Misano SBK report card: the grades for teams and riders at the 2023 Italian GP

The Misano weekend is done and dusted. In front of a decent crowd – more than 70,000 spectators across the three days over a weekend where there were no shortage of events in the Romagna region – the Superbike put on a show, despite the domination of Alvaro “Verstappen” Bautista, who refutes any comparisons with the Dutch driver but who continues to clock up win after win.

Bautista is in a league of their own, as they say, while the “human league” was fronted by Toprak Razgatlioglu, stoic in battling the Ducati fleet, while his future bike – the BMW – saw the top ten thanks to Garrett Gerloff. There were highs and lows for the Italians, starting with the lively duo that is Axel Bassani and Michael Rinaldi.

Misano report card

Alvaro Bautista 10: whether red or yellow, the number 1 Ducati continues to set the benchmark, though its rivals only see it in the first laps of the races, after which the Spaniard breaks away and disappears. He continues to break records. Untamable.

Toprak Razgatlioglu 9: he battled the Ducati armada armed only with his talent and on-the-limit braking. The result was a trio of podiums and, despite disappointment in the Superpole Race, the Turk clearly enjoyed a very successful weekend.

Axel Bassani 8: the Italian was waiting for his first podium of the season like a kid waiting for his gifts on Christmas morning, and destiny saw to it that Misano was the stage for this success. The usual hunger, together with a little luck, over a weekend where he never found quite the right setup.

Michael Ruben Rinaldi 6: can a DNF cancel out the good work done previously? In terms of the circumstance, yes, perhaps, but he still proved fast across the whole weekend. With a little more consistency, it would all be a lot easier and more rewarding. 

Dominique Aegerter 6: it was all smooth sailing until Saturday, the Swiss rider proving to be a consistent frontrunner. But Sunday brought bad luck in the Superpole Race, after which he just wasn’t himself in race 2.

Luca Vitali 6: he accepted the offer to ride for team Orelac at the last minute and achieved his dream of competing in Superbike. Technical problems held him back, but he definitely didn’t show himself up.

Redding and Lecuona fail

Scott Redding 5: who knows if he’ll be with BMW again next year. For now, there is still no sign of results, and the feeling is that there's less and less enthusiasm. Never in the top ten. The curtain drops.

Phillip Oettl 5.5: the friendly German still needs to take that step up if he wants a starring role, but ninth place in race 2 is perhaps a sign of progress.

Iker Lecuona 5: he had said that Misano would be a tough round, and he wasn't wrong. But there were external issues in addition to the objective difficulties, an accident in the Superpole Race putting a premature end to his weekend.