Rea sees off Ducati threat to strengthen title bid

Jonathan Rea says he was focused on a ‘making no mistakes’ in his successful pursuit of a fifth consecutive World Superbike Championship victory at Laguna Seca.

The Kawasaki Racing rider is in the midst of a devastating run of form, one that shows no sign of abating with the series’ visit Stateside as Rea first powered to his third Superpole of the year before leading each lap on the way to victory in race one.

Anticipating a challenge from Ducati that failed to materialise as Chaz Davies’ softer tyre choice saw him fade eventually and Alvaro Bautista crashed out, Rea has now established a 49 point advantage in the overall standings.

“I felt my pace all weekend was solid. I could feel the Ducati riders getting closer but I still felt like I was the reference. I wanted to go at the beginning and put my head down from the start. I just had that small advantage of the grid position because I could come across and get track position into T1.

“It is a difficult track to pass so I just tried not to make any mistakes. It was very difficult in the beginning because the wind picked up a little bit more than this morning. Friday was very windy but Saturday not, so it took me a few laps to get my rhythm in the race.

“As boring as it is to say, it was a case of ‘make no mistakes, keep hitting my points and make my rhythm.’ Physically, I felt great and I could have ridden the bike all day long. The team gave me a good bike, very stable and I had a lot of mechanical traction at the start.”