WSBK: Redding Takes Victory in Jerez Race 1

Scott Redding claimed his first WorldSBK victory in Race 1 in Jerez and took the lead in the championship standings.

The rookie finished 1.147 sec ahead of Jonathan Rea while Toprak Razgatlioglu fought off Chaz Davies on the final lap to complete the podium. Redding became the fourth race winner of the season, marking the first time since 2004 that four different riders came out top in the first four races.

Scorching temperatures at the Circuito de Jerez – Angel Nieto produced an exciting five-way battle with three manufacturers within a chance for victory.

Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) took the holeshot from the front row going into Turn 1. Behind him Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Official Team) jumped up into second while Scott Redding (Aruba.it Racing Ducati) fell into third from pole. Loris Baz (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) swiftly overtook Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) to move into fourth.

A group of four with Rea, Razgatlioglu, Redding and Baz started to break away at the front while Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) struggled in the chasing group and fell behind Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing Ducati) into ninth.

Three laps into the race Sykes started to pull away from the chasers, running in fifth place. Davies meanwhile found his rhythm and swept past Alvaro Bautista (Team HRC) at the Sito Pons corner and subsequently made his move on the second Honda of Leon Haslam (Team HRC) on the start/finish straight.

Baz looked to be struggling for grip and started to fall behind the leading trio of Rea, Razgatlioglu and Redding who settled into that order out front. Further behind van der Mark got back into the groove and overtook both Hondas to move up into sixth.

The race was over for Sykes with 16 laps to go when his BMW slowed down on the start/finish straight with a technical issue. He completed the lap before returning to the pits and though he was able to rejoin the race later, a top position was lost.

Davies was running a strong pace in fifth, steadily building a gap to the chasing group and closing in on the leaders. Van der Mark meanwhile fell back into issues and first lost sixth position to Bautista before Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Team GoEleven) dived down his inside into Turn 1 of the eighth lap.

Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK), who started down in 14^th after a crash in qualifying, had now made his way into the top 10 and started to put pressure on Haslam.

Van der Mark was out of the race with 12 laps remaining when smoke came out the back of his bike running down the start/finish straight. His retirement was to Lowes’s benefit who got passed Haslam and was now running eighth.

While the leading trio contently ran behind one another for the first half of the race, the paint swapping began with ten laps remaining. Redding had a first look at Razgatlioglu going into Turn 1 but backed out of it.

Only a lap later, the Ducati rider made his move stick. Redding pulled out of the slip stream in the run up to Turn 6 and swept past Razgatlioglu into second, a manoeuvre that allowed Baz back into the leading group. Further behind returnee Marco Melandri (Barni Racing) moved through the field and made his 11^th overtake of the race past Lowes into eighth.

Redding immediately started to put pressure on Rea with Razgatlioglu running behind them while Davies edged ever closer on Baz.

On lap 15 Redding executed what would be the race-winning overtake. In a carbon copy of his move into second, he lined the Ducati up behind Rea on the run up to Turn 6 and dived down the inside going into the corner. With Redding struggling to stop his bike, both riders ran wide but stayed ahead of Razgatlioglu.

Redding swiftly opened a gap to Rea who did not look troubled by Razgatlioglu still running in third. Davies was now in touching distance of Baz and attempted a move into Turn 1 with four laps remaining but could not make it stick. It only took him another lap though to cleanly execute the same manoeuvre to claim fourth. Behind the five leaders Rinaldi was now the fastest rider on track, running in a lonely sixth place.

Redding built a comfortable lead that he brought over the line for his first win in the series. Rea meanwhile was safe in second, but behind him Davies was putting increasing pressure on Razgatlioglu. Going into the last lap he dived down the inside of the Yamaha into Turn 1, but Razgatlioglu stayed in front. The pair were exchanging punches with Davies attacking in every corner and Razgatlioglu riding defensively. Davies eventually ran wide into Turn 6 and had to settle for fourth.

Baz finished top independent rider in fifth with Rinaldi behind him and Bautista in seventh. Melandri had a great return to WorldSBK in eighth and Lowes who had led the championship going into the race finished ninth. Haslam completed the top 10 on the second Honda.

Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Junior Team) was in 11^th from Christophe Ponsson (Nuova M2 Racing) and Xavi Fores (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing). Sandro Cortese (Outdo Kawasaki TPR) finished 14^th and Eugene Laverty (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) took the final point in 15^th.

Just outside the points ranks Sylvain Barrier (Brixx Performance) was 16^th and the two MIE Racing Althea Hondas of Lorenzo Gabellini and Takumi Takahashi were last to finish the race.

Sykes was not classified after retiring and rejoining the race while van der Mark, Maximilian Scheib (Orelac Racing Verdnatura), Leandro Mercado (Motocorsa Racing) and Federico Caricasulo (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Junior Team) recorded DNFs.

Redding now leads the championship standings six points ahead of Lowes and 12 points ahead of Rea.