Bautista seizes victory in Red-Flagged Race 2 at Magny-Cours

September 10, 2023

In Race 2 at Magny-Cours, Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) secured victory to leave France with a 57-point advantage over Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK).

Bautista started Race 2 strong, quickly taking the lead. However, Rea and Razgatlioglu were prompt to challenge him. Rea made a move at Turn 5 but couldn’t overtake Bautista, and while the Ducati rider gradually increased his lead, the race was interrupted on Lap 5. The red flag was waved following an incident involving Dominique Aegerter (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) and Scott Redding (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team), with Aegerter declared unfit for racing due to a suspected concussion. The restart saw Bautista retain his lead, while Razgatlioglu eventually secured second place after a tense battle with Rea. Bautista maintained his lead until the end, winning by a six-second margin.

Andrea Locatelli (Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK) fought his way to fourth place in his 100th race, with Garrett Gerloff (Bonovo Action BMW) taking fifth ahead of Axel Bassani (Motocorsa Racing). Among the French riders, Loris Baz (Bonovo Action BMW) finished in 12th place, while Lucas Mahias (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) faced technical issues and could not restart the race.

WorldSBK Race 2 Results
1. Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati)
2. Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK) +5.893s
3. Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) +6.779s
4. Andrea Locatelli (Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK) +10.978s
5. Garrett Gerloff (Bonovo Action BMW) +11.482s
6. Axel Bassani (Motocorsa Racing) +15.258s

WorldSBK Championship standings
1. Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 467 points
2. Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK) 410 points
3. Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) 290 points

P1 | Alvaro Bautista | Aruba.it Racing – Ducati
“For sure, I’m so happy to end the weekend like this, especially because I was ill on Friday and I was recovering during the weekend. Yesterday I felt better but today I felt almost 100%. In Race 2, with these conditions, it was difficult but it was similar to yesterday’s so I already knew the feeling with the bike. I tried to do a good start, and I had good feeling and pace. And after 5 laps, the race was stopped and it was difficult because in that moment I was riding really well. I tried to stay focused in the box. The second start, I felt well too and I could push from the beginning as well. At the end, I was alone but I kept pushing because I enjoyed riding like this. I’m happy overall with the weekend.”