Rea ‘consistent, but consistently slow’ at Jerez, ‘I want and need to win again’

Jonathan Rea has lost further ground to Toprak Razgatlioglu following the Yamaha rider’s double Jerez World Superbike win. 

The Kawasaki rider started the day in superb fashion as he claimed the lead from Razgatlioglu on lap one of race one.

However, Rea was unable to respond once the Yamaha rider got back ahead during the final few laps. 

Race two was much worse for the six-time series champion, as a change to Pirelli’s softer rear tyre along with hotter conditions led to similar ‘grip’ issues as race two in Catalunya. 

Rea was passed in the early laps by Michael Rinaldi, Scott Redding, Andrea Locatelli and Alvaro Bautista, before managing to repass Rinaldi late on and secure fifth. 

Speaking about the weekend’s races, Rea said: "From a riding point of view it’s been quite positive. Jerez has been a difficult track for us in the past. 

"I feel like we maximised our potential this morning in the cooler conditions of race one. I felt very strong, I felt I could fight with my bike with the harder option rear. 

"In the afternoon we opted for the soft tyre in the hot conditions but I had zero grip from the start which was really a strange feeling. 

"I was very consistent through the race but consistently slow and that’s hard to understand. We need to really look at the data because it was similar feelings to Barcelona."

Next up for Rea is Portimao - statistically his best venue before securing a clean-sweep at Assen earlier this year. 

With that in mind, and Rea only having two wins from the last 14 races, winning is quickly becoming a must for the Northern Irishman.

Rea added: "I want to win again because that feeling has been missing. It’s something I need, something I want and I’m looking forward to it. 

"Portimao and Argentina are really good tracks for us."