Source: Supplied.

Rain was the driving force behind the final test in Europe for the Motul Superbike World Championship, which was led by defending world champion Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team) at the conclusion of two days.

Rea didn’t spend a lot of time out on track for the second day of the test, and only put in 11 laps aboard his ZX-10RR. Despite this lack of track time he still finished the day on top, with a lap time of 1m52.976s.

Kawasaki teammate Tom Sykes spent a lot more time on track despite the damp conditions, putting in over 40 laps across the day. The Yorkshireman’s best lap time was a 1m53.349s, which put him 0.373s behind Rea.

Unpredictable conditions also halted Alex De Angelis (Pedercini Racing SC-Project) to continue with his off season plan, although it was the Italian’s first experience of his new bike in the rain. Completing just 26 laps aboard his Kawasaki ZX-10R and was able to make the most of understanding dry set-up, his best lap was 1m55.632s.

Leandro Mercado (IODARacing) was also able to get his first chance out on a wet track with his new team, rolling out of pit lane aboard his Aprilia RSV4RF on rain tyres for just 21 laps. Finishing the day in fourth position with a lap time of 1m57.916s, the Argentinean spent the day understanding the feeling aboard the rain tyres and gaining important track time.

Another rider preparing for his WorldSBK debut, Riccardo Russo (Guandalini Racing), continued with his pre-season programme, completing 35 laps of the circuit. Ending the day with a 1m58.564s, it was Russo’s first time out on a wet track.

The World Superbike teams will now return back to base to begin preparation as they send their machines out to Australia for the last test and the first round of 2017, scheduled for Phillip Island on 24-26 February.