WorldSBK | Alvaro Bautista Dominates and Claims Victory in Emilia-Romagna Round

In a fierce battle for the top spots at the WorldSBK Championship during Race 2 at the Misano World Circuit “Marco Simoncelli” for the Emilia-Romagna Round, Álvaro Bautista (Ducati) emerged as the dominant force, securing an impressive victory and completing a hat-trick of wins at Misano.

Bautista showcased his exceptional skills while donning a special yellow livery for Ducati, while his teammate, Michael Ruben Rinaldi, unfortunately crashed out of contention while fighting for a podium position.

As the lights went out, Toprak Razgatlioglu (Yamaha) took the holeshot and led into Turn 1, with Rinaldi engaging in a thrilling battle with his teammate at Turn 4 to claim second place.

However, it didn’t take long for Bautista to make his way to the front of the pack, overtaking his teammate and Razgatlioglu at Turn 8 on the second lap. From that point on, Bautista managed to create a gap between himself and Razgatlioglu, while the Turkish star found himself under pressure from Rinaldi.

The pressure soon took its toll on Razgatlioglu as the duo fought for second place, resulting in Rinaldi overtaking the 2021 champion at Turn 8 on lap 3. Although Rinaldi pulled away, Razgatlioglu began closing the gap, but by the halfway mark, Rinaldi managed to stabilize the lead at around three tenths of a second.

On lap 13, Razgatlioglu once again narrowed the gap, determined to snatch second place from the hometown hero. He successfully overtook Rinaldi at Turn 8 on lap 15, but Rinaldi kept the pressure on, resulting in contact between the two riders at Turn 1 as Rinaldi attempted to reclaim second place. Unfortunately, Rinaldi’s race came to an end as he went off into the gravel.

Initially a battle for fourth place, the fight between Axel Bassani (Motocorsa Racing) and Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki) transformed into a battle for the final spot on the podium following Rinaldi’s crash.

Rea made initial progress, but Bassani responded on lap 3, overtaking Rea and securing what would become third place. Bassani claimed his first home podium and the first of the 2023 campaign, creating a gap between himself and Rea.

The Emilia-Romagna Round provided thrilling on-track action, with Alvaro Bautista’s dominance and victory stealing the spotlight. Bautista showcased his exceptional riding skills, securing a remarkable hat-trick of wins at Misano while representing Ducati with a special yellow livery.

The championship standings are as follows:

Anyway, the WorldSBK Championship returns from June 30th to July 2nd, with the UK round.

For more info, access the WorldSBK website.