Rea Returns to Top Ten for Pata Maxus Yamaha in Race 1 at Most

Jonathan Rea stormed through the field in a thrilling start to Race 1 for Pata Maxus Yamaha at Autodrom Most, in Round 5 of the FIM Superbike World Championship today.

The six-time WorldSBK Champion’s return from injury has been a step-by-step process, and today’s tenth-place result was highlighted with a fierce fighting start from P14 on the grid to run inside the top six in the opening laps – a monumental move up the field.

His early aggression shows flashes of Rea’s excellent winter testing form and he crossed the line in tenth position at the chequered flag, with more to come tomorrow and in the following rounds as the 38-year-old builds into his season.

Both Rea and Locatelli were at something of a disadvantage after a difficult Superpole this morning. Yellow flags marred the 15-minute qualifying session and a culmination of factors saw teammate Andrea Locatelli start from P11 in the middle of the fourth row in front of his teammate Rea.

“Loka” however was not able to make the same progress forward with an uncharacteristically poor start, and was caught in a multiple-rider crash in Turn 2 of the chicane on the opening lap, leaving the Pata Maxus Yamaha rider with nowhere to go.

A reset and regroup will take place tonight before the final day in the Czech Republic starts with Warm Up at 9:00 CEST before the Superpole Race at 11:00 and lastly, Race 2 at 14:00.

Jonathan Rea – SP: P14 / Race 1: P10

“My first points of the year! The beginning of the race was amazing, I had a great start and first corner and everything opened up for me. I found myself with a really good track position, and from there step-by-step tried to do my race rhythm. Unfortunately, I couldn’t fend off the attacks from a few riders, but when they got past me I was able to see them as a reference and understand my pace to go away from the guys behind and maintain my position. Tenth place is nothing to be excited about, but it’s a start. I’ve come from missing three rounds of the season and a difficult first weekend back in Cremona, but physically here I’ve felt a lot better. I was strong in the 22 laps but just not fast enough – that first part of the race where everyone has out-and-out speed – I don’t have that yet, but when everything tapers off in the middle to the end, I was quite fast and consistent. Just need to find some overall performance and we should be in the mix a bit more!”

Andrea Locatelli – SP: P11 / Race 1: DNF

“Unlucky day again today, unfortunately at the start, the first chicane is always a bit chaotic and I just touched the rear wheel of Bautista – I don’t know why he suddenly stopped in the middle of the chicane – I crashed and could not re-join the race. Anyway, bad day but again we need to look forward and think about tomorrow because we have two more races. We can do something more – be positive and let’s see what we can get. Never stop believing in our potential and continue pushing hard.”

Paul Denning – Team Principal, Pata Maxus Yamaha:

“Today’s top ten finish for Jonathan marks a real step forward in his recovery and a huge improvement in fitness since Cremona only two weeks ago. Most is still a physically demanding track and after making a fantastic start, he ground out 22 competitive laps – and even regrouped in the middle of the race to improve his pace and start to gain on Vierge and Montella in front. It’s been tough when the other riders have been racing, testing, and getting more and more up to speed – but JR has shown this weekend that not only does he want to achieve great things once again, but that he is very much on the path to getting back there. There’s nothing too much to say about Loka’s race, other than an unfortunate qualifying was the start of today’s problems – multiplied by an uncharacteristically bad start – and then he got really unlucky with a gaggle of riders coming together in the really tight Turn 1-2 chicane. The fact that he is physically unhurt is the most important thing and we look forward to a change of luck for Loka tomorrow.”