Ducati’s Alvaro Bautista left it late to set the fastest time in the final Motul FIM Superbike World Championship practice session at Donington Park this morning (Saturday).

The Spaniard’s time of 1m27.636s is the fastest of the event so far, 0.003s quicker than Jonathan Rea’s effort from yesterday. Yamaha’s Toprak Razgatlioglu ran him close in the session as times tumbled late on, finishing just 0.144s behind.

Kawasaki’s Rea was third fastest having topped the times early on, and a tenth ahead of Yamaha’s Andrea Locatelli, with local man Alex Lowes fifth having led the times on several occasions.

Axel Bassani was next up for Motocorsa Racing, a couple of tenths clear of BMW’s Scott Redding, with teammate Tom Sykes just behind in eighth.

Garrett Gerloff (BMW) and Philipp Oettl (Ducati) completed the top-10 heading into qualifying at 14.00.

Times improved rapidly as the session went on, with the surface damp in patches, but drying out during the half hour.

Motul FIM Superbike World Championship, Donington Park, Free Practice 3 result:
1. Alvaro Bautista, Aruba.it Racing Ducati, 1m27.636s
2. Toprak Razgatlioglu, Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK, +0.144s
3. Jonathan Rea, Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK, +0.617s
4. Andrea Locatelli, Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK, +0.730s
5. Alex Lowes, Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK, +0.819s
6. Axel Bassani, Motocorsa Racing, +1.188s
7. Scott Redding, ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team, +1.343s
8. Tom Sykes, ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team, +1.386s
9. Garrett Gerloff, Bonovo Action BMW, +1.563s
10. Philipp Oettl, Team GoEleven, +1.889s

Click here for full result. 

Tickets for the Motul FIM Superbike World Championship at Donington Park are available upon arrival at gate prices all weekend, with free entry for children under-13. For more information, click here.