Conditions were sunny yet windy for the second day of World Superbike action at Motorland Aragon in Spain today. After yesterday’s practice session, in which he finished seventeenth with a time of 1’51’115, Kawasaki Puccetti Racing rider Lucas Mahias took part in the third and final practice this morning, setting a 1’51”833 and confirming seventeenth place in the overall free practice standings.
The French rider was then back on track for the first Superpole of the season. Despite improving on his best lap of the weekend with a 1’50”081, Lucas did not improve on his position and classified seventeenth once again.
He therefore lined up on the sixth row of the grid for the afternoon’s 18-lap race. Mahias did not make a strong start but soon got into a good rhythm that allowed him to make up positions. The rider ultimately crossed the line in fourteenth place, scoring two championship points as a result.
The French rider and Kawasaki Puccetti Racing aspire to do much better than his, but considering the difficulties experienced during practice, today’s result can be deemed positive.
Tomorrow morning will see Mahias compete in the Superpole following, in the afternoon, by the second and final race of this first WorldSBK round.
Motorland Aragon – Superbike World Championship
Combined free practice results: 1) Rea (Kawasaki) – 2) Baz (BMW) – 3) Bautista (Ducati) – 4) Razgatlioglu (Yamaha) – 5) Gerloff (Yamaha) – 6) Oettl (Ducati) ………….. 17) Mahias (Kawasaki
Superpole: 1) Razgatlioglu (Yamaha) – 2) Bautista (Ducati) – 3) Rea (Kawasaki) – 4) Rinaldi (Ducati) – 5) Lowes (Kawasaki) – 6) Locatelli (Yamaha) ……. 17) Mahias (Kawasaki)
Race 1: 1) Rea (Kawasaki) – 2) Bautista (Ducati) – 3) Razgatlioglu (Yamaha) – 4) Rinaldi (Ducati) – 5) Locatelli (Yamaha) – 6) Lecuona (Honda) ………. 14) Mahias (Kawasaki)
Lucas Mahias
“The Superpole result was not what I’d hoped for, but after yesterday’s crash I struggled to get back into a rhythm and temperatures were low this morning too, so I definitely didn’t want to risk another crash. The race wasn’t so bad. My goals were to try and find a fast pace and regain confidence with my bike. And I can say that I did both. If I’d started further forward, I could have battled in the chasing group I think. A satisfactory race, which has allowed us to collect a lot of data that will be useful for tomorrow’s races. I want to thank the whole team for all their help.”
