Both Bahattin Sofuoglu and Tito Rabat know the track, having raced here last year, though the Turkish rider was competing in the Supersport category.
This morning, the two Yamaha Motoxracing WorldSBK riders were on track for the first practice session, in which they worked with their technicians to find the right setup for their YZF-R1 machines. With a time of 1’30”623, Sofuoglu closed eighteenth, just ahead of his teammate who put in a 1’30”773.
In the second and final free practice, the Turkish rider improved on his earlier time and rounded out the day in fifteenth place with a best of 1’30”079. Rabat was unable to improve with respect to FP1 (1’30”798) and classified twenty-second.
Tomorrow will see the riders back out for Superpole and the first race of this Italian round.
"I’m really pleased with Bahattin’s result at a track where he’s never ridden a Superbike until now. It’s a pity that Tito had a problem with the structural wear of his rear tyre, as that caused him to lose a good part of the second session just as he was improving too. I’m confident that both riders can do well tomorrow anyway.”
“In this morning’s session the tyre deteriorated fast, and this prevented us from completing the work we’d had planned. We had some difficulties in FP2 too, but I’m feeling positive for Superpole and the races because we know where we need to work and with the team’s help, I think we can complete a good weekend.
“I made a strong start to FP1 and we tried some different suspension setups. In the final stages, we put in a fresh tyre that confused the setup entirely. We made some changes during the afternoon session and went back to a setup that we already know, completing a race simulation that went quite well. Overall, it was the most positive Friday I’ve had in Superbike so far, and I want to thank the team for this. I’m optimistic for tomorrow and hope to continue on this path.”
