Mahias Masters Tricky Conditions To Take WorldSSP Pole

Veteran shines in Czechia to lead the grid for the first time this season

In WorldSSP Superpole Qualifying, the 2017 WorldSSP Champion, Lucas Mahias (GMT94-Yamaha), took his ninth career pole position — and his first since the 2019 season. It was, as he was to say later, a day made for the experienced riders, especially in track conditions that were still not quite fully dry in some areas after earlier rainfall.

A rider at the other end of the experience scale, Can Öncü (Yamaha bLU cRU Evan Bros Racing), took his R9 to second place, but almost 0.6 seconds behind Mahias.

Top Ducati rider was Valentin Debise (Renzi Corse Ducati), in third place overall, holding off yet another Yamaha rider — championship leader Stefano Manzi (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) — for the final spot on the front row of the Race One grid.

The recovery of Philipp Öttl (Feel Racing WorldSSP Team Ducati) from his early season injury continues apace as he went fifth fastest overall, but a candidate for ride of the day came from Raffaele De Rosa (QJ Motor Factory Racing) in sixth place on his Chinese machine.

Marcel Schrötter (WRP Racing Ducati) placed seventh and Tom Booth-Amos (PTR Triumph Factory Racing) was eighth in Superpole.

The top ten was completed by Federico Caricasulo (Motozoo ME AIR Racing MV Agusta) and the once-more impressive Corentin Perolari (Honda Racing World Supersport).

P1 – Lucas Mahias – GMT94 Yamaha
“I’m really happy with pole position. The conditions in Superpole were the same as this morning so I waited until the last moment to switch to slicks. These aren’t my favourite conditions but I’ve learned to understand the bike’s limits better in these situations. During the first part of qualifying, I focused on improving my feeling in the wet, and I’m pleased with how much I managed to push. Pole position is a small but meaningful reward. I’m especially happy for the team because we came into the season with big ambitions. The first four rounds have been tougher than we expected. This result is a nice gift for everyone who’s been working so hard. Now we’ll try to carry this momentum into the race tomorrow.”

Czech WorldSSP Superpole