are the fact that some riders with
real talent have moved around
the paddock; some old talents
have also come back in and we
even have a new manufacturer in
QJMotorâhowever off the pace
their shiny new bike is for now.
As the headline says, there is a
first time for everything.
It was a mover (from Kawasaki
to Ducati) who became a golden
trophy shaker in race one at
Catalunya, after Adrian Huertas
(Aruba.it Ducati) sank a second
putt in Superpole qualifying.
In race one, he would make
his next career step by winning
a race, after some early troubles
fighting off Can Oncu (who would
eventually drop to eighth with
severe tire wear and arm pump).
Huertas' talent is unquestioned,
but he is still learning his craft, and
now inside the most pressurized
and potential-laden team in the
Championship. But that first-race-
win monkey is off his back with
this race-one triumph.
In second place in the opener,
Stefano Manzi (Ten Kate Yamaha)
was just over a second behind
Huertas, but over four seconds
ahead of the leading MV Agusta
belonging to Marcel Shroetter.
Yari Montella (Barni Spark
Racing) placed fourth with Valen
-
tin Debise fifth on his Evan Bros.
Yamaha. Returning talent and
former champion Lucas Mahias
(GMT94 Yamaha) fell from a po-
dium place, after trying an over
ambitious tight line in turn 10.
Race two proved to be a very
short affair after the first at-
tempted 'race' was red flagged
when Piotr Biesiekirski crashed
heavy on his Ducati at T1.
The six-lap mini-sprint provided
mega-action, with Huertas eventu
-
ally crashing and then finishing
last and Manzi winning his first
victory of 2024 from Shroetter and
Mahias. Shroetter was just 0.086
of a second down at the flag.
In the Championship, after
all the late drama, Montella still
leads with 76 points, Shroetter's
consistent pace sees him second
with 72 points, Manzi is third with
65 and Federico Caricasulo (Mo
-
tozoo MV Agusta) fourth with 44.
Gordon Ritchie
WORLDSBK
Race 1
1. Toprak Razgatlioglu (BMW)
2. Nicolo Bulega (Duc)
3. Alvaro Bautista (Duc)
4. Andrea Iannone (Duc)
5. Andrea Locatelli (Yam)
Superpole
1. Toprak Razgatlioglu (BMW)
2. Nicolo Bulega (Duc)
3. Andrea Iannone (Duc)
4. Michael van der Mark (BMW)
5. Sam Lowes (Duc)
Race 2
1. Alvaro Bautista (Duc)
2. Nicolo Bulega (Duc)
3. Toprak Razgatlioglu (BMW)
4. Michael van der Mark (BMW)
5. Danilo Petrucci (Duc)
WIND
IN THE
P50
Stefano Manzi won a banzai WorldSSP race two.
