The eleventh WorldSBK round has concluded today at Estoril Circuit in Portugal. Yesterday was a very positive day for Kawasaki Puccetti Racing and Tito Rabat who, after qualifying twenty-third in a wet Superpole, was able to make a great recovery in a dry Race 1 to cross the line tenth.
Today, in cool, sunny conditions, the Spanish rider was back out for the Superpole Race and Race 2. In the sprint, which ran over a distance of ten laps during the morning, Tito demonstrated good pace and was able to make up ground to conclude seventeenth.
The weekend’s second and final race didn’t bring the desired result. Rabat made a strong start and started to work his way up the field before battling as part of a group for the top ten. Unfortunately, a technical problem forced him to retire during the course of lap thirteen.
The final Superbike World Championship round will play out on 18-20 October at the Jerez Circuit in Spain.
Estoril Circuit – Alcabideche – Portugal
Superbike World Championship
Superpole Race: Superpole Race: 1) Bulega (Ducati) – 2) Razgatlioglu (BMW) – 2) Bautista (Ducati) – 4) Locatelli (Yamaha) – 5) Petrucci (Ducati) – 6) Lowes (Kawasaki) ……. 17) Rabat (Kawasaki)
Race 2 – 1) Razgatlioglu (BMW) – 2) Bulega (Ducati) – 3) Bautista (Ducati) – 4) Rea (Yamaha) – 5) Van der Mark (BMW) – 6) Vierge (Honda) ……… DNF) Rabat (Kawasaki)
Tito Rabat
“We achieved an excellent result yesterday and were able to close the gap to the fastest guys in the Superpole race today. Unfortunately we were then really unlucky in Race 2. I have a few issues already on the sighting lap but continued, hoping it would sort itself out. But things only worsened during the race, so much so that I decided to pit. I didn’t want to risk a crash, also because I want to go to Jerez and finish the championship in the best possible way, for me and the team.”
