Jonathan Rea took a firm grip on the 2016 World Superbike Championship battle once again with victory in a rain-affected second race at the Lausitzring. The defending champion cruised to an unchallenged win while his teammate Tom Sykes came unstuck in the treacherous conditions, the Yorkshireman suffering a costly crash to dent his title hopes.
The heavy rain led to a number of delays but when racing did eventually get underway, Rea raced into an early lead. Sykes attempted to give chase but the 2013 champion was sent tumbling under braking for turn ten, the same corner that caught out Rea yesterday, and any hopes of closing the 26 point gap any further vanished.
Rea only had Davide Giugliano for company in the early stages but once again, the Italian would fall short in his pursuit of a maiden WorldSBK with a highside on lap four ending his afternoon. This promoted Lorenzo Savadori to second but just as in the dry conditions of race one, the Aprilia rookie crashed out of a podium position to leave Rea unchallenged at the front.
The Kawasaki rider cruised home to victory by over nine seconds in the end with Alex de Angelis giving Ioda consolation for Savadori’s misfortune by taking second, his first WorldSBK rostrum, from eighteenth on the grid. Xavi Fores also stood on the podium for the first time after beating Leon Camier to third while Sylvain Guintoli overtook race one winner Chaz Davies in the latter stages to secure fifth.
Josh Brookes showed his wet-weather skills to finish seventh while Michael van der Mark recovered from a crash to still salvage eighth. Tom Sykes also picked up points after his early spill but the Yorkshireman only scored four after pipping Gianluca Vizziello to twelfth on the finish line.
WorldSBK 2016: Pirelli German Round – Race Two Result
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