Friday

Mahias eleventh in WorldSBK practice. A strong return from injury.

Kawasaki Puccetti Racing is hard at work at the Donington Park track, the stage for round five of the Superbike World Championship. Lucas Mahias is now fully recovered after crashing at Estoril and is back on his Ninja, keen to retain confidence with the bike and fight to score the best possible results.
In the first practice session, which took place in cool, cloudy conditions, the Frenchman achieved an encouraging eleventh place finish, with a time of 1’29”043.
In the second practice, Mahias proved to have regained feeling with his bike, improving by almost six tenths to set a 1’28”482 with which he held eleventh place.
Tomorrow will see Lucas take to the track for FP3, followed by Superpole and the weekend’s first WorldSBK race.

Donington Park – Castle Donington – UK – Superbike World Championship
Combined free practice results: 1) Rea (Kawasaki) – 2) Razgatlioglu (Yamaha) – 3) Redding (BMW) – 4) Lowes (Kawasaki) – 5) Bautista (Ducati) ……. 11) Mahias (Kawasaki)

Lucas Mahias

“I’m pleased with today’s free practice, because after two months away from my Ninja, I don’t think eleventh place is too bad. I like the track and was soon able to regain good feeling with my bike, thanks also to my time. In the second session, I experienced some arm pain, but that’s normal after such a long break from racing. I’ve worked hard with my technicians, we’ve improved the bike and our lap times are quite good, so tomorrow we need to continue on this path. There’s still a lot to do, but I’m optimistic.”

A difficult but constructive day for Oncu and Montella in free practice at Donington.

Kawasaki Puccetti Racing is on track at historic Donington Park for the fifth Supersport World Championship round. It’s a brand-new track for both riders, with neither Can Oncu or Yari Montella having raced at the Leicestershire circuit before.
The riders used the first practice session, which ran this morning under cloudy skies but on a dry track, to build confidence with the new track and start, along with their respective technicians, the work to set up their Kawasaki ZX-6R bikes. Oncu (1’32”533) finished in tenth place, while Montella (1’32”676) closed twelfth.
In the afternoon’s second session, the Turk made significant progress, rounding out the day in eighth place with a time of 1’31”568. The Italian suffered a crash, though fortunately suffered no physical consequences, and was unable to improve as much as he’d hoped. With a time of 1’32”276, he placed eighteenth in the combined standings at the end of day one.
Oncu e Montella will be back on track tomorrow for Superpole and the first of the races making up this British race weekend.

Donington Park – Castle Donington – UK – Supersport World Championship
Combined free practice results: 1) Aegerter (Yamaha) – 2) Van Straalen – 3) Bulega (Ducati) – 4) Cluzel (Yamaha) – 5) De Rosa (Ducati) ……… 8) Oncu (Kawasaki) ………18) Montella (Kawasaki)

Can Oncu

“It definitely hasn’t been an easy day, but in the end it proved positive. After a long break, it’s never easy to return to the track, but I was soon enjoying being back aboard my Kawasaki. I finished eighth, but we’re not actually far from the front. We worked well on the bike and so I’m sure that we can be more competitive tomorrow and then fight for the top positions in the race. My aim is the podium.”

Yari Montella

“Not an easy day and this afternoon I also suffered a small crash. I’ve never raced here before and we need to work more to better adapt the bike to my riding style at this track. We’ll analyse all the data we’ve collected today to better understand how to modify both the bike and my riding, so that we’re ready for tomorrow’s Superpole and the race, in which we want to be back fighting for the kind of positions we deserve.”

Saturday

Mahias finished twelfth in WorldSBK race one.

The Donington Park circuit in the UK has today hosted the second day of action making up round five of the Superbike World Championship.
Yesterday saw Kawasaki Puccetti Racing rider Lucas Mahias take part in the first practice sessions. The Frenchman placed eleventh at the end of the day with a best of 1’28”482. This morning, he was back out for the third and final practice, during which he worked hard with his team to identify the best possible set-up for his Ninja, in preparation for the subsequent Superpole and Race 1. With a time of 1’28”515, Mahias finished fifteenth in the combined standings.
Superpole ran in the last morning, establishing the grid positions for Race 1 and tomorrow’s Superpole race. Lucas was again able to significantly improve on his best time, setting a 1’27”390 to place eleventh. With this result, he lined up on row four of the grid for the afternoon’s 23-lap race.
As the race got underway, the Frenchman didn’t make the fastest start and was lying fifteenth through the opening stages. As the race went on, Mahias got into a good rhythm and climbed back up through the field to finish twelfth. A good result particularly considering that the French rider hadn’t raced for over two months.
Tomorrow Mahias will compete in the Superpole Race and the second Superbike race.

Donington Park – Castle Donington – UK – Superbike World Championship
Combined free practice results: 1) Gerloff (Yamaha) – 2) Rea (Kawasaki) – 3) Baz (BMW) – 4) Razgatlioglu (Yamaha) – 5) Lowes (Kawasaki) ……. 15) Mahias (Kawasaki)

Superpole: 1) Rea (Kawasaki) – 2) Lowes (Kawasaki) – 3) Razgatlioglu (Yamaha) – 3) Redding (BMW) – 5) Bautista (Ducati) – 6) Rinaldi (Ducati) …………11) Mahias (Kawasaki)

Race 1: 1) Razgatlioglu (Yamaha) – 2) Rea (Kawasaki) – 3) Lowes (Kawasaki) – 4) Redding (BMW) – 5) Bassani (Ducati) – 6) Rinaldi (Ducati) ……. 12) Mahias (Kawasaki)

Lucas Mahias

“Superpole went well and I was pleased with my position considering that I’m just coming back after two months away from my Ninja. But I’m not totally satisfied with how the race went. I didn’t make a very good start and then lost time trying to pass rivals immediately ahead of me. I then picked up the pace and gave it all I had. I don’t think I can do more right now. Thanks to the team for all their help.”

An excellent WorldSSP race for Montella and Oncu at Donington.

Donington Park in the UK is currently staging round five of the Supersport World Championship. Kawasaki Puccetti Racing riders Can Oncu and Yari Montella, who completed yesterday’s practice sessions in eighth and eighteenth place respectively, were out for Superpole this morning, battling to secure strong grid positions for the weekend’s races.
Although both are experiencing this tough, technical track for the first time, Oncu scored fourth place (1’30”445) and Montella eighth (1’30”661), meaning that the Turk lined up on the second row of the grid and the Italian from the third for the afternoon’s race.
The start of the race was delayed when a rider had an issue on the grid. The race then restarted a few minutes later but was brought to a halt on lap one following a crash involving several riders, the bikes of whom remained on the track. The race was then started for a third time, albeit reduced to a distance of twelve laps.
Oncu made a very fast start which allowed him to take an early lead, while Montella, who also got away well, moved into sixth place. The Turkish rider finished lap one in first place but was then reabsorbed into the leading group, of which his team-mate was also part. A crash divided this group and allowed the leading pair to break away, while the two Kawasaki Puccetti Racing riders held third and fifth position. In the final stages, Can began suffering arm pain that prevented him from riding as he wanted. He therefore had to settle for final fifth position, just behind Yari, who finished a very strong fourth. A difficult and unlucky race in which the two young riders again proved to be WorldSSP frontrunners, despite this being their first visit to the track.
Oncu lies fourth in the championship standings with 91 points, while Montella climbs to fifth with 75.
The British round will draw to a close tomorrow, with Oncu and Montella competing in the weekend’s second WorldSSP race.

Donington Park – Castle Donington – UK – Supersport World Championship
Superpole: 1) Aegerter (Yamaha) – 2) Bulega (Ducati) – 3) Van Straalen (Yamaha) – 4) Oncu (Kawasaki) – 5) Caricasulo (Ducati) – 6) Cluzel (Yamaha) – 7) Baldassarri (Yamaha) – 8) Montella (Kawasaki)

Race 1 – 1) Aegerter (Yamaha) – Baldassarri (Yamaha) – 3) De Rosa (Ducati) – 4) Montella (Kawasaki) – 5) Oncu (Kawasaki) – 6) Manzi (Triumph)

Can Oncu

“In the race the first laps were so easy, the pace was so fast that I thought a podium would be easy. But because of my arm pump problem I could not make a podium. Tomorrow I will try again, a new day so we need to keep positive for the second race.”

Yari Montella

“We’ve had a good day. Before qualifying we changed a few things on the bike and also in terms of my riding style, and we saw the results right away. I immediately felt competitive in the race and was able to fight for the podium right to the end. Tomorrow we’ll try to do more and obtain a really strong result, because we’ve shown we have the potential to do so. Thanks to my team, they’ve done an amazing job.”

Sunday

Mahias in the points in the two WorldSBK races at Donington.

The fifth round of the Superbike World Championship has now concluded at Donington Park in the UK. Kawasaki Puccetti Racing rider Lucas Mahias, who returns after two monts of inactivity owing to injury, took part in yesterday’s Superpole and race 1, finishing in eleventh and twelfth place respectively, while today he lined up for the Superpole Race and the second Superbike race.
In the sprint race, the Frenchman lost a few positions at the start before climbing back up to fourteenth, a position he held to the line.
Race 2 went a similar way for Lucas. After a less than brilliant start, the Kawasaki Puccetti Racing rider made up a few places, soon getting into his rhythm and again crossing the line fourteenth.
The next round of the superbike World Championship will play out on 30-31 July at the Most Circuit in the Czech Republic.

Donington Park – Castle Donington – UK – Superbike World Championship
Superpole Race: 1) Razgatlioglu (Yamaha) – 2) Rea (Kawasaki) – 3) Redding (BMW) – 4) Bautista (Ducati) – 5) Lowes (Kawasaki) – 6) Rinaldi (Ducati) ……. 14) Mahias (Kawasaki)

Race 2: 1) Razgatlioglu (Yamaha) – 2) Bautista (Ducati) – 3) Rea (Kawasaki) – 4) Redding (BMW) – 5) Rinaldi (Ducati) – 6) Lowes (Kawasaki) ……….. 14) Mahias (Kawasaki)

Lucas Mahias

“I’m not totally satisfied with today’s races. I gave it my all in both, but right now we’re not able to do more than this and so we need to continue working on the bike like we’ve done this weekend to be more competitive in the next races, starting with Most in two weeks’ time. Thanks to the team as they’ve worked really hard as always.”

More arm pump issues for Oncu in WorldSSP race 2 at Donington. Montella crashes.

Race 2 rounded out the fifth round of the Supersport World Championship at the British track of Donington Park today. It was a decidedly unlucky day for Kawasaki Puccetti Racing riders Can Oncu and Yari Montella.
Following on from yesterday’s Superpole, Oncu started the from the second row and Montella from the third in the 19-lap race that run in hot and sunny conditions.
Unfortunately, Yari’s race didn’t last long. Right after the start, the young Italian was hit by another rider at turn 2 and crashed as a result. Montella was unhurt but his bike was damaged and he was therefore unable to continue.
After making a good start, Oncu remained part of the leading group for a long while but at the race went on, the pain in his arm caused by a stiffening of the muscles increased, hindering him from riding as he would have liked. Can did well to grit his teeth and finish the race in eighth position. The Turkish rider will now undergo the necessary medical treatment and doesn’t rule out the possibility of surgery during August, to resolve this arm pump problem.
Oncu lies fourth in the championship standings with 99 points, while Montella is fifth with 75.
The next Supersport World Championship round will take place over the weekend of 29-31 July at the Most Circuit in the Czech Republic.

Donington Park – Castle Donington – UK – Supersport World Championship
Race 2: 1) Aegerter (Yamaha) – 2) Baldassarri (Yamaha) – 3) Bulega (Ducati) – 4) Caricasulo (Ducati) – 5) Manzi (Triumph) ………..8) Oncu. ………..N.c Montella (Kawasaki)

Can Oncu

“This English circuit was new to me and a little bit difficult for us. It has a lot of everything you find in racing. We scored points but in some ways it is a weekend we need to forget and look forward to the Czech Republic race weekend.”

Yari Montella

“I’m really disappointed today because without the foolish move of another rider, I could have battled for the podium. But that’s racing and there’s no point dwelling on it. We need to react and focus on the next round at Most. I’m really sorry for the team too, as they did a great job and I’d have liked to repay them with a good result”.