Qatar WorldSBK: Sykes takes pole on Kawasaki farewell

Tom Sykes has taken pole position for his Kawasaki farewell at the Qatar World Superbike season finale.

The Englishman ruled the Superpole 2 session courtesy of a 1m 56.124s lap record, set as the chequered flag was waving under the Losail floodlights, putting him 0.131s clear of team-mate and reigning champion Jonathan Rea.

Qatar WorldSBK: Sykes takes pole on Kawasaki farewell

Tom Sykes has taken pole position for his Kawasaki farewell at the Qatar World Superbike season finale.

The Englishman ruled the Superpole 2 session courtesy of a 1m 56.124s lap record, set as the chequered flag was waving under the Losail floodlights, putting him 0.131s clear of team-mate and reigning champion Jonathan Rea.

Alex Lowes completed the front row for Pata Yamaha (+0.231s), with Thursday pace setter Eugene Laverty joined on row two by team-mate Lorenzo Savadori and Xavi Fores (Barni Ducati).

Fores was top Ducati in the Panigale V-Twin's final qualifying session, while Laverty and Savadori are riding in their last event for SMR-Aprilia, after the unofficial news that Sykes and Reiterberger will race BMW machines for the team in 2019.

Current (Althea) BMW rider Loris Baz was seventh in Superpole (1.233s), just ahead of Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha), who suffered a heavy highside on Thursday.

Marco Melandri was the top official Ducati rider, back in ninth (1.283s), followed by Superpole 1 leader Leon Camier (Red Bull Honda) and Puccetti Kawasaki's Toprak Razgatlioglu.

Melandri's team-mate Chaz Davies could only manage twelfth (+1.7s) out of the 17-rider field.

Davies starts this weekend's races with a 24-point advantage over van der Mark in the fight for title runner-up behind newly crowned four-time champion Rea.

Rea meanwhile is only one win short of the all-time season record of 17 victories set by Doug Polen in 1991 and also seeking a new record of seven double wins in a year.

Click Here for the full Superpole qualifying results…

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