Bikesales Staff•28 Apr 2014

NEWS

Guintoli and Rea triumph in Assen

Guintoli and Rea consolidated their respective title assaults in round three of the 2014 eni FIM Superbike World Championship

The third round of the 2014 eni FIM Superbike World Championship, held at the historic Assen TT circuit on Sunday, April 27, saw skills pushed to the limit in two races held in markedly different weather conditions.

After Sylvain Guintoli (Aprilia Racing Team) secured victory in a predominantly dry Race 1, Pata Honda’s Jonathan Rea came out on top in the rain-hampered, 10-lap Race 2 to claim his fifth World Superbike win on his team’s home track. In the same race, Rea’s compatriot Alex Lowes (Voltcom Crescent Suzuki) scored his maiden podium finish in the series with a brilliant second place.

Rea lies now fourth in the standings, only 19 points shy of current leader and reigning World Champion Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team), with Guintoli and the other KRT rider, Loris Baz, second and third respectively.

Michael van der Mark was Pata Honda’s other hero of the day, the Dutchman winning his career maiden World Supersport race in front of a vocal and enthusiast home crowd.

RACE 1

Guintoli triumphed in the first race of the day on a drying circuit, the 2013 Superbike World Championship runner-up climbing to the top step of the podium for the fifth time in his career and the second time this year after his win at Phillip Island in Race 2.

The race was classified dry and as the lights went out it was Guintoli who took the holeshot, with Rea and the Kawasaki Racing Team duo of Baz and Tom Sykes giving chase.

A red flag in the closing laps as Sykes was closing in on the leading Aprilia riders meant the result would stand, with Rea finishing third.

Baz took fourth with Toni Elias (Red Devils Roma Aprilia) and Marco Melandri (Aprilia Racing Team) eventually classified fifth and sixth respectively in what was the culmination of a superb race-long battle.

Niccolò Canepa (Althea Racing Ducati) rode strongly to finish 10th, ending the race as the highest EVO category rider.

Christian Iddon (Team Bimota Alstare), Eugene Laverty (Voltcom Crescent Suzuki), Davide Giugliano (Ducati Superbike Team) and Fabien Foret (Mahi Team India Kawasaki) all fell but avoided major injury.

RACE 1 RESULTS

1. Guintoli (Aprilia)

2. Sykes (Kawasaki) 1.259

3. Rea (Honda) 4.116

4. Baz (Kawasaki) 4.459

5. Elias (Aprilia) 23.728

6. Melandri (Aprilia) 25.478

7. Davies (Ducati) 26.533

8. Haslam (Honda) 26.696

9. Lowes (Suzuki) 27.971

10. Canepa (Ducati) 33.479

11. Scassa (Kawasaki) 40.689

12. Salom (Kawasaki) 40.803

13. Camier (BMW) 41.086

14. Corti (MV Agusta) 41.410

15. Guarnoni (Kawasaki) 41.977

16. Morais (Kawasaki) 1'08.454

17. Andreozzi (Kawasaki) 1'19.067

18. Bos (Honda) 1'19.076

19. May (EBR) 1'29.475

20. Toth (BMW) 1 lap

RACE 2

After a lengthy delayed start due to heavy rain, improving conditions eventually saw riders start Race 2 over a revised distance of 10 laps. At race end it was Race 1 podium finisher Rea who emerged victorious ahead of Lowes and Giugliano, who completed the podium in tricky conditions.

Rea achieved the 12th World Superbike race win of his career and his fifth at Assen, whilst Lowes scored his maiden podium finish in the series and Giugliano his first podium as a factory Ducati rider.

Sykes, Leon Haslam (Pata Honda World Superbike) and Melandri rounded out the top six.

Guintoli crashed at the chicane on lap two but remounted to salvage ninth at the flag, behind pole-sitter Baz, seventh, and Chaz Davies (Ducati Superbike Team), eighth.

In the EVO class, Canepa doubled up to again finish in 10th.

Rea said he was thrilled with how the round panned out.

“It’s been a really good weekend,” he said.

“To be honest, our dry pace was okay in Race 1 but Sylvain [Guintoli] made such a fast start that I struggled to go with him. When Tom [Sykes)] went past I made a big mistake but, after that, my pace until the end was quite similar to theirs.

“The win in Race 2 was really special. For the last laps I just tried to be as smart as I could. This win is for all those guys who have worked tirelessly to make the CBR as strong as possible. It’s great to be able to give them back some good vibes to roll with into the next part of the season.”

Sykes now leads the championship on 108 points, ahead of Guintoli (96) and Baz (93).

RACE 2 RESULTS

1. Rea (Honda)

2. Lowes (Suzuki) 2.222

3. Giugliano (Ducati) 4.955

4. Sykes (Kawasaki) 13.089

5. Haslam (Honda) 13.639

6. Melandri (Aprilia) 18.041

7. Baz (Kawasaki) 21.837

8. Davies (Ducati) 26.919

9. Guintoli (Aprilia) 32.766

10. Canepa (Ducati) 37.965

11. Bos (Honda) 44.141

12. Scassa (Kawasaki) 1'23.769

13. Morais (Kawasaki) 1'45.062

14. Fabrizio (Kawasaki) 1 lap

15. Salom (Kawasaki) 1 lap

16. Toth (BMW) 1 lap

WSKB STANDINGS (after round three of 13)

1. Sykes 108

2. Guintoli 96

3. Baz 93

4. Rea 89

5. Melandri 69

6. Giugliano 59

7. Davies 47

8. Laverty 46

9. Haslam 44

10. Lowes 36

11. Elias 34

12. Canepa 28

13. Salom 27

14. Scassa 11

15. Camier 11

16. Morais 10

17. Foret 9

18. Allerton 6

19. Bos 5

20. Corti 5

21. Guarnoni 5

22. Fabrizio 2

WORLD SUPERSPORT

Michael van der Mark (Pata Honda World Supersport Team) won his first World Supersport race after an enthralling early fight with pole-sitter Florian Marino (Kawasaki Intermoto Ponyexpres). The Dutch rider had the packed grandstands on their feet as lap by lap he edged away, claiming victory by over nine seconds and with the added bonus of a new lap record.

Marino finished second some 9.494sec adrift, followed by Jules Cluzel (MV Agusta RC – Yakhnich Motorsport) in third.

WSS RESULTS

1. Vd Mark (Honda)

2. Marino (Kawasaki) 9.494

3. Cluzel (MV Agusta) 14.988

4. Coghlan (Yamaha) 17.131

5. Zanetti (Honda) 17.430

6. Rolfo (Kawasaki) 20.266

7. Tamburini (Kawasaki) 20.662

8. De Rosa (Honda) 21.370

9. Jacobsen (Kawasaki) 23.557

10. Wahr (Yamaha) 25.908

11. Bussolotti (Honda) 26.051

12. Leonov (MV Agusta) 27.815

13. Wilairot (Honda) 30.450

14. Russo (Honda) 39.705

15. Menghi (Yamaha) 50.214

WSS STANDINGS (after round three of 12)

1. Marino 49

2. Vd Mark 45

3. Coghlan 44

4. Cluzel 41

5. De Rosa 34

6. Tamburini 29

7. Sofuoglu 25

8. Zanetti 24

9. Rolfo 19

10. Wahr 16

11. Gamarino 13

12. Leonov 12

13. Russo 10

14. Gowland 9

15. Jacobsen 9

16. Menghi 9

17. Wilairot 9

18. Bussolotti 7

19. Kennedy 5

20. Coveña 4

21. Schmitter 3

22. Calero 3

23. Rogers 1

The next round of the 2014 eni Superbike World Championship will take place at Imola, Italy, over May 9-11.

Guintoli and Rea triumph in Assen

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