Watanabe Extends Points Lead At The 2014 PIRELLI Philippine Superbike Championship

The racing weekend began with Watanabe clocking in at first place during qualifying, leading to an eventual first place win, taking the chequered flag at 4.755 seconds ahead of Rainiel Resuello, on-board a Ducati. Crossing the line in 3rd was another Aprilia, piloted by Anthony Roman. Watanabe, with his fourth race win and fifth consecutive podium finish, now leads the standings with 122pts, 16 points ahead of Resuello’s 106pts.

Eventful and action-packed was just an understatement, as things went on higher heat down the pack, starting off with Charles Nolasco’s crash that prompted officials to temporarily stop the race. As the rubbles got cleared up, the race went on, only to be halted yet again with Marvin Mangulabnan, losing control and crashing. The race was continued once more, with both riders walking out with minor injuries, and Dashi Watanebe unhampered by all the mishaps that happened.

In the event presented by Petronas, finishing 4th overall and taking the Intermediate Class win was Rizaldy Canare, while clinching podium places in the Novice Class were Tracy Soyanco, TJ Alberto, and Lawrence Macalinao, placing 1st, 2nd, and 3rd respectively.

In what was an epic battle for podium places, these riders went on, swapping positions from the get-go, resulting to a hair-raising photo-finish

The motorcycle racing weekend was also the host for the 2014 FDR Underbone King Championships, and grabbing the top position in the 150cc Open Class was Team NHK-Racewell’s Tracy Soyanco, who crossed the line just a fraction of a second ahead of Herbert Lopez, John Emerson Inguito, and Masato Fernando. In what was an epic battle for podium places, these riders went on, swapping positions from the get-go, resulting to a hair-raising photo-finish, with just a mere 0.137sec gap between the 1st and 4th place. Securing the win in the 115cc Open Class was Vrei Ar Suba, while Aldeine Valencia claimed 1st in the 115cc Novice Class.

Things were just as intense in the 2014 FDR Scooter King Championship, with Masato Fernando claiming 1st place once again in the 180cc Class, ahead of Josh Reuben Tan in 2nd and Nicolo Ramos in 3rd, while in the 160cc and 130cc Classes,  Mark Indiongco and Maiko Adapon both won top honors.

Aside from these three race highlights, other support races were held. In the Moto-iR Championship, Team NHK-Racewell’s 1-2-3-victory by Herbert Lopez, Rizaldy Canare, and Ralph Kenneth Torres was the buzz, while in the Moto-iR2 Championship, Gio Adriano won 1st yet again.

The first-ever Kawasaki Ninja Cup One-Make-Race was also held during the race weekend, with Jeff Roxas, winning the Pre-Final and Dexter Canaveral taking the Finals win. TJ Alberto and Raymond Robertson were the top finishers in the two heats of the Club R Superbike club race, respectively.

For the other races, winners were Raseson Angeles in the MTRT Club race, McKinley Kyle Paz in the MTRT Cup 115cc Scooter Class and the Honda Dash Cup, and EJ Sobretodo in the Honda Beat Cup.

The 2014 PIRELLI Philippine Superbike Championship will enter its sixth and final round on October 4 and 5, this time at the Clark International Raceway. Don’t miss the action!