Racing for the FIM Supersport World Championship at the TT Circuit Assen came to a thrilling conclusion in the Prosecco DOC Dutch Round as Dominique Aegerter (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) claimed his fifth consecutive victory and his second in his team’s home race, while Randy Krummenacher (EAB Racing Team) battled his way to the podium for the first time since 2019.

LIGHTS OUT AND A BATTLE FROM THE START

In a typical 2020 WorldSSP race start, the lead group were battling nose-to-tail and elbow-to-elbow throughout the opening few laps, with Steven Odendaal (Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha Team) able to take the lead on the opening lap despite Aegerter getting a good start from pole position into Turn 1.

German Philipp Oettl (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) was able to take the lead of the race as he did in Race 1 on Saturday, but soon found himself behind Aegerter when the Swiss rider passed Oettl on the fifth lap, having passed Odendaal the lap before to move into second place as he looked to make it two wins in his special yellow livery.

TOP TWO BREAK AWAY

After Aegerter passed Oettl, Aegerter was able to drag the German rider away from the chasing pack as they looked to secure their places on the podium. Odendaal’s race came undone on Lap 9 of 18 when he crashed at Turn 5, falling down to 20^th place and had to battle his way through the field, eventually finishing in 13th.

Like in Race 1, Aegerter was able to start pulling away from everyone as he ramped up the pace to start pulling away from Oettl, leading by almost two seconds as Lap 13 got underway. Oettl was able to take advantage of the chasing group to claim second place and his second podium of the weekend.

THE BATTLE FOR THIRD…

The final podium place battled raged on throughout the 18-lap race between Luca Bernardi (CM Racing), Randy Krummenacher (EAB Racing Team), Jules Cluzel (GMT94 Yamaha), Manuel Gonzalez (Yamaha ParkinGo Team) and Can Öncü (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing). Krummenacher had been running third before Sammarinese rider Bernardi passed the 2019 WorldSSP Champion, although the Swiss rider was able to respond later on in the race.

On Lap 15, Gonzalez made his move on Bernardi to move into fourth in the hunt for his first WorldSSP podium before setting his sights on Krummenacher, but Bernardi soon made a return to fourth with an aggressive move on the 2019 WorldSSP300 Champion. Bernardi then made his move on Krummenacher at Turn 8 to move into third with two laps to go, but Krummenacher responded ay Turn 15; an error at the chicane meant Öncü was able to move into fourth. At the end, Krummenacher finished in third place to return to the podium in WorldSSP, with Bernardi in fourth. Krummenacher’s podium means it’s the first time two Swiss riders have stood on the rostrum in WorldSSP, while Switzerland now has as many wins as Germany in WorldSSP with 11.

ROUNDING OUT THE POINTS

Despite dropping to the back of the lead group, Cluzel was able to take fourth place after Bernardi was penalised with a one-place demotion for exceeding track limits on the final lap. Gonzalez claimed sixth place with Öncü in seventh after he was on the receiving end of an overtake by Bernardi which forced him wide.

Niki Tuuli (MV Agusta Corse Clienti) finished in eighth place with Marco Alcoba (Yamaha MS Racing) in ninth and Vertti Takala (Kallio Racing) completing the top ten; Tuuli and Alcoba around four seconds back from the group chasing down the podium.

Kevin Manfredi (Altogo Racing Team) was the highest placed WorldSSP Challenge rider with 11^th place, while Peter Sebestyen finished in 13^th place ahead of teammate Odendaal. Sheridan Morais’ (Wojcik Racing Team) secured another points finish with 14^th place as he stood in for the injured Christoffer Bergman, with Michel Fabrizio (G.A.P. MOTOZOO Racing by Puccetti) completing the points.

TO NOTE

WorldSSP Challenge rider Leonardo Taccini (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) missed out on a points finish by just 0.017s as he chased down Fabrizio, with Eemeli Lahti (HRP Suzuki) in 18^th place. Stephane Frossard (Moto Team Jura Vitesse) was just 0.053s behind Lahti in 18^th place, with Luigi Montella (Chiodo Moto Racing), Maria Herrera (Biblion Iberica Yamaha Motoxracing), Eduardo Montero Huerta (DK Motorsport) and Pawel Szkopek (Yamaha MS Racing) the last of the classified finishers.

The first lap was an eventful affair in WorldSSP with Indonesian rider Galang Hendra Pratama (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) a Lap 1 retirement following a crash, while Raffaele De Rosa (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) and Federico Caricasulo (GMT94 Yamaha) came together at Turn 10, with both retiring from the race. Daniel Webb (WRP Wepol Racing) was also a retirement from the race, as was Mattia Casadei (VFT Racing). Federico Fuligni (VFRT Racing) retired from the race in the closing stages of the 18-lap race.

The top six following WorldSSP Race 2, full results here:

1. Dominique Aegerter (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha)

2. Philipp Oettl (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) +7.697s

3. Randy Krummenacher (EAB Racing Team) +8.119s

4. Jules Cluzel (GMT94 Yamaha) +9.852s

5. Luca Bernardi (CM Racing) +9.870s

6. Manuel Gonzalez (Yamaha ParkinGo Team) +9.952s

Fastest Lap: Dominique Aegerter (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) 1’38:013

Championship standings

1. Dominique Aegerter (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) 169

2. Steven Odendaal (Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha Team) 125

3. Philipp Oettl (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) 108

4. Luca Bernardi (CM Racing) 97

5. Jules Cluzel (GMT94 Yamaha) 91

6. Manuel Gonzalez (Yamaha ParkinGo Team) 84

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