PREVIEW: Two races remain, 10 points in hand, can Fernandez close out his rookie WorldSSP300 season quest?
It all comes down to the season finale at Jerez, with three riders within 22 points with just two races remaining
Not only does the Pirelli Spanish Round spell the last round of the racing season for all four Championships, but in the case of the FIM Supersport 300 World Championship, this will be the final round in the Championship’s history. In traditional WorldSSP300 style, the fight to be crowned this year’s Champion will be decided at the final round with three riders having a realistic chance of being World Champion at the Circuito de Jerez – Angel Nieto, Andalucia.
ADVANTAGE TO FERNANDEZ: The Championship-leading rookie looks to lock down the title at Jerez
Spanish rookie Benat Fernandez (Team #109 Retro Traffic Kove) will look to hold off challengers like Australian Carter Thompson (MTM Kawasaki) and countryman David Salvador (Team ProDina XCI), who will look to spoil the #7’s title aspirations. Fernandez saw his title lead decrease to 10 points from the 13 it was at the start of the Estoril Round. Thompson sits behind the title leader in second, a mere 10 points behind the Spaniard. Two podiums, including a win, helped gain 12 points on Fernandez at Estoril. Salvador dropped back nine points last round, now he sits 22 points behind the Spaniard. He has shown speed at Jerez before, winning a race there in 2024. He will be one to watch in the weekend’s showdown.
FINDING LATE FORM: Vannucci back to his best at the end of the season
Matteo Vannucci (PATA AG Motorsport Italia WorldSSP300) has shown blistering speed in the last three rounds. After landing only one top-five finish before Magny-Cours, since the French round, the Italian has only missed the top five once, and that result was a P6 earned in Estoril’s final race. The #91 is currently 46 points off the title lead, making it a long shot for him to walk away from Jerez with the title in hand. After starting the season with four wins in the first three rounds, Jeffrey Buis (Freudenberg KTM-Paligo Racing) arrives at Jerez on a cold streak that has seen him drop down the order. Julio Garcia (Prodina Kawasaki Italka Racing) is set to close the season in his home region of Andalucia from P6 in the Championship. He continues to recover from an ankle injury and while he’s fallen down the order to P6, he’s only five points behind Buis, setting the table for a battle for P5.
TOP TEN CONTENDERS: Looking to end the season strongly
In seventh place, Humberto Maier (Yamaha AD78 FIMLA by MS Racing) showed glimpses of his pace at Estoril, shooting up the order to fight with the lead group to finish both races within the top 12. Antonio Torres (Team ProDina XCI) sits 91 points back from the Championship lead, placing firmly out of title contention. Torres trails the Brazilian #12 by only 10 points, and the Spaniard will hope to outshine Maier to take seventh place in the title standings. As was seen at Estoril, despite his P8 position in the Championship order, his pair of podiums this season were no fluke. Daniel Mogeda (Pons Motosport Italika Racing) scored his second rostrum of the season to finish at Estoril and the Spaniard will hope to land his third to close out the 2025 season on a high note. Pepe Osuna (ZAPPAS-DEZA-BOX 77 Racing Team) sits in P10, where he will hope the home fans’ encouragement will push him to set a new season high if he can improve upon his P6 benchmark. One of the last few round’s breakout performers, Loris Veneman (MTM Kawasaki) sits on the bubble in P11, only eight points behind Osuna, the Dutchman flies into Jerez with two podiums in his last three races.
RETURNING TO THE GRID: Cazzaniga will hope to get the all-clear from the medical centre
Emanuele Cazzaniga (Racestar Trasimeno) was diagnosed with a scapular fracture back at Misano, which has ruled him out of competition since then. While he will need further revisions prior to the start of the weekend, he hopes to make his return at Jerez. Spanish rider Daniel Ocete (Pons Motosport Italika Racing) joins the grid again as a wildcard after competing at Misano, Magny-Cours, and Aragon earlier this season. Joining him is Austrian rider Jakob Rosenthaler (Freudenberg KTM-Paligo Racing) and Shuncheng Zhang (ARCO MotoR University Team). Rosenthaler placed in the top five in Race 2 at Aragon; he and his KTM bike may turn heads at Jerez, while the Zhang looks to continue familiarising himself with the class after his debut at Estoril.
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