Bautista to fought out an exciting duel with Toprak Razgatlioglu as he sealed his second WorldSBK title and a treble winning success at Jerez.
With the title wrapped up in Race 1, everything was a bit more laid back in the remaining two races but that still meant the bragging rights were there for the taking to end the 2023 season.
The Turkish rider crossed the line inches ahead but was demoted to second for an infringement on the last corner.
The race stewards ruled that Razgatlioglu, in his final race for Yamaha before moving to BMW for next season, had touched the green line even though his manoeuvre did not appear to gain him any advantage.
Bautista’s treble left him with an astonishing 27 wins 36 races during the campaign in addition to 31 podium positions.
Dominque Aegerter completed the top three after becoming the first Swiss rider to secure a World Superbike podium spot when taking second in the earlier sprint race.
After finishing third in the sprint race, Rea looked a man on a mission in the early laps of race two before coming to grief on turn two during lap four.
Rea’s misfortune left Razgatlioglu in a hugely exciting duel with Bautista as they swapped the lead on several occasions before the dramatic and stewards-decided finish.
