The fourth WorldSBK round continues at the Misano World Circuit, with Saturday’s races having run in hot and sunny weather. Yesterday, Kawasaki Puccetti Racing and Spanish rider Tito Rabat used the free practices to adapt the Ninja ZX-10RR KRT Factory Replica to the Italian track. This morning, after a third and final practice, Rabat was out for Superpole, which establishes the starting grid for the two races.
Tito put in a very strong performance, placing tenth with a time of 1’33”544, which translated into a fourth row start for the race, which ran over a distance of 21 laps.
Rabat made a very fast start to the race, the Kawasaki Puccetti Racing rider immediately getting into a strong rhythm which allowed him to stick with the chasing group, lapping in around tenth place. Unfortunately, a crash, which came on the very last lap, prevented him from scoring what would have been his best result of the season. Result aside, Tito has confirmed the excellent progress being made with the bike and has proved he can fight inside the top ten.
For this Misano round, Kawasaki Puccetti Racing is running the historic ELF livery on its bike to mark the partnership between Total Italia and the Kawasaki Puccetti Racing and consolidate what is a strong professional relationship.
The Kawasaki Puccetti Racing rider will be back out tomorrow for the Superpole Race and Race 2, which will conclude this fourth WorldSBK round.
Misano World Circuit – Misano – Italy
Superbike World Championship
Superpole: 1) Razgatlioglu (BMW) – 2) Bulega (Ducati) – 3) Gardner (Yamaha) – 4) Lowes (Ducati) – 5) Bautista (Ducati) – 6) Locatelli (Yamaha) ……… 10) Rabat (Kawasaki)
Race1 – 1) Razgatlioglu (BMW) – 2) Bulega (Ducati) – 3) Bautista (Ducati) – 4) Locatelli (Yamaha) – 5) Lowes (Kawasaki) – 6) Gardner (Yamaha) ……… n.c) Rabat (Kawasaki)
Tito Rabat
“We had a really great Superpole, and I was on the verge of scoring a strong result in the race but unfortunately I crashed and couldn’t continue. We need to improve the electronics still, but I’m pleased with my bike and the team’s work. We just need to stay focused because I think we can do really well in tomorrow’s races.”
