WorldSBK Argentina Race 1 Results | Razgatlioglu inches closer to title with win

Toprak Razgatlioglu moves closer to the 2021 WorldSBK Championship title with a comfortable 13th win of the season in Argentina as Scott Redding crashes

Toprak Razgatlioglu - Pata Yamaha R1.jpg
Toprak Razgatlioglu - Pata Yamaha R1.jpg

Toprak Razgatlioglu has taken another step towards the 2021 WorldSBK Championship title with a commanding victory in the opening race of the San Juan Villicum weekend in Argentina.

The Turkish rider comes into the weekend with his first ‘match point’ in that he can become the first rider other than Jonathan Rea to win a WorldSBK title since Sylvain Guintoli back in 2014, though faces a challenge to end the weekend with the 62 point cushion he’d need to be crowned with a round to spare.

Nevertheless, victory in Race 1 moved things in the right direction, Razgatlioglu getting the jump on pole sitter Scott Redding on the run to Turn 1 before stretching clear to secure his 13th win of the year by more than five seconds.

Redding might have posed a more convincing threat than Rea but his race was hampered with a low side coming round the first corner, the Briton’s wide sweep to defend from his Kawasaki rival instead resulting in the Ducati folding beneath him.

KRT_WorldSBK_ZX-10RR_Argentina_Livery_Rea_Lowes__8.jpg
KRT_WorldSBK_ZX-10RR_Argentina_Livery_Rea_Lowes__8.jpg

Though it cleared the way for Rea - running a stunning new livery that pays homage to Scott Russell’s 1993 WorldSBK Championship winning Kawasaki ZXR-750 - he couldn’t maintain his title rival’s pace, leaving him second at the flag and now 29 points shy in the title race.

With Redding reduced to fighting back from the tail of the field after remounting, Michael Ruben Rinaldi spared Ducati’s blushes with a strong rise through the pack for third having started ninth, followed by Alex Lowes on his own alternatively liveried ZX-10RR, this time the maroon and black hues of the GPZ900R made famous in the original Top Gun film.

Axel Bassani consolidated his career-best third on the grid with a spirited challenge for the podium before landing his fourth top six result in nine races, while Michael van der Mark rounded out the top six on the highest-placed BMW M 1000 RR.

With the chasing pack stretched out by the flag, Garrett Gerloff crossed the line in seventh, with Andrea Locatelli slipping down to eighth as the race progressed.

Redding produced a fine fight back to claw his way up to ninth position, the ex-MotoGP rider getting a second chance at a victory challenge from pole position in the Superpole Race on Sunday. 

Leon Haslam completed the top ten, denying Tito Rabat the position after a step forward on the Puccetti Kawasaki.

Only two riders failed with finish; Alvaro Bautista crashed at the start of lap two, while Isaac Vinales ran off track before retiring in the pit-lane.

2021 WorldSBK Argentina | San Juan Villicum | Race 1 RESULTS

2021 WorldSBK Argentina | San Juan Villicum | Race 1 RESULTS | Round 12 / 13
Pos Rider Nat. WorldSBK Team Superbike Timing
1 Toprak Razgatlioglu TUR Pata Yamaha by BRIXX Yamaha YZF-R1 21 Laps
2 Jonathan Rea GBR Kawasaki Racing Team KawasakI ZX-10RR +5.295
3 Michael Ruben Rinaldi ITA Aruba Racing Ducati Ducati Panigale V4 R +9.417
4 Alex Lowes GBR Kawasaki Racing Team Kawasaki ZX-10RR +12.808
5 Axel Bassani ITA Motocorsa Racing Ducati Panigale V4 R +13.980
6 Michael van der Mark NED BMW Motorrad WorldSBK BMW M1000RR +15.007
7 Garrett Gerloff USA GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Yamaha YZF-R1 +16.876
8 Andrea Locatelli ITA Pata Yamaha by BRIXX Yamaha YZF-R1 +19.265
9 Scott Redding GBR Aruba Racing Ducati Ducati Panigale V4 R +27.176
10 Leon Haslam GBR Team HRC Honda Honda CBR1000RR-R +31.571
11 Tito Rabat ESP Kawasaki Puccetti Racing KawasakI ZX-10RR +34.474
12 Eugene Laverty GBR BMW Motorrad WorldSBK BMW M1000RR +36.241
13 Chaz Davies GBR Team GoEleven Ducati Panigale V4 R +37.072
14 Samuele Cavalieri ESP Barni Racing Team Ducati Panigale V4 R +41.103
15 Kohta Nozane JPN GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Yamaha YZF-R1 +43.220
16 Leandro Mercado ESP MIE Racing Honda CBR1000RR-R +48.516
17 Christophe Ponsson FRA Gil Motorsport Yamaha YZF-R1 +53.695
18 Marco Solorza ARG TPR Team Pedercini Racing KawasakI ZX-10RR +1m >
19 Luciano Ribodino ARG TPR Team Pedercini Racing KawasakI ZX-10RR +1 Lap
DNF Isaac Vinales ESP Orelac VerdNatura Racing KawasakI ZX-10RR  
DNF Alvaro Bautista ESP Team HRC Honda Honda CBR1000RR-R

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