The Misano World Circuit will host the fifth round of the WorldSBK and WorldSSP championships this weekend, the first of two events taking place in Italy (the second will run at Imola in mid-July).
Kawasaki Puccetti Racing considers this its home round, and it comes at what is a very delicate time for the Emilia Romagna region, seriously affected by recent flooding.
In Superbike, Manuel Puccetti’s team can count on Tito Rabat, while in Supersport Lucas Mahias will compete once again, standing in for Can Oncu as he did at the last round, while the Turkish rider continues to recover after fracturing his arm at Assen.
Rabat will work to build confidence with the team and the Ninja ZX-10RR, while Mahias will look to confirm the progress made at Barcelona, his first race aboard a 600 machine after several years in Superbike.
For the Misano round, all the Kawasaki Puccetti Racing will be on track with the historic ELF livery, similar to that used in the 80s by “Rocket Ron” Haslam and one that Kawasaki Puccetti Racing has already used in past years during Italian championship rounds.
The livery celebrates the partnership between Total Italia and Kawasaki Puccetti Racing, a solid professional relationship that has grown stronger over time and that is a point of pride for both parties, who renew the agreement each year.
The Misano circuit was designed in 1969 and restructured in the 90s so as to guarantee greater efficiency. The track was extended to 4060 metres in 1993 and a new garage building was constructed. In late 2006 the facility was closed to allow for the construction of a new track and, in the space of just five months, it was extended to 4180 metres and switched to run in a clockwise direction, while the grandstands increased their capacity to more than 23,000 seats. The track currently measures 4226 metres and comprises 16 corners, ten of which right-handers and six left. Pole position is on the right.
The full schedule for the Italian round is available at this link:
Manuel Puccetti
“After Barcelona, we confirm that Lucas Mahias will also compete at Misano, while we wait for Can Oncu to recover fully from his injury. We’re sure that the French rider will continue to adapt to our ZX-6R and continue to progress, as he did in Spain. A welcome return for Rabat, who will work to re-find the feeling with both the team and bike. It’s our home round and so we’ll be pleased to see many of our sponsors and supporters, with whom we hope to have a good weekend, coming after what has been such a difficult period for the Romagna region.”
Tito Rabat
“I’m ready for what should be a great weekend, but also a very difficult one for me, as I’ll have to re-adapt to the Kawasaki Puccetti Racing bike. I’ll need to clock up a lot of laps with this bike to get back those automatisms I had in the past. But I know I can count on a great team, and so I can’t wait to get out on track!”
Lucas Mahias:
“I’m really pleased to continue on with Manuel Puccetti’s team, but I hope Can returns as soon as possible. I know that this is the team’s home round and so I’ll do all I can to score the best possible results in front of our sponsors and supporters. We’ll continue with the work begun at Barcelona as we try to exploit the full potential of the bike.”
