Jonathan Rea takes the test best time and relegates his World Championship rivals to the places – BMW improves – Philipp Öttl holds his own in front of many top riders
On Monday, Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki) was the fastest rider with a 1:49.394 lap. The record-breaking champion beat this mark in the second session on Tuesday. In the third and final session, Rea achieved a further improvement. With a 1:48.714 lap, the Briton set the fastest time of the test.
His World Championship rivals Toprak Razgatlioglu (Yamaha) and Alvaro Bautista (Ducati) were also fast and always within striking distance. BMW’s improvement was remarkable. Bonovo rider Loris Baz hinted at the potential of the M1000RR in the sessions and was much closer than on the previous day. Brand colleague Scott Redding, however, is still looking to catch up. The British rider’s day was marred by a couple of trips to the gravel trap.
Superbike rookie Philipp Öttl (GoEleven-Ducati) put in another strong performance. The German improved on Monday’s performance and rode into the top 10 in the final session, losing 1.372 seconds to Jonathan Rea’s test best time.
WSBK Session 4 (10:55 – 11:40am)
As on the previous day, conditions were not ideal in the first session of the day. Temperatures dropped below freezing again on Tuesday night. Although the sun appeared early, the riders found only 6°C at the beginning of the day. Therefore, most of the riders hesitated. The few riders who were already on the road at the beginning of the session rode much slower than the day before.
It was not until the final third of the first 45-minute test session that riding picked up. In the end, Ducati rider Alvaro Bautista managed to secure the best time on Tuesday morning. With his 1’50.097 time, the Spaniard was almost as fast as the day before.
🇪🇸 Aragon @WorldSBK test in one photo 🥶👏 #YamahaRacing #WeR1 pic.twitter.com/rRsPqvwOT8
— Pata Yamaha with BRIXX WorldSBK (@PataYamahaBRIXX) April 5, 2022
Ex-World Champion Jonathan Rea lined up in second position on his Kawasaki. Garrett Gerloff, the fastest Yamaha, followed in third. Fellow brand mate Toprak Razgatlioglu took it easy on Tuesday morning, finishing in sixth position.
Rookie Philipp Öttl put in another strong showing, finishing eighth on his Ducati Panigale V4R. The German was 1.254 seconds behind. Outside the top 10 was BMW newcomer Scott Redding, 1.785 seconds back. The best BMW was in ninth position. Loris Baz was able to hold off his BMW brand mates.
The Top 3 of the fourth session:
1st Alvaro Bautista (Ducati) – 1:50.097 minutes
2nd Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki) +0.274
3rd Garrett Gerloff (GRT-Yamaha) +0.429
WSBK Session 5 (13:45 – 14:30)
At the start of the second session of the day, the temperatures climbed to over ten degrees. From the beginning, the time was used intensively. It didn’t take long before the 1:50 minute mark was cracked. Particularly impressive was the performance of Bonovo BMW rider Loris Baz, who set a 1:49 time with his M1000RR.
In the final attempt, Jonathan Rea managed the first 1:48 time of the test. The Kawasaki rider thus moved to the top of the standings and ousted defending champion Toprak Razgatlioglu from first position. A little more than three tenths of a second separated the old and the new champion.
Loris Baz set the third-fastest time, encouraging BMW. Things did not go particularly well for his brand colleagues in Tuesday’s second session. Eugene Laverty crashed early on in turn 9 and in the final minutes Scott Redding was caught in turn 9. Both ended up outside the top 10. And Honda rider Iker Lecuona also crashed. The Spaniard landed in the gravel in turn 2.
Philipp Öttl found himself in twelfth position in the penultimate session of the Aragon test. The German was 1.796 seconds behind Jonathan Rea’s fabulous time.
The Top 3 of the fifth session:
1st Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki) – 1:48.943 minutes
2nd Toprak Razgatlioglu (Yamaha) +0.325
3rd Loris Baz (Bonovo-BMW) +0.440
WSBK Session 6 (16:15 – 17:00)
In the third session of the second day and thus the last opportunity, the riders found the best conditions so far. The temperature was now around 14°C. The sun allowed the asphalt to warm up and the tyres to build up more grip than in the previous sessions. Already at the beginning, the top riders set 1:49 times.
Scott Redding crashed again. Already in the opening minutes, the Briton lost control of his BMW M1000RR in turn 1 and caused yellow flags. Redding was able to right his BMW and bring it back to the pits.
In the final minutes of the session, the riders went hunting for times. Jonathan Rea set the pace with a 1:48.714 lap. Several yellow flags ruined some time improvements. In the end, Rea’s time remained unchallenged. The record champion ended the Aragon test with the fastest time.
Philipp Öttl moved into the top 10 in the sixth session of the Aragon test and finished the 45-minute session in ninth position. The German’s gap was 1.372 seconds. With Scott Redding, Alex Lowes, Eugene Laverty and Michael Ruben Rinaldi, Öttl was able to leave some experienced WSBK top riders behind.
The top 3 of the sixth session:
1st Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki) – 1:48.714 minutes
2nd Toprak Razgatlioglu (Yamaha) +0.354
3rd Alvaro Bautista (Ducati) +0.380
The first practice of the new season will take place on Friday. The first race will start on Saturday.
The combined times of all three sessions (Tuesday):
1st Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki) – 1:48.714 minutes
2nd Toprak Razgatlioglu (Yamaha) +0.354s
3rd Alvaro Bautista (Ducati) +0.380
4th Garrett Gerloff (GRT-Yamaha) +0.521
5 Loris Baz (Bonovo-BMW) +0.669
6th Andrea Locatelli (Yamaha) +1.117
7th Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Ducati) +1.149
8th Iker Lecuona (Honda) +1.257
9th Xavi Vierge (Honda) +1.296
10th Philipp Öttl (GoEleven-Ducati) +1.372
11th Scott Redding (BMW) +1.390
12th Alex Lowes (Kawasaki) +1.398
13th Eugene Laverty (Bonovo-BMW) +1.732
14th Ilya Mikhalchik (BMW) +1.784
15th Roberto Tamburini (Motoxracing-Yamaha) +1.942
16th Kohta Nozane (GRT-Yamaha) +1.969
17th Axel Bassani (Motocorsa-Ducati) +2.142
18th Lucas Mahias (Puccetti Kawasaki) +2.324
19th Luca Bernardi (Barni-Ducati) +3,024
20th Gabriele Ruiu (Bmax-BMW) +3,289
21st Christophe Ponsson (Gil-Yamaha) +3.429
22nd Hafizh Syahrin (MIE-Honda) +3.598
23rd Oliver König (Orelac-Kawasaki) +4.015
24th Leandro Mercado (MIE-Honda) +4.332
25th Loris Cresson (Pedercini-Kawasaki) +4,820
