Courtesy of KRT – Kawasaki Racing Team
Kenan Sofuoglu (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) carried on his continual improvement this year to secure his first WSS win for almost a year and in doing so give his team their first victory at this level of racing. Kawasaki had more success in Spain with Intermoto Ponyexpress rider PJ Jacobsen finishing second, and the riders’ championship now being led by Sofuoglu, who is 13 points ahead of Jacobsen.
The action was tough and intense at the 5.077km Motorland Aragon circuit in Spain, with Jules Cluzel joining front row qualifiers Sofuoglu and Jacobsen in a fight for the podium positions, ahead of the chasing riders.
Cluzel was to stop with a technical issue, which allowed Sofuoglu to make the decisive break on Jacobsen, running out the winner by 3.224 seconds. Jacobsen leaves with the new lap record, 1’54.605, set on lap two of the 16-lap contest.
Behind the leading duo it was a tougher day for some other riders, with Lucas Mahias (Kawasaki Intermoto Ponyexpres) falling from fourth place, and directly afterwards Marco Faccani (San Carlo Puccetti Racing Kawasaki) crashing out after being struck by another rider on corner entry, while also holding a strong position.
Team Go Eleven Kawasaki riders Dominic Schmitter and Christian Gamarino once again put on a good display in WSS, going eighth and ninth respectively.
In the championship itself Sofuoglu leads with 55 points, Jacobsen has 42, and Schmitter sits in 10th place with 16 points.
The fourth round will take place at Assen in the Netherlands, on 19th April, just one week from today.
Kenan Sofuoglu: “This is the place I want to be. I have been so tired of being down in the championship positions, now we are leading and this race win is what we needed. I told myself I had to go for the win in Aragon and we did it. It is almost one year since I was in first pace but I have to say a big thanks to my team. They deserve it – more than me – because they have done a very good job. I am so happy to have brought it home at the front for them.”
PJ Jacobsen: “I knew I had to be real aggressive at the beginning of the race and I knew I had a pretty fast rhythm in qualifying. I did not know where that was going to take me in the race. I tried to slow it up for a while but once Cluzel broke it split up Kenan and I a little bit. I tried to close the gap but I felt I had less grip towards the end, so I took it home for second.”
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