IMOLA, Italy – Jonathan Rea kept his World Superbike rally going on Sunday by topping the 10-lap Superpole race at Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari for his second win of the season.
Sunday’s full-distance event was cancelled due to heavy rain, leaving only two of the three scheduled events complete during the Imola weekend, just as in Assen earlier on.
Rea, who had already snapped Alvaro Bautista’s 11-race win streak to open the season on Saturday, had a run for the lead right off the start on polesitter Chaz Davies, though he couldn’t capitalize after running wide at the left-hand Tosa corner.
However, Davies overshot the final chicane at the end of the opening lap, losing both the lead to Rea and second to Bautista as a result.
Rea began to escape into clean air on lap four, with Davies eventually re-passing Bautista for second when the latter ran wide at the Rivazza corner.
That was of no consequence to Rea, however, as he drove off to a two-second victory over the two Ducatis of Davies and Bautista.
Michael van der Mark crossed fourth for Yamaha, with the second Yamaha of Alex Lowes completing the top five.
Leon Haslam, Toprak Razgatlioglu, Tom Sykes, Jordi Torres and Markus Reiterberger finished sixth through 10th, respectively.
Sunday’s win was the record-extending 71st of Rea’s World Superbike career.