Rea gets off on the right foot

The work accomplished over the winter has paid off. Commented Jonathan Rea after winning the first round: “The bike is much better than last year. We worked hard to improve the performance with the soft tire, and the result is there. The bike is agile, stable under braking... Despite the low track temperatures, everything worked well." The following day, the six-times world champion added two more podium finishes to his tally, bringing his total with Kawasaki to 175. Second in the Sprint race and then second in the second race of the Spanish round, Rea twice overtook Toprak Razgatlioglu and Michael Ruben Rinaldi.

“Those were two hard fights," conceded the Elf rider. “By the time I got past them, Bautista was gone. I had the same pace as him, but I still find it hard to post times when I don't have a clear track in front of me. That's something we need to improve.” Victim of a crash on the first round held on Saturday, Alex Lowes made amends the next day by finishing fifth in the Sprint race and sixth in the second round at Aragon. “We made a mistake with the settings," admitted the Brit. “I worked too hard this winter to improve my performance on worn tires but currently I am two or three tenths off the pace of the leaders at the beginning of the race.” The next meeting will take place in the Netherlands in two weeks, at the Assen circuit.