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Rapid Rea smashes lap record to secure first WorldSBK pole of 2021

Saturday, 22 May 2021 09:44 GMT

    • A late lap from Rea means he jumps up the order as he breaks the lap record by three tenths to take his 28th WorldSBK pole position

    The first Tissot Superpole session of the 2021 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship featured broken records and dramatic moments throughout at MotorLand Aragon for the Pirelli Aragon Round as Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) claimed pole position for Race 1 and the Tissot Superpole Race by smashing the lap record.

    THE FRONT ROW – LAP RECORD DESTROYED

    Rea posted a best lap time right at the end of the session, a 1’48.458s, to claim his 28th pole position in WorldSBK on his brand-new Kawasaki ZX-10RR to top the session by 0.275s ahead of title rival Scott Redding (Aruba.It Racing – Ducati), with Redding also under the previous Superpole lap record. Redding qualifying in second place means it’ll be Ducati’s 350th appearance on the front row. Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) put his new M 1000 RR on the front row with third place, a good start for the new machine as the lead BMW rider.

    REST OF THE TOP 10 – SHOCKS AND SURPRISES

    Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) had looked on course for a front row start but was usurped by those starting ahead of him in the latter stages with the British rider top after the first runs in the 15-minute session. Chaz Davies (Team GoEleven) secured a second row start on his debut with his new team with fifth place, meaning it’s the first time since Oran Park 1988 one nation has locked out the first five positions in Superpole.

    American star Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) secured sixth place as the fastest Yamaha rider, and prevented an all-British top six by finishing just ahead of Leon Haslam (Team HRC); Haslam taking Honda honours in Aragon. Haslam was just a tenth ahead of teammate Alvaro Bautista, with Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.It Racing – Ducati) and Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha with BRIXX WorldSBK) in tenth. The Turkish star had qualified higher up the grid although had his best time deleted after exceeding track limits, meaning he was demoted to tenth.

    NOTABLE TALKING POINTS

    Debutant Tito Rabat (Barni Racing Team) secured a fourth row start on his Ducati Panigale V4 R in his first Tissot Superpole session in WorldSBK, with Eugene Laverty (RC Squadra Corse) 12th on his first appearance with the new BMW satellite squad; Laverty entering the season with only one test session to his name throughout the long offseason.

    Michael van der Mark (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) was 15th after limited running in this morning’s Free Practice 3 session following his crash yesterday, while. Axel Bassani’s (Motocorsa Racing)’s first Tissot Superpole session was disrupted by a crash at Turn 3 around five minutes into the session, impacting his session although the youngest rider on the grid was able to qualify in 20th place.

    The top six following Tissot Superpole in WorldSBK, full results here:

    1. Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) 1’48.458
    2. Scott Redding (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) +0.275s
    3. Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) +0.382s
    4. Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) +0.432s
    5. Chaz Davies (Team GoEleven) +0.611s
    6. Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) +0.727s

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