After three weeks on the sidelines Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) wasted little time to reassert his position as the man to beat in WorldSBK. The Turkish rider has been out of action due to injury but topped the times in Free Practice 1 at Motorland Aragon. In the afternoon he dropped to second fastest but was just 0.004s slower than the fastest time of the day.
Garrett Gerloff (Bonovo Action BMW) set the fastest time, 1’49.017, on his 34th and final lap of the day. The American has been in good form of late, registering at least one top four finish at each of the previous three rounds, but by topping the times he’ll be hoping to translate today’s speed into his first front row start of the season.
Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) ended the day third fastest. The championship contender sat out the first 15 minutes of action for FP1 with an electrical problem. He completed 38 laps today and ended the day 0.136s slower than Gerloff.
Motorland Aragon is the longest circuit visited by WorldSBK. Resurfaced asphalt and windy conditions made it difficult for the riders in Free Practice 2. The session began with crashes for Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati), Tarran Mackenzie (PETRONAS MIE Racing Honda) and Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) but Bautista remounted to set the fourth fastest time of the day as he completed 36 laps.
Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Team Motocorsa Racing) was the busiest rider on the opening day of the Aragon Round. The Italian completed 40 laps at the track where he claimed his maiden WorldSBK victory in 2020 and his most recent victory last season.
P1 | Garrett Gerloff | Bonovo Action BMW
“It’s so nice to start the weekend like this! Aragon is a super fun track and the new asphalt has a lot more grip compared to last year. The wind was very strong but I felt really good. It’s just nice when things start to click and you go to a different track but everything feels good. At the beginning of this season we didn’t have that feeling but now it seems to be flowing a lot easier, and I’m loving it. I need a good lap in Superpole tomorrow and if we can do that we’ll be in a much better position to fight.”
P2 | Toprak Razgatlioglu | ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team
“The feeling is amazing! I’ve never won at this track and this weekend I’m just trying to win. It won’t be easy because the track is tough. The grip is good on the resurfaced areas and the tyres don’t have a huge drop-off. I did a 14 lap race simulation today and physically, I feel good. Physically it’s been tough because I have not trained since the accident, but I feel good enough. I’m a little bit tired, but I think tomorrow I’ll feel much better. We need to improve the bike because it’s not turning as well as I’d like. The grip is okay, but the stopping and turning need to improve. I really want to win and that’s my target. The qualifying session is just one lap, but for me, the race is what matters. I’m fully focused on it, and I hope we’ll be fighting for the win.”
P3 | Nicolo Bulega | Aruba.it Racing – Ducati
“In the morning, on the first lap of FP1, I had a small problem, but after they changed a part, everything was fine. I lost some time in FP1, but in FP2, my feeling with the bike improved a lot. My team did a great job and we made significant progress from the morning to the afternoon. The track conditions weren’t the fastest, but they were still good. I think we have the pace to be in the top three so that’s positive. We have to keep improving for tomorrow.”
P4 | Alvaro Bautista | Aruba.it Racing – Ducati
“It’s been a challenging day with the strong winds. This morning was positive though as we tried the new asphalt for the first time. The grip is good but Turn 9 has some damage to the surface. In the afternoon, we compared Pirelli tyres, and I preferred the SC1 front and the new SC0 rear. This combination felt better overall. I had a small crash in Turn 9, likely due to the damaged surface, but there were no big consequences from it. I’m feeling better physically than I did in Cremona but I’m not yet at 100%. I’m confident I’ll improve as the weekend progresses.”
WorldSBK Combined Results after FP2
1. Garrett Gerloff (Bonovo Action BMW) 1’49.017s
2. Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) +0.004s
3. Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) +0.136s
4. Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) +0.245s
5. Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) +0.251s
6. Xavi Vierge (Team HRC) +0.476s
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