Jonathan Rea fifth in final race after high-speed crash as Alvaro Bautista clinches dominant World Superbike treble at Catalunya

Kawasaki rider Rea slid out at the end of the long front straight in the earlier Superpole race as Toprak Razgatlioglu overtook the Ulster rider on the brakes into Turn 1 at the start of the final lap.

It was a fast spill for six-time champion Rea, who fortunately escaped unhurt. Light rain was falling at the time, which could have contributed to his downfall.

However, the 36-year-old had to start race two from 10th place on the grid, leaving Rea with a mountain to climb to reach the podium.

He dug deep and made his way through the pack, finally moving into fifth spot behind his Kawasaki team-mate Alex Lowes.

Reigning champion Bautista was completely dominant once more, with the Aruba.it Ducati rider hitting the front and gradually pulling away.

He won with ease to secure his third hat-trick in four rounds this season, with the 38-year-old also winning all 11 races he has finished on the all-conquering V4R Panigale. The only blot in Bautista’s copybook so far is a crash in the Superpole race in Indonesia.

The former MotoGP rider, who has signed an extension to his Ducati contract until the end of the 2024 season, looks untouchable as he continues to extend his lead at the top of the standings.

He now leads Toprak Razgatlioglu by 69 points, who mugged Bautista’s team-mate Michael Ruben Rinaldi on the exit of the final corner on the last lap to snatch the runner-up spot.

Rinaldi looked certain to finish second for an Aruba.it Ducati one-two, but the Italian lost ground rapidly due to rear tyre fade.

Rea, who clinched a podium in third on the Kawasaki in Saturday’s opening race, is 136 points behind Bautista after four rounds.

The Ballyclare man has reiterated the need for a major update from Kawasaki to allow him to challenge Bautista and the Ducati.

In a revision of the rev limit rules, it was confirmed on Thursday that Ducati’s limit was reduced by 250 rpm with ‘immediate effect’, while Kawasaki elected to use five concession points to benefit from a 250 rpm increase.

But on the weekend’s evidence, it made little difference as Bautista left his rivals trailing in his wake.

His winning margin over Razgatlioglu in race two was 8.5s, with Rea a further four seconds back as he crossed the line in fifth.

Xavi Vierge rounded out the top six on the factory Honda while British Superbike champion Bradley Ray claimed the final point in 15th on the Motoxracing Yamaha.

On Saturday, Bautista won the opener by 8.8s from Razgatlioglu, who passed Rea at the start of the last lap to secure second place.

In the Superpole race, Bautista was 2.1s ahead of Razgatlioglu at the finish after 10 laps, with the Turkish rider’s Yamaha team-mate, Andrea Locatelli, in third after Rea’s crash at the start of the last lap.

The fifth round of the championship takes place at Misano in Italy from June 2-4.