What a spectacle at the Portuguese circuit, with a race full of continuous overtakes between Toprak and Bulega: the championship is finally heating up!
It’s an Italy-Turkey battle in Portimão! However, it is Toprak Razgatlioglu who comes out on top, securing his first victory of the season. Behind him, Nicolò Bulega finishes just under a tenth of a second behind; third place goes to Locatelli, followed by Petrucci.
Race Summary:
THE START – An excellent start from Nicolò Bulega, who immediately takes the lead, followed by Andrea Locatelli and Sam Lowes. A disaster for Toprak Razgatlioglu, who makes a mistake at the start and drops to seventh. Meanwhile, in turn 1, there is contact between Redding and Bautista: both end up in the gravel.
After just two laps, Yari Montella’s race also ends, while the Turkish rider steadily climbs up the positions until he reaches the Ducati of the Italian. On lap 6, the number one rider passes Bulega, but the leadership remains hotly contested between the two, sparking a series of overtakes and counter-overtakes that leave the cameras focused on them!
Both Lowes twins end up crashing, first Sam and then Alex, with the Bimota rider, who started from the back of the grid, having made up several positions in the first laps. Shortly after, Zaidi crashes, leaving only 17 riders on the track.
With two laps to go, Toprak makes the decisive overtake, securing his first victory of the season and earning 25 points.
Photo: WorldSBK, Toprak Razgatlioglu
