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© WorldSBK - Start of Race 2
Öncü fades, Sofuoğlu rues what might have been
Sunday, 31 July 2022
While all eyes were on Toprak Razgatlioğlu and his phenomenal hattrick, it would be easy to forget that his fellow 'KNN54' stablemates Can Öncü and Bahattin Sofuoğlu had a much less enjoyable time in the World Supersport class.
Can qualified fourth and finished a distant fourth and eighth in Race 1 and Race 2 respectively, carrying on his trend of making fast starts, enjoying a good opening few laps before gradually falling away from the leading pack. Having spent four days at the track, TFT learnt that the Puccetti Racing rider is nursing an arm injury which goes some way to explaining why he is unable to sustain a consistent pace.
However, the Monday following the race weekend Can announced on his social media that having discussed the matter at length with his manager Kenan Sofuoğlu, he is closing his social media accounts until the end of the season in order to concentrate solely on his racing.
Such a statement straight off the back of a race weekend would suggest that there is unrest in the Puccetti Racing camp. Indeed, TFT sat down for a quick chat with both Can and team founder Manuel Puccetti, who openly admitted to us that he expected more from Can (please click here to listen to both interviews!).
Meanwhile, over at MV Agusta Reparto Corse, Bahatttin Sofuoglu endured a tougher time still. Qualifying in an impressive 13th, the rookie made a good launch in Race 1 and was hovering around the top ten when an early incident further down the order caused proceedings to come to halt with the introduction of the red flag.
The race was shortened to 12 laps and the MV rider made another good getaway from the grid, but on the opening lap of the restart he tangled with another rider and was clipped from behind entering the Melbourne Loop. He managed to re-mount, dropping all the way down to 27th. He then produced an excellent come-back ride to eventually take the chequered flag in 15th, netting a hard-fought, solitary championship point.
Things went from bad to worse for Bahattin in what would prove to be a very short-lived Race 2. Another good start saw him end Lap 1 in ninth, but a botched passing attempt by Stefano Manzi (Dynovolt Triumph) at the end of the second lap resulted in the No.54 having to take an early bath due to excessive damage to his bike sustained in the crash.
Ten Kate Racing Yamaha's Dominique Aegerter comfortably won both races, further extending his commanding lead (245 points) in the standings to 64 points over his nearest rival, Lorenzo Baldassarri (Evan Bros.WorldSSP Yamaha Team) who sits second in the standings with 181 points.
For full race results please visit the WorldSBK/WorldWSS Results page: