Rea triumphs in wet, wild and red flag-hit Misano opener

Full Misano World Superbike race one results

Jonathan Rea has slashed into Alvaro Bautista’s World Superbike championship lead with victory in a frantic wet opening race at Misano which was stopped twice by thunderstorms and showers.

After two red flag delays to the opening race in Rimini, it was clear both Rea and Pata Yamaha’s Alex Lowes had the superior pace against the rest of the field and duly pulled out a gap on the chasing pack over the opening laps.

Having sized up Rea for seven laps, Lowes made his attack for the lead and trying to push a gap in front the Pata Yamaha rider slipped off at Turn 12 on Lap 9 which prematurely ended his charge.

With the reigning World Superbike champion alone out in front, he maintained his pace to keep a gap over Tom Sykes running in second place.

As the rain relented over the middle third of the race Rea looked comfortable until the heavy rain returned at the start of the final lap. But with a five-second buffer on Sykes, he measured the gap to take victory by 3.2 seconds at the chequered flag.

The result marks the new BMW’s maiden World Superbike podium, and Sykes first with the team, having been comfortably clear of Bautista who completed the rostrum trio.

The Aruba.it Racing Ducati rider sees his championship led cut by nine points down to 32 points over Rea.

Loris Baz completed an almost perfect performance for Ten Kate Racing Yamaha taking fourth place, five seconds off the rostrum, at the team’s second round back in World Superbikes.

Chaz Davies faded late on but held on for fifth place for the factory Ducati squad. A 26-second gap split the Welsh rider to Marco Melandri in sixth place who led home GRT Yamaha team-mate Sandro Cortese.

The final lap turned into the disaster for Toprak Razgatlioglu fighting inside the top eight when he crashed heavily at Turn 13 for Puccetti Kawasaki. With Leon Haslam (Kawasaki) and Barni Ducati duo Michele Pirro and Michael Ruben Rinaldi also going down during the race, Moriwaki Althea Honda stand-in Yuki Takahashi charged to an impressive eighth place ahead of fellow replacement rider Lorenzo Zanetti in ninth place for Team Goeleven Ducati.

Leandro Mercado rounded out the top 10 for Orelac Racing VerdNatura Kawasaki ahead of Alessandro Delbianco on the Althea Mie Honda, who had been as high as seventh place with four laps to go, with Jordi Torres (Pedercini Kawasaki), Samuele Cavalieri (Motocorsa Ducati), Ryuichi Kiyonari (Moriwaki Althea Honda) and Markus Reiterberger (BMW) completing the points finishers.