times

World Supersport Championship Points

WorldSSP300

Jose Luis Perez Gonzalez (Accolade Smrz Racing BGR) struck first in the FIM Supersport World Championship title decider at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve. The Spaniard was just over a tenth clear of the rest of the field as he looks to overturn a 30-point deficit in the Championship standings. In the title battle, Jeffrey Buis (MTM Kawasaki) was sixth while Dirk Geiger (Freudenberg KTM – Paligo Racing) was 18th on Friday at the Pirelli Portuguese Round.

The majority of the field improved their time in the afternoon FP2 session with Perez Gonzalez leaving it until his final lap to claim first place. He set a 1’55.152s to finish fastest on Friday by just over a tenth as he laid down a marker for his title rivals. Loris Veneman (MTM Kawasaki) claimed second after lapping 0.126s slower than the #73, despite a FP1 crash at Turn 15, while Mirko Gennai (Team BrCorse) hauled himself up the order to take third place, just under two tenths back from Perez Gonzalez.

Julio Garcia (Team Flembbo – PI Performances) continued his impressive Portuguese form with fourth, directly ahead of teammate Kevin Sabatucci. The Italian was fastest in Free Practice 1 and for the majority of FP2 looked like he wouldn’t find time. However, he improved to a 1’55.706s with his final lap to take fifth overall. 2020 Champion Jeffrey Buis (MTM Kawasaki) was sixth as he looks to wrap up his second Riders’ Championship this weekend, although he has a six tenths gap to Perez Gonzalez at the top of the field.

Indonesia’s Galang Hendra Pratama (Sublime Racing by MS Racing) was a long-time leader during FP2 but was overhauled as the session progressed before finishing seventh. Devis Bergamini (ProGP Racing) enjoyed a very strong afternoon as he took eighth overall with Fenton Seabright (Kawasaki GP Project) in ninth and Alessandro Zanca (Team#109 Kawasaki) completing the top ten.

Matteo Vannucci (AG Motorsport Italia Yamaha) was the highest-placed rider who didn’t find time in FP2. He took eighth in FP1 with a 1’56.559s and he didn’t improve on this, taking 15th place. Championship contender Dirk Geiger (Freudenberg KTM – Paligo Racing) was 18th as he looks to make gains, although he needs to overhaul a 47-point deficit to Buis with 50 available. Unai Calatayud (Arco Motor University Team) was 20th after a Turn 14 crash in the early stages of FP2 while American Christopher Clark (Accolade Smrz Racing BGR) was 31st after a Turn 3 crash in the same session.

WorldSSP300 Friday Combined Practice Times

World Supersport 300 Championship Points

WorldSBK Portimao Schedule
(AEST)

2023 FIM Superbike World Championship Calendar
Date	Circuit	WSBK	WSSP600	WSSP300
24-26 Feb	Phillip Island	X	X
3-5 Mar	Mandalika	X	X
21-23 Apr	Assen	X	X	X
5-7 May	Catalunya	X	X	X
2-4 Jun	Misano	X	X	X
30 Jun-02 Jul	Donington Park	X	X
14-16 Jul	Imola	X	X	X
28-30 Jul	Autodrom Most	X	X	X
8-10 Sep	Magny-Cours	X	X	X
22-24 Sep	Aragón	X	X	X
29-Sep-01 Oct	Algarve	X	X	X