Leon Haslam’s success marks milestone for Italian manufacturer.

Not only was Leon Haslam’s Phillip Island Race 2 victory his first in WorldSBK for five years, but it was also a significant achievement for Aprilia as the marque celebrated its half-century of race wins in WorldSBK. The first had come courtesy of Troy Corser and was also clinched at Phillip Land, early in the 2000 season.

“After a long winter during which the guys in the racing department worked hard, we arrived here at Phillip Island with a lot of question marks,” explained Romano Albesiano, Aprilia Racing Manager. “These were all erased by this fantastic Sunday on which Leon came so close to bringing home a double win, in any case putting in an excellent result in his first races with the RSV4.

“This promises to be a very well-balanced season, with several riders in contention for the win, but I believe that our performance today once again confirms our competitiveness. Leon showed incredible courage and determination today, while Torres continues to improve and has already reached an enviable level for a rookie in this category.”

Haslam now shares the championship lead with former team-mate and Race 1 winner Jonathan Rea, as the pair of English riders have both scored 45 points.

“This race brings back great memories,” 31-year-old Haslam commented. “My last win was at Kyalami in 2010 after a great battle with Rea. My compliments to my team. They did a great job all weekend. In Race 1, I unfortunately made a mistake, but luckily I felt like I had a wide enough margin and I was able to rejoin the pack and finish second in the final dash by just a few thousandths. I started Race 2 even more motivated to win. Despite feeling like I had less ‘reserve’ after the halfway point, everything went according to plan. In the last turn I opened up the throttle at the right time and I realised that I had overtaken Rea straight away right on the finish line. I am truly happy to finally be back on the top step of the podium!”

New team-mate Jordi Torres also impressed. Despite crashing out of the second race while running in the front group, the Spaniard began his weekend with fourth position in the first encounter.

“This was a Sunday on which I learned a lot,” Torres reported. “In the first race we performed well. I was fast from the start and I learned a lot about tyre wear and what sort of riding style to use to conserve it; you have to avoid leaning all the way over and be very careful on the gas - a lesson that I was putting to good use in Race 2.

“Unfortunately, Sykes really brakes hard so I struggled to overtake him and, just when I thought I could do it, I pushed too hard and crashed. I need to take away all the good we did this weekend and stay calm. I can be fast but I need to improve the way I manage the race.”

Having successfully wrapped up victory number 50, Aprilia moves on to Round 2 of the World Championship with the Chang Thai Round on 22 March.