The eleventh Supersport World Championship round has drawn to a close at Portugal’s Estoril Circuit, with PETRONAS MIE Racing Honda rider Kaito Toba placing twenty-first in Sunday’s race, and substitute rider Luca Ottaviani twenty-third.

Toba and Ottaviani made the most of morning warm-up before focusing on preparations for the weekend’s second and final race. Like Saturday’s Race 1, WorldSSP Race 2 ran over 18 laps and in dry conditions. Twenty-fourth on the grid and lying in the same position through the opening laps, Toba fought as part of a tightly packed group of riders. After battling with his closest rivals, particularly Tuuli in the initial phase, the Japanese rider then lost a little of his pace through the second half of the race as he worked to conserve the tyres. Climbing four positions in the latter stages, Kaito finished P21.  

Replacement rider Ottaviani was lying thirtieth one lap into this 18-lapper. Careful to avoid mistakes in the chaos of the early stages, the Italian kept a cool head and gained three positions over the first couple of laps. Lapping with similar pace to teammate Kaito, Luca was riding well despite a gap gradually beginning to open in front of him. This prevented him from executing any more passes, but he nevertheless held firm, completing the race in twenty-third position, less than two seconds from Toba.

The PETRONAS MIE Racing Honda Team now turns its attention to the final championship round, which will get underway on Friday 17 October at the Jerez Circuit in Spain. Heading into the season finale, Toba lies twenty-sixth in the championship standings with 12 points.

Kaito Toba #27

“We started the day with a better feeling with the bike in warmup, though the tyre consumption was rather high. In the race, I unfortunately struggled to maintain a consistent pace, especially after losing slipstream ahead of me. I did what I could anyway and finished the race, but I’m disappointed that we couldn’t do more.”

Luca Ottaviani #12

“Today’s race went well, I think. It was only a pity that I missed Friday’s practice due to a flight cancellation, which put us on the back foot. In today’s race I was able to maintain good pace, lapping with similar pace to Toba. I’m pleased to have had this opportunity and want to thank Midori and the entire team for all their support; they’re a great group and I’d love to have a similar chance in the future. Thanks again.”