Kwack-ing All the Way: WSBK – Round 7, Portimao

RACE TWO

After a drizzling end to race one, the weather improved for race two as the sun was out, shining bright, and the race fans donning their shades for a bit of cool. Race two was important, especially for Ducati’s Giugliano, who was hoping to bag the victory after a disappointing race one. However, all the eyes were set on Tom Sykes who seemed determined to convert his front-row start into a win in race two.

As the lights went out, Tom Sykes was once again off the line at a blistering pace, leading the pack into turn one. This time Aruba.it Ducati team’s Davide Giugliano had a great start and the Italian was soon chasing Sykes on his 1199 R. Completing the top three was Ducati’s Chaz Davies. However, hunting these three down was championship leader and race one winner, Jonathan Rea. On lap two, Rea moved up a place thanks to Davies, who ran wide through turn two–three.

On lap three, the Kawasaki duo got carried away while fighting for the lead as they arrived at turn one pushing each other to the edge. This infighting allowed Giugliano to slip into the lead. Giugliano held on to the lead as Rea and Sykes chased him down. As the Ducati maintained the lead, the two Kawasakis were slugging it out for the second place.

As the race reached the mid-way point, Rea overtook Giugliano. A lap later, Sykes also overtook Giugliano and was now fighting for the lead. However, wrong tyre choice dampened Sykes chances of winning race two. Sykes kept losing places while desperately fighting for grip. This allowed Giugliano and Haslam to slip past him, taking third and fourth place respectively.

While Sykes was struggling to find grip, Rea was on his way to win the race. This was Rea’s 10th victory and his 14th podium finish this season.

Meanwhile, Giugliano, who finished second on his Ducati 1199 R Panigale, claimed his eighth WSBK career podium and his first one this season. Haslam returned to the podium in third place, first time since Aragón this year. Sykes, however, was unfortunate as he finished eighth in this crucial race, which is the beginning of the second half of the championship.
Rea leads the championship with 330 points, followed by Sykes in the second place with 206 points, and Haslam in the third with 199 points. The championship now heads to Rimini, Italy, for the eighth round to be held at the Marco Simoncelli Misano Circuit.