Runaway World Superbike series leader Jonathan Rea is determined to bounce back from his Superpole crash with a brace of wins at Portimao tomorrow even though he doesn’t need to win another one all year.
The Castletown resident went down at the fast turn three on his second flying lap this afternoon but escaped with bruising. His ZX-10R was not so lucky and was completely destroyed meaning the team have to build a new one in order for Rea to take up his third-row grid slot.
“It was a fast crash. I felt really confident but just pushed over the limit. I arrived with a few more kilometres an hour and with four degrees more lean angle and lost the front,” said Rea, who has only had one other crash during his Kawasaki tenure.
“We were trying a softer option front with a race rear tyre before we decided what to attack with using the qualifier but we didn’t get that far.
“My race pace is good but my trouble is I am starting from the third row and the other guys with good pace are starting on the front row. I just need to make sure the first laps are clean and I get through the traffic.
“Here the race will be from the middle to the end. I don’t need to win another race all year but that’s not me. Tomorrow I want to win both races but it is going to be difficult.”
