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#FrenchWorldSBK Sunday Guide

Saturday, 30 September 2017 14:55 GMT

Take a look at the facts and stats ahead of race two at the Pirelli French Round

P1 in the Championship – Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team)

Newly crowned triple World Champion Rea dominated proceedings in Race 1, recording his 50th career win: he is only the third rider in history to reach this milestone after Carl Fogarty in Kyalami, 1999, and Troy Bayliss at this same track 9 years ago. Recorded his 108th podium in Race 1, he is now only one shy of becoming the most successful British podium finisher in WorldSBK history: Carl Fogarty (109). All-time record holder is Australian Troy Corser at 130. In the last three races Rea led every lap bar one: the opening one in Algarve/2 (Camier). Recorded his 20th podium this season, nearing his record of 23 set in the past two years. This was also his 12th win in 2017: with two more he will match his best, set in 2015. In qualifying he kept alive the record string of British poles: 22 since Aragon 2016. Won with an advantage of 16.316 seconds in Race 1, the second largest winning margin this year after Tom Sykes was able to win with 16.500 seconds over Leon Haslam in Donington/1. Recorded the 72nd pole position for Kawasaki in WorldSBK: now exactly 100 poles separate the Japanese team from the all-time leaders of Ducati (172 poles).

P2 in the Championship – Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team)

For the fourth time in a row, Sykes was third in Magny Cours after the 2016 races and 2015 Race/2. He recorded his 99th podium, and in Race 2 he has the first chance to become the 5th rider in history with at least 100 podiums after Troy Corser (130), Noriyuki Haga (116), Carl Fogarty (109) and his team-mate Jonathan Rea (108). A podium in Race 2 will also make him the rider with most podiums in Magny Cours alongside Noriyuki Haga (10). Race 1 was the 11th straight in Magny Cours in which he finished in the top-4. Will line up for his 230th Race on Sunday, taking the 4th all-time spot for race starts from Aaron Slight (229). All-time record holder is Troy Corser at 377. Race 2 will also be his 200th for Kawasaki. If it wasn’t for his missed start(s) in Portimao interrupting the streak, this would have been his 38th straight race in the points. In Race 1 he recorded his 5th third place in Magny Cours: no rider in history has ever finished six times 3rd on a given track.The one in Race 1 was also the 8th time this year he finished third, equalling the all-time record for a single season recorded by Fabrizio Pirovano in 1993, Ruben Xaus in 2002 and Troy Corser in 2008. Another double podium finish in Race 2 for Kawasaki will bring the season total for the Japanese manufacturer to 38, the same they recorded in 2015. Their best season was last one, with 43 podium finishes.

P3 in the Championship – Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati)

A disappointing Race 1 for Chaz Davies: his 10th place was his worst finishing spot of the year In the wet qualifying session, Davies missed the front row for the third race weekend in a row: he hadn’t endured such a drought since Phillip Island-Assen last year (4 straight without a front row in qualifying). In Race 2 he will line up outside the top-10 for the first time since Buriram, when he was 19th on the final grid for Race 2 and finished 6th.

P4 in the Championship – Marco Melandri (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati)

60th career podium for Marco Melandri in Race 1: with one more he will reach Frankie Chili and double World Champion James Toseland at the 11th all-time spot. Like Sykes, he has a “most likely” finishing position in Magny Cours, as he was for the 5th time second. He is still a long way from the record of second places on a given track: Troy Corser finished as the runner-up no less than 9 times in Misano. This was only the second time in his career with a podium finish starting 12th or lower: in the first Phillip Island Race, back in 2012, he was 2nd from the 13th grid spot. 4th straight podium in Race 1: his best string dates back 2011, his maiden season, with 7 in a row from Aragon/1 to Nurburgring/1. He has never gone for more than 4 podiums in a row since then. In Race 1 he recorded the 340th fastest race lap in the history of Ducati.

P5 in the Championship -  Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team)

Alex Lowes will line-up for his 100th race on Sunday, and, will take his 5th front row start of the season: all thanks to the new Race 2 grid rule.

P6 in the Championship – Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team)

Despite crashing and remounting, in Race 1 he kept alive his record of having finished in the points every race he ran in Magny Cours (5 in total).

P8 in the Championship – Leon Camier (MV Agusta Reparto Corse)

In Race 1 Leon Camier equalled the best ever result obtained by MV Agusta in the WorldSBK championship, finishing 4th. It had happened 5 times before: Assen/1, 2016; Donington/1, 2016; Lausitzring/2, 2016; Magny Cours/2, 2016; Algarve/1, 2017. Will be the polesitter in Race 2 like in Algarve, when he was able to lead the opening lap.

P9 in the Championship – Jordi Torres (Althea BMW Racing Team)

A disappointing Race 1 for Jordi Torres, as he recorded his worst result of the season under the chequered flag (14th): for the first time this year he wasn’t the best-positioned BMW rider at the end of a race (retirements excluded).

P10 in the Championship – Eugene Laverty (Milwaukee Aprilia)

After having qualified on the front row for the Algarve race, Eugene Laverty will be again on the front row in Race 2 on Sunday.

P12 in the Championship – Leandro Mercado (IODARacing)

In qualifying, Mercado recorded his maiden career front row start, the first for an Argentinean rider. In Race 1 he recorded for the 5th time a 7th place: his best result this season. His best career result is just one place away (6th in Losail/2, 2016).