PETRONAS MIE Racing Honda rider Kaito Toba places twentieth and substitute rider Luca Ottaviani twenty-second in the second and final race of the British WorldSSP round at Donington Park.

After a brief warm-up in which the squad made some final adjustments, Toba and Ottaviani were ready for the weekend’s second and final 19-lap race.

After just missing out on points in race 1, conditioned also by a penalty that saw him start that race from the back of the grid, Kaito was determined to do more today. Able to start Race 2 from his original qualifying position, Toba got away well from twenty-first, powering his CBR600RR immediately into the top twenty and battling hard to make an impact inside the chasing group. At a track that does not facilitate overtaking, Kaito struggled to make further progress, the Japanese rider instead focusing on putting together a consistent race, one that he finished in final twentieth position. Ottaviani also made a good start from the eleventh row, moving into twenty-fifth through the very first corners. Continuing to gain both ground and valuable world championship experience, the Italian rounded out this race weekend with a twenty-second place finish.

The PETRONAS MIE Racing Honda Team will now turn its attention to round eight fof the WorldSSP championship, scheduled to be staged at the new Balaton Park circuit in Hungary on 25-27 July.

Kaito Toba #27

“In warmup I got stopped by the marshals for a technical issue and couldn’t complete any laps. We had made some changes for the front and, although we didn’t have much of a chance to verify things, we decided to stick with it. That turned out to be a good choice, and I felt more confident in the braking. But we lacked power, and I couldn’t do much after the first few laps. I held my position and did my best to work on my pace.”

Luca Ottaviani #12

“After hurting myself on Friday, my goal today was to run a similar race to Toba today. And I think I did that, setting similar lap times. I had to start from the back as a result of that crash on Friday, but I’m pleased with how the weekend has gone overall. I want to thank the team for all their hard work and for repairing the bike. They did all they could to put me in a position to demonstrate my potential. And a big thanks to Midori and Sandro for giving me the opportunity to compete this weekend.”