Rinaldi: Bautista ‘makes the difference compared to rest of the Ducatis’

Bautista has taken a season-topping 14 wins so far this season and is on course to win the 2022 WorldSBK championship, potentially at the next round in Mandalika. 

No other Ducati rider has come close to winning a race, however, that hasn’t stopped Rinaldi from believing he has what it takes to make a significant step in performance next season. 

• Rea: 'We’re not competitive enough, we don’t have that reference anymore’
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Speaking after last weekend’s San Juan round, Rinaldi said: "The target is working hard to have a great package to start 2023. I signed the contract, the same bike, same team and same crew. 

"If I want to fight for the title next year, I need to use these races the best I can to start next year as well as possible. I know that Alvaro, Toprak and Jonny will start on the right foot and that we must be there if we want to try and fight for the title. 

"I think Alvaro is riding really well and also on tracks where there’s no big straight, he’s winning. 

"He makes the difference compared to the rest of the Ducatis. He’s winning because he’s riding fast; I can only look at him and try and improve myself."

Bassani praise six-time WorldSBK champion Rea after San Juan battle

One of the best battles throughout the three races in San Juan was that of Race One when Axel Bassani nearly held off Jonathan Rea for second place.

Despite being quicker than the Motocorsa Ducati rider, Rea struggled to find his way through after an earlier overtake was unsuccessful. 

The first attempted overtake by Rea was an aggressive move which brought an equally fierce response from Bassani, before a similar move took place during the closing stages as Rea eventually cleared off and finished second.

Taking part in what was his first ‘real’ race-long fight with Rea in WorldSBK, Bassani said: "Jonny’s Jonny! He’s a World Champion; it was a really hard battle, we touched a lot, but I like racing like this. This is WorldSBK for me. 

"Alvaro had an incredible pace; I tried to stay with him for two laps but it was impossible for me so I decided to manage the battle with Jonny and try to arrive second. 

"My engine helped me today. In the last part of the track, the Kawasaki and Yamaha are really fast. It was difficult to stay in front of Jonny."