Rea claims victory at Assen

It was his fifth victory at the 4.542km circuit, his 12th career Superbike success, and a superb follow-up to his third-place finish in race one.

Rea’s podium finishes extend his record of scoring at least one rostrum place each season at Assen since 2010, giving him a total of eight in 10 races over five years.

In Sunday’s first outing the 27-year-old didn’t have quite enough pace to match eventual winner, Sylvain Guintoli, with Tom Sykes finishing second.

The rain arrived for race two and after two start attempts Rea blazed to victory in a shortened 10-lap race which started two hours behind schedule.

He took the lead on the opening lap and kept his rivals at arms length, eventually crossing the line two seconds ahead Alex Lowes, with Ducati’s Davide Guigliano finishing third.

More in this week’s Times. Available on Wednesday.