Nicolo Bulega was quickest during FIM Superbike World Championship Free Practice 1 (FP1) Friday morning at Donington Park Circuit, in England. Riding his Pirelli-shod Aruba.it Racing Ducati Panigale V4R on the 2.50-mile (4.02 km) track, the Italian recorded a 1:25.870 to lead the field of 23 riders.
His teammate, Iker Lecuona, was the best of the rest with a 1:25.955.
Sam Lowes was third-fastest with a 1:26.026 on his ELF Marc VDS Racing Team Ducati Panigale V4R.
American Garrett Gerloff finished the opening session in 8th with a 1:26.324 on his Kawasaki ZX-10RR.
WSBK FP1 Donington
More from a press release issued by WSBK:
Bulega pips Lecuona by less than a tenth in FP1 at Donington, Sam Lowes rounds out the top three. It was a Ducati 1-2-3 in the opening session of the weekend as WorldSBK’s UK Round kicked off with FP1.
Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) started his MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship weekend at Donington Park in the perfect fashion as he claimed first place in Free Practice 1. The Championship leader topped the times at the Prosecco DOC UK Round by less than a tenth ahead of teammate Iker Lecuona, while Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) started his home round with a place in the top three.
Despite being a track that Ducati have had less success at than others on the calendar, the Bologna-based manufacturer started the weekend off with a 1-2 in Free Practice 1, headed by Bulega. ‘Bulegas’ set a 1’25.870s as he claimed top spot on the timesheets, just 0.085s ahead of teammate Lecuona. It’s going to be an emotional weekend for Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) following the sad passing of team founder Marc van der Straten last weekend, with the #14 wearing a black helmet in FP1 and removing the traditional orange border from his number. He finished in third place after posting a 1’26.026, just 0.156s away from Bulega.
Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) was directly behind his twin brother as he finished in fourth after setting a 1’26.102s, with Lorenzo Baldassarri (Team GoEleven) putting in a late lap to move into the top five. Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) missed the first part of the session as the team worked on an exhaust valve issue, but he was able to claim P6 with a 1’26.360s.
Montella’s teammate, Alvaro Bautista, had a strong start to the weekend as he claimed seventh in Free Practice 1, posting a 1’26.298s as he lapped 0.428s away from Bulega and less than a tenth away from Montella. Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki WorldSBK Team) finished in eighth, less than half-a-second away from P1, with wildcard Jonathan Rea (Honda HRC) in ninth; the #65 was the highest-placed Honda rider in FP1. Alberto Surra (Motocorsa Racing) rounded out the top ten with a late 1’26.653s.
Jake Dixon (Honda HRC) returned to WorldSBK action but completed just six laps in FP1 after he crashed at Turn 8. The #96 tucked the front of his Honda CBR1000RR-R SP machine at Coppice, ending his session early.
The top six from WorldSBK FP1, full results here:
