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Imola WSBK: Davies wins race shortened by big Laverty crash

Ducati rider Chaz Davies took a dominant second win of his World Superbikes campaign in a Saturday Imola race curtailed by a huge shunt for Eugene Laverty.

Podium: race winner Chaz Davies, Ducati Team, second place Jonathan Rea, Kawasaki Racing, third place Marco Melandri, Ducati Team

Podium: race winner Chaz Davies, Ducati Team, second place Jonathan Rea, Kawasaki Racing, third place Marco Melandri, Ducati Team

Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Podium: race winner Chaz Davies, Ducati Team, third place Marco Melandri, Ducati Team
Race winner Chaz Davies, Ducati Team
Chaz Davies, Ducati Team
Podium: second place Jonathan Rea, Kawasaki Racing
Jonathan Rea, Kawasaki Racing
Chaz Davies, Ducati Team
Eugene Laverty, Milwaukee Aprilia World Superbike Team

Former MotoGP man Laverty, who represents Milwaukee Aprilia, clipped the Yamaha of Alex Lowes while battling for eighth on lap 13 of 19, with a piece of bodywork ending up lodged in his front wheel.

His Aprilia bike was sent careening off-track, hitting the barriers at high speed and erupting in flames. Although Laverty had dropped away well before impact and was helped on his feet, he was taken to the medical centre for a precautionary check-up.

The race was declared over then and there, with results taken at lap 12. Davies was thus handed a victory that looked in little doubt after the opening lap, when he maintained his lead after starting from pole.

Teammate Marco Melandri had passed the two Kawasakis of Jonathan Rea and Tom Sykes to hold second in the early stages, with Davies extending his lead up ahead.

But even as Rea passed Melandri on the fifth lap, the gap between him and Davies only continued to grow, ending up at 6.7s the lap before Laverty's crash ended the proceedings.

Melandri completed the podium, having fended off repeated attacks from Sykes before the early end of the race.

Xavi Fores made it three Ducatis in the top five after a lonely race, with Leon Camier taking sixth for MV Agusta.

Lowes was classified eighth after the crash, right behind teammate Michael van der Mark, who had passed Laverty a couple of laps earlier.

The top 10 was completed by Team Kawasaki Go's Roman Ramos and Honda works rider Stefan Bradl, whose teammate Nicky Hayden called it a day early in the pitlane.

Race results

Pos.#DriverBikeTimeGap
1 7 united_kingdom Chaz Davies Ducati 21'21.371  
2 1 united_kingdom Jonathan Rea Kawasaki 21'28.067 6.696
3 33 italy Marco Melandri Ducati 21'30.658 9.287
4 66 united_kingdom Tom Sykes Kawasaki 21'31.284 9.913
5 12 spain Xavi Fores Ducati 21'37.513 16.142
6 2 united_kingdom Leon Camier MV Agusta 21'43.285 21.914
7 60 netherlands Michael van der Mark Yamaha 21'46.009 24.638
8 22 united_kingdom Alex Lowes Yamaha 21'47.163 25.792
9 40 spain Roman Ramos Kawasaki 21'55.406 34.035
10 6 germany Stefan Bradl Honda 21'55.956 34.585
11 15 san_marino Alex de Angelis Kawasaki 22'01.228 39.857
12 32 italy Lorenzo Savadori Aprilia 22'02.010 40.639
13 88 switzerland Randy Krummenacher Kawasaki 22'04.460 43.089
14 35 italy Raffaele De Rosa BMW 22'04.931 43.560
15 86 italy Ayrton Badovini Kawasaki 22'08.660 47.289
16 37 czech_republic Ondrej Jezek Kawasaki 22'11.760 50.389
  50 ireland Eugene Laverty Aprilia 21'46.372 25.001
  84 italy Riccardo Russo Yamaha 6 laps 6 laps
  69 united_states Nicky Hayden Honda 8 laps 8 laps
  36 argentina Leandro Mercado Aprilia 9 laps 9 laps
  81 spain Jordi Torres BMW    

 

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