Two different riders hit the top of the timesheets in WorldSSP as the Championship hit Portimao, with the Championship leaders.
The last of the triple header for the FIM Supersport World Championship got underway at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve for the Motul Portuguese Round, with Spanish rider Manuel Gonzalez (Yamaha ParkinGo Team) breaking the all-time lap record for the Portuguese venue in the morning Free Practice 1 session, enough to set the fastest time of the day.
During the 45-minute morning opening practice session, Gonzalez posted a 1’44.188s to smash the lap record for Portimao in the morning session to top the timesheets for the opening day of action, ahead of Jules Cluzel (GMT94 Yamaha) in second place after a strong day for the Frenchman; Cluzel topping Free Practice 2 in the afternoon while finishing second in FP1. Cluzel’s former teammate, Federico Caricasulo (Biblion Iberica Yamaha Motoxracing) was third on Friday, his best time coming in the morning session.
Championship leader Dominique Aegerter (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) was fourth after initially finishing eighth in the opening session, before responding in FP2 with the second fastest time in FP2 with a 1’44.593s as the Swiss rider kept finding time. His nearest rival in the Championship, Steven Odendaal (Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha Team), was directly behind him in fifth place with Niki Tuuli (MV Agusta Corse Clienti) rounding out the top six after bouncing back from technical issues in FP1 to record his best time of the day in FP2.
Turkish star Can Öncü (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) claimed seventh place, just 0.002s clear of his teammate Phillip Oettl in eighth place with both riders setting their best time in the morning session. Italian Raffaele De Rosa (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) was ninth as he looks to continue his rich run of form, while Randy Krummenacher (CM Racing) rounded out the top ten; the Swiss rider, like Tuuli, suffering from technical issues in FP1 before setting quicker lap times in FP1.
WorldSSP Combined Results after FP2
1. Manuel Gonzalez (Yamaha ParkinGo Team) 1’44.188s
2. Jules Cluzel (GMT94 Yamaha) +0.170s
3. Federico Caricasulo (Biblion Iberica Yamaha Motoxracing) +0.341s
4. Dominique Aegerter (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) +0.405s
5. Steven Odendaal (Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha Team) +0.430s
6. Niki Tuuli (MV Agusta Corse Clienti) +0.633s
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