Kawasaki WorldSSP Team rider Jeremy Alcoba started in 21st position but finished 11th in the opening WorldSSP race at his home round of Motorland Aragon. Jeremy’s team-mate Dominique Aegerter improved from his starting position of 20th to take 17th place in the Saturday race.
In Superpole Qualifying, held on Friday afternoon, Aegerter was 21st fastest and Alcoba 22nd, after a difficult opening day in very hot conditions. They would each gain one place on the final Race One starting grid after another rider was penalised and had to start from the back row.
Even from his difficult starting position on track, Alcoba would put in one of his best race performances to finish not only in a points-scoring place, but at the head of a large group of riders. In winning his own ‘race-within-a-race’, Jeremy took five championship points away from the opening raceday in Spain.
Aegerter was less than a second away from scoring points for his eventual 17th place in Race One, having put in a strong effort throughout the 15-lap contest.
Despite Alcoba’s consistently fast pace to come through the field, he was unable to set one of the fastest lap times of the opening race, which means he will start from his original 22nd place on the grid. Aegerter will be one place ahead of his team-mate again for Race Two, in 21st grid spot.
On Sunday 31 May, the WorldSSP riders will take part in the second and final Motorland race – again scheduled for 15 laps – which will start at 14.00.
Manuel Puccetti
“Both riders were playing catchup in today’s race. Starting from twenty-second on the grid, Alcoba finished just outside the top ten, at the front of his particular group. Aegerter, from twenty-first, finished less than two seconds from his teammate, just outside the points zone. These results leave us optimistic ahead of tomorrow’s race.”
Jeremy Alcoba
“I was really happy with the feeling during today’s race. It was hot again today, but we managed it well and made a good comeback. Our pace was good. This almost feels like a podium because I did not feel like I could be as fast as I was today. I enjoyed it a lot because the fight with the other guys was really good. I ‘won’ the race inside my group, so that makes me even more motivated for tomorrow. We made a really big step from yesterday, and I hope for Race Two we can make another one. We will start inside the pack again, so let’s see if we can make another comeback like today, or an even better one.”
Dominique Aegerter
“To finish out of the points is for sure frustrating and disappointing, but I gave all that I had, every corner, every lap. Right now, we are not finding the best things to go faster. I am trying to adapt my riding style to the bike, and the team tries to help me a lot. We have a lot of work in front of us, and I am sorry to all the Kawasaki family that I am not performing better. We want to be better, and I hope we can show our potential soon. We never give up, and in the morning warm-up on Sunday, we will try again, and I hope that we can finish the weekend with some good points in Race Two.”
