Davies extends battle for second with Jerez win

Chaz Davies’ (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati WSB) plan of hunting down long time leader Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) worked this time around as the battle for overall second in the Superbike World Championship continued at a hot pace at Jerez.

Joining Davies on the podium was the Aprilia duo of Jordi Torres (Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils) and Leon Haslam (Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils).

As the heat increased compared to race one, the start of race two saw Sykes and Rea ahead of the pack into the first corner, but Rea run wide, allowing Davies and Torres past.

Sykes would head out front to lead the first half of the race easily, but then Davies cut into his advantage in chunks, as Sykes slowed.

At the very start of lap 12 Davies was past the Kawasaki rider, inside at the second corner, with both bikes visibly moving around and Sykes having to run on peculiar lines.

Davies took a second over Sykes in one lap, with Torres and Haslam squabbling behind Sykes, trying to pass the hard braking 2013 champion.

By lap 13 Sykes had been swamped by four riders in total, with Michael van der Mark (Pata Honda) also ahead, then new champion Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team) joined in.

Davies kept a strong pace, one that Torres and Haslam could not control and when van der Mark fell out of podium contention on lap 17 it was an all-Aprilia battle for the final podium places.

Torres was to win that fight, with Haslam third, Rea fourth, Sykes fifth and the advancing privateer Ducati of Matteo Baiocco (Althea Racing Ducati) sixth.

Michelle Pirro (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati WSB) was the second official Ducati rider home in seventh.

Leon Camier (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) was eighth and Sylvain Guintoli (Pata Honda WSB) and Leandro Mercado (Barni Racing Team Ducati) closed out the top ten positions.

In addition to Rea’s own Riders’ Championship win in race one, Kawasaki also won the Manufacturers’ Championship after race two.