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FORM GUIDE: the magical landmarks that awaits us at Misano

Tuesday, 8 June 2021 09:09 GMT

From Ducati’s illustrious history in their own backyard to Kawasaki’s recent reign and the prospects of their 350th race on the podium…

The 2021 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship rolls into Italy for the first time in two years for a race weekend, with the Pirelli Made in Italy Emilia-Romagna Round coming onto the horizon. Round 3 of the year promises sensational battles once again with the Championship lighting up between Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK), Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha with BRIXX WorldSBK) and Scott Redding (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati). So, with the stage set, it’s set to be a record-smashing round, with the big numbers up for grabs and the form guide for this weekend.

600 - In 2019, Alvaro Bautista gave Ducati the milestone of their 600th race on the podium and their 910th podium placement with his win in the Superpole Race.

349 – Kawasaki have 349 podium places so far: their next one will be the 350th. The record is 635 races on the podium, going to Ducati.

107 – In 2019, Jonathan Rea recorded here his 107th podium for Kawasaki, equalling the all-time record for a single manufacturer set by his former teammate Tom Sykes, always with Kawasaki. Since then, his tally with Kawasaki has grown to 149 podiums.

99/89 – Chaz Davies scored his 99th podium in Estoril, his 89th with Ducati Machinery.

95/290 – Given that Kawasaki have taken the first two poles of the year, if they make it a hat-trick, then it’ll be their 95th WorldSBK Superpole. It will also be the first time since 2012 that they’ve started the season with three poles (Sykes at Phillip Island, Imola and Assen). A Kawasaki on the front row will also mean 290 front row places in WorldSBK for them.

90/150 – After reaching the milestones of 100 wins and 190 podiums, Jonathan Rea is nearing two round numbers for Kawasaki. At the moment he counts 88 wins and 149 podiums with the green machines.

90 – With Rea is nearing 90 wins for Kawasaki, Toprak Razgatlioglu’s next start is his 90th in WorldSBK.

81 – The number of podium placements of Ducati riders at Misano, an all-time record.

30 – This is the track in which a single manufacturer has won the highest number of races: Ducati won there 30 times. Next up is also Ducati, with 27 wins at Assen and Phillip Island. The best value for another team is 18 by Kawasaki at Donington Park.

12 – Ruben Xaus is the only rider who won here starting outside the top ten on the grid. In 2003, he recorded the double starting twice from 12th on the grid for the factory Fila Ducati team.

12x7 - This is one of the seven tracks in which Rea climbed on the podium at least 12 times, the others being: Aragon (21), Portimao (20), Assen (18), Imola (14), Magny-Cours (14) and Phillip Island (12). His win in Race 2 in 2019 was his 75th win and his 150th career podium.

11 – Ducati counts 11 poles in Misano, the track record: curiously, the last two didn’t come from the works team: in 2009, Jakub Smrz recorded pole for Guandalini Racing, while in 2004, the Ducati poleman was Steve Martin for D.F.Xtreme Sterilgarda.

8 –2019 saw Rea become the most successful at Misano with an eighth win; next is Troy Bayliss on 6.

8 – Kawasaki have taken pole in the last eight rounds at Misano from 2011 – 2019, a track record. The absolute WorldSBK record has been set by Ducati at Brands Hatch: 9 straight poles in Superpole from 1995 – 2002 (double race weekend in 2000). Kawasaki can equal this record string this year.

2 – Two riders of the current grid who have had pole at Misano: Tom Sykes (7) and Jonathan Rea (1).

SHORT-HAND NOTEBOOK

2019 winners:

  • Jonathan Rea (Race 1 and Race 2)
  • Alvaro Bautista (Tissot Superpole Race)

Last three pole-sitters

  • 2019: Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki) 1’34.596
  • 2018: Tom Sykes (Kawasaki) 1’33.640
  • 2017: Tom Sykes (Kawasaki) 1’33.662

Manufacturer podium places accumulated from all races at Misano:

  • Ducati: 81
  • Kawasaki: 30
  • Honda: 17
  • Aprilia: 14
  • Yamaha: 11
  • Suzuki: 8
  • BMW: 3
  • Petronas: 1

Key gaps from Misano 2019:

  • Front row covered by: 0.380s
  • 1 second in Superpole covered… the top eight: 0.855s
  • Closest race gap between 1st and 2nd: 0.381s (Rea 1st, Razgatlioglu 2nd, Race 2)
  • Closest race podium: 5.880s (Rea 1st, Razgatlioglu 2nd, Haslam 3rd, Race 2)

Manufacturer top speeds at Misano, 2019:

  • Ducati: Alvaro Bautista and Michele Pirro – 276.9 km/h, Tissot Superpole Race
  • Yamaha: Marco Melandri – 275.5 km/h, Tissot Superpole Race
  • Kawasaki: Toprak Razgatlioglu – 273.4 km/h, Tissot Superpole Race
  • Honda: Yuki Takahashi – 271.3 km/h, Tissot Superpole Race
  • BMW: Tom Sykes and Marcus Reiterberger – 270.6 km/h, Race 2 (Sykes) and Tissot Superpole Race (Reiterberger)

Watch all of the 2021 World Superbike season take-shape round-by-round with the WorldSBK VideoPass!