Bautista in top form as he dominates final day of testing, rookies shine
Fast from the outset of day two, Bautista clocked an early time of 1:30.272s to send a signal to his WorldSBK rivals.
Four tenths clear of what Toprak Razgatlioglu managed on Monday, Bautista was unable to improve as the day went on, however, it was a lap time that proved too good for the competition to match.
- Rea ‘frustrated’ by crash after fastest lap, bike had ‘pretty big dent in it’
- ‘I don’t understand why’ - Razgatlioglu confused by FP1 fall
In a class of his own, Bautista looked the most comfortable rider ahead of this weekend’s opening round as work on the set-up of his Panigale V4 R continued.
Second and just +0.072s down on Bautista was Andrea Locatelli, who continued his strong pre-season.
Fourth overall in FP2, Locatelli’s time put him second on combined times throughout the two days, while Michael Ruben Rinaldi finished third - two tenths down on Bautista.
Looking to join the top three and make it a four-way title fight, Rinaldi has been mightily good throughout testing and appears set for his best season ever in Superbikes.
There was a small blip for the Italian rider as he crashed at turn 10, the same corner that caught out Razgatlioglu on day one.
Quiet on the final day of pre-season testing were both Jonathan Rea and Razgatlioglu, with the former finishing close to half a second down on Bautista.
| 2023 World Superbike Phillip Island, WorldSBK - Day Two Test Results (FP2) | ||||
| Pos | Rider | Nat | Team | Time |
| 1 | Alvaro Bautista | SPA | Aruba.It Racing Ducati | 1:30.404s |
| 2 | Dominique Aegerter | SWI | GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team | +0.335s |
| 3 | Michael Rinaldi | ITA | Aruba.It Racing Ducati | +0.592s |
| 4 | Andrea Locatelli | ITA | PATA Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK | +0.642s |
| 5 | Remy Gardner | AUS | GRT Yamaha | +0.669s |
| 6 | Jonathan Rea | GBR | Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK | +0.796s |
| 7 | Philipp Oettl | GER | GoEleven Ducati | +0.859s |
| 8 | Danilo Petrucci | ITA | Barni Spark Ducati Team | +0.947s |
| 9 | Michael Van Der Mark | NED | BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team | +0.971s |
| 10 | Toprak Razgatlioglu | TUR | PATA Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK | +1.003s |
| 11 | Iker Lecuona | SPA | Team HRC WorldSBK | +1.014s |
| 12 | Scott Redding | GBR | BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team | +1.081s |
| 13 | Loris Baz | FRA | Bonovo Action BMW | +1.208s |
| 14 | Alex Lowes | GBR | Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK | +1.214s |
| 15 | Axel Bassani | ITA | Motocorsa Ducati | +1.288s |
| 16 | Xavi Vierge | SPA | Team HRC WorldSBK | +1.539s |
| 17 | Garrett Gerloff | USA | Bonovo Action BMW | +1.725s |
| 18 | Tom Sykes | GBR | Puccetti Kawasaki | +1.777s |
| 19 | Lorenzo Baldassarri | ITA | GMT94 Yamaha | +1.946s |
| 20 | Oliver Konig | CZE | Orelac Racing Kawasaki | +2.592s |
| 21 | Hafizh Syahrin | MAL | MIE Honda Racing | +2.625s |
| 22 | Eric Granado | BRA | MIE Honda Racing | +3.222s |
After crashing on day one, Rea once again fell with 30 minutes remaining at turn 4, the same corner that was his undoing on Monday.
For Razgatlioglu, no attempt at a fast lap was made which resulted in the Yamaha rider finishing down in tenth place - sixth on combined times.
Top rookie went the way of Dominique Aegerter, after the two-time WorldSSP champion was in fantastic form on day two.
Second in FP2, the Swiss rider finished out the test in fifth place as he continued to test items and a new electronics package for GRT Yamaha.
