Team HRC keen for a positive Portimão round
Team HRC and factory riders Iker Lecuona and Xavi Vierge are busy making final preparations for the round seven of the 2024 Superbike World Championship, taking place at the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve in Portimão, Portugal, this coming weekend.
The sixth round in the Czech Republic brought a step in the right direction for the Team HRC riders, both of whom were able to fight well within the top ten. The duo is eager to see whether the progress made at Most can translate into stronger results this coming weekend. Having experienced symptoms relating to arm pump during the latest round, Vierge returned to Barcelona and underwent surgery on his right forearm to resolve this. Having worked hard since the surgery, the Spaniard is now almost back to full fitness.
Last year’s Portuguese event ran in almost ideal conditions with Lecuona scoring a best of fifth in the Superpole race and Vierge ninth. A change to the calendar sees the 2024 edition take place in the height of summer and so the organisers have decided to alter the schedule accordingly, with the Superbikes races set to run later in the day, at 6pm, on both Saturday and Sunday.
The very first international event to be held at the AIA was World Superbike, back in 2008 in the circuit’s inaugural year. Measuring 4592 metres in length, the track is made up of 15 turns, nine right-handers and six left-handers. It is located in the Algarve, almost 300 km south of Lisbon, an area very popular with international tourists, particularly at this time of year.
Weekend Schedule Local Time (CET -1):
Friday
13.15 – 14.00 – SBK Free Practice 1
18.00 – 18.45 – SBK Free Practice 2
Saturday
12.10 – 12.30 – SBK Free Practice 3
14.45 – 15.00 – Superpole
18.00 – SBK Race 1
Sunday
12.00 – 12.10 – SBK Warm-up
14.45 – Superpole race
18.00 – SBK Race 2
Xavi Vierge 97
“Soon after the last round at Most, I underwent surgery on my right arm to address the arm pump problem that had been troubling me since the Donington round. Fortunately, the surgery went very well, thanks to Dr. Mir and all the staff at the Dexeus University Hospital. Since the operation, I’ve been busy with physiotherapy and training in the gym, working to recover as quickly as possible for Portimão. I haven’t experienced much pain and have made very positive progress each day. On Tuesday, I had a check-up to remove some stitches. The doctors confirmed that the recovery is going very well, and I hope to be close to full fitness for the weekend. We arrive in Portimão with a lot of positives from the last race, and the track itself is usually a good one for us. It’s nice to have a different race schedule, and I think it will be exciting for us and the fans to experience something new. So, let’s keep the momentum going and do our best to score a good result.”
Iker Lecuona 7
“At Most, we ended the weekend on a positive note, fighting for around P7 and feeling comfortable enough on the bike. It would be great to start out on the right foot on Friday at Portimão and realise our potential as quickly as possible, which would give us a better chance of fighting in the qualifying and races. We will have a different time schedule, which could be fun - no early wake-up call on race day - but I don’t think it will make a significant difference on track. I like the Portimão circuit, so let’s wait and see what we can achieve.”
Location Information
Autódromo Internacional do Algarve Sitio do Escampadinho, Mexilhoeira Grande, 8500-148 Portimão, Portugal autodromodoalgarve.com
| Pole Position | Right |
| Length | 4.592 Km |
| Corners | 15 |
| Right Corners | 9 |
| Left Corners | 6 |
Records
| Pole Record | 1'39.610 (165,959 Km/h) J. Rea (Kawasaki ZX-10RR, 2022) |
| Race Record | 1'39.826 (165,600) T.Razgatlioglu (Yamaha YZF R1, 2023 - SPRC) |
| All Time Record | 1'39.610 (165,959 Km/h) J. Rea (Kawasaki ZX-10RR, 2022) |
| 2024 Race 1 Winner | T.Razgatlioglu (BMW M 1000 RR) |
| 2024 Superpole Race Winner | T.Razgatlioglu (BMW M 1000 RR) |
| 2024 Race 2 Winner | T.Razgatlioglu (BMW M 1000 RR) |
