2022 Portimao World Superbike Superpole Race Result: Nice Morning Sprint

World Superbike's Superpole race would be ten laps flat out to determine the grid positions for this afternoon's race. The front two rows were equipped with the harder SC0 tyre. The morning's weather was clear and 24ºC.

Jonathan Rea headed the front row, with Toprak Razgatlioglu and Alex Lowes alongside him. Alvaro Bautista was behind Rea in fourth place, after getting his lap lost to a yellow flag reinstated,

Razgatlioglu led Rea and Bautista into turn one with Alex Lowes, Andrea Locatelli and Michael Ruben Rinaldi behind them. After a lap, the leading trio were line astern heading to turn one and Bautista came out on top but Razgatlioglu took the lead back into turn five. Rea peered either side of Bautista but couldn't see a way past. Toprak Razgatlioglu set the fastest lap, a 1'40.595, on lap two as Michael Ruben Rinaldi took fifth place off Andrea Locatelli into turn one.

Razgatlioglu tried to break free of the riders behind him, but he couldn't escape with Jonathan Rea improving the lap record to a 1'40.143. Axel Bassani in seventh place had Loris Baz for company and Scott Redding was over a second behind.

Jonathan Rea set another new lap record, a 1'40.135 on lap four. 

At half race distance, Toprak Razgatlioglu held the lead into turn one, ahead of Alvaro Bautista and Jonathan Rea with a gap to Alex Lowes and Michael Ruben Rinaldi. Further back, Andrea Locatelli half off Axel Bassani. A lap later, Bautista led across the line, but Razgatlioglu held his lead into turn one. Garrett Gerloff crashed out into turn three and was taken to the medical centre for a check-up, leaving sixteenth-placed Jake Gagne to fly the American flag. 

Alex Lowes closed the gap to Rea as Razgatlioglu once again took the lead into turn one as Bautista briefly led down the straight. With two laps to go, Razgatlioglu's lead was enough for Bautista not to get past him down the straight as half a second covered the leading trio. 

At the start of the last lap, Bautista led Razgatlioglu briefly but Razgatlioglu once again took control into turn one on the brakes as Rea was no longer in touch with the leaders. Razgatlioglu stretched out his lead a little into turn fifteen, giving him enough breathing space to maintain the lead as Bautista put the power down down the straight. 

Toprak Razgatlioglu won the Superpole race ahead of Alvaro Bautista. Over a second behind, Jonathan Rea took the last step of the podium with his teammate Alex Lowes behind him. Michael van der Mark was eighth place, making the most of the harder tyre his teammates eschewed. 

Toprak Razgatlioglu closed to within fifty one points of Alvaro Bautista as Jonathan Rea in third place dropped to seventy three points off the title lead and twenty two from Razgatlioglu in second. 

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