After having shown great competitiveness both during free practice and Superpole with its riders, the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team did not achieve the results it hoped for in Race 1 of the WorldSBK championship in Laguna Seca (USA). Both Chaz Davies and Davide Giugliano unfortunately crashed out while fighting for the podium in the leading group and were forced to retire.
Davies started off strong from fourth position on the grid, quickly moving up the ranks to take the lead in the beginning of lap 5, after posting the fastest lap with a 1:23.443. Unluckily, the Welshman lost the front shortly after, entering turn 7. Giugliano, who scored first row during Superpole with the third-best time, looked comfortable while chasing Rea and Sykes, showing a pace identical to that of the leading pair. During lap 14, however, the Italian crashed while changing direction at turn 8, better known as the Corkscrew.
Both riders, who did not suffer injuries, could not rejoin the race but will have a chance to bounce back in Race 2, scheduled for 14:30 local time (CET -9) on Sunday.
Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Superbike Team #7) – DNF
“I’m very disappointed. We got off a good start and we had a good pace from the very beginning. I didn’t feel on the limit but I felt the rear lock while on the brakes ahead of turn 7, and when it gained grip back the front loaded too much and I couldn’t do anything. We’ll try to bounce back tomorrow, given that we have good potential.”
Davide Giugliano (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Superbike Team #34) – DNF
“It’s been a difficult day, for the whole team. We had a pace worthy of the podium, if not more, but it’s useless to say that in retrospect. We’ll have to understand together with the team what caused the crash, because at that point of the race I wasn’t pushing 100 percent as I was trying to save the tyres. We have to move on and look forward, as tomorrow we’ll have another chance to score a good result.”
Ernesto Marinelli, Superbike Project Director
“Today was certainly frustrating for the whole team. Now we’ll sit down all together to pinpoint the causes of both crashes and learn from what happened today. Surely we had the potential to do well, so we’ll try to make the most of it with the necessary poise in order to recover in Race 2.”
