The MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship reaches the final stage of the season, with the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve Portimao hosting the tenth round of the series.
Jordi Torres finished a combined P3 and earned another Tissot-Superpole2 entry in WorldSBK class. Official MV Agusta Reparto Corse duo in WorldSSP Ayrton Badovini and Raffaele De Rosa finished free practice sessions 9th and 14th respectively, with De Rosa struggling because of a crash during the FP2.
WorldSBK – FP1, FP2, FP3
Jordi Torres opened the first day of qualifying getting the 2nd fastest lap time in the FP1 morning session, standing out in the final stage with a 1’42.333s lap time, half a second far from the World Champion Jonathan Rea. In the FP2 the Spaniard still holds tight the second place behind Rea. In the third and last round Jordi will be forced to give up only one position a few minutes before the end of the session, gaining access to Superpole2 with the 3rd fastest time of the day (1’42.333s).
WorldSSP – FP1, FP2
Raffaele De Rosa showed up at the start of the tenth round of the WorldSSP Championship with a series of 5 consecutive podiums obtained in the last 5 races, a sign of the excellent feeling he got with his MV Agusta F3 675. In the first day of testing the Italian wasn’t able to fully express his potential because of a crash during the FP2 session, ending up 14th in the combined time sheet.
Ayrton Badovini has consistently set time into the top ten area and manages to finish 9th at the end of the qualifying day, entering the Saturday’s Tissot-Superpole2.
Jordi Torres – Today we have been very consistent since the very first moments and we were able to always lap really fast. In the afternoon we tried different solutions with the tires, looking for an alternative that would allow us to be faster and more consistent at the same time. The work with the bike seems to be moving in the right direction and if we will continue on this path I am confident that tomorrow we can grab some good results, even if the tire duration will make a big difference.
Raffaele De Rosa – Too bad, today I made a mistake and I crashed, wasting the chance to enter the Superpole2. Up to that point I felt I could make it but the crash prevented us from improving. The team is now working hard to get the bike back and tomorrow I will do my best to stay up front.
Ayrton Badovini – It was a very positive day and it was great to be able to get back on the bike after such a long break. Our first target was to enter the Top 10 and we definitely made it. We have a good base and we are doing a great job, I am confident that tomorrow we will be able to take another step forward.
