REA RETURNS TO FIGHTING FORM ON DAY 1 AT MAGNY COURS

Jonathan Rea ended the opening day of Round 8 of the 2024 FIM Superbike World Championship, which resumed today after the summer break, at Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours in France, in eighth place.

Rea encountered small issues during Friday’s first Free Practice session, but together with his crew was able to overcome them to end the day in positive spirits ahead of the main races to come on Saturday and Sunday. 

Rea was satisfied with the work completed today but is hoping to continue improving his set-up in tomorrow’s FP3 session, checking off a full assessment of the three rear tyre options available from Pirelli this weekend as well. 

Following the 20 minute Free Practice 3, which takes place at 09:00 (GMT +2),  Rea and Pata Prometeon Yamaha will tackle the crucial Superpole qualifying at 11:00 ahead of Race 1 at 14:00. 

Jonathan Rea: P8 – 1'36.778

“We got a bit lucky and unlucky today! Lucky with the weather because it stayed dry even though the clouds have been hanging over us all day, but we managed to get some good track time. This morning, unfortunately we had a small technical issue that kept us in the garage a little more than we would have liked. We maximised FP2 though and made positive changes every time we exited the box. I found an acceptable rhythm, but we have to improve, we have to improve the bike and we have ideas on how to do that for tomorrow. Some clear areas, like just stopping the bike in the last part of the braking phase, but for Day 1 I feel satisfied with the work that we’ve done. Looking forward to tomorrow, keeping one eye on the weather because it looks quite inconsistent. In the dry we’re almost ready and understand the different tyre options that Pirelli brought. I am enjoying riding the bike, even if the set-up is not perfect yet, I’m enjoying it. Step-by-step, hopefully we can improve a little bit tomorrow to be prepared for the race.”