10 things you need to know before Saturday at the Pirelli Qatar Round
Friday, 26 October 2018 19:00 GMT
Facts and stats to get you to race two at Losail
- Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) secured four all-time records on Friday: this was the 71st win and his 11th in a row, the 56th for a single manufacturer (Kawasaki) and his 134th podium.
- In Race 1 Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) continued his record of point scoring finishes in Losail, but recorded his worst grid spot of 12th, which was down from eighth last year. He also got his worst result at the flag of eighth, one position lower than his previous worst result of seventh in his very first race here in 2014.
- Sixth Losail podium for Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK), equalling the second all-time value for the track: joining Max Biaggi in this statistic. Sykes is still chasing his first win in Qatar, so far he has won on 14 different tracks in his career.
- In Race 1 Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) completed the 48th all-British podium in WorldSBK history, the first since Laguna Seca’s Race 1 this year. British riders have recorded so far exactly 650 podium finishes.
- In Race 1 Jake Gagne (Red Bull Honda World Superbike Team) equalled his best career result in ninth, scored earlier in Laguna Seca Race 2 this year despite an off-track excursion.
- 11th career podium for Alex Lowes in Race 1, joining Davide Tardozzi, Terry Rymer and Cal Crutchlow at the 42nd all-time spot.
- Rea is the first man who recorded a third win, a seventh podium and a fourth fastest lap in Losail, a track which has seen no less than 12 different winners out of 19 races so far.
- In qualifying, Sykes recorded his 48th pole, five more than the previous record holder, Troy Corser and Kawasaki became the first manufacturer with 4 straight poles in Qatar.
- There is another record within reach in Race 2 for Kawasaki. This was their 18th win of the season which matches 2015 and last season, their best value so far. A 19th win would equal the fifth all-time value, recorded by Ducati in 1993. The record belongs to Ducati, with 24 wins in 2003 (they won all races that season).
- There is another record in sight for Rea: a seventh double would be unprecedented in WorldSBK history. So far six doubles have been recorded four times in history: the first was Doug Polen in 1991, then Troy Bayliss followed in 2002, then Rea last year and this year.
