CHALLENGING SUNDAY FOR VAN DER MARK AT PORTIMÃO
Michael van der Mark went into Race 2 looking to repeat his podium success of yesterday, after a challenging Superpole race earlier today at Portimão, but changes to the set-up of his Yamaha YZF-R1 ahead of the race failed to bring the expected improvements and the 26-year-old Dutchman struggled to maintain a consistent pace as a result. The Pata Yamaha rider was involved in an intense battle with fellow Yamaha rider, Loris Baz, in the final stages of the race, with the Frenchman gaining the advantage on the final lap to take sixth place, with van der Mark following him home in seventh.
Michael van der Mark – Pata Yamaha WorldSBK – P6 and P7 – Championship Position P4 – 244 Points: “The Superpole race wasn’t easy, but our goal was to improve the feeling with the bike and secure a better grid position for Race 2 and we achieved that. We made a small change to the set up ahead of Race 2 and, as a result, I struggled a lot more than yesterday, unfortunately. Yesterday I could ride the bike exactly how I wanted, but today I simply didn’t have a good feeling from the start and wasn’t able to maintain a consistent pace. I lost a lot of time, which is a shame, but we know where we need to improve and I’m confident we’ll be back at the front in Magny-Cours, which is a track I really like.”
Results
Superpole race
Race 2