The Aruba.it Racing - Ducati team on the podium at Balaton on Saturday: Bulega second and Bautista third at the end of an exciting race

Race 1 of the Hungarian Round ended with a double podium for the Aruba Racing – Ducati team thanks to Nicolò Bulega's second place and Álvaro Bautista's third.

Starting from fourth place after a difficult qualifying session, the Italian rider found himself in traffic at the treacherous turn 1, finishing the first lap in sixth position. His comeback was relentless: between the second and seventh laps, Bulega first overtook Rea, then Bautista and Locatelli to move into second place after Lowes crashed out. The gap to Razgatlioglu (BMW) was already wide at that point (3.4 seconds), but Bulega pushed hard, finishing the race with a gap to the Turkish rider that was virtually unchanged. 

Bautista got off to a good start from seventh position and was fourth at the first corner. On the ninth lap, he successfully attacked Locatelli for third position, which he easily defended until the chequered flag.

Nicolò Bulega (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati #11)
"I admit I'm pleased with this result, especially in light of the difficulties we encountered yesterday. For this reason, I would like to thank the team who worked late yesterday to analyse the data and find a solution. Now we have a solid foundation to try to take another step forward that will allow us to fight for victory tomorrow".

Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #19)
“I am satisfied with the podium, even though I struggled to keep up with the leaders in the early laps. The extra weight does not help me, especially because it prevents me from pushing as hard as I would like. From the middle of the race, when the tank was a little emptier, I managed to find a good pace. We are doing our best and will continue to do so.”