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After the drama of Assen, the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship head to Spain in a new time of year and the scorching Spanish sun. The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya hosted the 2023 Catalunya Round and the Catalan venue was once again brought the battles and rivalries like in previous years. Catch up on all the action from Race 1 and Race 2 HERE and don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel when you watch the Tissot Superpole Race highlights on the official WorldSBK channel!

Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) celebrated his new 2024 contract in style as he took a home hat-trick, but it was teammate Michael Ruben Rinaldi who was at the heart of all the action. Fighting at the top end of the field, he was running close to Axel Bassani (Motocorsa Racing) and made a forceful move on the #47 heading through Turn 3 to get ahead. Bassani looked to respond immediately, and the pair took different lines heading out of Turn 10 and into Turn 11 before they made contact. Rinaldi went tumbling into the gravel and out of the race, while Bassani was given a Long Lap Penalty for his role before finishing in seventh. The drama continued into the post-race debriefs as Rinaldi branded it a “dirty move” and that Bassani “lost more than I did”, while Bassani said it was a “normal contact in racing”. Bautista went on to make it a hat-trick, whilst Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) crashed in the Superpole Race on the final lap from the podium battle, whilst Razgatlioglu would go on to beat Rinaldi on a run to the line for P2 in Race 2.

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