Tom Sykes has taken the first pole position of the year at Phillip Island, lighting up the Australian venue with red sectors to take his 43^rd pole position and equal Aussie legend Troy Corser.

The Yorkshireman is joined on the front row by Eugene Laverty – who was third fastest on Friday – and Marco Melandri.

With wind causing some difficulties for the field, there was an early Red Flag when Friday’s fastest Lorenzo Savadori took a tumble, heading off to the Medical Center before the session restarted. Then the man who had been just behind the Italian on the timesheets on Friday, Leon Camier, also crashed out – rider ok but unable to complete a lap – before Alex Lowes and Superpole 1 graduate Jordi Torres followed suit and slid out.

Behind the top trio it was Lowes, however, who was able to bounce back to line up fourth, with expected Championship contender Chaz Davies in P5 and moving up significantly in Superpole compared to a more difficult Friday on the timesheets.

Next up, it’s the reigning World Champion: Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team), who was fifth fastest on Friday, will be starting the first race of his title defence from sixth – unable to improve on his first effort and almost a second off teammate Sykes. With Rea’s incredible form coming through the field in Race 2 with that grid format, can he do the same in Race 1?

Xavi Fores heads up Row 3, just ahead of Michael van der Mark as the Dutchman starts seventh. Toprak Razgatlioglu completes that third row, with the Turkish rookie impressive and having moved through Tissot-Superpole 1 in his first weekend of the year.

Savadori is P10 after his crash, with Camier P11 and Torres in twelfth to complete those who weren’t able to set a lap.

source: worldsbk.com

Marco Melandri put in a stunning ride at Phillip Island to win the opening race of 2018, stalking his way through the podium places before being able to catch and pass earlier race leader and polesitter Tom Sykes.

Melandri adds the victory to an illustrious list of glory accrued at the Australian track, including MotoGP and 250 World Championship wins. Behind Sykes, who took second, Melandri’s teammate Chaz Davies completed the podium – slicing past reigning Champion Jonathan Rea right at the end to begin his season on the rostrum after some late drama for Rea.

Sykes bolted from pole and the Brit was in clear air for much of the race, with an impressive start for teammate Rea from further back catapulting him up into P2 to chase down his sister green machine. But Melandri made for close company for the reigning Champion throughout, stalking Rea before passing him and then heading off to chase down Sykes.

The Italian got past the Brit with enough time left to pull away for a safer win – but Sykes held firm in second to take only his fourth podium at the track since 2009; making a huge statement of intent in the title fight. Meanwhile behind him, teammate Rea began to suffer with issues and his pace dropped.

From a seemingly safe podium finish, the reigning Champion faded quickly – with Davies and fellow Panigale rider Xavi Fores soon on the scene and both soon past Rea. Rea followed Fores over the line for fifth, but Fores did make it into parc ferme, taking the honours as top Independent Team rider in the first race of the season and getting an early lead on some of his key competitors for that title.

Meanwhile for sixth, a stunning Yamaha duel saw Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team’s Michael van der Mark and Alex Lowes side-by-side, but the Dutchman began to suffer in the latter stages after his early charge and dropped back, leaving Lowes in P6.

Leon Camier made progress in the race after a crash in Tissot-Superpole and was able to come home in seventh with a late charge, breaking free of van der Mark and Eugene Laverty.

Laverty had a more difficult race day to come home P8 after being third fastest on Friday, with van der Mark taking ninth at the flag and just staying ahead of Leandro Mercado, who completed the top ten for Orelac Racing Verdnatura – an impressive first race of 2018 for the Argentinean.

Loris Baz took eleventh and was close to the top ten on his return to WorldSBK despite a heavy crash on Friday, with American Jake Gagne debuting full time for Red Bull Honda World Superbike Team in twelfth. Toprak Razgalioglu got his WorldSBK career off to a solid start in P13, ahead of Roman Romas and Ondrej Jezek.

source: worldsbk.com

Tom Sykes had only been on the podium three times at Phillip Island before 2018 Race 1, and all of them were third places - but the Yorkshireman’s opening statement for this season seemed to pay that no heed.

After a stunning lap in qualifying to go top and equal Aussie Troy Corser on 43 poles, Sykes bolted into the lead off the line and made quite a gap between himself and teammate Jonathan Rea, the man who has won five of the last six races at the Island. By the latter stages the big mover was Marco Melandri, who got past Rea and then was able to hunt down Sykes and overtake him with four to go, but the number 66 took second nevertheless - his best ever Island result.

“It’s a great start to the season, I was just saying to the guys I had a smile on my face from start to finish,” grins Sykes. “In those windy conditions I’ve always struggled, but fair play to Kawasaki and the guys, we’ve got a great package. I enjoyed the race! I knew Marco would be there at the end and I tried to break him at about two thirds distance, but he just had a bit better tyre.”

Sykes says he it was in the last five laps where he began to suffer, after reversing the normal modus operandi of racing at the Island – biding your time until a last attack - and instead keeping the pace hot from the off. “I just ran out of rear tyre with five laps to go. It’s a shame but probably down to the wind - I was using the edge of the tyre too much to finish the corners and we just overcooked it.”

Still, a best ever result at Phillip Island is a good start to the year. And, with it coming in the first race, that also makes it the Yorkshireman’s best ever start to the season – with Sykes having taken two fifths to begin his title winning campaign in 2013.

“I’m happy for second,” he reiterates, “and tomorrow we’ll try and improve. But this is the strongest start to the season for me in my career, so things are looking good.”

source: worldsbk.com

Tom Sykes has taken the first pole position of the year at Phillip Island, lighting up the Australian venue with red sectors to take his 43^rd pole position and equal Aussie legend Troy Corser.

The Yorkshireman is joined on the front row by Eugene Laverty – who was third fastest on Friday – and Marco Melandri.

With wind causing some difficulties for the field, there was an early Red Flag when Friday’s fastest Lorenzo Savadori took a tumble, heading off to the Medical Center before the session restarted.

Then the man who had been just behind the Italian on the timesheets on Friday, Leon Camier, also crashed out – rider ok but unable to complete a lap – before Alex Lowes and Superpole 1 graduate Jordi Torres followed suit and slid out.

Behind the top trio it was Lowes, however, who was able to bounce back to line up fourth, with expected Championship contender Chaz Davies in P5 and moving up significantly in Superpole compared to a more difficult Friday on the timesheets.

Next up, it’s the reigning World Champion: Jonathan Rea, who was fifth fastest on Friday, will be starting the first race of his title defence from sixth – unable to improve on his first effort and almost a second off teammate Sykes. With Rea’s incredible form coming through the field in Race 2 with that grid format, can he do the same in Race 1?

Xavi Fores heads up Row 3, just ahead of Michael van der Mark as the Dutchman starts seventh. Toprak Razgatlioglu completes that third row, with the Turkish rookie impressive and having moved through Tissot-Superpole 1 in his first weekend of the year.

Savadori is P10 after his crash, with Camier P11 and Torres in twelfth to complete those who weren’t able to set a lap.

source: worldsbk.com