Jonathan Rea plagued by brake issue at Estoril WorldSBK: “We need to check what’s up”

On paper, a sixth-place finish in Estoril WorldSBK Race 1 made it surely one of Jonathan Rea’s best rides on the Yamaha R1, but afterward he revealed he’d been dealing with a confidence-sapping brake problem.

Rea started the race well and was chasing Alvaro Bautista for third, but dropped back in the middle as he encountered a brake issue that he’d had already in FP3, but thought had been fixed.

“In the beginning of the race I felt really good,” Jonathan Rea said, speaking to WorldSBK.com after Race 1 in Estoril.

“Alvaro [Bautista] was making some mistakes, I was able to be really clean in most of the corners and just lose out from the exit of the last corner to turn one. 

“But sectors two and three I had it together and then every time I could almost take the slipstream. 

“But in the middle of the race I had a big moment in turn one where the lever came back to the bar and that allowed Alex [Lowes] and Andrea [Locatelli] to arrive. Then they passed me the very next lap on the straight. 

“So, just ran into some brake issues in the middle of the race. We had this issue this morning, we thought with changing discs we could iron the problem out but it sort of showed its head again so we really need to check what’s up with that.”

The brake issue was not the only thing among Rea’s targeted areas of improvement for Sunday, although he was clearly most concerned by it.

“I think we’re too much in the rear,” Rea said, referring to his general bike balance.

“When I start to release the brake the front’s popping up and sitting in the rear, and then I’m turning a lot on the rear so I really am using a lot of rear tyre. 

“So, I think we can improve that area, and then try and understand what’s happening with these brakes. 

“Honestly, when you’re arriving at [turn one at] 320kph (198mph), more or less, when you don’t know if the lever’s going to be in the position you expect it to be in it’s scary. 

“I had a trip to the gravel this morning with that. 

“So, if I can fix that confidence issue in the latter stages of the race, I know the brake’s going to be fine, we should be a lot stronger.”

Brake issues and balance aside, Rea was happy with the performance of his bike.

“The bike was not so bad,” he said.

“I think especially in the last long corner the bike just wasn’t turning amazing after the grip had dropped; and mechanical traction is still something we need to focus on. 

“Everywhere else the bike was good, I was enjoying it. Being in that battle for the top-five was really nice.”

“Grateful to Bulega”

Rea was put in position to battle for the top-five thanks to a strong qualifying in sixth.

The Pata Yamaha rider benefitted from a tow from Nicolo Bulega to set his time. The Ducati rider himself was able to lap in the 1:34s, the only rider other than Toprak Razgatlioglu to do so in Superpole, but Rea explained that he was mostly looking for help in the straight from the Italian.

“I’m really grateful to Nicolo [Bulega], but we can’t beat about the bush: we’re top of the speed traps if we turn the page upside down,” the six-time World Superbike Champion said.

“So, [...] any little advantage I can get with the slipstream really helps, and when we’re talking about tenths-of-a-second in Superpole – or hundredths-of-a-second – everything matters. 

“So, really grateful that I didn’t annoy him, I was far enough away not to drag him back on the straight, and he did a pretty clean lap. 

“It made my day, if you like, starting there. Getting a good start, the Yamaha R1 rips off the line, so I was already in good track position. 

“In the restart, actually, Loka [Andrea Locatelli] came past me in turn one, but I made a good first lap and then, with Alvaro, I could grip in there every last corner just to be there and try to get sucked along, and then just do my bit. 

“The latter stage of the race we were a little bit in trouble with a few things but we can hopefully iron that out tomorrow.”