María Herrera dominates and becomes the first winner of WorldWCR after turbulent race

María Herrera has made history as the first winner of the new Women’s Circuit Racing World Championship (WorldWCR). The inaugural race of the championship took place this Saturday in Misano, filled with drama and severe accidents.

The race was divided into three distinct parts due to two red flags. Herrera (Klint Forward) capitalized on her pole position, initially leading the race before being overtaken by Ana Carrasco (Evan Bros. Racing Yamaha) on the first lap.

However, Herrera reclaimed the lead on the second lap. Sara Sánchez (511 Terra&Vita Racing Team) was in third, followed by Beatriz Neila (Pata Prometeon Yamaha) in fourth and Roberta Ponziani (Yamaha Motoxracing WCR Team) in fifth, trailing the leading Spanish quartet.

The battle narrowed down to Herrera, Carrasco, Sánchez, and Neila. This was the situation when Mia Rusthen (Rusthen Racing) suffered a severe crash at Turn 16 on the fifth lap, prompting a red flag.

Due to scheduling issues, the race was resumed hours later. Herrera once again demonstrated her strength at the restart, maintaining her lead. However, Jessica Howden (Team Trasimeno) crashed heavily at Turn 2, necessitating another red flag.

Race Direction Info📋

Race red-flagged due to an incident at turn 2 involving rider Jessica Howden – Rider concious #WorldWCR #EmiliaRomagnaWorldWCR 🇮🇹 pic.twitter.com/diY4qt9aIM

— WorldWCR (@World_WCR) June 15, 2024

Upon the second restart, Herrera maintained her lead from pole position, with Carrasco and Neila following. On the first lap after the restart, Carrasco took the lead, but Herrera reclaimed it heading into Turn 1 on the second lap. A group of six riders formed, battling for the top positions.

Despite the fierce competition, the top three managed to fend off the challengers, with Sánchez leading the pursuit. In the final laps, Herrera and Carrasco pulled away, leaving Neila behind and battling for victory.

Carrasco made a pass in the final sector of the last lap, but Herrera responded, regaining the lead and securing victory by just 0,067 seconds. Neila lost two positions in the final moments, with Sánchez completing the podium ahead of Ponziani. Neila finished in fifth place.

Results:

#WorldWCR Race 1 results!🏁

1️⃣ @MariiaHerrera_6
2️⃣ @AnaCarrasco_22
3️⃣ Sara Sánchez #EmiliaRomagnaWorldSBK 🇮🇹 pic.twitter.com/J9eVTSv5r2

— WorldWCR (@World_WCR) June 15, 2024