PERFECT FOR REA AFTER THAI DOUBLE
K
awasaki Racing Team
rider Jonathan Rea has now
won all four races in the 2017
WorldSBK Championship, his
latest double coming at the
Chang International Circuit in
Thailand over the March 11-12
weekend.
Everything so far has been
going Rea's way this season.
Even the things that Rea has not
been best at in the past—qualify-
ing for superpole for example—
have been squashed by his 2017
steamroller on the new Ninja
ZX-10RR.
He took superpole as he had
in Phillip Island two weeks ear-
lier. And he made a track-best
time in Thailand on an enforced
use of a race tire. Rea only has
10 superpole wins in his career,
but now he already has two this
season; it's obvious to every-
one that there is a much more
rounded and potent effort this
year from Rea, the bike and the
team.
Rea won each race from the
front, and then he also set a
new lap record in race one with
a 1:33.436. He scored nine
wins in 2016 and he already has
four—out of four—this season.
"Here was not so close as
Phillip Island, but we hit the
ground running with a really
good pace," Rea said. "On Fri-
day afternoon we knew we had
a good pace, but to win by six
seconds, and then four sec-
onds in a shortened race, was a
pleasant surprise."
His 42nd all-time race-win in
race two leaves him just one shy
IN
THE
WIND
P34
Jonathan Rea
steamrolled
the opposition
in Thailand in
what was a Mick
Doohan-esque
performance.
