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A strong fourth place in sight, Dominique Aegerter's retirement from the second race on Sunday due to another technical problem was even more bitter than the day before.

Day two of racing at picturesque Phillip Island had plenty of variety in store for all teams and riders. Light rain in the morning caused some concern for the first time. However, the track was mostly dry during the ten-minute warm-up session.

Shortly before the start of Race 2 at 2:30 p.m. local time, when the final preparations were already in full swing, it started raining again, but it didn't last long. There was a flurry of activity and nervousness on the starting grid regarding tyre selection. Dominique Aegerter and his Kawasaki WorldSSP Team took a risk, which quickly proved to be the right decision.

While most other riders started with rain tyres and settings and later had to pit for a tyre change, Aegerter benefited from his risk and worked his way up to fourth place. It seemed as if no one could challenge him for this position. But just like 24 hours earlier, his bike turned off on the final lap of the race. Instead of scoring his first World Championship points with Kawasaki, Aegerter now has to cope with double disappointment.

The championship moves over to Europe now with the next meeting in five weeks time in Portimao, Portugal.

#77 Dominique AEGERTER (Kawasaki WorldSSP Team, Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R 636)
Startplatz 23 / Rennen 2: NC

«First of all, I would say that we had quite a bit of bad luck this weekend. As far as today's race is concerned, we definitely made the right decision together with the team to start on slick tyres. Of course, in conditions like these, with constant scattered raindrops, the chances of success are always fifty-fifty. I think there were five or six other riders who made the same decision. I was in fourth place, but one lap before the end we had another technical problem. It is frustrating not to have scored any points with Kawasaki on the first race weekend here in Australia. But that is motorsport, technical problems can happen. However, it is very disappointing that it happened to me twice.»

«I am confident and fully trust that the team will work hard to find the causes and figure out what we can do differently to improve. We have a slightly longer break until the next race weekend to analyze the data collected here during the week, and we can also do some testing, as we really missed riding in dry conditions during the winter tests. Looking back, Phillip Island was a stressful weekend, and I hope that all the guys in our garage will be fully focused and 100 percent ready for Portimao, just as I will be. We need to keep thinking, stay strong together, and believe in ourselves. We can still have a great season because it was only the first weekend. Many thanks to the entire team for their efforts.»

#AustralianWorldSBK - WorldSSP Warm Up 2:
1 Can ÖNCÜ / TUR / Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing / Yamaha YZF R9 / 1´33.184
2 Alessandro ZACCONE / ITA / Ecosantagata Althea Racing Team / Ducati Panigale V2 / 1´33.430 +0.246
3 Roberto GARCIA / SPA / GMT94 Yamaha / Yamaha YZF R9 / 1´33.444 +0.260
…
15 #77 Dominique AEGERTER / SWI / Kawasaki WorldSSP Team / Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R 636 / 1´35.575 +2.391

#AustralianlWorldSBK - WorldSSP Race 2 (18 Laps):
1 Albert ARENAS / SPA / AS BLU CRU Racing Team / Yamaha YZF R9 / 29´19.159
2 Aldi MAHENDRA / IND / AS BLU CRU Racing Team / Yamaha YZF R9 / +4.937
3 Matteo FERRARI / ITA / WRP Racing / Ducati Panigale V2 / +13.967
…
NC #77 Dominique AEGERTER / SWI / Kawasaki WorldSSP Team / Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R 636

WorldSSP Standings:
1 Albert ARENAS / SPA / Yamaha / 38
2 Jaume MASIA / SPA / Ducati / 31
3 Matteo FERRARI / ITA / Ducati / 26
…
#77 Dominique AEGERTER / SWI / Kawasaki