Friday

Philipp becomes familiar with the Donington Park layout.

Busy day for Philipp Oettl and Team Go Eleven on the amazing ups and downs of Leicestershire; the German rookie was on the track for the first time at Donington, and in a short time he had to regain confidence with the V4-R, find the right lines and the right set-up for the rest of the weekend. Overall, Friday was quite positive, with a lot of work done especially on used tyres (only two tyres in two session), and a good speed shown in the first three sectors, while something is still missing in the two final braking corners.

In FP 1 Philipp entered with the hardest compound available at the rear, with the aim of making as many laps as possible, to learn about the tricks of Donington Park, a track that is always difficult and complicated to face for the first time. For the whole session he placed himself close to the Top Ten, constantly improving the references and asking only for small set-up adjustments; the last sector is the weak point, the one in which the number 5 rookie has the most effort, especially in stopping the bike. These are two very slow first gear corners, where acceleration and good braking combine to characterize one of the most famous sectors of the entire Championship. Towards the end of the session, some protagonists tried a time attack, but Philipp preferred to finish the set of tyres he had at the beginning of the session.

Free Practice 1: 
P 1   T. Razgatlioglu   1. 27.805
P 2   J. Rea   + 0.134
P 3   M. Rinaldi   + 0.241
…
P 10   P. Oettl   + 1.108

In FP 2 the cyan-colored Ducati of the Go Eleven team entered the track with the SCX, a tyre that will probably be the best choice for the race; in the first laps, unfortunately Philipp made some mistakes, also often finding himself in traffic and was unable to complete a clean lap. The best time was obtained in the twelfth lap, practically halfway through the race, dropping below 29.0. Surely, using maximum grip, he could have been three or four tenths faster, but on Friday the time is not so crucial. On the final, Oettl did not want to change tyres, saving one for tomorrow morning, still running with excellent times in view of the final of the two “Main Races”. The last sector, once again, is a weak part, which the technicians will work on tonight today, as it is also one of the few overtaking hotspots here in Donington. The German rider, however, said he was satisfied with the work and his pace, not complaining of particular discomfort in his right shoulder, which is a good feeling for the weekend races.

Free Practice 2:
P 1   J. Rea   1.27.016
P 2   T. Razgatlioglu   + 0.551
P 3   S. Redding   + 0.582
…
P 14   P. Oettl   + 1.697

Tomorrow, it is already time for the most crucial session of the weekend; the Superpole! Here in Donington especially, a good qualifying could be the anticipation of an excellent race; as always, however, a few thousandths will make the difference between one row and the other … so we’ll update tomorrow!

Update:
Philipp will be penalized by three positions on the starting grid for Race 1 for impeding Toprak during FP 2, while the German proceeded slowly on the track. Oettl immediately apologized, not having seen the opponent coming, but the misunderstanding, fortunately, did not cause any kind of accident.

Philipp Oettl (Rider): 
Today it was not so bad! We used one tyre per session today, so we didn’t look for the time attack. In the afternoon it was important to do many laps with the SCX, because it’s the first time for me here in Donington. I am really confident tomorrow we can improve our laptime, and I will try to focus on the Superpole as we will have a small penalty, too. We will try our best!”

Denis Sacchetti (Team Manager):
“I think Philipp has adopted a right strategy, to ride with used tyres in both sessions trying to get to know and understand this track as best as possible, which is short, but very particular, in true English style. This is why it must be interpreted and aiming for the time today would have been useless. But on the track I saw him riding well, and if we fix the last sector we can fight for the top positions. I am sorry for the penalty, Philipp did not impede Toprak voluntarily, from the Race Direction video it is clear, but rightly we need to lead by example, so we share the decision of the FIM.”

Saturday

Positive qualifying, with race one close to the top 10.

Positive Saturday for Team Go Eleven and Philipp Oettl at Donington Park, where the German rider managed to come back in Race 1 after a penalty of three positions on the grid and a not very strong first lap, bringing him close to the Top Ten.

The morning started in the right way for the Piedmontese team; rookie number 5 tested two new rear tyres, but without taking advantage of the maximum grip offered by the SCQ, managing to clearly improve his laptime compared to Friday. Overall, Philipp feels quite well on the Ducati V4-R here at Donington, managing to be very determined and fast, especially in the first half of the track.

Free Practice 3
P 1   G. Gerloff   1.26.877
P 2   L. Baz   + 0.324
P 3   J. Rea   + 0.494
…
P 9   P. Oettl   + 0.807

In Superpole Philipp made a first lap remaining rather cautious, to set a lap and better understand the conditions of the track; today it was much warmer, forcing the riders to adapt their style accordingly. In the second attempt, however, he manages to give everything, showing excellent first two sectors, then defending himself in the second half of Donington; he ends in P 11, rather satisfied. As usual, with just one tenth better, we could have climbed a row, but it’s still a good starting position.

Superpole: 
P 1   J. Rea   1.26.080
P 2   A. Lowes   + 0.273
P 3   T. Razgatlioglu   + 0.426
…
P 11   P. Oettl   + 1.256

Race 1, as anticipated yesterday, saw the Go Eleven rider take off from fourteenth place, following the penalty obtained in FP 2. The sprint was not so bad, but then during the first lap Philipp suffered several overtakes from a couple of slower riders. Quickly getting rid of Haslam and Mikhalchik’s BMW, Oettl set his pace at 28, closing the gap on the riders ahead of him. From mid-race onwards he manages to overtake Vierge, Mahias and Mckenzie, chasing the factory number 55 Yamaha. Philipp manages to close up to the 1.5s gap, but has to close in P 11, just outside the Top ten. Once again, very close to the goal, but we must be satisfied with the growingprocess of the young German. For tomorrow, both the rider and the technicians are aware of the areas where improvement is needed; it takes very little, now, to enter the ten, even here Donington, where Philipp has much less experience than his opponents!

Race 1: 
P 1   T. Razgatlioglu   33’46.954
P 2   J. Rea   + 6.397
P 3   A. Lowes   + 9.499
…
P 11   P. Oettl   + 31.467

Philipp Oettl (Rider): 
“Today we had a better start compared to the previous races, then the first corner it was not easy. I was quite far behind, but I could catch up a little bit and overtake other riders. Tomorrow, starting eleventh, and repeating the start of today, we can fight for the Top ten and try to improve our grid position for Race 2. Our potential is to fight inside the Top ten, we showed it this morning, we were strong. In qualifying we had the same result as Assen, so that was not bad. I am half happy, half sad, because I always expect more, but we took point and overall, it was a solid result.”

Denis Sacchetti (Team Manager):
“Today we expected a difficult race, the track is not favorable for us, we were unable to improve the last sector all the weekend long, our only weak point here at Donington, and we also had a penalty to serve. But we are happy because Philipp had a good race, he got the maximum possible, he made no mistakes and we have confirmed that his physical condition is back to 100%. We believe we have found some points to work on, which could help us to improve tomorrow, and this is a very positive thing, the team is giving their all and all together we are doing a great job.”

Sunday

Improvement on the race pace.

Solid Sunday in Donington Park for Philipp Oettl! After a convincing Warm Up, the two races have shown the progress made, despite having only touched the goal of this Round, the top ten positions.

The Warm Up saw the German rider in good shape, immediately seeming at ease with the changes made. during the session he set a good pace on the low 28, showing himself satisfied at the end of the session and charged up for the races.

Warm Up:
P 1   T. Razgatlioglu   1.27.390
P 2   J. Rea   + 0.011
P 3   A. Bautista   + 0.123
…
P 10   P. Oettl   + 1.016

In Superpole Race Philipp starts well, defending the 11th position, and goes in pursuit of Gerloff and Baz, fighting for the last available place which allows him to improve the starting position for Race 2. The pace is very fast, all the riders at the front, apart from the Ducatis and the Hondas, opted for the Q at the rear, managing to have more grip in the first laps. The German rider, however, manages to keep the duo’s in front pace, but he lacks a tenth per lap that would allow him to ignite the battle. He ends a good race eleventh, especially with an improved feeling in the last sector and also on the race pace compared to the race on Saturday.

Superpole Race: 
P 1   T. Razgatlioglu   14’35.464
P 2   J. Rea   + 1.089
P 3   S. Redding   + 3.889
…
P 11   P. Oettl   + 1.256

In Race 2 Philipp was unable to make the same start of the morning, losing three positions. In the first two laps, however, he immediately entered with decision on Vierge and Haslam, managing not to waste too much time, then he set his pace, riding on excellent times, about 28.5 and entering the fight for the top 10. With Baz, Gerloff and Lecuona has a great battle, exchanging positions several times over the 24 laps of the race, and perhaps the Go Eleven rider seems to have a few decimals in his pocket. Once he got behind the Honda Spaniard, however, he was unable to carry the attack, and in the meantime the rear tyre suffered a small drop. In the last five laps he struggled a bit, being overtaken by Baz and Gerloff, and taking home the twelfth position; although the position is worse than yesterday, the race was much faster and more competitive for Philipp, who found himself fighting with highly experienced riders who have already achieved at least one podium in SBK.

Race 2: 
P 1   T. Razgatlioglu   33’48.407
P 2   A. Bautista   + 1.102
P 3   J. Rea   + 2.615
…
P 12   P. Oettl   + 24.142

Once again, the Top Ten faded right at the end, but today the step forward was remarkable, even considering the final gap from the first (about 8 seconds less). For Philipp it was the first time at Donington, and, overall, on one of the most difficult tracks for Ducati and for the German rider, the races went in the books with three solid results. The next stop is in Most, in two weeks, a track that Philipp particularly likes. In between, we are waiting for you all at WDW in Misano, from 22nd to 24th July!

Philipp Oettl (Rider): 
“Today I think we made a step in the right direction, I wanted the Top Ten so so hard, I thought today in Race 2 we could achieve it, but we finished so close! I learned quite a bit compared to yesterday, I think in Most we can make a step forward. We know what is our level; in the practice session we were in the Top Ten, in the races sometimes we miss something. I am trying to stabilise the start, overall this weekend it was better than the previous races. Two starts were ok, in Superpole Race we a made a strong first lap, too. The overtakes are not a problem, we did a lot this weekend, too, but I think being for the first time here didn’t help us so much, even if we had three solid races.”

Denis Sacchetti (Team Manager):
“I am satisfied with today’s races, but not happy. Philipp has improved a lot, both the start and his speed, he ran Race 2 in 9 seconds less than yesterday, while the others took the same time, and this is the best data, because it means that the work we are doing is on the right path and Oettl is growing and learning fast. He did a good battle, but we didn’t manage to get 9th position, it was a shame, but he did his maximum so that’s okay. We have to continue on this line, our goals are high, and the important thing is to get there, without rushing us or putting too much pressure! “