MotorLand Aragon, a true state-of-the-art venue, was inaugurated in 2009. It was built to uphold the rich local racing legacy, which had witnessed years of thrilling street races in the nearby town of Alcañiz, where racing events were held from 1963 to 2003.
In 2011, the series’ inaugural visit to Aragon, Carlos Checa finished third on the podium in Race 2. That same year, Checa rode his Ducati to secure the WorldSBK title, becoming the first Spanish rider to accomplish this prestigious Championship win.
ARAGON HOT SPOTS WITH ALVARO BAUTISTA
T1/ “You do the first corner in second gear after a short, hard braking. Then you have to stop the bike a lot, otherwise you go a bit ‘out’ exiting the corner and you have to make a quick change in T2. You have to be very close in T1, then go up one gear. T2 is taken in third gear. It’s a corner where you are on the gas, so you do not to use the brakes. You close the gas a little bit, not to 0%, but maybe 30%. Then you open and you keep third gear until T3.”
T4/ “Once more, you lightly apply the front brake to make the bike dip at the front, maintaining your line in T3. It’s quite challenging because it’s a blind corner. You must have a precise reference point to navigate through the corner. Additionally, the banking of this corner is negative, so you need to choose your line carefully to avoid running wide. T3 holds significant importance because it’s uphill, making it a corner where you can make a significant difference. You shift into fourth gear on the uphill and prepare for the left-handed T4. Even in this corner, you need to start braking as you head into T5. It’s like dealing with two corners, but in reality, you treat T4 and T5 as one continuous turn.”
T16/ “You have a long downhill stretch on the back straight, allowing you to reach sixth gear. Then, you approach the last two left-hand corners, which, for us, effectively form one extended corner. Initially, you must brake considerably in the first meters before T16 and then gradually release the brakes to maintain speed and treat the final corners as a single entity. The exit of the final curve is blind, making it challenging to gauge the position of the outer curb as you exit!”
With 24 podiums at Aragon, Rea is in position to break his own record of 25 podiums at Assen.
Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati), with an impressive 467 points, is leading the pack, but his rivals are closing in. After an outstanding performance at the Pirelli French Round, Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK) has narrowed the gap from 74 to just 57 points. Razgatlioglu is well-positioned to claim victory and keep reducing the gap to Bautista, aiming to climb up the Championship ladder.
Meanwhile, six-time WorldSBK Champion Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK), who will join the Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK team in 2024, is boasting 290 points and an astonishing streak of seven consecutive podium finishes. He has shown his dominance at Aragon before, having climbed on the podium in all of his 23 races run for Kawasaki at this challenging circuit since 2015.
Andrea Locatelli (Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK) holds a strong fourth place with 256 points, proving his mettle in this highly competitive field. In fifth, Axel Bassani (Motocorsa Racing), the first Independent rider in the standings with 219 points, has been at the center of recent rumors in the WorldSBK Paddock. With his impressive performances, Bassani could very well become a surprise contender at Aragon
Four factory teams headed to MotorLand Aragon for two days of testing ahead of the French Round. Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) set the fastest overall time, followed by Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.It Racing – Ducati) and Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team).
