Jonathan Rea scores a double at the WorldSBK in Misano Marco Simoncelli
Rider Jonathan Rea has won a SBK double at Misano
The World Superbike Championship held its second race at the Misano Marco Simoncelli Circuit, where we saw once again Jonathan Rea claim a double, but he did not have it easy until the very end, so the Kawasaki rider leaves this round in a stronger position at the top of the standings.
Xavi Forés was the star of the race in its opening stage, with a flawless start from the front row of the grid, but after two laps we saw him forced to retire due to an engine problem, so very bad luck for the Valencian rider, who had started with great pace and was eager to return to the podium. With this retirement, Michael Van der Mark took the lead, with Tom Sykes and Marco Melandri fighting for second place, while a little further back we saw an incredible battle between Rea and Davies.
After that battle, Rea managed to overtake Davies and pushed hard to move into third place, while one lap later the Kawasaki rider reached Melandri, sparking an intense duel between the two. At that very moment we also saw Davies pass Sykes, with Lowes coming through from behind with great force, along with Lorenzo Savadori.
In the final part of the race, Rea steadily closed the gap to Van der Mark and started a very strong battle, which caused Melandri to join them, as the fight had slowed the pace of the race. Three laps from the end, Rea’s attack on the Yamaha rider succeeded, after the two had run side by side, but over the last two laps we saw a three-way battle between Rea, Melandri and Van der Mark.
Finally, Rea managed to cross the finish line first, just three tenths of a second ahead of the runner-up, taking his fourth consecutive victory and his second double at Misano after the one he achieved in 2016. Van der Mark was 2nd and Melandri 3rd. The top 10 was completed by Davies 4th, Sykes 5th, Lowes 6th, Savadori 7th, Laverty 8th, Baz 9th and Camier 10th. Ramos finished 15th, and Torres also did not finish, retiring due to a technical problem.
The MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship will return to action at Round 9 after the summer break. It will take place at the Portimao circuit (Portugal), from 14 to 16 September.
