Jonathan Rea got the victory in the ten-lap Tissot Superpole race before crashing in the final round of the weekend preventing him from scoring more points in the championship.
The fourth round of the 2021 WorldSBK season, which has been held at the English circuit of Donington Park, began with a Jonathan Rea dominating in the first free practice already in the morning. He also led FP2 in the afternoon until almost the end of the session, although he was ultimately unable to improve on his morning 1'27,841. Alex Lowes, meanwhile, went from eighth to fourth fastest man in combined times on Friday.
So far, neither Rea nor Lowes had tested the Ninja ZX-10RR in 2021, which turned the first two sessions on Friday into important exercises that helped both riders and their teams to gather data for the next sessions.
In Saturday's completely wet FP3, Rea and Lowes were able to finish first and second, respectively.
In the Tissot Superpole, Rea took first place, taking four Superpole victories in 2021 so far. Lowes started from fourth on the grid, leading the second row riders.
The first race was difficult from the start, as all the riders opted for slick tires on a track surface that was gradually drying up. This decision brought with it some difficult first moments of the race for everyone, and some crashes that could not be avoided.
The starting leader, Rea, went off the track while trying to hold off Toprak Razgatlioglu, although he was able to rejoin quickly. The British rider held second place throughout the race, scoring his 10th consecutive podium of the year.
Lowes struggled for third place since he took to the track. After several laps, he dropped to fourth position to later regain third place again and cross the finish line on that position. Alex was able to celebrate his fourth podium of the season, alongside his teammate Jonathan Rea.
On Sunday morning's Tissot Superpole ten-lap race, both Rea and Lowes were looking for a good result until Alex crashed. He got back in the race and managed to finish within the points. Meanwhile, Rea advanced to record the 104th victory of his career in the WorldSBK Race.
In race two, Rea made a good start from pole, but was quickly overtaken by current championship leader Razgatlioglu. They both led the race, as they tested each other, leaving any other rider behind them without a choice. Jonathan kept up the pace until his rival made a small line error and distanced himself. However, the Briton also failed by falling at the entrance to Coppice. He returned to the track without injury, and ended up crossing the finish line in 20th place. Lowes, after his morning crash, was not able to find the pace he expected. Despite everything, he was able to finish sixth.
In the overall championship standings, after four rounds, Rea is now second and Lowes fourth, with Razgatlioglu leading the competition with 183 points. The next race will be from July 23 to 25, when the WorldSBK riders will head to Assen, the Netherlands, for the next test of the year.
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