Conditions at the Imola circuit were again hot and sunny on the final day making up round seven of the Superbike World Championship. Kawasaki Puccetti Racing was fielding Tito Rabat, whose Ninja featured the historic ELF livery this weekend. Yesterday, the Spanish rider took part in Superpole, qualifying twenty-first, while he made up ground in the first race and came very close to the points zone.
Tito was back on track this morning for the Superpole Race, which ran over a distance of ten laps. A very fast start allowed Rabat to maintain his starting position. Fighting as part of a big group of riders and maintaining strong pace, Tito crossed the finish line in twentieth place.
The second long race got underway in the early afternoon and was reduced from nineteen to fifteen laps as a precautionary measure, considering high temperatures in excess of 37°C. Rabat again got away well, making up positions right away. Getting into a good rhythm, the Spaniard worked his way up through the field but unfortunately, on lap five, a crash forced him to retire. Tito was unhurt and will be back in action at the next WorldSBK round, taking place at the Most Circuit in the Czech Republic on 28-30 July.
Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari – Imola – Italy
Superbike World Championship
Superpole Race: 1) Razgatlioglu (Yamaha) – 2) Bautista (Ducati) – 3) Locatelli (Yamaha) – 4) Rea (Kawasaki) – 5) Rinaldi (Ducati) – 6) Bassani (Ducati) ………… 20) Rabat (Kawasaki)
Race 2: 1) Razgatlioglu (Yamaha) – 2) Bassani (Ducati) – 3) Rea (Kawasaki) – 4) Locatelli (Yamaha) – 5) Rinaldi (Ducati) – 6) Ray (Yamaha) – 7) Baz (BMW) ………. DNF) Rabat (Kawasaki)
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“Aside from the crash that stopped me in race 2, I have to say it’s been a positive weekend. For the first time I was able to stick with those running mid-field, and overtake four riders in the early stages of the race before the crash. We’ve understood how to manage the electronics and so I can’t wait to race at Most to continue the work begun here at Imola. I want to thank my team as they’ve done a great job. And in turn, I can assure the team that I will continue to give it my all.”
