Source: Supplied.

The penultimate race of the 2015 WorldSBK season has been won under floodlights at the Losail International Circuit by Jordi Torres (Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils), with Jonathan Rea and his Kawasaki teammate Tom Sykes joining him on the podium.

Sykes led from the start, before being passed by Rea and Torres, the Spaniard pulling off an incredible move around the outside of the former champion into turn one at half distance.

Interestingly, Torres’ maiden win in WorldSBK maintains Aprilia’s 100 percent record of podium finishes at the Qatari venue, with the Spanish flag waving at the top for the first time since 2012 at Miller Motorsports Park, when Carlos Checa won the first race. Rea gave chase but had to be content with second, his 65th podium.

Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Superbike Team) came out on top in the fight for fourth with Michael van der Mark (Pata Honda World Superbike Team) and Leon Haslam (Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils) completing the top six.

Xavi Fores (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Superbike Team) converted his maiden front row start into a solid seventh, the Spanish rider finishing the race three seconds ahead of compatriot David Salom (Team Pedercini), Leandro Mercado (Barni Racing), Sylvain Guintoli (Pata Honda World Superbike Team) and Ayrton Badovini (BMW Motorrad Italia) after their own four way fight from start to finish.

The final point scorers were Randy de Puniet (Voltcom Crescent Suzuki), Gabor Rizmayer (BMW Team Toth), Christophe Ponsson (Team Pedercini) and Gianluca Vizziello (Grillini SBK Team).

Alex Lowes was riding superbly in third in the first half of the 17-lap encounter until his Voltcom Crescent Suzuki hit problems at turn one on lap eight. There was drama at the start for Leon Camier who suffered a technical problem on the grid after the warm up lap with his MV Agusta Reparto Corse machine.

The final FIM Superbike World Championship race of 2015 was won on the final lap after another race-long fight as Haslam, who took his second win of the year, beat Davies. Haslam’s winning margin was 0.110s and his victory gave Aprilia a double win in the season finale, just as they had one year ago under Qatar’s floodlights.

In securing second, the Welshman also claimed the runner-up spot in the final standings ahead of Sykes, who came home third. Van der Mark completed his debut WorldSBK year with another strong showing, the Dutchman finishing fourth after running in the leading group for the first 12 laps, before dropping back a little in the closing stages.

The other big news of race two was Rea’s first DNF of the season, which put an end to his hopes of setting a new outright points record in the series. The 2015 world champion had to pull out on lap six as his KRT machine suffered a technical problem.

Guintoli was fifth on his last race for Pata Honda. The 2014 champion ended the night’s second 17-lap encounter a fraction of a second ahead of Mercado, who took a season’s best sixth. Seventh was de Puniet, who equalled his previous best result of the season, while eighth to 10th went to Niccolò Canepa (Althea Racing Ducati), Salom and Badovini.

The final point scorers in race two were Ponsson, Vizziello, Rizmayer, Imre Toth (BMW Team Toth) and Australian substitute Alex Phillis (Grillini Kawasaki), who scored his first WorldSBK championship point.

Fores did not compete in race two after withdrawing through illness, while Lowes retired his Voltcom Crescent Suzuki at the end of the opening lap. Camier was able to start the second encounter, but he too to finish for the second time today.

A thrilling floodlit WSS finale has been won by Kyle Smith (Pata Honda World Supersport Team), who took his first win in Supersport after a tense final lap. Smith had several moments but was able to fend of 2015 Supersport World Champion Kenan Sofuoglu (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing), taking the win by 0.971s at the flag.

For Sofuoglu, who wrapped up his fourth World Supersport crown this year it, was his 69th career podium in second, while Lorenzo Zanetti (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) secured the third place in the overall championship standings by taking the final podium spot.

Lucas Mahias finished a lonely fourth after running at the front aboard his MG Competition Yamaha early on, while PJ Jacobsen (CORE” Motorsport Thailand Honda) and Nico Terol (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) rounded out the top six.

Roberto Rolfo signed off from his 2015 duties with another solid seventh aboard the Lorini Honda, while Alex Baldolini (Race Department ATK#25), Marco Faccani (San Carlo Puccetti Kawasaki) and Fabio Menghi (VFT Racing Yamaha) completed the top 10.

CIA Landlords Insurance Honda rider Aiden Wagner was a retirement in the final race of the season, as countryman Glenn Scott (AARK Racing Honda) was a non-starter following his qualifying incident on Saturday.

2015 Superbike World Championship
Round 13 – Losail Circuit, Qatar

Superbike race one results:
1. Jordi Torres
2. Jonathan Rea +0.726s
3. Tom Sykes +6.579s
4. Chaz Davies +7.889s
5. Michael van der Mark +13.512s
6. Leon Haslam +17.755s
7. Xavi Fores +23.590s
8. David Salom +26.417s
9. Leandro Mercado +26.489s
10. Sylvain Guintoli +27.979s
16. Alex Phillis (AUS) +1m30.797s

Superbike race two results:
1. Leon Haslam
2. Chaz Davies +0.110s
3. Tom Sykes +0.388s
4. Michael van der Mark +7.653s
5. Sylvain Guintoli +14.487s
6. Leandro Mercado +19.363s
7. Randy de Puniet +22.468s
8. Niccolò Canepa +22.530s
9. David Salom +27.596s
10. Ayrton Badovini +29.294s
15. Alex Phillis (AUS) +2 laps

Superbike championship standings:
1. Jonathan Rea 548
2. Chaz Davies 416
3. Tom Sykes 399
4. Leon Haslam 332
5. Jordi Torres 247
6. Sylvain Guintoli 218
7. Michael van der Mark 194
8. Tati Mercado 142
9. Matteo Baiocco 139
10. Alex Lowes 135
24. Troy Bayliss (AUS) 15
33. Jed Metcher (AUS) 2
34. Alex Phillis (AUS) 1

Supersport race results:
1. Kyle Smith
2. Kenan Sofuoglu +0.971s
3. Lorenzo Zanetti +1.074s
4. Lucas Mahias +3.575s
5. PJ Jacobsen +6.271s
6. Nico Terol +6.553s
7. Roberto Rolfo +19.988s
8. Alex Baldolini +26.605s
9. Marco Faccani +26.901s
10. Fabio Menghi +37.648s

Supersport championship standings:
1. Kenan Sofuoglu 233
2. PJ Jacobsen 196
3. Lorenzo Zanetti 158
4. Jules Cluzel 155
5. Kyle Smith 116
6. Gino Rea 97
7. Roberto Rolfo 88
8. Alex Baldolini 67
9. Marco Faccani 66
10. Christian Gamarino 62
20. Aiden Wagner (AUS) 13
25. Glenn Scott (AUS) 8

Click here for detailed results