Rea: “It’s f***ing impossible” to stop Bautista, “not consuming the rear tyre”

Rea started on pole after breaking the lap record in the Superpole session, but after an early battle with Bautista and Toprak Razgatlioglu, the six-time WorldSBK champion had no answer. 

The Kawasaki rider managed to hold off Danilo Petrucci in the fight for third, however, in the early stages Rea was hoping for more after feeling comfortable behind Razgatlioglu.

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"When Toprak was in the front I felt really comfortable to be there, enough to want to go past him and have clear air," said Rea. "In the middle of the race, when Alvaro got in front the pace was faster. 

"He was doing mid 26s and I was struggling in the low 27s. In that situation I was trying harder, trying to brake on the limit and maybe overcooking it by a small margin. 

"There is so much grip from the track. The rear traction was good but was pushing me into the corners. 

"There’s not that sensation where you can drift the bike into the corner if you have a bit more front brake. 

"I was applying the front brake and the rear wasn’t moving. If you pulled the front brake anymore you were gonna crash. We just need some more margin from the bike."

Then when talking about Bautista, who romped home for a 15th win of the season from 16 races, Rea was left giving the Spaniard huge praise. 

Rea added: "It’s f***ing impossible. When he passed Toprak, Toprak was lining him up again in the straight, and when I saw the grip on the right side and his acceleration - Toprak is Toprak and I thought he was gonna pass him into the chicane - then when I saw them on the straight he was miles away. 

"How can you manage like that? It’s impossible. The funny thing is he was not consuming the rear tyre. He’s doing incredible."