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Category: Superbikes
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Hannes Soomer and the WilSport Racedays Honda Team have won the 2017 edition of the FIM European Supersport Cup after a thrilling season finale at ‘Circuito de Jerez’ in southern Spain last Sunday. The 19-year-old Estonian rider entered the final round of the season with an 8-point advantage over his nearest rival Rob Hartog, and defended his leadership in the 19-lap World Supersport Spanish race by finishing 15th and claiming the title by the slimmest of margins – one point. 
Born on the 17th of February 1998 in Estonia’s capital city of Tallin, Soomer stepped foot on the international motorcycle racing scene by joining the WorldSBK’s former one-make, entry-level series – the European Junior Cup – at the early age of 15 in 2013. On board Honda machinery, Hannes built up a copious amount of experience around the European tracks of the World Superbike calendar, while proving to be one of the most talented and mature young talents in the championship.
His results and performances led to the decision by former EJC Series Director Gerry Bryce to sign Soomer to compete on board a Honda CBR600RR machine in the FIM Europe Supersport Cup with team WilSport Racedays Honda. Soomer, on the Ten Kate Racing Products-prepared machine, made a stellar debut at Aragón last April where he was 9th overall. His consistency throughout the season allowed him to clinch the well-deserved trophy as the final event of 2017 drew to a close.
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Only a crash on the first corner during the eighth lap kept Aleix Espargaró from battling for important positions in the GP of Australia. The Spanish rider had both the pace and the confidence to contend in the leading group. Well supported by an Aprilia RS-GP, he was once again solidly at the level of the best.
Aleix paid a high price for a slightly wide trajectory on the fast first corner as he was overtaking Miller for fifth place. The high speed slide resulted in a fracture to the fourth metacarpus of his left hand, an injury that shouldn't keep the Spanish rider from participating in the Malaysian weekend that is just days away.
Sam Lowes finished nineteenth after a shrewd race, overtaking Parkes, Petrucci and Barbera.
ALEIX ESPARGARO'
"The race was going well. Despite a less than perfect start, I had already rejoined the leading group and I had a good feeling. Unfortunately, as I was overtaking Miller on the first turn, I went a bit too wide, ending up on the dirty part of the track and sliding out. I should be able to participate in the race in Malaysia even with the injury to my hand. We'll see what the conditions are on Friday."
SAM LOWES
"Obviously you always hope for a better result but, given the conditions, I'm rather satisfied. I overtook a few riders in the race and I didn't make any mistakes throughout the weekend. We are working well. Unfortunately, Aleix wasn't able to demonstrate the full potential of the RS-GP today because of the crash, but we are on the right path."
ROMANO ALBESIANO - APRILIA RACING MANAGER
"This was a peculiar weekend where we once again demonstrated how competitive our bike is and how Aleix is able to take advantage of it. The race began in the best possible way. Despite a less than perfect start that we need to work on, he recovered with impressive speed. Unfortunately, the crash stopped him in a race where anything could have been possible, but the responses from this track give us great optimism both for the upcoming races and for 2018."
FAUSTO GRESINI - TEAM MANAGER
"Except for the race result itself, this was another good weekend. More proof that we are competitive, very close to the best in the category. Unfortunately, we are leaving Phillip Island today with a bitter taste in our mouths, knowing that we have a great bike and a very fast rider. Aleix paid a high price for a small mistake, but that is racing."
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The Red Bull Honda World Superbike Team did not enjoy an easy day at the office as the opening race of the penultimate round of the 2017 FIM Superbike World Championship was contested today at ‘Circuito de Jerez’. Davide Giugliano was forced to a late retirement with two laps to go, while Takahashi was 16th at the end of the reduced 19-lap Spanish encounter.
The initial race was red flagged on the opening lap due to the crashes occurred to Italy’s Badovini and De Rosa at turn six. As the new 19-lap encounter got underway, Giugliano maintained his position while trying to get up to speed on board his Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade SP2. The 27-year-old Italian was unable to keep a consistent pace throughout the race and eventually had to make his way back to the pits as the WorldSBK field entered the penultimate lap.
Takahashi’s performance was affected in the initial stages of the race after the Japanese rider crashed unhurt at turn 13 on lap four. He eventually managed to get back on the bike and continue the race to gain some more experience in the series.
Race two will get underway tomorrow at 13:00 local time (GMT +2) after the traditional 15-minute warm up scheduled at 9:30.
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WEATHER PERMITTING, GOOD POTENTIAL FOR APRILIA AND THE SPANISH RIDER
After leading the Friday sessions and proving to be fast in FP4 in race setup, the Espargaró-Aprilia duo took on qualifying setting their sights on the first two rows. The result eluded them only because of traffic on the track that Aleix ran into on all of his flying laps. In spite of it all, the Spanish rider rode his RS-GP to the third row with an eighth place time (1'29.271).
In any case, Aleix can count on the good feedback from the fourth session, the one that most reflects the race situation. In addition to his fourth best time, just a shout from the leaders, Espargaró turned a series of fast laps, showing a rather consistent pace. Unless there is a change in the weather, something that is anything but improbable on this track, a top 5 finish seems to be a goal well within reach for the Aprilia Racing Team Gresini.
Sam Lowes had a bit of difficulty in qualifying, struggling to maintain the optimum range of use for the tyres due to the low temperatures. With just a few available laps, the English rookie had to settle for the eighth row.
ALEIX ESPARGARO'
"I expected more from qualifying after the potential we showed in the other sessions. Unfortunately, I was never able to get in a clean lap because of traffic. There were a few slow riders in front of me and to be honest, I am not able to ride to the limit in these conditions. In any case, we showed that we have a good pace, especially in FP4, which is the session that best reflects our situation for the race. The third row in such a long and demanding race is not a big limit. A few of the riders in front of us don't seem to have a particularly competitive race pace, so fighting for the top 5 is a realistic goal."
SAM LOWES
"I am rather satisfied with our work, although compared to yesterday I had more difficulty maintaining tyre temperature. It was a condition that was quite clear in qualifying, where it is hard to get the tyres into the right temperature range because of the little time available. It's a vicious cycle: you're not able to push because you don't have the right feeling, but you should do just that to warm up the tyres and get them to work right. In the race things are different. We showed that we have a good pace and, as always, my Aprilia is able to manage wear over race distance well."
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NEVER BEFORE HAS APRILIA BEEN SO FAR FORWARD IN MOTOGP
ESPARGARÓ: "WE ARE CONTENDERS FOR THE TOP POSITIONS"
In qualifying, Aleix Espargaró confirmed the qualities demonstrated in free practice. On the Motegi track he took the fourth best time, coming just 44 thousandths from a brilliant first row and now he is one of the protagonists for the race tomorrow. After an excellent Friday (second in the first free practice session and third in the second), Aleix easily went straight through to Q2 where, as he has done throughout this Japanese round, he battled with the best for the top positions, proof of the competitive level he has reached.
In the decisive session, characterised by a damp track with some dry spots, Aleix took advantage of the confidence gained on his Aprilia and stopped the clock at 1'53.947 on his decisive lap, earning the fourth spot and the second row of the starting grid for tomorrow. Never before in MotoGP history has an Aprilia started so far forward. This is a result that rewards Aleix's talent and the hard work of the Italian Racing Department who, throughout the season, have developed the RS-GP, the youngest bike on the entire grid.
Sam Lowes paid the price for the conditions of the Japanese track, difficult to interpret as it began to dry out. However, even though he was not able to reap the benefits of the work done yesterday in the wet, he improved compared to recent races, finishing in 18th place to earn a spot on the sixth row of the starting grid.
ALEIX ESPARGARO'
"I am definitely satisfied, not only with the qualifiers, but with the entire weekend so far. We have been competitive in every session and we showed that we have a great pace in the wet. Qualifying was demanding. The track in mixed conditions is certainly not the optimum situation for us. In any case, I was able to earn a good starting position, the best for Aprilia in MotoGP, and for this I must thank the entire team. We need to keep going like this. As for my choice of tyres if the track is very wet, that is not a problem. I hope it rains tomorrow because in those conditions we demonstrated that we can be extremely fast and consistent. If we look at the practice sessions, we are in the group contending for the top positions, but on Sunday anything can happen. A lot of riders who are having difficulties today, like Rossi and Viñales, will be in the game for the race."
SAM LOWES
"Unfortunately, qualifying was the worst session of the weekend for me. Especially because the conditions were intermediate and I still lack experience with the MotoGP bike. In FP3 I made a mistake on my last flying lap which would have let me go straight through to Q2, whereas in qualifying we decided not to change the tyres and, seeing how our rivals did, that definitely cost us a few tenths. In any case, we worked well in view of the race. If we have a wet track tomorrow, it would not be unrealistic to aim for a top 10 finish."
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