Sofuoglu s’impose à nouveau devant Cluzel à Imola / Sofuoglu wins Lap Record breaking WSS race at Imola

Troisième victoire consécutive pour le Turc.

La cinquième manche du Championnat du Monde Supersport 2015 a été remportée par Kenan Sofuoglu (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) à l’Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari d’Imola suite à un nouveau duel entre le triple Champion du Monde et Jules Cluzel (MV Agusta Reparto Corse).

En pole position, le Français a mené durant la première moitié de la course puis a ensuite dû suivre le rythme infernal imposé par son rival, qu’il n’a finalement pas pu rattraper et qui remportait une troisième victoire consécutive, la 30e de sa carrière dans la catégorie.

Vainqueur de l’épreuve en 2014, Lorenzo Zanetti (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) n’a pas pu rivaliser avec les deux prétendants à la victoire mais était de nouveau sur le podium grâce à une troisième place remportée devant PJ Jacobsen (Kawasaki Intermoto Ponyexpres) et Marco Faccani (San Carlo Puccetti Racing).

Ratthapark Wilairot (CORE Motorsport Thailand) a passé Gino Rea (CIA Landlords Insurance Honda) juste avant la ligne pour prendre la sixième place tandis que Riccardo Russo (CIA Landlords Insurance Honda), son coéquipier Martin Cardenas et Roberto Rolfo (Lorini Honda) se classaient eux aussi dans le Top 10.

Kyle Smith (Pata Honda World Supersport Team) a chuté dans le troisième tour mais a pu prendre le point de la quinzième place. Lucas Mahias (Kawasaki Intermoto Ponyexpres) a de son côté dû abandonner.

Sofuoglu compte maintenant 40 points d'avance sur Cluzel avant la sixième des treize manches de la saison 2015, qui aura lieu le 24 mai à Donington Park.

World Supersport race once again decided on the final lap.

The 17 lap World Supersport race held at the Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari was won by Kenan Sofuoglu (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) after another intriguing dual between the Turkish rider and one of his closest rivals Jules Cluzel (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) on the final lap.

The pair smashed the lap record repeatedly as they pulled away from the chasing pack with Sofuoglu eventually taking the win, the 30th of his WSS career and the 3rd in a row in 2015, to extend his championship lead after Cluzel made the smallest mistake to miss out on the victory by 0.883s.

Last year’s race winner Lorenzo Zanetti (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) was unable to live with the pace of the front two, having to be content with 3rd after the Italian overhauled PJ Jacobsen and Marco Faccani (San Carlo Puccetti Racing) who were 4th and 5threspectively.

Ratthapark Wilairot (CORE Motorsport Thailand) led Gino Rea (CIA Landlords Insurance Honda) over the line, the two locked together for the race duration, taking 6th, 7th ahead of Riccardo Russo (CIA Landlords Insurance Honda), his team mate Martin Cardenas and Roberto Rolfo (Lorini Honda) who rounded out the top ten.

Kyle Smith (Pata Honda World Supersport Team) crashed out of contention on lap 3, he was able to re-join to claim the final point in 15th.

Donington Park in the UK is the stage for round 6 in a fortnight.

Check out worldsbk.com for the latest championship standings, interviews, videos and other exclusive content.

Nouveau doublé de Jonathan Rea à Imola / Rea celebrates 150th WorldSBK race with another win at Imola

Le Nord-Irlandais a réédité sa performance de 2014 sur le circuit italien.

Contrairement à la première course de la journée qui avait été réduite à six tours suite à un drapeau rouge, la seconde épreuve disputée à l’Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari d’Imola est allée au bout de ses 19 tours et a elle aussi été dominée par les pilotes du Kawasaki Racing Team.

Jonathan Rea s’est une fois de plus imposé devant son coéquipier Tom Sykes, avec plus de quatre secondes d’avance sur ce dernier, et rééditait ainsi son doublé à Imola de 2014 pour prendre encore un peu plus d’avance dans la course au titre WorldSBK. Le Nord-Irlandais compte désormais huit victoires en dix courses cette année et a remporté la dernière lors de ce qui était sa 150e course en WorldSBK.

Suite à ce que Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati SBK Team) ait été victime d’un problème technique, Jordi Torres (Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils) s'est emparé de la troisième place et faisait ainsi sa première apparition sur le podium.

Après avoir remporté la Tissot-Superpole et une troisième place dans la première course, Davide Giugliano (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati SBK) a fini le week-end avec une quatrième place et réussissait donc avec brio son retour à la compétition.

Ayrton Badovini (BMW Motorrad Italia) a de son côté pris la cinquième place devant Matteo Baiocco (Althea Racing), Roman Ramos (Team Go Eleven), Leandro Mercado (Barni Racing), Michel Fabrizio (Althea Racing) et Alex Lowes (Voltcom Crescent Suzuki).

Sylvain Guintoli (Pata Honda World Superbike Team) et son coéquipier Michael van der Mark ont tous les deux chuté, à l’instar de Leon Haslam (Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils). Randy de Puniet (Voltcom Crescent Suzuki) et Christophe Ponsson (Team Pedercini) ont eux aussi abandonné dans une course dont seuls treize pilotes ont rallié l’arrivée.

Kawasaki 1-2 for the second time in as many races.

Unlike today’s opening race which was shortened to 6 laps, Imola race 2 went the full 19 lap distance with the Kawasaki Racing duo once again in command, claiming their second 1-2 finish of the day with Jonathan Rea once again getting the better of Tom Sykes who finshed 2nd, 4.399s behind the current Championship leader.

For Rea it was his 8th win from 10 starts this year, and his 150th WorldSBK race.

After a second technical fault for Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati SBK Team), the final podium position went to Jordi Torres (Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils), the Spanish WorldSBK rookie

Davide Giugliano (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati SBK) completed an impressive return to racing with 4th after the Italian was once again the top Italian rider.

Ayrton Badovini (BMW Motorrad Italia) backed up his impressive race one result with a strong 5th position, with Matteo Baiocco (Althea Racing) and Roman Ramos (Team Go Eleven) finishing 6th and 7th.

8th and 9th positions were lonely rides for Leandro Mercado (Barni Racing) and Michel Fabrizio (Althea Racing) both collecting their second top ten finishes of the day with Alex Lowes (Voltcom Crescent Suzuki) completing the top ten.

Santiago Barragan (Grillini SBK Team), and the BMW Team Toth pairing of Imre Toth and Gabor Rizmayer were the final riders to finish, claiming 11th to 13th positions.

Sylvain Guintoli and his Pata Honda team-mate Michael van der Mark both crashed out before half distance as did Leon Haslam (Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils). A number of other retirements meant only 13 riders completed the race.

In the championship standings Jonathan Rea heads to his home round at Donington Park with a stretched points advantage after his double race win, the gap to his nearest rival Leon Haslam is x points.

There may be two weeks between Imola and Donington Park, but keep checking worldsbk.com regularly for all the latest news from the eni FIM Superbike World Championship, interviews an exclusive videos.

Don’t forget you can also follow us on Twitter: @WorldSBK

Rea remporte une première course à drapeau rouge à Imola / Rea wins shortened WorldSBK race 1 at Imola

Le Britannique s’est imposé sur Sykes dans un sprint de six tours.

Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team) a remporté sa septième victoire de la saison 2015 en s’imposant dans un sprint de six tours suite à ce que la première course de la journée ait été interrompue par drapeau rouge en raison de la chute de David Salom (Team Pedercini Kawasaki).

Les deux tiers de la distance prévue n’ayant pas été atteints lorsque le drapeau rouge est intervenu, la Direction de Course a relancé l’épreuve pour un sprint de six tours (un tiers de la distance de course), que Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team), en tête avant l’interruption de la course, commençait en pole. 

Le Champion du Monde Superbike 2013 a cependant dû s’incliner face à son coéquipier, Rea, qui signait sa septième victoire en neuf courses depuis le début de l’année et la 22e de sa carrière.

Davide Giugliano (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati SBK Team), détenteur de la Tissot-Superpole, avait quant à lui mené durant les sept premiers tours de la première course, avant d’être rattrapé par Sykes et Rea. Au second départ, l’Italien n’a pas pu suivre les pilotes Kawasaki mais décrochait une sensationnelle troisième place pour son retour à la compétition et sa première course cette année.

Leon Haslam (Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils) a pris la quatrième place devant Sylvain Guintoli (Pata Honda World Superbike Team), qui gagnait donc dix places par rapport à sa position de départ, tandis que Ayrton Badovini (BMW Motorrad Italia) complétait le Top 6.

Leandro Mercado (Barni Racing), le vainqueur de la Coupe FIM Superstock 1000 2014, s’est battu avec Matteo Baiocco (Althea Racing), Michael van der Mark (Pata Honda World Superbike Team) et Michel Fabrizio, remplaçant de Nico Terol chez Althea Racing, pour prendre la septième place.

Roman Ramos (Team Go Eleven), Alex Lowes (Voltcom Crescent Suzuki), Santiago Barragan (Grillini SBK Team), Christophe Ponsson (Team Pedercini) et Imre Toth (BMW Team Toth) étaient quant à eux les cinq autres pilotes à finir dans les points.

Jordi Torres (Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils) a chuté avant le drapeau rouge lorsqu’il occupait la sixième position et a été contraint à l’abandon, à l’instar de Randy de Puniet (Voltcom Crescent Suzuki) et de Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati SBK Team), sorti de piste et lui aussi absent de la grille pour le second départ. 

Restarted 6 lap race has huge crowd on their feet from start to finish.

The opening race at Imola, the Acerbis Italian Round of the eni FIM Superbike World Championship resulted in victory for championship leader Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team) after a the race was initially red flagged and restarted because of crash involving David Salom (Team Pedercini).

Prior to the stoppage Davide Giugliano (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati SBK Team) had the packed grandstands all around the track on their feet, leading from the start before proceeding to take the fight to the Kawasaki Racing Team duo of Tom Sykes and Jonathan Rea, the trio holding a comfortable ten second lead at the time the race was stopped.

The pace in the restart was electric, as the Kawasaki pairing of Sykes and Rea pushed each other to the limit. A lap record on lap 2 for Rea saw him pass his team mate only for Sykes to respond with an even faster lap to pile on the pressure.

A tense final lap saw Rea cling on to claim his 22nd career win ahead of Sykes with Davide Giugliano who produced a determined ride to claim 3rd and the final podium place on his return to the WorldSBK paddock.

Leon Haslam (Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils) made changes during the short delay, the British rider looked more comfortable finishing 4th ahead of the Pata Honda of reigning World Champion who overhauled 10 riders to jump from 15th on the original starting grid to 5th. Ayrton Badovini (BMW Motorrad Italia) scored a solid ten points in 6th.

Leandro Mercado (Barni Racing) was part of a six rider group that was fighting for 5th, the reigning FIM Superstock 1000cc Cup winner taking 7th ahead of Matteo Baiocco (Althea Racing), Michael van der Mark (Pata Honda World Superbike Team), and Michel Fabrizio who took a solid 10th position on his one-off ride, replacing the injured Nico Terol.

 Roman Ramos (Team Go Eleven), Alex Lowes (Voltcom Crescent Suzuki), Santiago Barragan (Grillini SBK Team), Christophe Ponsson (Team Pedercini) and Imre Toth (BMW Team Toth) rounded out the point scoring finishers.

Jordi Torres (Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils) was running in 6th in the early stages of the first part of race 1 before a mistake dropped him down the order, the Spanish WorldSBK rookie re-grouped before crashing out unhurt with 11 laps to go. He along with Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati SBK Team) were unable to take part in the restart.

JEEP PRESENTS THIS YEAR’S CONCEPT TRUCKS AT THE EASTER JEEP SAFARI

by Christophe NoelPhotography by Photos courtesy of Chrysler

Every spring the off-roading world descends upon Moab, Utah to celebrate one of the most important brands in the global 4×4 segment––Jeep. Now in its 49th year, The Easter Jeep Safari event has a number of key events, the unveiling of Jeep’s latest concept trucks chief among them. This year Jeep’s designers pushed the envelope presenting trucks as forward thinking as we have seen in years. This fleet of seven Jeeps reach as far into the future as they do the past.

Jeep Chief

A visage of the past, the 1970s inspired Jeep Chief borrows heavily from the classic lines of the original Cherokee. Based on a Wrangler chassis the Ocean Blue exterior white top and chrome bumpers front and rear give the Chief a timeless presence. A subtle beach theme graces the interior with a Rosewood passenger grab handle and tiki-style shifter. A Uconnect 8.4-inch touchscreen media console keeps the vehicle up to date, but this truck is all about classic appeal.

Grand Cherokee Overlander

With a progressive nod to the future of off-roading, the Grand Cherokee Overlander confirms Jeeps appreciation for the direction of long-range travel. The most obvious callout is the color matched roof top tent. That tent is perched atop a heavily modified Grand Cherokee with a custom front fascia, larger wheels and fender flares, rock rails, and 18-inch wheels with BFG AT tires. The 3.0-liter V-6 Diesel makes this a highly desirable travel platform.

Staff Car

The connection between Jeep’s civilian and military service is unbreakable. Paying homage to that legacy is the Wrangler-based Staff Car. The Sandstorm color scheme, and open-air sides give the Staff Car a no-nonsense presence, befitting of a battle hardened veteran.

The 16-inch wheels and 35-inch military inspired tires give the Staff Car a burly stance and the J8 front and rear bumpers offer maximum utility.

Wrangler Africa

Being overlanders and prone to gravitate towards the classic vehicles of the African bush, the aptly named Africa concept truck really resonated with many of us. The simple steel wheels paired to the humble Desert Tan exterior and white roof make it appear to be one more workhorse from the Serengeti, ready for a day on the job. The 2.8-liter diesel is mated to an automatic transmission driving power to the Dana 44 axles. It’s a thing of beauty.