After two largely frustrating seasons at Honda that yielded just three podiums and no victories, Bautista has returned to the factory Ducati squad with which he made his explosive WSBK debut back in 2019 this year, replacing Scott Redding.
The Spanish rider put in a strong performance in this week’s official test at Aragon, finishing third behind pacesetter Rea and 2021 champion Razgatlioglu after two days of running.
Although Rea finished three tenths clear of the rest of the field with a rapid lap at the end of Tuesday’s action on his Kawasaki, Bautista’s best time put him just 0.026s adrift of second-placed Razgatlioglu in the final order.
Low temperatures in testing meant that the Aragon test wasn’t the best indicator of the pecking order, especially with conditions expected to improve as the week progresses, but Bautista remains optimistic about his chances in an increasingly-competitive WSBK grid.
“Both [Rea and Razgatlioglu] are very strong,” said the 37-year-old….
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