double win since Jerez in 2014,
for Aprilia.
Melandri won a bizarre but
compelling second race, which
was split in two with a mandatory
pit stop for tires, and a minimum
time in the pits of 63 seconds for
each rider.
In the early stages there was
a nine-rider leading group, and
with three laps of opportunity to
come in within the midrace limits
set by Race Direction, half the
top men went in together and the
other half a lap later.
Many joined up for the final
11 laps of the 22, and after the
leader Chaz Davies (Aruba.it
Racing Ducati) crashed out at
MG corner early in part two, it
looked like a straight Ducati/
Kawasaki fight. But this time
with the astoundingly impressive
Xavi Fores (Barni Racing Ducati)
leading them for a while in both
halves, until first Rea and then
Melandri got past.
The breathless finish saw Rea
just let off the brakes and re-pass
Melandri for the lead into the
awesome first corner, and even
make a gap back to the following
Ducati duo.
But Melandri, who did look
a bit too far back exiting MG,
clawed into the slipstream of Rea
exiting the last corner, but not for
long as he pulled out early and
just squeezed past Rea over the
line—with his bike as usual fish-
tailing its way down the straight
in alarming fashion.
Said Melandri on how he
completed his surprising double:
"In race two it was power, speed
and the wind was pushing the
opposite way. But in the last cor-
ner maybe I was doing very well
also! Johnny was riding amaz-
ingly today and I knew I could
not pass him in braking, as I was
not feeling so comfortable on the
brakes today as yesterday, and
in T4 the wind was pushing you
in from behind. I tried to make a
plan to use the last chance I had,
which was coming out of the last
VOL. 55 ISSUE 8 FEBRUARY 27, 2018 P69
Marco Melandri (33)
leads Xavi Fores (12),
Alex Lowes (22) and
Tom Sykes (66) early
in race two.
