In the preceding Tissot Superpole qualifying session, Razgatlıoğlu completing a stunning lap to put his Official Yamaha R1 WorldBSK P2 on the grid for Race 1, just 0.094s from what could have been the young Turkish rider’s first pole position. Teammate Van der Mark also had a positive morning to qualify P5 and on the second row of the grid, even without a “perfect” lap by his own admission.
At the start of Race 1, both Pata Yamaha riders made a play for the top three but Van der Mark lost stability under braking for the first turn, and was forced to dive to the inside of Razgatlıoğlu. In avoiding a collision, the pair had ground to make up in the following laps while managing the available grip levels for the full 20-lap race distance. Engaging in battles throughout, Van der Mark crossed the line only 1.5 seconds from the podium, with Razgatlıoğlu finding consistency towards the end of the race to finish a further two seconds in arrears.
Tomorrow is the final day of the Catalan WorldSBK round, with a short 15-minute warm-up scheduled for 09:00 (GMT+2) followed by WorldSBK’s thrilling 10-lap format Tissot Superpole Race at 11:00 and Race 2, with the top nine grid positions defined by the Superpole Race result, starting at 14:00.
For full Race 1 results, click here.
