Jonathan Rea takes pole at Portimao World Superbike Championship – Laps dropped in rows – Alvaro Bautista not on row one
Kawasaki factory rider Jonathan Rea has secured pole position at the World Superbike Championship in Portimao (Portugal). In Superpole, Rea beat off his 24 challengers with his 1’39.620 lap.
Yellow flags caused chaos in the second battle. Laps were cancelled in rows. World Championship leader Alvaro Bautista (Ducati) was not affected, but still missed out on making the front row of the grid.
Before Superpole, Alvaro Bautista’s FT3 best time (1:39.811 minutes) was the fastest lap of the weekend. The first battle in Superpole saw the two factory Kawasakis move into the lead. Alex Lowes lapped the circuit in 1:39.762 minutes and topped the standings ahead of teammate Jonathan Rea. Alvaro Bautista was third, Philipp Öttl (GoEleven-Ducati) was P6.
At the second attempt, Jonathan Rea beat his teammate’s time and took the lead with a 1:39.620 lap. Alex Lowes crashed in the second stint, as did Honda rider Xavi Vierge. Yellow flags caused chaos.
Jonathan Rea with perfect timing to pole
Jonathan Rea’s fastest time was not threatened. Due to the yellow flags, a number of lap times were cancelled. This played into the cards for Alex Lowes, who was able to secure second place on the grid despite a crash.
Yamaha rider Andrea Locatelli set the third fastest time, but will have to start from the back of the field because he ignored the flag signals at the previous weekend in Aragon when he suffered a technical failure. Team-mate Toprak Razgatlioglu therefore moves up to third position and has a clear view at the start.
World Champion Alvaro Bautista only on row two
WM leader Alvaro Bautista finished Superpole in P5 and is fourth on the grid. Completing the second row of the grid are Iker Lecuona (Honda) and Michael van der Mark (BMW)
Danilo Petrucci (Barni-Ducati) finished Superpole in P8 and is seventh on the grid for the first race this afternoon. Also qualifying for the third row of the grid were Remy Gardner (GRT-Yamaha) and Philipp Öttl (GoEleven-Ducati). Gardner and Öttl had laps dropped.
Scott Redding did not experience a smooth Superpole. There was a technical problem with the Briton’s BMW M1000RR. Redding returned the bike to the pits and was able to make a second attempt, which secured him tenth on the grid.
BMW exceeds maximum number of engines for Loris Baz
Garrett Gerloff (Bonovo-BMW) and Michael Rinaldi (Ducati) completed the fourth row of the grid. Rinaldi was stripped of the fastest lap, which would have been enough for the first row of the grid.
Dominique Aegerter (GRT-Yamaha) finished Superpole in P17. Due to Andrea Locatelli and Loris Baz (Bonovo-BMW) being penalised, Aegerter moves up to 15th on the grid. Baz also moves to the back of the grid because his team is using an extra engine.
