The historic circuit of Donington Park is hosting round five of the WorldSBK and WorldSSP championships, in which Kawasaki Puccetti Racing participates with Tito Rabat and Can Oncu respectively.
At the previous Misano round, a home event for Manuel Puccetti’s team, Rabat confirmed his continuous progress aboard the Ninja ZX-10RR KRT Factory Replica in Superbike, scoring two points in Race 2. In Supersport two crashes unfortunately conditioned Oncu’s races, the rider unable to express his full potential, or that of the bike.
The British track has always been a favourable one for the Kawasaki bikes and while the Spaniard will be aiming for the points zone, the young Turkish rider will be looking for the podium, at a track where Can competed in, and won, a British Supersport race in May.
The Donington Park circuit was built in 1931. After the Second World War, activity did not resume until 1977. Important restructuring work took place in 1985, with the addition of a new section behind the paddock (Melbourne Loop) that took the track length from 3149 metres to the current 4020 metres, complete with seven right-hand turns and five left-handers. The track runs in a clockwise direction.
The layout comprises fast turns and undulation, which means riders have to brake and accelerate hard. Spectators enjoy great views from inside what is a natural amphitheatre.
The full schedule for the British round is available at this link:
Manuel Puccetti
“I’m pleased to return to Donington Park, a track where we have some happy memories. After what we’ve seen in testing and during the Misano round, I’m sure we can do a good job again this time. Oncu has trained hard and is returning to a track where he recently won a BSB Supersport race, albeit with a different bike. Rabat took part in an ESBK race as a training exercise and so is also ready for this round, where he’ll do all he can to continue the trend of recent races.”
Tito Rabat
“I like the Donington track and am looking forward to this WorldSBK round. It often rains, but during recent tests at Cremona we found great pace in the wet and so are ready for that scenario too. We improved a lot at Misano and closed the gap to the front guys, so we want to continue in the same way in the UK.”
Can Oncu
“Racing in England is always special, both for the track and the support of the British fans. I took part in a BSB race at the same track in May and won it, so I’ll try to make the most of my track knowledge. At Misano we were unlucky and so need to make up for that this weekend. We hope for decent weather, but we’re ready for anything.”
