What to look out for in San Juan
82 – 82 points off the Championship lead is the biggest deficit Jonathan Rea has had since joining
Kawasaki.
8x8 – Eight riders climbed on the podium in the eight races run here: Jonathan Rea (8); Toprak Razgatlioglu (7); Marco Melandri, Alvaro Bautista, Scott Redding (2); Xavi Fores, Chaz Davies, Michael Ruben Rinaldi (1).
2 - This is the one of the two tracks on the current calendar in which Kawasaki hasn’t recorded a pole position yet with Mandalika.
3x5 – Toprak Razgatlioglu finished third in more than half of his races in San Juan: five out of eight.
Championship P1 – 448 points
Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Ducati – Racing)
Bautista’s best result at the Argentinean venue is a race win back in 2019 when he was riding for Ducati.
In 2021, a tenth place in Race 2 was his best result.
After the Pirelli Portuguese Round, he leads the Championship standings with a 56-point advantage over Razgatlioglu.
“The next race is in Argentina; sincerely, three years ago with Ducati I won on my first time there. But then I had some problems in the other races so… let’s see. It’s a tricky track because the conditions are very different from one day to another. We have to be ready for all kind of conditions and adapt as best as we can and just try to enjoy as we are doing and do our best!”
Championship P2 – 392 points
Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK)
Razgatlioglu is a race winner at the Circuito San Juan Villicum. In 2021, he won Race 1 and the Tissot Superpole Race.
He has been on the podium in seven races out of eight that have been staged in San Juan.
He extended his gap to Rea to 26 points for second place in the standings.
“Now, I’m looking to Argentina. I know it’s not an easy track for anyone because the Ducati again is very strong. I also remember that Alvaro was very strong in Argentina in 2019, but this year is different. We’ll keep fighting for the win. Now I’m focused on Argentina, and we’ll try our best.”
Championship P3 – 366 points
Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK)
Rea has four races in San Juan, his last win was in Race 2, 2019. He is the most successful rider here as he claimed victory in four of the first five races run.
In 2021, he claimed three podium places, but was without a win for the first time.
The six-time WorldSBK Champion is on a winning drought of 18 races, his longest since 2012-2013.
“Argentina is a cool round to go to, all the flyaways are to be honest. The different cultures, different tracks… Argentina especially because it doesn’t have a lot of track activity, so the track is always quite green. So, we have to understand what conditions we’ll face when we go there. Step by step throughout the weekend, I’ll work with the team trying to get a good package and be able to fight. I expect a tough weekend, there is a very long straight there. I will try to make myself as small as possible down there but there is plenty of other places at the track where I’m sure we can exploit our strengths of the ZX-10RR.”
Championship P4 – 232 points
Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it Ducati Racing)
A third place in Race 1 in 2021 is Rinaldi’s best result in San Juan.
Having missed the podium at Portimao, he will be chasing his first win of the season in Argentina.
"I really like the track. I want to go there. It's a pretty fun track. Also, it feels good to go outside of Europe, because it will be our first overseas this season. For sure, I need to score a podium and score points, but I think race by race, and not about fourth place in the standings."
Championship P5 – 196 points
Andrea Locatelli (Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK)
Locatelli’s best result in San Juan is a sixth place in the 2021 Tissot Superpole Race.
In 2021, it was his first visit to the circuit.
"It feels like quite a new track for me because I just rode there last year for the first time. In the end, it wasn't an easy weekend for us in Argentina, but now we arrive with more confidence after Barcelona and Portimao because, maybe the result in the race is not so good but we were faster and stronger. So, this is a good point to arrive in Argentina. I'm motivated and I'll try to push and to understand the track as fast as possible again. I'll push to have a good rhythm and to fight to finish in a good position. This is my objective; it won't be easy. We'll try it and we'll focus to work and prepare for next week."
Championship P6 – 189 points
Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK)
Lowes has a top five finish at the Argentinean track. In 2021, his best result was a fourth place in Race 1.
"Obviously it's a relatively new to the calendar the last few years, a great addition to me. I think the track is great, I love the layout. Obviously, it doesn't get used too much so on Friday, it's always a bit slippery and you have to be careful. Last year, I was a bit injured, but I have a good first race finishing fourth, even with the injury, so I'm quite optimistic this that I can carry on my good form and challenge for a podium. But like I said, it's an event, a race and a track that I really enjoy, and honestly, I cannot wait to get out there!"
To keep an eye on
Team HRC’s riders, Iker Lecuona and Xavi Vierge will race for the first time at the Circuito San Juan Villicum.
In 2021, BMW’s best result at San Juan was Michael van der Mark (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team)’s fifth place in the Tissot Superpole Race, whilst he finished sixth in Race 1 and Race 2. It will be Scott Redding’s first Argentinean round with the BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team.
Argentinean rider Marco Solorza (TPR Team Pedercini Racing) will race for the Italian team for the Motul Argentinean Round. In 2021, he already took part in the WorldSBK Argentinean Round with an 18th place as his best result; he'll target the points-scoring positions for his home round.
Championship standings (after Race 2 - Round 9)
1. Alvaro Bautista (ESP) Ducati (448 points)
2. Toprak Razgatlioglu (TUR) Yamaha (392 points)
3. Jonathan Rea (GBR) Kawasaki (366 points)
WorldSSP heads to Argentina with the title fight still on
Championship P1 – 374 points
Dominique Aegerter (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha)
The Circuito San Juan Villicum is another track of the calendar where Aegerter has not yet won at. In 2021, he finished fifth in Race 1 and third in Race 2, when he claimed the title.
He arrives to the Motul Argentinean Round as the Championship leader with a 45-point advantage over Baldassarri.
“Everybody says ‘you didn’t win here’ for the last four rounds where last year, I didn’t win but the most important is always to win the Championship. We will see what happens in Argentina. For sure, I have great memories from winning the Championship there last year, but I remember we were fighting, especially in Race 1, for the podium and for the victory. And then Race 2, was a bit different because you know you can finish in the top ten and you win the Championship. This year, will be a bit different and I will try to give my maximum and maybe fight for the victory.”
Championship P2 – 329 points
Lorenzo Baldassarri (Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha Team)
It will be Baldassarri’s first WorldSSP race at the Circuito San Juan Villicum.
He remains second in the Championship standings with 329 points.
“For sure it's a new track for me. I have to arrive there as prepared as I can for a new track. I will try to watch videos online, to play the new SBK™22 game that is close to the reality. For sure, the track walk on Thursday will be important. The team raced there last year so, we already have information and I think we can arrive well prepared. I cannot wait for the next round because Portimao was a bit bitter in the end. We'll try to be as fast as possible from Friday onwards and take our time to try to understand the track to be fast from the beginning."
Championship P3 – 194 points
Can Oncu (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing)
In 2021, for his first visit in San Juan, Oncu finished both races on the podium, claiming a second place in Race 2, his best result in World Supersport so far.
Third in the standings, he has a 17-point gap over Bulega.
“About Argentina, it’s my favourite track and I like it so much! I’m very happy because it’s my dream track to go since last year. I think I will do a really good job there. The track fits my riding style really well and that’s why I think we can do a really good job this year too.”
To keep an eye on
Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team) is fourth place in the standings. It will be his first time at the Argentinean circuit. He will hope to adapt quickly to claim his first podium since Magny-Cours Race 2. Stefano Manzi (Dynavolt Triumph) is fifth in the Championship standings with 158 points, following on from his first and Triumph’s first win in WorldSSP at Portimao. As for Bulega, it will also be his first time at the Circuito San Juan Villicum. Federico Caricasulo (Althea Racing) heads back to San Juan for the first time since 2019, when he finished in fifth place, his best result at the track so far.
In 2021, Jules Cluzel (GMT94 Yamaha) won both races in Argentina. The French rider, who announced his retirement from racing ahead of Magny-Cours, will aim to add in a new win to his tally for his last visit at the Circuito San Juan Villicum, as he’s the only race winner at the circuit. One thing to keep an eye on will be that ex-MotoGP™ podium finisher Bradley Smith will replace Leonardo Taccini for the Ten Kate Racing Yamaha team.
Championship standings (after Race 2 - Round 9)
1. Dominique Aegerter (SUI) Yamaha (374 points)
2. Lorenzo Baldassarri (ITA) Yamaha (329 points)
3. Can Oncu (TUR) Kawasaki (194 points)
DORNA WorldSBK