Vierge eleventh in SBK Race 1 at Phillip Island; Lecuona deemed unfit after a crash during Superpole

The Honda HRC team and Vierge eleventh in the season-opener at Phillip Island, while Lecuona is unfortunately ruled out after sustaining a foot fracture in Superpole.

A final free practice gave riders Xavi Vierge and Iker Lecuona a final chance to make setup refinements ahead of the Superpole, with both factory riders also able to improve on their earlier references by a few valuable tenths. Having set a respective best of 1’30.011 and 1’30.196 during this brief 20-minute session, Xavi and Iker turned their attention to qualifying.

With just fifteen minutes in which to secure the best possible grid position for Race 1, Vierge and Lecuona made a determined start to the Superpole qualifying session. Luck was unfortunately not on Iker’s side today, with the rider crashing at Turn 9, just four minutes into this brief phase. The session was red-flagged and the rider taken directly to the medical centre for checks. Lecuona was assessed by the doctors and has unfortunately been deemed unfit to continue with the weekend, diagnosed with a fracture of the fourth metatarsal bone in his left foot.

Once the Superpole session resumed, with eleven minutes still on the clock, Vierge was able to put in a fastest time of 1’29.924. This result saw the Spaniard qualify twelfth, though just three tenths of a second from fifth, which demonstrates just how close the classification is. Vierge’s Superpole performance meant that he began the first Superbike race of the 2025 season from the fourth row of the grid.

The 20-lap race got underway at 16.00 local time (CET+10) in hot, sunny conditions, with much higher temperatures than in previous sessions (air 36°C, track 40°C) and with teams obliged to carry out a tyre change between the ninth and eleventh laps. Making a strong start, Vierge was quickly up into tenth, part of a tight group of six or seven riders. Battling with Iannone and the Lowes brothers, the Spaniard pitted to make the obligatory tyre change on lap ten. Placing tenth on his return to the track, Xavi battled hard with his closest rivals through the latter stages of the race, losing just a little ground in the final laps to close eleventh.

The Honda HRC team will conclude this season-opener on Sunday, when Vierge will return to the track for the Superpole race and Race 2.