WorldSBK | Bautista and Ducati rock in Australia while Rea and Toprak face difficulties

Ducati rider Alvaro Bautista dominated the weekend in Australia by winning race 1 on Saturday and the Superpole and Race 2 on Sunday for the WorldSBK Championship.

On the other hand, the biggest rivals in the 2023 season title dispute, Toprak Razgatlioglu (Yamaha) and Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki), had a frustrating weekend in Philip Island, leaving a bitter flavor of defeat in their mouths.

Toprak even managed to finish on the podium in the first two races (was third in both) but, in Sunday’s main race, did not perform well, ended up fighting for fourth position, was hit by Alex Lowes (Kawasaki) motorcycle, ended up falling and had to retire.

Jonathan Rea finished the first race in second place, but the other two off the podium, demonstrating that the bike did not yield what should yield on the hot Australian track.

Bautista, therefore, did not forgive, and won the three races quite easily. He said he felt great with the bike, that he is very fond of the Philip Island track, and that the highest temperature also helps in his performance.

The confirmation of the absolute domain of the Borgo Panigale factory on this iconic track came with four Ducatis crossing the finish line in the first five positions of race 2, consolidating its power in the competition.

Another who showed a good pace with Ducati was Michael Ruben Rinaldi, Bautista’s teammate, who finished two Sunday races in second position.

With the three wins, the Spaniard got a great advantage in the leading of the championship at the beginning of the season, and leaves a warning signal to their opponents. Of course, for now it was the first round, and many coming tracks may not favor Ducati.

Thus, with the result of the weekend in Australia, Bautista is the leader with 62 points, Andrea Locatelli the second with 34 and Rea the third with 31 points.

The championship standings are as follows:

Anyway, the WorldSBK returns from March 3-5, with the Indonesian round.

For more info, access the WorldSBK website.