There was action throughout the 12-lap Race 1 in the FIM Supersport 300 World Championship during the Prosecco DOC Catalunya Round at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, with 2020 Champion Jeffrey Buis (MTM Kawasaki) claiming his first win since returning to the Championship this season. He finished just 0.052s ahead of the chasing group to take an emotional victory for both him and the MTM Kawasaki squad in Barcelona.

BACK ON TOP: Buis returns to winning ways

Buis initially got a good start when the lights went out and initially pulled out a gap of over a second on the first lap but the chasing pack soon closed that gap up over the next few laps and Buis first dropped out of the lead on Lap 4 as the lead group became a huge 21 riders. Buis remained in this group despite dropping down as low as eighth at one point and he re-gained the lead of the race on the final lap to win his first race since returning to WorldSSP300. He fended off Samuel Di Sora (ProDina Kawasaki Racing) on the final lap of the race by just 0.052s as the Frenchman looked for victory, while Mirko Gennai (Team BrCorse) rounded out the podium with third place after pulling off an epic comeback from 19^th throughout the 12-lap race.

Buis’ victory means he becomes the all-time race winner in WorldSSP300 with eight wins in total, while it was also MTM Kawasaki’s last win since the late Victor Steeman won at the same circuit last year. It was also Kawasaki’s 50^th victory in WorldSSP300, the first manufacturer to reach this milestone, while Di Sora took his 13^th podium in the Championship and Gennai recorded his fifth rostrum visit.

FIGHTING BACK: from last to the top five…

There were several comebacks throughout the race including Championship leader Petr Svoboda (Fusport – RT Motorsports by SKM – Kawasaki) as he finished in fourth place despite running outside of the points for the majority of the race. Humberto Maier (Yamaha MS Racing/AD78 Latin America Team) was fastest in the Tissot Superpole session but had to start from the back of the grid due to being sanctioned for irresponsible riding in FP1. Dirk Geiger (Freudenberg KTM – Paligo Racing) was sixth after leading the race for parts throughout.

COMPLETING THE TOP TEN: one second separating first and tenth…

Daniel Mogeda (Kawasaki GP Project) took seventh place after a strong race for the Spanish rider on home soil ahead of Matteo Vannucci (AG Motorsport Italia Yamaha) in eighth, with Vannucci one of several riders who led the race throughout the 12-lap race. Jose Luis Perez Gonzalez (Accolade Smrz Racing BGR) overcame a Long Lap Penalty, given to him for irresponsible riding in Superpole, to take ninth place ahead of Indonesia’s Galang Hendra Pratama (Sublime Racing by MS Racing) who scored points on his return to the Championship.

SCORING POINTS: rounding out the top 15

Enzo Valentim (Yamaha MS Racing/AD78 Latin America Team) also had to serve a Long Lap Penalty for irresponsible riding during Race 1 bit he finished in 11^th place, just 0.063s ahead of Julio Garcia (Team Flembbo – PI Performances) in 12^th. Garcia was at the front of a trio of Spanish riders who were in the points-paying positions with Jose Manuel Osuna Saez (Deza-Box 77 Racing Team) in 13^th and Yeray Saiz Marquez (Accolade Smrz Racing BGR) in 14^th. Troy Alberto (Fusport – RT Motorsport by SKM – Kawasaki) rounded out the points with 15^th.

HOUSEKEEPING: to note from WorldSSP300 Race 1

It was a difficult day for Ruben Bijman (Arco Motor University Team). He appeared to stall on the grid as the lights went out and, while he dropped to last, he was able to re-join the race. However, he was later given a double Long Lap Penalty for a jump start. He was eventually classified in 20^th place. Juan Pablo Uriostegui (Team#109 Kawasaki) crashed out of the race on Lap 6 at Turn 5 after a collision with wildcard Calatayud (Arco Motor University Team) with Calatayud able to continue. Lennox Lehmann (Freudenberg KTM – Paligo Racing) retired from the race at the end of Lap 7 when he brought his machine into the pits. Raffaele Tragni (AG Motorsport Italia Yamaha) retired from the race after a crash at Turn 3, with an incident placed under investigation by the FIM WorldSBK Stewards.

On Lap 10 of 12, there was a six-rider crash involving Kevin Sabatucci (Team Flembbo – PI Performances), Fenton Seabright (Kawasaki GP Project), Loris Veneman (MTM Kawasaki), Gabriele Mastroluca (Arco Motor University Team), Alessandro Zanca (Team#109 Kawasaki) and Marco Gaggi (Team BrCorse). All six retired from the race with the incident set to be investigated by the FIM WorldSBK Stewards after the race.

The top six WorldSSP300 Race 1, full results here:

1. Jeffrey Buis (MTM Kawasaki)

2. Samuel Di Sora (ProDina Kawasaki Racing) +0.052s

3. Mirko Gennai (Team BrCorse) +0.098s

4. Petr Svoboda (Fusport-RT Motorsport by SKM-Kawasaki) +0.341s

5. Humberto Maier (Yamaha MS Racing/AD78 Latin America Team) +0.346s

6. Dirk Geiger (Freudenberg KTM-Paligo Racing) +0.481s

Fastest Lap: Samuel Di Sora (Kawasaki): 1’55.236s

Watch more WorldSSP300 from Barcelona on Sunday using the WorldSBK VideoPass!