Nicolò Bulega led FIM Superbike World Championship Free Practice Two (FP2) Friday afternoon at Donington Park, in England. Riding his Aruba.It Racing – Ducati Panigale V4R on spec Pirelli tires, the Italian rider covered the 2.50-mile (4.02 km) track in 1:26.342 to lead the field of 24 riders.
His countryman, Danilo Petrucci was second-best with a 1:26.523 on his Barni Spark Racing Ducati Panigale V4R.
Sam Lowes was third with a 1:26.591 on his ELF Marc VDS Racing Team Ducati Panigale V4R.
2024 WorldSuperbike Champion, Toprak Razgatlioglu got fourth with a 1:26.621 on his ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team M1000RR.
American Garrett Gerloff was 5th with a time of 1:26.624 on his Kawasaki ZX-10RR.
More from a press release issued by Dorna:
Up and Down day: Bulega tops Friday WorldSBK running despite FP2 crash, Razgatlioglu fifth. Points leader Bulega crashed at the Foggy Esses which disrupted his running, but he was still able to claim P1 in both FP2 and overall.
Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) topped the timesheets on Friday in the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship despite a crash in the afternoon session at the Foggy Esses. The Championship leader set a 1’26.342s to claim P1 ahead of Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) as the opening day of the Prosecco DOC UK Round concluded with a dramatic Free Practice 2 session at Donington Park.
Bulega Top Despite Crash: ‘Bulegas’ leads the way
Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) finished second in FP1 and was fastest in the early stages of FP2 with a 1’26.342s, but he crashed at the Foggy Esses right after he set that lap time which disrupted his session although his bike did make it back to pitlane after ‘Bulegas’ was able to restart it. Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) has always gelled with Donington and was third overall on Friday, only 0.181s off Bulega’s pace. Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) claimed fourth overall with a 1’26.591s with Scott Redding (MGM BONOVO Action) enjoying his best Friday since Australia with seventh, and rookie Ryan Vickers (Motocorsa Racing) claiming eighth. Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) was 11th as he struggled on Friday, although he did find time compared to FP1, while Andrea Iannone (Team Pata GoEleven) and Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) were 12th and 13th respectively.
Lowes Fastest In FP1: quick from the off, Bassani crashes in FP2
Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) topped FP1 in the morning as he got his home round off to a flying start, while he was also quick in FP2. The #22 was the highest-placed rider to not improve his time in FP2 but he was able to finish third in the combined times. Teammate Axel Bassani had a tricky morning, finishing in 17th place, and his FP2 got off to a bad start when he crashed at Turn 7 with his KB998 Rimini tumbling through the gravel. Despite only completing one flying lap in FP2, Bassani was 16th in the combined times.
Fifth For Razgatlioglu: not improving his time in FP2
Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) is aiming to make it 10 wins at Donington this weekend and started off with P5 in the combined classification, leading BMW’s charge as he finished only behind Bulega. ‘El Turco’ set a 1’26.592s in FP1, Michael van der Mark (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) finished the day in 14th after posting a 1’27.045s, but his time was only seven tenths away from Bulega in what was a closely-contested Friday at Donington.
Gerloff Rapid At Donington: a top six for the Texan
Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki WorldSBK Team) has made steps on his ZX-10RR machine in recent rounds and that seemed to continue at Donington, with the #31 inside the top ten in Free Practice 1 and kept that pace going in FP2. He set a 1’26.624s to finish sixth in the combined standings, less than three tenths off Bulega’s pace.
Two Bikes In The Top10: Locatelli leads Yamaha charge
Andrea Locatelli (Pata Maxus Yamaha) was ninth as he claimed lead Yamaha honours on Friday, finishing with a 1’26.903s. He was directly ahead of Dominique Aegerter (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) in tenth with the Swiss rider putting in an impressive time to lap within a couple of hundredths of ‘Loka’. Remy Gardner (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) finished the day in 15th place with Jonathan Rea (Pata Maxus Yamaha) in 17th; the #65 was less than eight tenths away from Bulega’s time and two tenths away from his teammate. Bahattin Sofuoglu (Yamaha Motoxracing WorldSBK Team) was 21st with teammate Michael Rinaldi a tenth behind in 22nd.
Honda Stuggle On Friday: a lot of work to do
All five Hondas on the grid at Donington could be found 18th or lower. Iker Lecuona (Honda HRC) was the fastest of the group after setting a 1’27.189s for P18, with wildcard Tommy Bridewell (Honda Racing UK) a tenth away from the Spaniard in 19th. Lecuona’s teammate, Xavi Vierge, was 20th. Tito Rabat (PETRONAS MIE Honda Racing Team), on his first appearance for the MIE Honda squad, was 23rd with Ivo Lopes (PETRONAS MIE Honda Racing Team) rounding out the WorldSBK field.
The top six from Friday at Donington, full results here:
1. Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 1’26.342s
2. Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) +0.181s
3. Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) +0.202s
4. Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) +0.249s
5. Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) +0.250s
6. Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki WorldSBK Team) +0.282s
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