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SBK, Donington: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Bautista is Superbike King, Petrucci rediscovers himself as a Prince! Toprak wears Robin Hood’s garb but doesn’t collect much on his Yamaha.

SBK: Donington: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

The Superbike made a stop this weekend in Donington on a track that seemed to be the worst testing ground for Ducati. But, in the end, all the predictions were proven wrong: Bautista hit a double, and Petrucci celebrated his first podium in the category.

Ducati continues to be a great protagonist, while the others are only playing their parts as extras. And that’s also the case with Toprak, who he had to console himself with Sunday’s Superpole success, or Rea, who celebrated the podium.

It’s the same tune in the Superbike with Bulega as dominator, while Montella and Caricasulo cheered along with some Prosecco.

The GOOD - Bravo Petrux. That’s the way to do it! Bautista did a double in Donington, but the good part of the weekend was undoubtedly Danilo Petrucci. In fact, hats off to the rider from Terni and the Barni team led by Marco Barnabò. A month ago, Petrux seemed intent on giving up, but there he was smiling as he celebrated a long-dreamt-of podium that finally became a reality. It’s all true. This Danilo never ceases to surprise us!

The BAD - In Race 2, we really feared the worst when Sykes fell, involving Rinaldi and Baz as well. Tom fractured ten ribs while Michael suffered a mild head injury and also injured his right ankle. It could certainly have been worse if we take a look at the dynamics of the accident. We wish them a speedy recovery!

The UGLY - There are those with a smile on their faces and those who have to move on and start all over as soon as possible. Donington was a weekend to forget for Remy Gardner. It was one of his worst weekends from the start of the season to date. Besides his position in the race, the gap from the top was also crushing. Let’s hope it’s just a bump in the road.  

The CONFIRMATION - This Bulega doesn’t miss a hit, and he confirmed it in the UK too. He dominated both Saturday and Sunday: only he could end up losing this title!

The DISAPPOINTMENT - The situation is critical in the MotoGP, but it’s probably even more so in the Superbike. Throughout the weekend, Honda didn’t enter the Top 10 once with Vierge and Lecuona. Need we say more?

The ERROR - Stefano Manzi tried but, against this Bulega, it was really difficult to keep up. Whether it was due to his opponent’s feats or because of the bike, the fact is, his fall on Sunday afternoon paved the way to the title for the Ducati rider.

The SURPRISE - A faint ray of light. At his home race, Scott Redding celebrated a fourth place on Sunday as this season’s best result on the BMW. Hopefully, this will be a good thing for him and for the Monaco constructor.

The OVERTAKE - In a World Championship where Bautista is dominating, all they have to do is hold onto Toprak to try to keep the show alive. Rea’s overtaking on the second to last lap of the Sprint Race allowed him to regain that success the Turkish rider lacked since Mandalika. An applause for Toprak who always tries to go beyond the limit of his Yamaha.

The ANECDOTE - Ducati hadn’t won at Donington in over 10 years. The last time was in the Czech Republic in 2011. Alvaro Bautista managed to break the curse.

The I TOLD YOU SO - Bautista on the eve of the race: “I have no ambitions, much less do I seek a victory. I just hope I don’t lose points.” Never trust Alvaro!

 

Translated by Leila Myftija

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