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Once again, Johnny Rea managed to ruin Ducati's party. That's right because after having imposed himself in Race 1, the Cannibal also hit the mark on Sunday afternoon. The only regret the four times world champion had was represented by his fall in the Superpole Race, even if the most serious was Alvaro Bautista's, which allowed him to gain points in the World Championship.
"Today was the day with the highest temperature of the weekend " he began. "But I was aware of my potential and also of the race pace. In fact, I kept a great pace. My goal was to keep up with Alvaro, then he fell. It didn't take much to make a mistake, especially because of the poor grip. But inside of me, I didn't want to push that much."
In the end, you found yourself dueling it out with Toprak.
"I would have even accepted second place, since Toprak's pace was really impressive. The fact is that I had an angel and a devil on my shoulders. The first told me to settle for second place, the other to bring home the victory. In the end, he was close, but I kept the right pace to win."
Do you think Razgatlioglu deserves an official bike for next season?
"He already has an official Kawasaki in his pit. It's still difficult to say, given that there are so many competitive Superbike riders and a few bikes. Toprak is certainly very strong. He rides really well, and we already had a demonstration in Donington last year when he got on the podium in front of me."
Today Bautista fell, and the gap narrowed.
"The story is always the same, given that racing against Alvaro is difficult, even if the Championship is long. In the Superpole it was really difficult to counter him with this package. Then, in Race 2, I saw that he had fallen. What can I say. Alvaro is not invincible, and we had the demonstration this weekend."
Is the objective to be constant and put pressure on him?
"The objective is to always give the best in every circumstance, bringing home as many points as possible. You must never give up in difficult moments because sooner or later, you get a chance and, in that moment, you have to be able to take advantage of it. To this regard, I remember the 2016 season where, at Laguna Seca, I was forced to retire and we could not win a race until the end of the season. On that occasion, Chaz dominated the second part, but I was still able to take the title home."
The only thing that ruined the Cannibal's day is his fall in the Superpole Race.
“At that moment, I tried to take advantage of my cross rider instinct, given that I train during the week. Unfortunately, I made a mistake at Turn 10. I tried to keep the bike up until the last moment, but I wasn't able to avoid the fall. Too bad. But, in the end, I can only be enthusiastic about having seen three Kawasakis on the podium."
