WSBK is at Magny Cours in France for more action this weekend. Rea and Raz need to capitalize on what should be an advantage over the less-nimble (supposedly) Ducati Panigale V4R
Magny Cours 2022
- Thread starter mylexicon
- Start date
Wow, Race 1 was nuts. Rea and Raz go down early, in unrelated incidents. Baz was in a strong position, but he crashed, and then Rinaldi ran through the gravel and lost about 6-7 places.
In the end, Bautista brought home the win comfortably after overtaking Redding for the lead, and then slowly pulling away over race distance. Redding had and impressive 2nd place, even if Rea and Raz went down. Bassani had a solid race to finish on the podium, I think for the first time this season. Lowes and Gerloff had deceptive results in 4th and 5th. On paper, it looks like a solid ride for both of them, particularly Gerloff, but both of them inherited their positions by Rea, Raz, Baz, and Rinaldi blowing it. Gerloff lost out to Lowes as his soft tire selection proved not to last race distance. Their adjusted positions would be 8th and 9th, which is just another race of mediocre running for both of them. Don't want to be too negative, but neither rider has made a step, imo.
In the end, Bautista brought home the win comfortably after overtaking Redding for the lead, and then slowly pulling away over race distance. Redding had and impressive 2nd place, even if Rea and Raz went down. Bassani had a solid race to finish on the podium, I think for the first time this season. Lowes and Gerloff had deceptive results in 4th and 5th. On paper, it looks like a solid ride for both of them, particularly Gerloff, but both of them inherited their positions by Rea, Raz, Baz, and Rinaldi blowing it. Gerloff lost out to Lowes as his soft tire selection proved not to last race distance. Their adjusted positions would be 8th and 9th, which is just another race of mediocre running for both of them. Don't want to be too negative, but neither rider has made a step, imo.
Gerloff is forever an eighth or ninth.....unless riders ahead of him retire/crash. Crazy both Rea and Raz both make mistakes. It looks as if it's Bautista's to lose. Can he bring it home?
Yesterday, I would have said he's in good shape. Bautista has made fewer mistakes than his rivals, and he also claims to have a solid understanding of the bike and tires, something he didn't have in 2019.
Obviously, Race 2 has turned the situation on its ear
Well Superpole and Race 2 were interesting affairs. Superpole was surprisingly chivalrous, and nearly everyone finished. Lowes did a good job to stay ahead of Redding, and Toprak rode a solid race at the front.
Unfortunately, the friction between Rea and Bautista metastasized into an ugly incident in Race 2, when Rea decided he was going through regardless of where Bautista was on the track. Not a good look for the 6 times champion, and with Toprak's victory, Bautista has lost all of the ground he gained in Race 1, when Raz and Rea crashed on their own. How convenient. Bassani and Rinaldi suddenly have front running pace, which is a bit suspicious. Magny Cours does not seem particularly well suited to the Panigale V4R, and neither rider has done much this season, but they were on Toprak's heels in Race 2. Maybe I should give them more credit.
Anyway, don't want to join the poutrage mob, who have surprisingly rallied behind Bautista on social media, but the situation is not great. Rea punts Bautista and finishes 5th after serving a long lap, to gain 11 points on his championship rival. Okay, you could argue he lost 14 points to Toprak so Rea didn't really benefit in the big picture, but Ducati will surely be pressuring race direction to apply additional penalties at the next round. In MotoGP, race direction applied ex-post-facto penalties against Fabio, and he lost 13 points to Aleix. I'd be shocked if the stewards do nothing, but we'll see.
Unfortunately, the friction between Rea and Bautista metastasized into an ugly incident in Race 2, when Rea decided he was going through regardless of where Bautista was on the track. Not a good look for the 6 times champion, and with Toprak's victory, Bautista has lost all of the ground he gained in Race 1, when Raz and Rea crashed on their own. How convenient. Bassani and Rinaldi suddenly have front running pace, which is a bit suspicious. Magny Cours does not seem particularly well suited to the Panigale V4R, and neither rider has done much this season, but they were on Toprak's heels in Race 2. Maybe I should give them more credit.
Anyway, don't want to join the poutrage mob, who have surprisingly rallied behind Bautista on social media, but the situation is not great. Rea punts Bautista and finishes 5th after serving a long lap, to gain 11 points on his championship rival. Okay, you could argue he lost 14 points to Toprak so Rea didn't really benefit in the big picture, but Ducati will surely be pressuring race direction to apply additional penalties at the next round. In MotoGP, race direction applied ex-post-facto penalties against Fabio, and he lost 13 points to Aleix. I'd be shocked if the stewards do nothing, but we'll see.
