WorldSSP
Stefano Manzi (Ten Kate Rac-
ing Yamaha) took pole position
in his first R6 race of his second
WorldSSP season, but the wet,
drying, wet again conditions in
the first race favored riders with
full wets.
After a crash between Adrian
Huertas (MTM Kawasaki) and
Yari Montella (Barni Spark Duca
-
ti) ended the first attempted
start, and then changing weather
continued to add delay onto de-
lay, the eventual ten-lap race one
got underway very late. Montella
suffered a fractured collarbone;
Huertas a fractured fifth lumber
vertebra and few broken ribs.
Nicolo Bulega (Aruba Rac
-
ing Ducati) would ease away
to a clear lead once the race
got underway and would turn
that advantage into a race win.
He was celebrated wildly by
bouncing his bike almost off the
ground on its suspension as he
approached the finish line. He
was almost caught by the rapidly
closing Nicholas Spinelli (VFT
Racing Yamaha) as a result of
his tomfoolery.
He got away with his crowd-
pleasing stunt and this was
Ducati's first 'Next Generation'
race win, and Bulega's first
WorldSSP victory.
Most bizarrely of all, testing
and practice struggler John
McPhee (Vince64 Kawasaki)
turned the track's water mole
-
cules into liquid podium bronze.
It would have been silver but for
the late charge of Spinelli. He
had been 20th—and last—of the
riders to qualify in Superpole.
His bike was not running the
new ride-by-wire throttle, and he
had to use his clutch manually,
too.
In race two, run in fully dry
conditions, everything changed
except Bulega's winning prow
-
ess, as he doubled up after
failing to score a single race win
last season.
Two unwanted Cape Barren
geese wandered onto the track
in race two, cutting it all down
to 13 laps, not 18. The birds are
a constant menace, with what
looked like record number inside
and outside the Philip Island
facility.
Manzi was a very close sec-
ond in race two and Can Oncu
(Kawasaki Puccetti Racing)
third, after a great three-way
fight that would not have a
climax because of its sudden
premature finish.
In the championship, Bulega
leads 20 points, with a perfect
50 to Manzi's 30.
CN
RACE 1
1. Alvaro Bautista (Duc)
2. Jonathan Rea (Kaw)
3. Toprak Razgatlioglu (Yam)
4. Andrea Locatelli (Yam)
5. Axel Bassani (Duc)
6. Iker Lecuona (Hon)
7. Xavier Vierge (Hon)
8. Danilo Petrucci (Duc)
9. Scott Redding (BMW)
10. Garrett Gerloff (BMW)
SUPERPOLE
1. Alvaro Bautista (Duc)
2. Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Duc)
3. Toprak Razgatlioglu (Yam)
4. Alex Lowes (Kaw)
5. Andrea Locatelli (Yam)
6. Philipp Oettl (Duc)
7. Jonathan Rea (Kaw)
8. Iker Lecuona (Hon)
9. Axel Bassani (Duc)
RACE 2
1. Alvaro Bautista (Duc)
2. Michael Rinaldi (Duc)
3. Andrea Locatelli (Yam)
4. Axel Bassani (Duc)
5. Philipp Oettl (Duc)
6. Iker Lucuona (Hon)
7. Dominique Aegerter (Yam)
8. Jonathan Rea (Kaw)
9. Danilo Petrucci (Duc)
10. Remy Gardner (Yam)
Nicolo Bulega captured his first career
WorldSSP victory when he won race two.
VOLUME ISSUE FEBRUARY , P33
