The sun has set on the second day of testing at Misano World Circuit “Marco Simoncelli”, Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) topped Day 2, setting the table for an epic showdown in Ducati’s back yard at the upcoming Pirelli Emilia-Romagna Round. Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) and his team look to have found some answers with their setup, but his work will be cut out for him at the upcoming race weekend. In P3 behind them, Axel Bassani (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) continued his good run of form as the Italian sets out for more podiums in 2025.
Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) didn’t participate in the Test’s Day 1, the current Championship leader, however, needed no time to leap to the top of the timesheet. His 1’32.093s time propelling him to P1 in FP4. had it happened during an official round, his time would have shattered Razgatlioglu’s 2024 track record by more than a quarter of a second. Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) finished in P4 after his P5 result on Day 1. His pace seems to be improving as his 1’32.820s lap was faster than his Day 1 fastest lap by around seven tenths of a second. Italian rookie Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) was the second-fastest Ducati for stretches of the day; he went on to finish in P6 with his 1’32.962s lap. Montella’s teammate Danilo Petrucci was not as quick as the rookie for the second day in a row, finishing P9 on his fastest lap of 1’33.153s. Andrea Iannone (Team Pata Go Eleven) continues to fight through his two broken toes, suffered just 11 days ago, and looks to have made some progress with his bike, even despite that. ‘The Maniac’ finished P12 with a time of 1’33.364s. Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) finished the day in P13 and a time of 1’33.424s after his Day 1 P4. Ryan Vickers (Motocorsa Racing) closed out Misano’s Testing with a fastest lap of 1’33.816s to earn P16. Ducati test rider Michele Pirro was on track as well, testing Ducati’s new Panigale V4 R, he collected a total of 25 laps worth of data, the fastest of them a 1’33.956s.
Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) and Bulega traded places for P1 and P2 throughout the session, with minutes left, Bulega pipped Toprak by just 0.04s in the afternoon’s FP4, relegating him to P2 despite his 1’32.133s time fast enough to have broken his track record last year. The defending Champion will need to find a way to outpace Bulega at Misano if he wants to breathe more life into the Championship Race. Michael van der Mark (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) finished the day in P14, while his pace was not a huge improvement over his recent results, both the Dutchman and ‘El Turco’ will benefit from the data they collected en masse across both days, on Day 2 alone, the pair and the other two test riders- Markus Reiterberger and Sylvain Guintoli- cumulatively collected 190 laps, the most of any team.
Axel Bassani (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) was the faster of the Bimota pair on Wednesday, finishing P3 thanks to his 1’32.798s effort. Finishing in P11, Alex Lowes’ (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) fastest lap came in FP4 when he put down a 1’33.265s lap.
Remy Gardner (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) was the fastest Yamaha at Day 2 of the Misano Test, taking fifth place from his 1’32.890s lap. Jonathan Rea (Pata Maxus Yamaha) was the second fastest Yamaha, narrowly missing the 1’32 mark in eighth place from his 1’33.019s lap. Andrea Locatelli (Pata Maxus Yamaha)’s 1’33.159s lap saw him place P10. In P18 from his 1’34.428s lap, Stefano Manzi (Yamaha Test Team) finished just ahead of Dominique Aegerter (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) in P19. The Italian’s 1’34.428s lap was just 0.004s faster than the Swiss rider’s 1’34.432s time.
Iker Lecuona (Honda HRC) wasn’t quite fast enough to replicate his Day 1 P3, his P7 on pace for his recent form. The consistency of the Spaniard, however, could boost the confidence of the Honda factory team as he earned his P7 on a 1’33.017s lap. With his teammate Xavi Vierge (Honda HRC) still out with his foot injury, Tarran Mackenzie (PETRONAS MIE Honda Racing Team) was the only other permanent grid rider at the test for Honda, finishing 1’35.413s. Test riders Tommy Bridewell and Ivo Lopes finished in 23rd and 24th, running a total of 46 laps.
Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki WorldSBK Team) followed up on his Day 1 P9 with a Day 2 P15. The Texan has shown glimpses of his pace from prior seasons, but consistent form with his new Kawasaki team has eluded him.
Philipp Oettl (Feel Racing WorldSSP Team) led the WorldSSP grid at Misano’s Day 2, his 1’37.595s hot lap leading Valentin Debise (Renzi Corse) at 1’37.640s and Jeremy Alcoba (Kawasaki WorldSSP Team) at 1’37.716s.
