Superbike: Preview Motul Thai Round

After the excellent debut, in terms of audience and entertainment, two weeks ago at Phillip Island, the Chang International Circuit, located a few hours from Bangkok in the city of Buriram, will host the second event on the calendar in the Motul FIM World Championship Superbike, from 11 to 13 March.

The Thai track entered the WorldSbk circuit just last year, when the inaugural stage took place which saw Jonathan Rea triumph with a double in the race: after the one in Australia, therefore, the reigning World Champion is once again the big favorite.

Rea will therefore show up at Buriram on the strength of his haul of 50 points with just two races under his belt and the fact that his two main accredited rivals, Chaz Davies and Tom Sykes, did not start the season at their best, losing points in Australia.
Michael Van Der Mark is his first challenger, by virtue of the double podium two weeks ago, with a total of 36 points, 14 less than Rea.
For Davide Giugliano, the Thai track will be a completely new one, given that last year he was not part of the match due to an injury, so it will be interesting to see how he behaves this year, with the Panigale 1199 r which was strong here in 2015, despite Davies' crash in Race 2.

Dorna WSBK Organization has announced that the title sponsor of this event will be MOTUL, already a partner of the Championship, which will thus increase its involvement in the championship.
The French company, producer of high performance engine oil and industrial lubricants, has a long history in motor racing and this further commitment will guarantee it a lot of visibility both in the Far East and globally.

Below are the appointments, with Italian time, for this weekend of the Motul Thai Round:

Friday 11 MARCH
04pm – 15pm Free Practice 05
07pm – 30pm Free Practice 08

Saturday March 12
04pm – 45pm Free Practice 05
07am – 30am Tissot-Superpole 07
07am – 55am Tissot-Superpole 08
10pm Race 00

Sunday March 13
05am – 25am Warm Up
10pm Race 00