World Superbikes, Aragon Britwatch!

The World Superbike Championship hurtles towards the season finale at Jerez and up until the Magny Cours round, it appeared to have been a dead cert that Toprak was going to run away with the championship. However, following a crash during the French round which saw him ruled out of the remainder of the weekend and also the following Italian round at Cremona scoring zero points over the two rounds allowed the gap to the top to close. Despite a return to racing at Aragon, Razgatlioglu was unable to secure a win at the track (which remains one of the few on the Calendar that he has yet to grace the top step at) appearing to still be suffering the after effects of the Magny Cours fall.

But how did the Brits do? Aragon is the longest track on the calendar and has also undergone a recent resurfacing, which drastically changed the general feeling along the grid. Particularly windy conditions further aided to level the field throughout the sessions.

Sam Lowes

Sam had a difficult start to the weekend with a fall in Free practice, despite the crash Sam still finished the practice session 6th fastest on track.  Unfortunately, it didn’t get much better luck wise come Race 1 with a crash at turn 5 on the opening lap, which left him with an injury to his shoulder and left him unfit for the remainder of the event.

Alex Lowes

Alex stated he is pushing the limits of the current package, despite this statement his pace and speed during the early stages of the weekend were impressive. Lowes had a strong qualifying which placed him on the second row in 6th position for race 1 and after the quick restart following his brothers crash in the opening laps, Lowes crossed the line 7th. In similar luck as his brother, a crash in the Tissost Superpole sprint race saw Lowes crash on the exit of turn 1 on lap 3 after running wide. He did remount but while trying to recover his positions highsided, which ended his race weekend after being declared unfit for Race 2 with left leg contusions.

Brad Ray

The Yamaha MotoXRacing team rider had a remarkably good weekend, having qualified 17 for Race 1, Ray made up several places from the start before finally finishing 15th. Superpole Tissot Sprint race, again another good race which saw Ray battling the first part of the race within the top ten before shuffling slightly backwards and finishing just outside the points in 16th.  Much the same for Race 2 though a positive weekend for rider and team to reach the points zone.

Scott Redding

Scott has said himself that the last couple of seasons that Argon had generally been a disaster circuit for him, however despite this Redding had a reasonable weekend. Qualifying 16th for Race 1, finishing in an improved 11th . The Tissot Superpole sprint saw the Benovo Action BMW rider within the top 10 but just missed out for Race 3 whereby he finished 11th. Redding has yet to announce his plans for the 2025 season following the announcement that the Benovo team will not be returning for another World SBK season on the BMW. Speculation is abounded that he could be making a return to UK soil within the British Superbike Championship, though nothing has been confirmed.

Jonathan Rea

The “tough day at the office” continues for the Pata Yamaha rider. A middling finish of P12, P12 & P13 for all three races sees the struggle for both Rea and Yamaha team get the package in a competitive window. Rea has said “ The R1 needs clear track to take advantage of all its strong points, however being unable to get up with the front pack results in being stuck in traffic and being vulnerable on the longer straights”.

Tarran Mackenzie

Tarran is still stuck on the struggle bus with the Petronas MIE Honda, results that I’m sure do not reflect the efforts of both rider and team, with last place positions throughout the weekend. With no news on his 2024 plans or updates on the package, will there be a 2025 partnership – seems doubtful.

There are two remaining rounds of the year which will herald the start of final rider plan announcements for those whose contracts are coming to an end. It is well rumoured that Brad Ray will be returning to the British Superbikes Championship onboard the OMG Grilla Yamaha’s as their 3rd rider, a move that shows the team has a clear objective to dominate in 2025 season with a strong rider line up of Kyle Ryde & Joe Talbot alongside Ray.

The paddock now moves to Estoril which will also see the final round of the WorldWCR championship, it will all come down to the final race on Sunday between Carassco and Herrera for the Championship crown.

Words: Kerrie McFadden @ First Turn Media

Photography: Tom @ KSC Photos