World Superbikes news - Jonathan Rea snatches Race 2 victory from Razgatlioglu as Bautista crashes

ByEurosport

Updated 23/06/2019 at 13:21 GMT

Defending champion Jonathan Rea took a potentially pivotal Race 2 victory in Italy on Sunday as rival Alvaro Bautista crashed.

Jonathan Rea of Great Britain and KAWASAKI RACING Team WorldSBK rounds the bend during the FIM Superbike World Championship in Misano - Qualifying on June 21, 2019 in Misano Adriatico, Italy.

Image credit: Getty Images

Earlier in the Superpole it had been Rea who had suffered misfortune, crashing out and finishing fifth as he had to watch Bautista take his 14th win of the season.

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However in Race 2 the roles were reversed as Bautista crashed out in the early stages, which allowed Rea to claim victory on the 10th anniversary of his first ever World Superbikes race win, also on the Misano circuit.

Italy

Toprak Razgatlioglu: I'm really happy, it's my best race

00:01:13

23/06/2019 at 13:34

'Wow! Absolutely unbelievable!' - Bautista crashes in Race Two

The championship leader’s crash allowed a Kawasaki triple-threat to control the remainder of the race.

Toprak Razgatlioglu led the way for the majority of the race and looked as if he would become the first ever Turkish winner of a World Superbikes race.

The finish: Rea holds off Razgatlioglu to win at Misano

However Rea made his move towards the end, overtook the more inexperienced rider and rode out for victory despite some intense pressure from Razgatlioglu with Leon Haslam completing the all-Kawasaki podium.

Rea's victory means that Bautista's lead at the top of the standings is cut down to 16 points.

Rea: Toprak did an incredible job

SUPERPOLE REPORT

Alvaro Bautista took his 14th win of the season on Sunday as he triumphed in the Superpole race in Italy, with title rival Jonathan Rea suffering a crash.

Rea and Bautista both started the race extremely well as they pushed into the top positions and it looked as if a true dogfight might develop.

Watch World Superbikes live on Eurosport and the Eurosport Player

However at the end of the second lap Bautista made his move, overtaking the defending champion and refusing to let up from there on in.

Rea looked to be secure in second place but disaster struck in the closing stages as he suffered a bizarre crash.

'I've never seen anything like that before!' - Rea's bizarre crash in Misano

He was able to remount but had to settle for fifth as Alex Lowes and Leon Haslam completed the podium behind championship leader Bautista.

The Spaniard now starts on pole for Race 2 and his championship lead is up to 39 points.

Bautista: It was important to win Superpole race

Tom Sykes also suffered heartbreak towards the end as he looked poised for a podium only to suffer a mechanical right at the death.

Italy

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