In Superpole Rea was eventually seventh and Lowes 11th, with Alex losing his best lap after exceeding track limits on his fastest lap. Rea thus started the opening race of the Imola weekend from the third row of the grid and Lowes from row four.

When the flag dropped at the start of the 19-lap race at 14.00 hours the air temperature was a punishing 35°C. The track temperature of 58°C made life even more complicated for the riders as they balanced tyre choices against the reduced grip available over full race distance.

From the start Rea was fifth on Lap One, and would take third position by lap five. He remained in that position across the start finish line for each subsequent lap, despite being able to close in on eventual race winner Alvaro Bautista and second place rider Toprak Razgatlioglu at one stage. This was Jonathan’s seventh podium finish of the season.

Lowes ended lap one holding the same 11th position he had started from, pushing forward to ninth on lap nine. He closed in to Loris Baz in eighth place and was only 0.355 seconds behind him at the flag.

Next up at Imola for Rea and Lowes will be the Tissot Superpole ‘sprint’ race on Sunday morning and the final full distance Race Two in the afternoon, which is expected to be held in ever hotter conditions than Race One.

Jonathan Rea, stated: “A podium result was better than my expectation after yesterday afternoon and this morning. I really thought it would be a tough fight just to be inside the top five with my rhythm. I wasn’t sure about making a pass on Locatelli or Bassani because I didn’t understand their pace. But then I was able to go with Toprak and Alvaro and stay with them. They were fighting a little bit and I was there. I started thinking ‘maybe today is a good day for me?’ But when Bautista went ahead of Toprak his rhythm increased, Toprak went away with him a little bit and I had no more. It was enough to ride in third. The hot conditions are the same for everybody. On the bike it’s not so bad, you do not feel the heat so much on the bike. But, coming back to the podium, standing in the sun, is when you really feel it. In a leather suit, it is enough.”

Alex Lowes, stated: “Our day was made a lot harder by losing a lap in Superpole qualifying. I did a good lap time which would have put us on the second row of the grid, but we actually started on row four. This is not the easiest track to overtake on. In the race, my start was OK and I held my position, but I was stuck at the back of a group and I couldn’t fight and move forward. I felt my pace was better than where I was riding, but I was stuck. We struggled a bit for rear grip, especially on the edge, but the track temperature was quite high. We start again in the tomorrow from the fourth row so we need to try to get the feeling so I can be a bit more aggressive and fight in the Superpole Race. I need to move forward to get a better starting position for Race Two. Today was not an easy day, and a little bit of a frustrating day, waiting for the other guys to make a mistake, which they didn’t. Let’s try to fight for a top six position on Sunday.”

Tito Rabat (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) just missed out on a championship point by finishing in 16th position, having qualified 21st. Independent riders Oliver König (Orelac Racing Movisio Kawasaki) and Isaac Vinales (TPR by Vinales Racing Kawasaki) had to retire during the opening race of the weekend.

2023 KRT Rider WorldSBK Statistics

Jonathan Rea: World Champion 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 & 2020
2023: Races 19, Wins 0, Podiums 7, Superpoles 1
Career Race Wins: 118 (103 for Kawasaki)
Career Podiums: 252 (210 for Kawasaki)
Career Poles: 41 (37 for Kawasaki)

Alex Lowes:
2023: Races: 19, Wins 0, Podiums 1, Superpoles 0
Career Race Wins: 2 (1 for Kawasaki)
Career Podiums: 34 (14 for Kawasaki)
Career Poles: 1 (0 for Kawasaki)

8 x Riders’ Championships (Scott Russell 1993, Tom Sykes 2013, Rea 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 & 2020), 1 x EVO Riders’ Championship (David Salom 2014)
6 x Manufacturers’ Championships (Ninja ZX-10R 2015 & 2016, Ninja ZX-10RR 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020)
5 x Teams’ Championships (KRT/Provec Racing 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 & 2019)

Kawasaki FIM Superbike World Championship Statistics
Total Kawasaki Race Wins: 177 – second overall
Total Kawasaki Podiums: 531 – second overall
Total Kawasaki Poles: 106 – second overall

                          #NinjaSpirit