In a hectic Sunday marred by incidents and red flags, the two Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK riders raced in the front pack and stayed out of trouble in both the Superpole Race and Race 2, to complete a fine set of Indonesian race results.
Razgatlıoğlu and Locatelli had a third chance to try for another double podium in Race 2 this afternoon, after the pair’s 1-2 domination of the shortened eight-lap Superpole Race. Of the front runners, only Michael Ruben Rinaldi had remaining allocation of a new Pirelli rear tire for the restarted 14-lap race, which saw the Ducati rider take an early lead.
Yamaha’s #54 rider held his own on used tyres until he was passed by eventual race winner Alvaro Bautista (Ducati), but the Turkish ace pushed hard to stay within the top three and was able to pressure Rinaldi into a mistake on the final lap, taking a well-deserved second-place podium at the flag.
For Locatelli, the story of the day was his Superpole Race performance this morning. While Razgatlıoğlu led from the front, “Loka” lost out in the restart and dropped down to fifth position in the early laps before settling into a superb race pace right to the end – staying calm under pressure from Kawasaki’s Alex Lowes in the final two laps to take his second podium of the weekend. Despite a more difficult Race 2, the Italian rider scored a solid fifth place and holds on to a strong third in the championship on 70 points, just five points behind his teammate and 21 points clear of the next rider.
After travelling back to Europe, Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK will complete a two-day test in Barcelona from 30-31 March before the first European round of the 2023 season at Assen from 21-23 April.
