VAN DER MARK READY FOR IMOLA CHALLENGE
WorldSBK return to action this weekend at the historic Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari in Imola, the venue for Round 5 of the 2019 FIM Superbike World Championship. Pata Yamaha’s Michael van der Mark heads to Italy looking to build on the success of two podium finishes last time out in Assen.
Van der Mark and all other riders are hoping for better conditions in Imola than they experienced four weeks ago in Assen, where snow forced the cancellation of Saturday afternoon’s schedule and saw both feature races contested on the Sunday. The Dutch fans who braved the bitterly cold conditions were rewarded with a superlative performance from home hero van der Mark, who secured his first podium finish of the 2019 season with third place in Race 1.
In Race 2 van der Mark secured Yamaha’s best result of the season to date, getting the better of a battle with reigning World Champion, Jonathan Rea, to finish second. It’s a performance that the Pata Yamaha rider is keen to repeat this weekend in Imola, a track that hasn’t been a particularly good hunting ground for him in the past.
Michael van der Mark – Pata Yamaha WorldSBK: “We’ve had quite a long break since the last round in Assen, so I can’t wait to race again this weekend. Imola is a circuit with different characteristics again and, although the results in the past weren’t all that great, we made a big step forward last year in Race 2. With that in mind, and with the improvements we’ve made to the bike this season already, I think we can be competitive at this circuit. The weekend can’t come quick enough for me!”
Schedule
Friday
10:30 – 11:20 WorldSBK FP1
15:00 – 15:50 WorldSBK FP2
Saturday
09:00 – 09:20 WorldSBK FP3
11:00 – 11:25 WorldSBK Superpole
14:00 – WorldSBK Race 1
Sunday
09:00 – 09:15 WorldSBK WUP
11:00 – WorldSBK Superpole Race
14:00 – WorldSBK Race 2