The humidity in the air finally became light rain at the start of WorldSSP Superpole 2, with the session finally ending properly wet inall sectors. Lucas Mahias (GRT Yamaha Official WorldSSP Team) took pole, his third of the year, as he led home another Yamaha in the shape of the NRT R6 of Jules Cluzel.

Mahias was ahead by almost a second, but the sensation wasin seeing the retiring five times champion Kenan Sofuoglu (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) going third fastest, despite hislack of race fitness and recent track time.

Almosttwo seconds back in treacherous conditions, Friday fastest man Federico Caricasulo (GRT Yamaha Official WorldSSP Team) was fourth.

Moving up into SP2 from SP1, Rob Hartog (Team Hartog Against Cancer Kawasaki) was an excellent fifth, and the first ESS rider in the pre-race rankings.

Theperennially competitive LukeStapleford (Profile Racing Triumph) was the top three-cylinder rider on the grid, in sixth place.

Local impetus and huge experience saw former WorldSSPregular Massimo Roccoli (GAS Racing Team Yamaha) seventh as a wildcard, oneplace ahead of factory Kawasaki runner Hikari Okubo (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing).

Sandro Cortese (Kallio Racing Yamaha) wasninth, and the first MV in SP2 was that of Raffaele De Rosa (MV AgustaReparto Corse by Vamag) in tenth place. Randy Krummenacher (BARDAHLEvan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha) was 11th and Anthony West (EAB Antwest Racing Kawasaki) 17th after competing in SP1.

By Gordon Ritchie