After drawing first blood in the opening race of the year at Aragon, Rea played second fiddle to Bautista for the remainder of the weekend, unable to put up much of a fight to the 37-year-old once the latter had gained confidence on the Ducati Panigale V4 R.
Rea previously had to overcome a serious challenge from Bautista during the Spaniard’s first spell with Ducati in 2019, when he annihilated the competition in the early part of the season with 11 victories on trot – some by a margin of over 15 seconds.
However, Rea doesn’t think Bautista and Ducati can be as dominant as they were three years ago, explaining how much progress Kawasaki has made with the ZX-10RR during this period.
“In 2019 I didn’t get to race too much with Alvaro because either I was winning or he was winning by a long way,” he said. “This year I think can be a lot closer. I feel good with my bike. The operating margin, the window, is wider than last year.
“Today I was able to outbrake Toprak…
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