WSBK in Aragon Race 1

22.05.2021
Scott Redding and Michael Rinaldi finished fourth and seventh in the first race of the 2021 WorldSBK season.
A quite complex Saturday for the Aruba.it Racing - Ducati team that will be back on track tomorrow for the Superpole Race and Race-2 of the Pirelli Aragon Round.


Superpole

After a convincing FP3, Scott Redding did not take any risk in the first run with the "X" tire. Then he pushed to the maximum with the "Q" tire, setting the momentary track record (1'48.733) before the final fastest time set by Rea (Kawasaki).

The low temperature did not help Michael Rinaldi, as he couldn’t get the best out of his qualifying tire and he had to settle for the third row (P9) with a time of 1'49.516.

Superpole Results

P1 - J. Rea (Kawasaki) 1'48.458
P2 - S. Redding (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati) + 0.275
P3 - T. Sykes (BMW) + 0.382
P4 - A. Lowes (Kawasaki) + 0.432
P5 - C. Davies (Ducati) + 0.611
P9 - M. Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati) + 1.058


Race-1

Scott Redding's start was quite difficult and from the third lap he has started to lose contact with the Kawasaki duo.
The English rider did not find grip with the rear tire and between the 5th and 6th lap he was overtaken by Razgatlioglu (Yamaha) and Davies (Ducati).
Redding had the merit of not giving up: after having overtaken Davies, he came back in contact with the podium group during the last three laps, but he finished 4th only 2 tenths of a second behind Razgatlioglu (Yamaha).

It was not an easy Saturday for Michael Rinaldi, too. He started the race with the "X" tire and after having fought with Bautista (Honda) during the first 3 laps, from mid-race on the Italian rider found a better pace passing first Haslam (Honda), then Gerloff (Yamaha) to finish in 7th position.

Race-1 Final Result

P1 – J. Rea (Kawasaki)
P2 – A. Lowes (Kawasaki) + 3.965
P3 – T. Razgatlioglu (Yamaha) + 4.008
P4 – S. Redding (Aruba.it Racing- Ducati) + 4.242
P5 – C. Davies (Ducati) + 4.615
P7 – M. Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) + 8.345

Scott Redding (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati #45)
"It was a very difficult race for me. Since the first laps, I felt I didn't have enough grip to keep the pace with Rea and Lowes. The temperature went up compared to the morning, and it might have been a problem, even though that same condition seemed to be an advantage for us last year. I'm sorry I couldn't be competitive to stay with the two Kawasaki's. We have to analyze the data and understand where we can improve but I have full confidence in my team and I'm sure we can find some solutions to be more competitive tomorrow."

Michael Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati #21)
"I can't be satisfied with today's race because I wasn't able to express my potential. I wasn't able to find the feeling I needed to push as hard as I could. Obviously, we need to work on this. I wished for a different debut in my first race with the Aruba.it Racing - Ducati team but at the same time, we really brought home the best possible result, given the circumstances. We will work hard tonight, focusing on the data, which are strategic. I explained well to my team what happened during the race and I'm sure we'll find some answers for tomorrow."

Race results

Pos.	Nr.	Driver	Bike	Time-gap to Leader
1	1	J. Rea	ZX-10RR
2	22	A. Lowes	ZX-10RR	3.965
3	54	T. Razgatlioglu	YZF R1	4.008
4	45	S. Redding	Panigale V4 R	4.242
5	7	C. Davies	Panigale V4 R	4.615
6	66	T. Sykes	M1000RR	6.784
7	21	M. Rinaldi	Panigale V4 R	8.345
8	91	L. Haslam	CBR1000 RR-R	10.187
9	31	G. Gerloff	YZF R1	10.326
10	55	A. Locatelli	YZF R1	17.693
11	60	M. van der Mark	M1000RR	21.154
12	47	A. Bassani	Panigale V4 R	27.523
13	32	I. Vinales	ZX-10RR	30.963
14	3	K. Nozane	YZF R1	36.769
15	44	L. Mahias	ZX-10RR	39.334
16	94	J. Folger	M1000RR	41.544
17	23	C. Ponsson	YZF R1	43.179
18	84	L. Cresson	ZX-10RR	1:21.460
DNF	19	A. Bautista	CBR1000 RR-R	1 Runde
DNF	50	E. Laverty	M1000RR	5 Runden
DNF	76	S. Cavalieri	ZX-10RR	9 Runden
DNF	36	L. Mercado	CBR1000 RR-R	11 Runden
DNF	53	T. Rabat	Panigale V4 R	16 Runden

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