2023 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship
Round Six – Donington Park
KRT WorldSBK rider Jonathan Rea took his Ninja ZX-10RR to the top of the wet Friday qualifying time-sheets at Donington Park that saw most riders not turn a wheel in FP2.
Only two riders set lap times in FP2, as the rains soon increased and prevented any realistic chance of any rider improving his best lap time.
Rea’s fastest lap of 1m27.627 in FP1 was set on the new completely resurfaced layout, which has removed many of the previous bumps, but which also made the first day of action even more complicated than usual. Along with the light precipitation that held riders back a little in FP1.
The Donington WorldSBK lap record, set on race tyres, is a 1m26.767, making Rea’s pace in less than ideal weather ideal conditions an impressive early showing. Jonathan praised the improvements on the new track surface, which offers higher grip characteristics than the previous asphalt.
Jonathan Rea – P1
“The weather in the whole first practice session wasn’t perfect. There were some spots of water on the visor but you just convinced yourself the track was OK. It has been a bit of a tough day because I have only done five proper timed laps. Right now, we feel a bit underprepared but we are at the top of the timesheets, so it is not all bad. We brought some things here from the test we recently took part in at Motorland Aragon. But, with the limited track time available today it is hard to know if we can continue with them tomorrow. I need a bike that I really know well and I am comfortable to push with. Now we will have one 30 minute FP3 session to set the bike up before Race One. There is new asphalt here, a new grip level and new demands. The track surface feels quite demanding on the rear tyre, to be fair. So, I am not sure if we will persevere with the things we brought from the test.”
Toprak Razgatlıoğlu had raced to the top of the time-sheets immediately at his favourite circuit during FP1,, a position he held on to for much of the “mostly dry” first session before being pipped at the post by Kawasaki’s Jonathan Rea by just 0.052s.
Toprak Razgatlıoğlu – P2
“I’m really happy to be back here again, it’s my favourite track – but today I am not really enjoying because we are not able to understand if the new tarmac is good or not in these conditions. I hope tomorrow no rain and we are just riding in dry conditions! I also hope we are improving because now we don’t know which tyre is good for the race, we will see. Not much to say, Locatelli rode a lot in the rain and very fast lap time – looks like the grip is very high in the wet. I will always try more than 100%, I love it this track and last year we did the three wins – I say this year, why not? Looks like Johnny is always strong and I hope we are fighting in the race. Many people coming to watch and want to watch very good racing this weekend! We are focused on the race directly.”
Philipp Öttl timed his run right to be third quickest on Friday and top Ducati ahead of Axel Bassani.
Philipp Öttl – P3
“It’s a good way to start the weekend. There weren’t a lot of laps today but I’m happy with the feeling I had on the bike and especially in the last sector. That was a difficult part for us last year and I think we already made some small improvements. The new surface feels great and I’m looking forward to riding tomorrow. You have to be optimistic after today and I think we can be competitive. A top five like in Australia would be great. We made a good improvement at Misano and I hope we can continue on that way. We need a good Superpole and then, in the race, we can be competitive.”
Alex Lowes, riding at his literal home circuit, feels more work has to be done on his machine set-up to make sure that the more aggressive grip characteristics do not prematurely wear out the softer option range of Pirelli tyres selected for use at Donington. Lowes ended day one fifth.
Alex Lowes – P5
“The track surface is good because a lot of the bumps from the old surface are gone now. It is not brand new because it has been used a bit by other categories but it is really smooth and they have done a good job. The bike felt good but we can’t really tell because I did only one of two laps, and the rain was spitting, so I didn’t know how hard to push, but it felt OK. Obviously tyre life looks like it is going to be a bit of an issue, because the rear tyre was dropping quite a lot. This is something we need to consider for tomorrow, but the bike feels good. If everybody else has to use the SC0 tyre it may be a bit better for us.”
Brad Ray (Yamaha Motoxracing WorldSBK Team) started his weekend on home turf in good form to finish Friday sixth on the time-sheets.
Bradley Ray – P6
“It was a very good day; obviously, coming to Donington Park, it’s the only UK round, and I know this track very, very well. It was nice that in FP1, I knew where I was going and I could get up to speed very quickly. The bike felt very good, we did a lot of work throughout the race weekend at Misano and we seem to have carried the momentum forward here. It’s nice to be in the mix with the top guys, I feel like it is where we can be and we just need to carry the momentum to tomorrow. We have a good package, we’ll do some work tonight with the team and go into tomorrow in a good way. I want to be able to be in the top ten in the races. I need a strong Superpole on Saturday, as that’s very important! I’ve learnt that coming into World Superbike, that the Superpole is so, so important to make the outcome of your race better. I need to concentrate on getting some strong laps in during Superpole. Then, we’ll try and stick in with the top ten and try and get the best finish of the year at Donington Park.”
Tom Sykes (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) was seventh overall and top BMW.
At the end of the first day of activities at Donington Park, Aruba Ducati rider Alvaro Bautista and Michael Rinaldi finished eighth and ninth respectively in a combined classification that does not give reliable indications of true race pace.
Alvaro Bautista – P8
“There is little to say. We couldn’t do much work. We have only been able to confirm the excellent quality of the new asphalt, which no longer has any bumps. At the same time, though, we didn’t get a chance to see what the tyre consumption might be on this new surface. The hope is to be able to use FP3 for this kind of evaluation as well“.
Michael Rinaldi – P9
“It’s truly unfortunate. It was practically a futile day. We needed to familiarize ourselves with the new asphalt, but we only had a few laps in FP1; therefore, it was very difficult to push and gain a proper understanding of the new surface. We have a considerable amount of work ahead of us tomorrow, but it’s clear that this condition affects all riders equally.”
Andrea Locatelli finished the day in tenth position and was one of few riders who took the opportunity to run with wet tyres as rain fell in earnest in the second half of the session.
Andrea Locatelli – P10
“Strange Day 1 here in Donington – the feeling was good this morning but also I don’t want to do a mistake in the wrong weather because it started to rain and then stop. It was really tricky on track and I think one of the most important points was to try on the wet tyres this afternoon to understand the grip and how everything is working, because it could rain also tomorrow. The weather here is a bit tricky! But for sure, we know and understand something now and we will see tomorrow what we can do. We are more or less on the same level with everybody because the other riders don’t ride a lot. Tomorrow is important because we have the first race, but honestly the feeling is not bad, the mentality is good and so we will try to push hard!”
Iker Lecuona was top Honda in 11th place.
Iker Lecuona – P11
“It was a tricky day due to the weather conditions and I felt a little strange on the bike after last weekend’s MotoGP stint. It took me a few laps to adapt to the Superbike again this morning, and I also felt we needed to make an adjustment in terms of the bike’s balance. So even though we ran a solid FP1 in terms of lap times, we planned to make some setup changes for FP2. Unfortunately, though, we didn’t end up riding in the afternoon due to the rain, and so the work we had planned for that session is postponed until tomorrow. With any luck the weather will be better and we’ll be able to make the most of the final free practice as we prepare for Superpole and race 1.”
GYTR GRT Yamaha riders Remy Gardner and Dominique Aegerter returned to action in a tricky opening day at Donington Park, finishing 16th and 18th on combined times. Gardner had a tumble at the final corner in FP1.
Remy Gardner – P16
“We could enjoy a few laps in sort of dry conditions in the morning, and I can say that I like the circuit, but I wish I could have had more laps during the day! Anyway, I had a small crash as well, but the team put strong efforts to fix the bike and I rejoined very quickly. Unfortunately, conditions then denied us track time in the afternoon. Let’s hope for better weather tomorrow.”
WorldSBK Friday Combined Practice Times
Pos | Rider | Bike | Time/Gap |
1 | J. Rea | Kawasaki ZX-10RR | 1m27.627 |
2 | T. Razgatlioglu | Yamaha YZF R1 | +0.012 |
3 | P. Oettl | Ducati Panigale V4R | +0.130 |
4 | A. Bassani | Ducati Panigale V4R | +0.154 |
5 | A. Lowes | Kawasaki ZX-10RR | +0.230 |
6 | B. Ray | Yamaha YZF R1 | +0.430 |
7 | T. Sykes | BMW M1000 RR | +0.481 |
8 | A. Bautista | Ducati Panigale V4R | +0.516 |
9 | M. Rinaldi | Ducati Panigale V4R | +0.925 |
10 | A. Locatelli | Yamaha YZF R1 | +0.944 |
11 | I. Lecuona | Honda CBR1000 RR-R | +1.006 |
12 | G. Gerloff | BMW M1000 RR | +1.010 |
13 | S. Redding | BMW M1000 RR | +1.113 |
14 | D. Petrucci | Ducati Panigale V4R | +1.149 |
15 | L. Baz | BMW M1000 RR | +1.300 |
16 | R. Gardner | Yamaha YZF R1 | +1.522 |
17 | X. Vierge | Honda CBR1000 RR-R | +2.044 |
18 | D. Aegerter | Yamaha YZF R1 | +2.414 |
19 | I. Vinales | Kawasaki ZX-10RR | +2.497 |
20 | L. Baldassarri | Yamaha YZF R1 | +2.662 |
21 | T. Rabat | Kawasaki ZX-10RR | +3.059 |
22 | H. Syahrin | Honda CBR1000 RR-R | +3.221 |
23 | E. Granado | Honda CBR1000 RR-R | +3.539 |
World Superbike Championship Points
Pos | Rider | Points |
1 | Alvaro Bautista | 298 |
2 | Toprak Razgatlioglu | 212 |
3 | Andrea Locatelli | 150 |
4 | Jonathan Rea | 129 |
5 | Axel Bassani | 126 |
6 | Michael Ruben Rinaldi | 99 |
7 | Dominique Aegerter | 88 |
8 | Xavi Vierge | 87 |
9 | Alex Lowes | 75 |
10 | Danilo Petrucci | 64 |
11 | Iker Lecuona | 64 |
12 | Remy Gardner | 59 |
13 | Garrett Gerloff | 51 |
14 | Philipp Oettl | 46 |
15 | Scott Redding | 41 |
16 | Michael Van Der Mark | 19 |
17 | Loris Baz | 13 |
18 | Lorenzo Baldassarri | 7 |
19 | Hafizh Syahrin | 7 |
20 | Bradley Ray | 5 |
21 | Tom Sykes | 4 |
22 | Ivo Miguel Lopes | 1 |
WorldSSP
Jorge Navarro (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) led Thai star Anupab Sarmoon (Yamaha Thailand Racing Team) in the wet conditions on Friday. In the combined classification though it was Navarro’s team-mate, Stefano Manzi, who leads the way by just 0.015 Over Montella on the back of their FP1 times with Bulega third.
Oli Bayliss was top Aussie on Friday in 12th ahead of Tom Edwards in 22nd and Luke Power 27th.
WorldSSP Friday Combined Practice Times
Pos | Rider | Bike | Time/Gap |
1 | S Manzi | Yamaha YZF R6 | 1m30.177 |
2 | Y Montella | Ducati Panigale V2 | +0.015 |
3 | N Bulega | Ducati Panigale V2 | +0.253 |
4 | F Caricasulo | Ducati Panigale V2 | +0.272 |
5 | T Booth-Amos | Kawasaki ZX-6R | +0.352 |
6 | L Mahias | Kawasaki ZX-6R | +0.534 |
7 | A Huertas | Kawasaki ZX-6R | +0.568 |
8 | R De Rosa | Ducati Panigale V2 | +0.732 |
9 | N Tuuli | Triumph Street Triple RS 765 | +0.803 |
10 | Y Debise | Yamaha YZF R6 | +0.825 |
11 | M. Schroetter | MV Agusta F3 800 RR | +1.011 |
12 | O Bayliss | Ducati Panigale V2 | +1.087 |
13 | B Sofuoglu | MV Agusta F3 800 RR | +1.294 |
14 | G Van Straalen | Yamaha YZF R6 | +1.322 |
15 | J Navarro | Yamaha YZF R6 | +1.438 |
16 | F Fuligni | Ducati Panigale V2 | +1.576 |
17 | N Spinelli | Yamaha YZF R6 | +1.622 |
18 | R Irwin | Suzuki GSXR750 | +1.687 |
19 | E Mcmanus | Triumph Street Triple RS 765 | +1.817 |
20 | A Sarmoon | Yamaha YZF R6 | +1.957 |
21 | A Mantovani | Yamaha YZF R6 | +2.353 |
22 | T Edwards | Yamaha YZF R6 | +2.364 |
23 | A Diaz | Yamaha YZF R6 | +2.368 |
24 | J Mcphee | Kawasaki ZX-6R | +2.405 |
25 | T Mackenzie | Honda CBR600RR | +2.530 |
26 | H Truelove | Triumph Street Triple RS 765 | +2.841 |
27 | L Power | Kawasaki ZX-6R | +3.081 |
28 | A Verdoia | Yamaha YZF R6 | +3.558 |
29 | M. Kofler | Ducati Panigale V2 | +3.738 |
30 | Y Okaya | Kawasaki ZX-6R | +4.082 |
31 | M Abe | Yamaha YZF R6 | +4.822 |
32 | A Norrodin | Honda CBR600RR | +6.060 |
World Supersport Championship Points
Pos | Rider | Points |
1 | Nicolo Bulega | 197 |
2 | Stefano Manzi | 161 |
3 | Marcel Schroetter | 148 |
4 | Federico Caricasulo | 127 |
5 | Niki Tuuli | 88 |
6 | Bahattin Sofuoglu | 73 |
7 | Glenn Van Straalen | 72 |
8 | Jorge Navarro | 68 |
9 | Valentin Debise | 65 |
10 | Can Oncu | 63 |
11 | Nicholas Spinelli | 57 |
12 | Raffaele De Rosa | 39 |
13 | Adrian Huertas | 35 |
14 | John Mcphee | 31 |
15 | Oliver Bayliss | 26 |
16 | Yari Montella | 24 |
17 | Simone Corsi | 23 |
18 | Lucas Mahias | 16 |
19 | Tom Booth-Amos | 16 |
20 | Tarran Mackenzie | 15 |
21 | Anupab Sarmoon | 14 |
22 | Tom Edwards | 11 |
23 | Adam Norrodin | 9 |
24 | Andrea Mantovani | 9 |
25 | Harry Truelove | 5 |
26 | Apiwath Wongthananon | 4 |
27 | Marco Bussolotti | 2 |
28 | Federico Fuligni | 1 |
29 | Adrian Fernandez Gonzalez | 1 |
WorldSBK Donington Schedule
(AEST)
Time | Class | Event |
Saturday | ||
1800 | WorldSBK | FP3 |
1925 | WorldSSP | Superpole |
2010 | WorldSBK | Superpole |
2045 | R3 bLU cRU Cup | R1 |
2300 | WorldSBK | R1 |
0015 (Sun) | WorldSSP | R1 |
0115 (Sun) | R3 bLU cRU Cup | R2 |
Sunday | ||
1900 | WorldSBK | WUP |
1925 | WorldSSP | WUP |
2200 | WorldSBK | SPRace |
2330 | WorldSSP | R2 |
0100 | WorldSBK | R2 |
2023 FIM Superbike World Championship Calendar | ||||
Date | Circuit | WSBK | WSSP600 | WSSP300 |
30 Jun-02 Jul | Donington Park | X | X | |
14-16 Jul | Imola | X | X | X |
28-30 Jul | Autodrom Most | X | X | X |
8-10 Sep | Magny-Cours | X | X | X |
22-24 Sep | Aragón | X | X | X |
29-Sep-01 Oct | Algarve | X | X | X |
13-15 Oct | San Juan Villicum | X | X |