Ducati are still the guys to beat
No doubt about it, the Ducati Panigale V4 R remains the best bike in World Superbikes. Not only that but its rider combination of Alvaro Bautista and Nicolo Bulega is the strongest on the grid at present. After Sunday’s sprint race, reigning double World Champion Bautista took the championship lead for the first time this year, having stormed to victory and then finishing second to Toprak Razgatlioglu on Sunday. It would have been another dogfight between those two on Saturday had the red flags not curtailed the race, gifting victory to Nico Spinelli on his debut.
“Ducati are doing a phenomenal job and their bike is still the best, I have no problem in admitting it,” a leading technical light from a rival manufacturer told MCN. It was the weather conditions that made life most difficult as no rider completed a race simulation across practice and before the races, as Bautista explained: “The conditions are not something we can change, so we have to adapt. We kept the same base setup as Barcelona as we couldn’t fine-tune it here due to the weather. I’m much more comfortable on the bike now despite the added weight.”
Assen was a far tougher challenge for Bulega, the former championship leader. Unlike in Australia and Barcelona, there was no pre-event test to iron out gremlins. Adding the facts that he’d just had armpump surgery and there was no training until a week before Assen made life somewhat uncomfortable for the Italian. “It was a difficult month at home,” Bulega commented. “My inexperience is also costing me. I chose the wrong tyre for Race 1 in Barcelona then pushed the tyre too hard in the Superpole at Assen. I want 100% of feeling back for Misano.”