Six races into a new era of WorldSBK, and it seems as though we have seen a lot has changed, without anything changing.
Ducati and Kawasaki are still doing the winning, with Yamaha the only manufacturer to upset the podium homogeneity enjoyed by the leading manufacturers.
Everyone’s a Winner
When Chaz Davies arrived at Aragon, the expectation was that he would take another double win, and move closer to the championship lead. Meanwhile, Jonathan Rea circled Aragon on his calendar 12 months ago as a pivotal round.
The Spanish circuit is Davies’ favorite, and winning here has been a habit for the Welshman. Last year, Rea forced a mistake from Davies, and claimed a win before Davies reasserted himself in Race 2.
On paper it was the same in 2018, but for both riders coming away with 45 points this weekend would have felt like a lot more.
Davies played his get-out-of-jail-free card this weekend, after a Superpole crash left him on the fourth row of the grid, and would have felt that finishing second on Saturday was as good as a win.
For Rea, 45 points left him with an extended title lead, from two points to twelve, as he heads to one of his favorite tracks of the season; Assen.
A Clear Edge for Ducati
With four Ducati’s in the Top 5 at one point on Sunday it was clear that the Panigale was the bike to have at Aragon this weekend.
The Kawasaki was fast in the hands of Jonathan Rea, but with Davies, Marco Melandri, Xavi Fores and Michael Rinaldi at the front it was clear that Rea was swimming against the tide.
The Kawasaki was as fast as the Ducati, but the red bikes were clearly finding it easier to generate their lap times. It’s all relative between Davies and Rea, and comes down to a very fine line, but Rinaldi’s performance, in being able to race with the Yamaha’s and Tom Sykes, showed the advantage being enjoyed.
Back on Top
Sandro Cortese has been reinvigorated by a move to World Supersport.
The German, a former Moto3 world champion, endured a difficult second act to his career in the Moto2 class, but having moved to Kallio Racing he has immediately gelled with the Yamaha YZF-R6 and is a genuine title contender once again.
Having claimed Germany’s first win in the class in 15 years, he will be a man to watch next weekend at Assen. The Yamaha is the bike to have in the class and Cortese has made good use out of it.
Photo: WorldSBK
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