ALCANIZ, Spain – Álvaro Bautista continued his dominant start to the World Superbike season with another victory Saturday at Motorland Aragón.
Bautista led the entire distance aboard his Aruba.it Racing – Ducati entry, again besting reigning series champion Jonathan Rea at the finish line to win in front of his hometown crowd.
“It’s a fantastic feeling to win a race but to do it in your home race is even more special, and I’m so happy for all the Spanish fans,” said Bautista. “I tried from the beginning to set my pace and get some advantage from lap one, trying not to lose concentration. Although I had a comfortable lead on the others, I really enjoyed myself a lot with the bike today, sliding into and exiting the corners but I was always focussed on my riding. At the end to win the race and become the first Spanish rider to win in Aragón is truly a dream, especially with all my family and friends here.”
The battle behind Bautista for second was an intense one, with as many as seven riders battling for position at one point or another. In the end Rea emerged with the position ahead of Bautista’s Ducati teammate Chaz Davies. Rea has been the runner-up in every race thus far behind Bautista.
Alex Lowes finished fourth for Pata Yamaha while Tom Sykes completed the top-five aboard the BMW Motorrad entry.