Next podium with the new BMW S 1000 RR for the BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team.

Laguna Seca. The BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team has recorded
another podium finish with the BMW S 1000 RR in the FIM Superbike
World Championship (WorldSBK). Tom Sykes (GBR) secured third place
in the Superpole race at Laguna Seca. This was the third podium for
the new RR in its WorldSBK debut season. Sykes crossed the line
fifth in the afternoon’s second race. Team-mate Markus Reiterberger
(GER) finished the two races on Sunday in twelfth and
13th positions.

 

The Superpole sprint race in the morning was interrupted due to an
accident shortly after the start, before restarting with a reduced,
eight-lap format. Sykes secured fourth place on the grid, but Alvaro
Bautista (ESP / Ducati) was missing from the front row. Sykes
immediately moved into third place and crossed the line without ever
being in danger of losing that position. Reiterberger started the
sprint race from eleventh position, finishing in twelfth place.

 

In the afternoon, Sykes started race two from third place, while
Reiterberger began in twelfth. Sykes lost one place in the first turn
and remained fourth until lap 13, when Alex Lowes (GBR / Yamaha)
passed him. He closed up on Lowes again, crossing the line just half a
second behind him in fifth place. Reiterberger moved up to eleventh
for a while after overtaking Sandro Cortese (GER / Yamaha). He
maintained this position until the 14th lap, before falling
back a little and finishing the race in 13th place.

 

The WorldSBK is now heading for a summer break. The tenth event of
the season will take place from 6th to 8th
September at Portimão (POR).

 

Quotes after race two at Laguna Seca.

 

Marc Bongers, BMW Motorrad Motorsport Director: “That
was a good day to round off a great weekend – a podium in the
Superpole race and then another solid performance and fifth place for
Tom in the second race. Markus was able to improve throughout the day
and close the gap to the riders in front. We have some homework to do
and we won’t see our competitors again before the tests at Portimão at
the end of August. A large part of the team is now heading for some
well-deserved vacation time. We can be very pleased with the season so
far as we have clearly exceeded our expectations.”

 

Shaun Muir, Team Principal BMW Motorrad WorldSBK
Team:
“Tom claimed a great result in today’s sprint race. He
rode really well; to take the third position and a front row start for
race two was a solid performance all around. In the race, as we hoped,
he had a pretty good start, only Toprak got in front of him, he
slotted in and was in a solid fourth position. He rode a good race.
Alex Lowes got by him after he made a mistake and then he recovered
well. He dropped two seconds and pulled that right back. If there had
been another lap he probably would have got fourth back. So it was
great progress by Tom and they can go into the summer break happy.
Markus had a reasonably good day. The sprint race showed more
progression but I was even more happy in the second race. He rode some
pretty good lap times and overall it was a big improvement on his race
one result. So overall we can be pleased going back home and we can
make a plan exactly what we need to focus on in the next phase of the
development of the bike.”

 

Tom Sykes: “We’ve come away again with a bag full of
top-5 finishes, including a podium in the sprint race. Overall it was
a very productive weekend for the whole BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team.
The bike seems to be not getting the best from the tyres at the moment
but we got a lot of information this weekend and having said that it
was a complete different story at the end of that race two. We had a
lot of pace and I closed the gap to Alex Lowes so that’s certainly
positive to take with us. We now have the summer break coming up so
it’s just cool that at the right time we got a lot of information at
the weekend and hopefully now the guys in the team can put this to
good use. There are still areas to work on but overall the whole
package is quite promising and having three podiums at the last three
rounds is not too bad against these experienced manufacturers. I’m
enjoying riding, have a great relationship with the team and BMW and
it’s needless to say that we are heading in the right direction. I
think everybody has seen that the progress we’ve made from the opening
round until now has been quite impressive.”

 

Markus Reiterberger: “The restart in the Superpole
race was great. I made up a few places and crossed the line in a
decent twelfth position. For the second race, we chose different tyres
to yesterday. They were reliable for the first 15 laps but then there
was a big drop with lots of movement and then it was just about
getting to the finish. Unfortunately, that meant I lost two places. I
did have my eye on the top ten but I missed out on that, however, we
did score a few points. I had hoped for more from the weekend as I
know that I can do much better. That’s why I’m hoping we can find a
way for me to attack properly with the bike and go really fast. We
have to continue working on it and then the breakthrough will come. I
would like to thank the team as they gave it everything again this weekend.“