Alvaro Bautista heads to Donington Park this weekend (30 June-2 July) as the undisputed World Superbike Championship leader, but the reigning champion arrives in the East Midlands looking to end two losing streaks at the circuit.
Bautista hasn’t stood on the top step of the podium at the venue since his 125cc World Championship triumph back in 2006, whilst his Ducati team hasn’t won a World Superbike race at Donington since Carlos Checa’s triumph back in 2011.
But the Spaniard has been dominant in World Superbikes this year, with Yamaha’s Toprak Razgatlioglu the only other rider to have claimed a race win so far.
Bautista’s Donington mission is further complicated by the fact that the circuit is among Yamaha’s most successful, with Razgatlioglu having won five out of six races in the East Midlands across the past two seasons.
Should he reverse his Donington difficulties, Bautista could break some championship records this weekend. If he wins race one on Saturday, he’ll match Jonathan Rea’s benchmark of 11 consecutive wins, and he could break that should he win the first two. If he were to win all three, he’ll also equal the record for the most wins in a season (17).
“Donington has always been our weak point in the championship” said Bautista. “The track has been resurfaced so we have to go there and understand the track conditions.
“The target is to try to get the same feeling I’ve had during the whole season because I feel really good on my Panigale V4 R.
“This is the target and I know I can get the feeling with the track as well, we can be competitive. There is no target, every year is different and we’ll go there just to do our best.”
Tickets for the UK round of the Motul FIM Superbike World Championship at Donington Park are available on the gate all weekend, with free admission for children under-13. For more information, click here.