WSB: Rea edges Baz as Phillip Island Official Test ends with a flurry

The Northern Irishman fought back and heads the way, whilst the top 17 riders are covered by just 1.5 seconds

The final pre-season test for the 2020 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship has been completed with the action too close to call ahead of the first round of the season. The spectacular Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit brought in wet weather at stages, whilst numerous crashes and red flags occurred, including offs for Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK), Scott Redding (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) and Alvaro Bautista (Team HRC). Despite the crash, it was Rea who pipped Independent sensation Loris Baz (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) to the top ahead of the first round.

Leading the way into the weekend, Jonathan Rea moved into top position and put in a strong lap time of 1’30.448, coming in the morning session. The Ulsterman used today for long runs, showcasing his ability to work well and return to first place. However, his day wasn’t without incident and was one of a handful of riders who crashed at Turn 4. He was OK and the bike was virtually undamaged. Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) continued his switch to the KRT squad but was down in 12th and suffered a crash at Turn 6 in the morning, giving him plenty of work ahead of the racing weekend.  

Flying the flag for the Independent teams once again was Loris Baz as the Frenchman continued to be quick in the pre-season tests and finished second. What is impressive for Baz is that he hasn’t used the 2020 engine yet, so his pace is done purely on the 2019 engine; he expects a big step forward come Friday and his race pace is already looking strong. Other Independent revelations inside the top ten included Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Team GOELEVEN) in eighth.

There was a vast improvement in lap time from Scott Redding, despite the more inconsistent weather at the start of the day. The WorldSBK rookie managed to get into the 1’30 bracket as he perfected the balance of his bike. Still learning the Q tyre, Redding is aiming to be on the pace come the start of the weekend. His teammate Chaz Davies (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) struggled to keep pace with his rookie teammate but worked away nonetheless. Redding finished in sixth but with big gains, whilst Davies was 11th on combined times.

2013 WorldSBK Champion Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) led the BMW charge as he continued to shine at the sharp end. Having struggled with rear grip in the 2019 races, Sykes can now run comfortably for longer in the 1’31s. He’s been working on the balance of the bike, whilst also using a new rear shock, placing him third. Teammate Eugene Laverty (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) completed his swingarm and chassis work and is now focused on electronics and short runs. He finished ninth overall.

Having been flying high at the head of the field on day one, Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Official Team’s day two was slightly different. Toprak Razgatlioglu couldn’t replicate his day one pace in the tricky conditions, but was focused on settling in a good race pace and not just setting a strong one-off lap time. However, his ability to set a strong one-off lap time with the Q tyre itself confirms the strides he has made over the pre-season at a time attack in Tissot Superpole style. Michael van der Mark crashed in the morning session at Turn 10 but was OK. The Dutchman didn’t put a fast time in on Monday but set 15 consecutive laps in the 1’31s, demonstrating a good race pace. Toprak was fourth whilst van der Mark was seventh.

‘Pocket Rocket’ Leon Haslam (Team HRC) was once again in the top six, making it all six manufacturers inside the top half dozen once again. His lap time of a 1’30.882 was right on his race pace from last year, so there’s plenty of promise from Honda and their new CBR1000RR-R already. On the other side of the garage, Alvaro Bautista wasn’t up at the sharp end and suffered a crash at Turn 4 during the morning. He was in the top ten however, which is an important step forward ahead of the weekend.

Sandro Cortese (OUTDO Kawasaki – TPR) was just outside the top ten in 13th, 0.005s behind Lowes. Cortese was impressive, considering this was his first testing on the ZX-10RR. Behind Cortese in 14th was returning Spaniard Xavi Fores (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing), whilst Maximilian Scheib (ORELAC Racing VerdNatura) continued to impress in 15th. He was just ahead of Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Junior Team) and his teammate Federico Caricasulo, whilst Leon Camier (Barni Racing Team) and Takumi Takahashi (MIE Racing Althea Honda Team) were just behind. In all, the top 17 were covered by just 1.5s.

Top six combined from day two below:

1. Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) 1’30.448
2. Loris Baz (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) +0.078
3. Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) +0.120
4. Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Official Team) +0.304
5. Leon Haslam (Team HRC) +0.434
6. Scott Redding (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) +0.437