After a strong showing throughout the Prosecco DOC Dutch Round, Alvaro Bautista (Team HRC) claimed his best result of the 2021 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship campaign with fifth place in Race 2 at the TT Circuit Assen as both he and Team HRC continue to take steps forward.

Bautista started Friday’s Free Practice 1 down in 15^th place but was soon able to show his potential on his CBR1000 RR-R with fourth in the combined classification after a really strong showing in Free Practice 2. After the morning Free Practice 3 session, Bautista was seventh in the combined times and was able to qualify 10^th on the grid in the Tissot Superpole session.

Although Race 1 and the Tissot Superpole Race did not go to plan for Bautista after he crashed in both races, retiring from Race 1 and finishing last of the classified runners in the Superpole Race, the Spanish rider was able to battle with Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK), Michael van der Mark (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) and his teammate Tom Sykes, and Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) for fifth place, with Bautista coming out on top in that duel.

Reacting to his weekend, Bautista said: “The feeling has been a tough weekend for us, especially in Race 1 and the Superpole Race, because I had crashes in both. I’m a bit p****d off because I think our performance could’ve been like in Race 2, fighting for top six or top seven. It’s a pity because on Saturday, I tried to not force the bike but riding more naturally and I have a crash. On Sunday, I had a crash when I was in the front group. I didn’t understand because I didn’t push much more but I just crashed. In Race 2, I had a good start and gained a lot of positions in the first lap. I just tried to be calm and riding without a warning. It’s not the way to ride but it’s the best I can do right now. I started to pass other riders. At the end, to finish in the top five is not so bad after the problems we’ve had during the weekend.”

Bautista also explained the improvements Team HRC have been working on throughout the Assen event: “I don’t think it’s for the track and I like it more or less. It’s the result of the work we are doing. For sure, we improved a lot on the electronics side especially with the area with the gas which gave me a bit more confidence. Maybe the step is not too big because the time is maybe not so good, there are some riders in front in the results that maybe we gain can some positions.”

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