Van der Mark scores first WorldSBK win
The Dutchman defied expectations and defeated British stars Jonathan Rea and Tom Sykes with an extraordinary rideMichael van der Mark powered to his maiden victory in the Superbike World Championship (WorldSBK) at Donington Park in England on May 26.
And he wasn't done with yet, winning race two as well to complete a superb weekend for the Yamaha rider.
His drought-breaking success on Saturday – and Yamaha’s first in the production-based series since Marco Melandri in 2011 – came after he started from sixth on the grid before working his way through the pack to defeat world champion Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki) and Tom Sykes (Kawasaki) in resounding fashion.
Van der mark, the 2014 world supersport champion, became the 74th rider to win a world superbike race, and the first Dutchman.
"It’s an amazing feeling; we've been working for this for a long time,” said van der Mark. “Last year I came close and finally after four years we've done it.
“I can't thank the team enough. The bike was working really well this morning and I was pushing so hard, so a big thank you to the team. It’s been three ears on this project and we've finally got the victory."
Behind the sensational podium battle, Alex Lowes (Yamaha) finished in fourth, ahead of Aprilia riders Lorenzo Savadori and Eugene Laverty.
Meanwhile, it was a sorry day for Ducati, with just Chaz Davies making it into the top 10, in eighth position. Marco Melandri crashed with five laps to go.
Loris Baz (BMW) was seventh, with Kawasaki’s Leon Haslam (Kawasaki) ninth ahead of Leon Camier (Honda).
In race two, van der mark defeated defeated surprise packet Toprak Razgatlioglu (Kawasaki) Rea, Lowes, Davies, Sydkes, Savadori, Camier, Jordi Torres (MV Agusta) and Loris Baz.
Razgatlioglu is the first Turkish rider to finish on a WorldSBK podium.
In his first visit to Donington in nine years, Sandro Cortese (Yamaha) took his second win of the season in world supersport ahead of Jules Cluzel (Yamaha) and
Raffaele De Rosa (MV Agusta). Aussie Anthony West was 11th on his Kawasaki.
The next WorldSBK round will be held at Brno in the Czech Republic from June 8-10.
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