The last round of World Superbike Championship brought a unique battle between the two biggest title contender’s of 2023, in Portimao: Alvaro Bautista and Toprak Razgatlioglu. Such battle will remain for a lot of time in the memory of many and Serafino Foti confessed this one was… a test, to his heart.

The Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Team Boss spoke of the battle of «his» rider and the turkish, and confessed this one put on some stress on him: ‘It was an amazing race, incredible! To be honest, my heart was at 1000bpm every corner! For the people in the stands, it was one of the best races of the year’.

He also took the opportunity to praise Razgatlioglu: ‘Toprak, this year, has been so strong. We have a lot of respect for him and to the Pata Yamaha team. Sometimes we lost in some areas on the track, sometimes they lost in other areas. The combination between rider, team and bike is so important’.

Foti then came to say in what areas each rider had more than the other: ‘The positive point of Alvaro was the final corner especially. We checked the data and compared to other riders; he was unbelievably fast. The strong point of Toprak is braking. Some parts of the track, Toprak is favourite and others Alvaro is. The combination is the same because they finished so close!’.

Recall the big battle here:

O conteúdo Bautista vs Razgatlioglu in Portimao «tested» Serafino’s Foti heart: ‘My heart was at 1000bpm every corner!’ aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

Last weekend in Portugal, on sunday, Alvaro Bautista and Toprak Razgatlioglu starred one of the greatest battles of the World Superbike Championship so far and it was so close that even made the spaniard to think that he might crash if the turkish rider did too. A crazy duel that ended up with the Ducati rider to win right at the end.

The #1 spoke of the fierce battle he had with his Yamaha rival: ‘Basically, Toprak had nothing to lose and he tried everything. Sometimes when I was behind, I tried for a couple of laps to not stay so close to him to cool down the front tyre. When you are too close, especially in the flowing section, the temperature comes up and you lose a bit of performance, so I wanted some space. I tried to close the doors a lot but he always put the bike inside! It’s normal, I expected this from him. It was great because we saw a Toprak without anything more than that’.

It was such a close race and with both so close to each other than many times, he added: ‘He did his best in every moment and many times, I thought: «Shit, if he crashes, I’ll go down with him». He entered on the limit and almost every time, I had to pick the bike up otherwise we’d touch. I enjoyed it; I didn’t just stay in second until the end or try and get points for the title. I wanted to fight with him and beat him. It was like a normal race, not a race that can decide a lot of things’.

Bautista also tried to predict the #54’s moves to take the lead and ultimately win: ‘In Spain, we say: «The devil knows more for being old than for being the devil». I expected this move from Toprak, he knew I’d try on the last corner on the inside and already, in the morning, I was on the outside but he was using all the kerbs and I changed the line! In Race 2, I kept the outside because I thought maybe he’ll close the corner. Instead, I saw him not open more the gas more to stay inside, so then I said: «He’ll close the corner». So, I went full throttle with the bike spinning a lot and I can carry more speed exiting on the outside’.

O conteúdo Alvaro Bautista had a stunning duel with Toprak Razgatlioglu that even came to scare him: ‘He had nothing to lose; If he crashed I would too’ aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

This weekend’s Superbike Race 2 on Portimao had one of the most exciting battles so far in the championship with Alvaro Bautista taking the best out of Toprak Razgatlioglu right at the end. Both riders fought every lap for the lead, in a stunning duel that made the Ducati rider super happy.

Now just two points away from securing the title, Bautista spoke of how he wasn’t expecting to be so successful in Portimao, while not forgetting to address the battle he had with his Yamaha rival Razgatlioglu: ‘A really exciting weekend. I certainly didn’t expect to score a hat-trick and what makes me particularly proud is that I won fighting every corner with Toprak, who I congratulate because he was a really tough but always fair opponent. I have to admit that I enjoyed it very much: he never allowed me to match my pace, attacking me on every lap. I stayed focused, trying not to make mistakes’.

As he didn’t managed to finish race 2 with a seven point advantage over the turkish, the title decision was then set to be decided in Jerez, from 27 to 29 of october:

–The championship? I’ll tell you the truth: it’s only fair that the title is awarded at Jerez and I hope many fans come for the round.

O conteúdo ‘It makes me proud fighting with Toprak Razgatlioglu in every corner, he is tough but a fair opponent, I enjoyed the battle’ – Alvaro Bautista aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

What a battle between Alvaro Bautista and Toprak Razgatlioglu in Portimao in race 2! Lap after lap the rivals exchanged the lead, but in the end the championship leader was stronger and beat his opponent on the finishing straight, as happened so many times today. The spaniard now has one hand on the title, but the decisions are postponed until the Jerez round.

First matchpoint for Bautista in the World Superbike Championship, with the spaniard “only” needing to finish the race seven points ahead of Toprak Razgatlioglu to become champion with one round still to go.

Razgatlioglu got the best start and took first place in the race straight away, ahead of Bautista and Andrea Locatelli, when Xavi Vierge crashed. Jonathan Rea and Scott Redding were also involved in the incident.

Hafizh Syahrin was still the first to drop out of the race, as Vierge remained on track despite falling behind the competition.

On the second lap Michael Rinaldi wanted to leave a good image in Portugal and climbed to third place, behind his teammate and the #54.

The battle between Razgatlioglu and Bautista was lively, with the spaniard overtaking his opponent but the latter soon returning the move and inheriting the lead. Less than two tenths separated the riders. Rinaldi was 1.6s behind.

Bautista briefly retook the lead when he hit the Yamaha rider on the straight, but at the next corner he was back at the front of the race.

With four laps completed only 0.091s divided the #1 from the #54, so it was no wonder that Bautista was back at the front of the race on the following lap.

In the space of two laps the Ducati spaniard gained 0.507s on Razgatlioglu while Rinaldi was 1.997s behind. At this point Bautista had 60 points more than Razgatlioglu in the live championship accounts.

The turk didn’t give up and not only recovered the gap to the spaniard, but overtook him shortly afterwards. It was all over for now.

With ten laps completed, that was the top ten in Portimao:

Remy Gardner dropped out of the race, as did Loris Baz a few laps ago. Razgatlioglu was once again in the lead, proving that this race was going to be hard fought… but Bautista showed the power of the Panigale V4R on the straights and was able to move into the lead afterwards.

It was constant: on every lap the two rivals swapped positions. Rea, recovering, was already 12th with six laps to go. It was Rinaldi who benefited from this, now 1.3s behind when he had been twice that.

At the start of the 16th lap, the leader in Portimao was Bautista, who invariably moved to the front on the finishing straight.

With two laps to go, the duel continued. Rinaldi remained in third with 1.6s, Garrett Gerloff was fourth and Locatelli fifth.

O conteúdo Bautista wins epic battle with Razgatlioglu and puts a hand (and a half) on the Superbike title aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

It was a high-intensity superpole race in the World Superbike Championship at Portimão. Álvaro Bautista secured his win only on the final straight, moving him a little closer to the championship title, which he might clinch this afternoon in the second race.

The start of the race was not easy for Bautista (Aruba.it Ducati), as he lost some positions. Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha) took the lead ahead of his teammate Andrea Locatelli. Disaster for Kawasaki at turn five, as both of their riders, Alex Lowes and Jonathan Rea, crashed in separate incidents.

Eight laps from the end, Bautista was already in third place, chasing down the Yamaha riders ahead of him, and he completed the overtake on Locatelli two laps later.

The reigning champion then set out to chase Razgatlioglu, launching his first attack on the seventh lap. The duel extended until the final lap, and at the exit of the last corner, Bautista completed the overtake to win 0.142ss ahead of Razgatlioglu.

Locatelli rounded out the podium, with Remy Gardner (GYTR GRT Yamaha) in fourth. Iker Lecuona (Team HRC) rounded off the top five. Further down the field, Michael van der Mark brought the top BMW home in seventh place. With the factory riders retiring, Tito Rabat (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) was the only Kawasaki rider to finish the race.

O conteúdo Breathtaking finish with Álvaro Bautista’s winning the superpole race at Portimão aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

Yesterday’s victory in race 1 of the World Superbike Championship saw Alvaro Bautista take another step towards revalidating the category’s world title and confirmed Ducati’s 19th title in the Constructors’ World Championship.

With the 25 points scored by the spaniard at the Algarve circuit, the italian manufacturer has mathematically secured the title with five races still to go – two today and three more at Jerez.

The spaniard has been largely responsible for this achievement, given the tremendous year he is having in the category once again, and he himself has a chance of becoming drivers’ champion today.

This title means another trophy for Michael Ruben Rinaldi and Axel Bassani, who will be leaving the manufacturer at the end of this year, as well as the first for Danilo Petrucci in the category.

Ducati won with 605 points, 102 more than Yamaha with 99 points still up for grabs.

O conteúdo Alvaro Bautista «offers» Ducati the Manufacturers’ title at the World Superbike Championship in Portimao aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

Álvaro Bautista is closer to the World Superbike title with his triumph in the first Portimão race held this Saturday. The possibility of wrapping up the championship this Sunday remains on the table and could happen in the superpole race. Ducati has already secured the constructor’s title.

Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha) was the strongest at the start, and Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki), who started from pole position, dropped to fourth and, while trying to recover, came into contact with Bautista (Aruba.it Ducati). Both remained on the track, but the British rider dropped to seventh. The Spanish rider, on the other hand, only reached the podium positions on lap 3.

One lap later, Bautista took the lead, but Razgatlioglu reacted and regained it. The battle continued between the two, with the Turkish rider always having an answer to the championship leader’s attempts… until on the seventh lap Bautista managed to take the lead and defend it.

Despite Razgatlioglu always being close, the defending champion managed to build a relatively comfortable gap, which he extended in the last laps, crossing the finish line with a 2.098s gap. Rea made a recovery race to finish third.

In fourth place was Garrett Gerloff (Bonovo Action BMW), who came out on top in a four-way battle for that position. Alex Lowes (Kawasaki), Remy Gardner (GYTR GRT Yamaha), and Michael van der Mark (BMW) were also involved. Iker Lecuona was eighth and the best Honda rider.

Results:

O conteúdo Álvaro Bautista victorious in race 1 in Portimão hands WSBK title to Ducati aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

The Superbike World Championship is in Portugal this weekend for another round on the 2023 calendar. And after a very lively Friday, with some surprises, the Superopole was no different.

Jonathan Rea showed a very strong pace, reaching the 1st place of the grid, with a lap that put him only 0.010s from the record of the Algarve circuit in a Superbike, a record that belongs exactly to the six-time world champion. At his side was his team-mate Sam Lowes, who managed to take second place in qualifying, the day after learning who his new team-mate will be in 2024.

Opening the second row was Andrea Locatelli, who despite the 3rd position will be forced from the last place of the grid, after a penalty applied, for not having removed his Yamaha from the track in Aragon, when it began to lose fluids and were shown the respective warnings. Behind him, in 4th place, Toprak Razgatlioglou managed to surpass Alvaro Bautista who went no further than a 5th place.

In sixth, and best Honda, was Iker Lecuona, who saw his teammate qualify only 14th. Garrett Gerloff, who even closed FP1 in first place and FP2 in second, did not go beyond 12th position in Superpole.

With the Kawasaki showing excellent pace and Razgatlioglu in urgent need of points to prevent Bautista from reclaiming the title, the first race of the weekend in the biggest category of the SBK world championship promises to be quite lively and could offer surprises up front, although a three-way fight with Rea is expected once again.  Bautista and Toprak fighting for the top spot on the podium.

O conteúdo Rea and Lowes dominate, Yamaha lurking and Bautista just 5th aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

The penultimate round of the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship 2023 is underway at the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve. With good conditions and a rising track temperature, the championship-dominating trio were at the top of the standings for most of the session, but with unpredictability guaranteed this weekend, it was Garrett Gerloff (Bonovo Action BMW) who stole the show in FP1 with his final laps putting him at the top of the standings.

With a fantastic penultimate lap on new tires, Garrett Gerloff (Bonovo Action BMW) was committed to taking the lead from P4 with more than three-tenths of a second advantage over his opponents. Gerloff wasn’t finished yet, as he highlighted his and his BMW’s arguments with a margin of four tenths. Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) was second on Friday morning at a track where he has won twice before – both times for Ducati. The Spaniard, who has a 47-point lead over Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK), was in great rhythm on one lap and the longer laps, fending off Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) who took third. 

With 13 wins at Portimão, Rea is in contention this weekend. Toprak Razgatlioglu was fourth at the end of the session without any late improvements and made it four different constructors in the top four, while Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) was again strong in P5.

After a tricky Saturday and Sunday in Aragon, Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) was back in the top six with sixth position, ahead of Iker Lecuona (Team HRC), with the Spaniard the best Honda and thus making it five constructors in the top seven on a track that offers great balance. Scott Redding (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) was eighth, one place ahead of Andrea Locatelli (Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK) – who has a penalty and will start from the back of the grid for ignoring the black flag after his technical problem in Race 2. Philipp Oettl (Team GoEleven) was tenth, while returning Kawasaki rider Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) was 14th, two places ahead of Axel Bassani (Motocorsa Racing), who struggled again on Friday.

The top six after FP1 of WorldSBK at Portimão were:

1. Garrett Gerloff (Bonovo Action BMW) 1’40.763

2. Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) +0.433s

3. Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) +0.631s

4. Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK) +0.656s

5. Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) +0.717s

6. Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) +0.732s

O conteúdo Garrett Gerloff takes impressive first place in WSBK FP1 at Portimão – Bautista leads trio of titans behind aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

The Superbike paddock arrives in Portimão this weekend for a round in which titles can be decided in all categories. For the World Supersport 300 Championship, it’s the end of the season, so the champion will be determined.

In WSBK, Álvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Ducati) leads with a gap of 47 points over Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha). If the Spaniard scores 16 more points than his opponent in Portugal, he will become the champion. Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki) is in third place and can’t go any higher, but he could still be caught by Andrea Locatelli (Pata Yamaha), Axel Bassani (Motocorsa/Ducati), and Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it Ducati).

As for WSSP, Nicolò Bulega (Aruba.it Ducati) is in a privileged position to become the champion: he has an 85-point lead over Stefano Manzi (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha), and even if he loses 35 points, he will still seal the title. Marcel Schrötter (MV Agusta), in third place, no longer has a chance to fight for the championship.

WSSP300 is coming to an end, and the battle will be among the top three. Jeffrey Buis (MTM Kawasaki) has a 30-point lead over José Luis Pérez González, so he has a relatively comfortable lead with 50 points at stake. Dirk Geiger (Freudenberg KTM Paligo Racing) is 47 points behind, so once Buis scores at least three points, he will be out of contention.

Here are the schedules for the Portimão round of WSBK, WSSP, and WSSP300 (CET times):

Friday, September 29th
10:45-11:15: FP1 WSSP300
11:30-12:15: FP1 WSBK
12:25-13:10: FP1 WSSP
15:15-15:45: FP2 WSSP300
16:00-16:45: FP2 WSBK
17:00-17:45: FP2 WSSP

Saturday, September 30th
10:00-10:30: FP3 WSBK
10:45-11:05: Superpole WSSP300
11:25-11:45: Superpole WSSP
12:10-12:25: Superpole WSBK
13:40: Race 1 WSSP300
15:00: Race 1 WSBK
16:15: Race 1 WSSP

Sunday, October 1st
10:00-10:15: Warm-up WSBK
10:25-11:40: Warm-up WSSP
10:50-11:05: Warm-up WSSP300
12:00: Superpole race
13:30: Race 2 WSSP
15:00: Race 2 WSBK
16:15: Race 2 WSSP300

O conteúdo Potentially decisive weekend in the Superbike World Championships: Schedule for the Portimão round aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.