Motul FIM Superbike World Championship
Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca
Monterey, California, USA
July 9, 2016
Race One Results (all on Pirelli tires):
1. Jonathan REA, UK (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 25 laps, Total Race Time 35:18.180, Best Lap Time 1:23.525
2. Tom SYKES, UK (Kawasaki ZX-10R), -0.819 second, 1:23.526
3. Nicky HAYDEN, USA (Honda CBR1000RR SP), -12.296 seconds, 1:23.832
4. Michael VAN DER MARK, Netherlands (Honda CBR1000RR SP), -13.067, 1:24.247
5. Alex LOWES, UK (Yamaha YZF-R1), -13.335, 1:23.854
6. Lorenzo SAVADORI, Italy (Aprilia RSV4 RF), -13.816, 1:23.990
7. Xavi FORÉS, Spain (Ducati Panigale R), -15.541, 1:24.144
8. Jordi TORRES, Spain (BMW S1000RR), -15.838, 1:24.598
9. Alex DE ANGELIS, San Marino (Aprilia RSV4 RF), -19.999, 1:24.537
10. Niccolo CANEPA, Italy (Yamaha YZF-R1), -22.832, 1:24.800
11. Leon CAMIER, UK (MV Agusta 1000 F4), -24.065, 1:24.873
12. Anthony WEST, Australia (Kawasaki ZX-10R), -28.902, 1:24.815
13. Josh BROOKES, Australia (BMW S1000RR), -39.957, 1:24.819
14. Karel ABRAHAM, Czech Republic (BMW S1000RR), -46.552, 1:25.460
15. Roman RAMOS, Spain (Kawasaki ZX-10R), -55.791, 1:25.580
16. Dominic SCHMITTER, Switzerland (Kawasaki ZX-10R), -59.021, 1:26.042
17. Peter SEBESTYEN, Hungary (Yamaha YZF-R1), -1 lap, 1:26.971
18. Pawel SZKOPEK, Poland (Yamaha YZF-R1), -1 lap, 1:26.524
19. Gianluca VIZZIELLO, Italy (Kawasaki ZX-10R), -9 laps, DNF, retired, 1:26.512
20. Saeed AL SULAITI, Qatar (Kawasaki ZX-10R), -9 laps, DNF, crash, 1:26.366
21. Davide GIUGLIANO, Italy (Ducati Panigale R), -13 laps, DNF, crash, 1:23.747
22. Raffaele DE ROSA, Italy (BMW S1000RR), -13 laps, DNF, crash, 1:24.888
23. Chaz DAVIES, UK (Ducati Panigale R), -21 laps, DNF, crash, 1:23.443
World Championship Point Standings (after 17 of 26 races):
1. Rea, 368 points
2. Sykes, 297
3. Davies, 244
4. Van Der Mark, 176
5. Giugliano, 165
6. Hayden, 162
7. Torres, 145
8. TIE, Camier/Savadori, 110
10. Lowes, 92
More, from a press release issued by Dorna WSBK Press Office:
Laguna Seca: Day 2
Rea Reigns in the US of A
– KRT duo battle at the front as Kentucky Kid Hayden withstands the pressure for P3 –
Rea (Kawasaki) had never won at Laguna Seca; that fact now a thing of the past
Jonathan Rea has taken his first ever victory at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, beating teammate Tom Sykes into P2 with Nicky Hayden coming through under pressure to take the final spot on the rostrum.
Tom Sykes got away in the lead from pole, with the Yorkshireman leading Ducati’s Chaz Davies, who got a superb start from the second row to end Lap 1 in P2, ahead of Sykes’ KRT teammate Jonathan Rea. With the front three close together and the second Aruba.it bike of Davide Giugliano leading Honda’s home hero Nicky Hayden in the chase, Davies took the lead with 21 to go with last year’s double winner looking to make it three in a row, before the Welshman pushed too hard on the front and slid off into the gravel at Turn 6, out of contention.
With Rea and Sykes closer to Giugliano after Davies’ crash, the reigning Champion then recovered from having gone slightly deep into the Corkscrew and began to put the hammer down. Rea, who has never won at Laguna Seca and was only 0.055 off the Superpole-winning time set by teammate Sykes, showed great pace all weekend at the Californian track and began to pull away from Sykes, until a mistake at the Corkscrew once more saw the Northern Irishman soon lose the lead and forced to do the work again. Rea eventually crossed the line over a second clear to take his first victory at the US track, with Sykes in P2 and another World Champion completing the podium in P3.
Kentucky Kid, MotoGP Legend and Honda World Superbike Team rider Hayden had warned against expecting miracles at his home venue, aware of the competition around him, but put in a superlative ride under pressure at home to come home in P3, adding another podium to his impressive rookie tally.
Hayden’s teammate, 2014 WorldSSP Champion Michael van der Mark, moved up from P11 on the grid to hunt down the frontrunners and cross the line P4 after taking IodaRacing’s Lorenzo Savadori and Pata Yamaha’s Alex Lowes in the latter stages of the race. Lowes crossed the line in P5 and Savadori, who had never ridden at Laguna Seca, put in an impressive rookie ride to come home in the top 6, ahead of Barni Racing’s Xavi Forés and Althea BMW rider Jordi Torres. Alex De Angelis on the second Aprilia and Niccolo Canepa on the second Pata Yamaha completed the top ten.
Leon Camier moved up one place from his starting position after an interrupted Friday to come home P11, ahead of Pedercini’s Anthony West and the Milwaukee BMW pairing of Josh Brookes and Karel Abraham. Roman Ramos completed the top 15 for Go ELEVEN.
Race 2 sees lights out at the same time on Sunday at 14:30 local time (GMT -7), for another showdown around the 3.6km thrill of Laguna Seca.
P1 – Jonathan Rea @jonathanrea
Kawasaki Racing Team @KRT_WorldSBK
“The best thing about today is winning the Race here in the USA where the passion is so high. It feels like I made some mistakes so I’m quite mad with myself – mostly in braking – so that’s something to look into tomorrow; trying to get a bike that’s more stable. Tom did a really good job in the beginning to make the pace but we seemed to have the best package today and I’m happy to have brought it home.”
P2 – Tom Sykes @TheRealTomSykes
Kawasaki Racing Team @KRT_WorldSBK
“It was very easy to make a mistake and very windy. I think we did a good job at the beginning. I never felt comfortable with the rear traction but still we were able to make some good laps. I was able to regroup but I never quite had the package to fight with Jonathan. Credit where credit’s due and tomorrow we need to just find something with the package.”
P3 – Nicky Hayden @NickyHayden
Honda World Superbike Team @HondaWSBK
“It feels really good to be on the podium. I’m not ecstatic with my race – I had hoped to be faster than that – but you know what? We got on the podium. So thanks to my team and all my supporters – this is for them of course. I hope to be able to put up a better fight tomorrow.”
More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki:
Rea And Sykes Secure First And Second Places After Saturday Race
The first 25-lap FIM Superbike World Championship race of the Laguna Seca weekend was finally contested between eventual winner Jonathan Rea and his KRT team-mate Tom Sykes. Each had led the race on two occasions, with Rea upping his pace enough at the end to finish 0.819 seconds ahead Sykes. This was Rea’s first race win at the 3.610km long American venue.
From the start of the battle at the intense Laguna Seca circuit the action was close and combative. Overtakes were put in between the leading trio at the largely one-line circuit but on lap five podium challenger Chaz Davies fell and was unable to restart.
When the shadowing figure of Davide Giugliano also fell from third place the fight was on between Jonathan and Tom for the victory on their new model Ninja ZX-10R machines. Rea eased out his lead after re-passing Sykes with five laps to go. Pushing on in the dry but windy conditions, Jonathan recorded his eighth win of the season and the 37th of his career. His latest victory kept his 100% podium finishing record intact in the best possible way.
With Sykes close behind him at the flag Rea still extended his championship lead over his team-mate to 71 points – 368 to 297 – with one more race to come on Sunday at Laguna, before the start of the long summer break.
Earlier on Saturday Sykes had won Superpole to earn his seventh pole position starting place of the year, and the 37th of his career. Rea had qualified only 0.055 seconds behind and was second on the grid.
Jonathan Rea, stated: “I am super happy to have won here and now that we have had 25 laps on the bike in race conditions we have good information for tomorrow, to try and improve again. I am happy with the result but it was, honestly, not my most beautiful race because I made quite a lot of mistakes. I am sure when I watch it back I will be quite upset with myself but the most important thing is the 25 points for winning. That is good for everything – for the morale of the team and the championship. We have one more race tomorrow and it will be important to do a good job then before the start of the eight week summer break.”
Tom Sykes, stated: “I think overall we had a fairly good bike set up but we just struggled with the last part of the turns and over 25-laps it adds up. I had to compensate in some other areas and that was not ideal, especially in the windy conditions. I think I am happy enough and I could not do anything more. Jonathan rode a good race and we just couldn’t get that extra little bit. We need to find a small change in the set-up tomorrow to improve in one area. Overall, I was happy with the performance at the start of the race and made some good lap times in the windy conditions. I think we have room for improvement tomorrow. Second is the best we could do today and second is not a disaster! We can build on this.”
Behind the KRT podium riders Anthony West (Pedercini Racing Kawasaki) was 12th and scored valuable points. Roman Ramos (Team GOELEVEN Kawasaki) was also in the points in 15th place, with Dominic Schmitter (Grillini Racing Team Kawasaki) just one place behind. Neither Saeed Al Sulaiti (Pedercini Racing Kawasaki) nor Gianluca Vizziello (Grillini Racing Team Kawasaki) finished the race; Vizziello with a technical issue and Sulaiti fell at the infamous Corkscrew corner.
More, from a press release issued by Pata Yamaha:
Flying Fifth for Lowes in Laguna Race One
Race
Round nine of the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship truly got underway with a thrilling battle this afternoon as the Californian sun shone down on Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. Alex Lowes took his Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK to a fantastic fifth place in the first race on American soil with Niccolò Canepa scoring his third consecutive top-10 finish aboard the WorldSBK-spec YZF-R1.
A stunning start by Lowes saw him jump four positions in the opening lap as race one unfolded, holding sixth as he crossed the line after the first 3,610 meter dash. Maintaining his position for the initial laps the British rider joined the top-five on the fifth revolution, his sights set firmly on the podium. Picking up pace on his YZF-R1 as the mid-race distance approached, Lowes dug deep, repeatedly attempting a move on the third placed rider but failing to complete the pass successfully. The promise of a podium was not to be but with just a second separating him from third, Lowes met the flag in fifth position, collecting a further 11 points to retain his 10th place in the championship standings.
Commencing this afternoon’s race from the third row of the grid, Canepa initially held his ninth position strongly. Losing out on the second lap, the Italian was briefly demoted to 12th before immediately increasing his pace and hunting down the riders in front. Refusing to be beaten, Canepa pushed hard on his Pata Yamaha, regaining his grip on the top-10 by mid-race and maintaining position for the remainder of the 25-lap contest.
The Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team returns to Laguna Seca at 11:00 local time for Sunday’s warm-up session ahead of Lowes and Canepa’s final contest before the long summer break, on track at 14:30.
Alex Lowes
Race: 5th / +13.335 / 25 laps. Championship: 10th / 92 points
“It was a good solid race this afternoon, obviously there was a bit of pressure on after a disappointing qualifying from 10th, so overall I’m happy to be fifth. I felt like, with 10-15 laps to go, we could challenge for the podium but unfortunately I was struggling to pass and just couldn’t find the right place. I had a couple of attempts but unfortunately I just didn’t have the pace in the areas I needed to get the pass done. In the end it felt quite frustrating but really it was a solid race and we’re quite happy. I’m hoping if we can make a few changes to the bike to give me a bit more confidence in the areas that I need to get past people a bit easier, then I can really look forward to tomorrow.”
Niccolò Canepa
Race: 10th / +22.832 / 25 laps. Championship: 19th / 22 points
“It has been a very difficult race as we’ve been struggling all weekend to find the right set-up. We made some more changes for the race but they were maybe not so good, and we chose a different tyre to everybody else which was a little bit risky but I had nothing to lose so we tried to go for it. I think we have to rethink the changes and go back to an earlier set-up because the Superpole was better and choose the other tyre option for tomorrow. Anyway it was not so bad, we are still in the top ten, but I know the potential of the bike, the team and my own potential. I know that we can be faster here so we will keep working and I am confident that we will make an even better race for tomorrow.”
Paul Denning – Team Principal
“It’s been a challenging Saturday here at Laguna but both riders and team have made huge efforts to grind out the best possible results. The YZF-R1 has been incredible in qualifying trim all year so it was disappointing that we weren’t able to take advantage of the extra grip, resulting in ninth and tenth starting positions. Alex especially did an incredible job on the first lap to get up to sixth and fight for the podium from there onwards. Ultimately it’s a little disappointing to miss the first podium of the year by only a second but Alex struggled to pass Nicky who has more experience here than probably any other rider. Our focus for tomorrow will be to try and achieve more capability in the bike to allow Alex to make passes because he strongly believes that his pace over a clear lap could have seen him draw away and finish on the podium. Nonetheless it was a great effort and we will try and do more tomorrow.
“Niccolò rode a very consistent race, he’s disappointed with his 10th position result but coming in as a replacement rider to this championship is really not easy and there are some elements of the bike’s performance that we will work on to help his overall pace and consistency further tomorrow.”
More, from a press release issued by Aruba.it Racing Ducati:
Tough Race 1 for the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team in Laguna Seca
After having shown great competitiveness both during free practice and Superpole with its riders, the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team did not achieve the results it hoped for in Race 1 of the WorldSBK championship in Laguna Seca (USA). Both Chaz Davies and Davide Giugliano unfortunately crashed out while fighting for the podium in the leading group and were forced to retire.
Davies started off strong from fourth position on the grid, quickly moving up the ranks to take the lead in the beginning of lap 5, after posting the fastest lap with a 1:23.443. Unluckily, the Welshman lost the front shortly after, entering turn 7. Giugliano, who scored first row during Superpole with the third-best time, looked comfortable while chasing Rea and Sykes, showing a pace identical to that of the leading pair. During lap 14, however, the Italian crashed while changing direction at turn 8, better known as the Corkscrew.
Both riders, who did not suffer injuries, could not rejoin the race but will have a chance to bounce back in Race 2, scheduled for 14:30 local time (CET -9) on Sunday.
Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Superbike Team #7) – DNF
“I’m very disappointed. We got off a good start and we had a good pace from the very beginning. I didn’t feel on the limit but I felt the rear lock while on the brakes ahead of turn 7, and when it gained grip back the front loaded too much and I couldn’t do anything. We’ll try to bounce back tomorrow, given that we have good potential.”
Davide Giugliano (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Superbike Team #34) – DNF
“It’s been a difficult day, for the whole team. We had a pace worthy of the podium, if not more, but it’s useless to say that in retrospect. We’ll have to understand together with the team what caused the crash, because at that point of the race I wasn’t pushing 100 percent as I was trying to save the tyres. We have to move on and look forward, as tomorrow we’ll have another chance to score a good result.”
Ernesto Marinelli, Superbike Project Director
“Today was certainly frustrating for the whole team. Now we’ll sit down all together to pinpoint the causes of both crashes and learn from what happened today. Surely we had the potential to do well, so we’ll try to make the most of it with the necessary poise in order to recover in Race 2.”
More, from a press release issued by Honda World Superbike Team:
Podium for Hayden at Laguna with van der Mark a close fourth
Round 9 – USA
Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, United States
Nicky Hayden has crossed the line in third place at the end of a hard-fought, 25-lap opening World Superbike race in front of his home crowd at Laguna Seca. In doing so, the experienced American rider has claimed the third podium of his rookie WorldSBK season. Michael van der Mark was right behind his Honda WorldSBK team mate in fourth, after a great recovery from eleventh place on the grid.
Hayden got a great launch from row two and was fifth at the exit of turn one; while keeping a solid pace, he was promoted first to fourth and then to third as the two Ducati riders Davies and Giugliano crashed out of contention on lap five and thirteen, respectively. The 34-year-old from Owensboro, Kentucky, brilliantly held on to the final step of the podium despite the pressure from Alex Lowes and, in the final two laps of the race, by a resurgent van der Mark.
The young Dutchman was able to make up several positions in the early stages despite a small mistake on lap one and, as the race entered its second half, he joined the battle for third place. With a spectacular overtake on Lowes at turn two at the start of the penultimate lap, van der Mark moved up to fourth and set his sights on his team mate; he then dived on the inside of Hayden at the last hairpin, eventually running wide.
The second and last World Superbike race of the US round will get underway tomorrow at 14:30 local time (GMT -7), after the traditional 15-minute warm up scheduled at 11:00.
Nicky Hayden 69
3rd
First of all, I want to thank the fans and the supporters for coming to Laguna this weekend; you can feel a great energy and support I’ve been given is amazing! I got a great start to the race and was fifth early on, but my pace was not as good as we expected. We ran into a few little issues and wasn’t able to brake properly, so I felt I was quite vulnerable in that area. I tried to be as smooth as possible despite the pressure from my rivals and keep a steady rhythm. Luckily I was able to hang on for the podium, but we need to have a look at the data tonight to come up with something for race two. Overall, we must be happy with our third place and we’ll try to do better tomorrow.
Michael van der Mark 60
4th
Superpole wasn’t perfect, so I had to start from eleventh place. I had a good start to the race, but then on the first lap I missed corner and couldn’t get up to speed, so I got passed there. Step by step, I made my way up but despite pushing hard, the gap with Savadori was staying the same and that was a bit frustrating. I was able to get a little bit quicker and pass him, but Lowes wasn’t as easy to overtake. On the last lap, I closed down on Nicky but on the last corner I was simply not close enough to make it stick. Fourth place is a great result nevertheless and I’m back to fourth place in the standings; it’s good that it was Nicky the one getting on the podium today.
Pieter Breddels
Technical Manager
We surely can be happy with third and fourth today; it’s a result that went beyond our expectations after Superpole. Nicky was brilliant in holding on to third, while Michael’s recovery was incredible. Both riders were at the limit with front grip, so it was definitely not an easy race for them. In the morning, we made some geometry changes at the front with Nicky, while also evaluating a different tyre choice. Lack of time was also a problem, because free practice 3 is only 15 minutes, so you have basically to try multiple changes at the same time. Micheal tried different springs for more support but that resulted in a loss of grip, so we decided to go back to the previous choice. Our pace was one second faster than last year, so clearly we made a huge step forwards. Now we find that little extra, maybe a different tyre choice, in order to be even quicker tomorrow.
More, from a press release issued by Althea BMW:
Torres takes important points in SBK Race 1 at Laguna Seca
Monterey (USA), Saturday 9 July 2016
The Althea BMW Racing team, on track at the Laguna Seca Mazda Raceway for round 9 of the Superbike World Championship, took part in today’s first race, with Jordi Torres closing eighth and Raffaele De Rosa unfortunately suffering a crash.
Superpole 1: having completed a few laps with the race tyre, De Rosa was lying fifth. Back on track with a fresh tyre, the Italian was pushing hard to lower his time when unfortunately, he suffered a setback in the form of a crash at turn 11. Unfortunately, as this occurred just two minutes from the end, it prevented the Althea BMW rider from improving further. Raffaele thus closed in eighth place, which translated into row six, and eighteenth position, on the race grid.
Superpole 2: seventh in yesterday’s combined practices, Torres took part in in today’s Superpole 2. Very fast right from his first lap (1’23.6), the Spaniard was lying sixth at mid-session before putting in the qualifying tyre. Able to lower his time by another six tenths thanks to the soft tyre (1’23.085), he earned seventh place on the race grid.
SBK – Race 1: Torres lost several places off the line but, determined to make up the lost ground, the Spaniard pushed hard, with his strong pace allowing him to move back up to eighth place by lap thirteen. During the final phase of the race, and with a slightly quicker pace than those lying immediately ahead of him, the Althea BMW man attempted to further improve his position but unfortunately without success, meaning he crossed the line in final eighth position.
De Rosa, further back on the grid, battled hard to make up places through the opening stages and was into fourteenth by lap two. Thanks to a consistent pace, he was able to hold that position, fighting with Camier along the way before, unfortunately, his race came to a premature end on lap thirteen when he crashed at turn 5. Fortunately, the young Italian was unhurt in the incident.
The Althea BMW squad will be back on track tomorrow for Race 2, scheduled to start at 11.30pm CET.
Jordi Torres:
“This morning we worked well during the practice and the Superpole. With the race tyre, I performed well and was also able to improve with the qualifier, it’s just a pity I missed out on the second row by so little. Anyway the important thing is that we worked to have a more stable bike. In the race, conditions were different with a significant variation in temperature but, despite that, we were able to put in a good performance and achieve consistent pace with this set-up, finishing eighth. We hope to be able to do more tomorrow, improving the bike’s performance, and mine too.”
Raffaele De Rosa:
“I made a good start, after which I tried to make up some places. After a few laps I felt that I was pretty much on the limit at the front and then I crashed. I’m really sorry for that, it was a race I really wanted to finish and I’m sorry for the team as they’d worked so hard… We’ll make up for it tomorrow.”