Yamaha Sterilgarda prepare for the superbike season finale at Magny Cours A mixed round of racing at Imola last weekend witnessed the first wet Superpole of the year disrupting the grid for Sunday’s two races. Yamaha Sterilgarda rider Cal Crutchlow started from 12th on the grid to secure a podium finish in race two with an incredible ride. Team mate James Toseland experience a continued run of bad luck with two DNFs despite showing strong, podium contending pace in the early stages of each race. The team now head straight to Magny Cours in France for the 13th and final round of the 2010 World Superbike Championship. The riders set up for the final two races with Crutchlow sitting in fifth place in the standings on 239 points, 35 behind Carlos Checa in fourth. Team mate James Toseland sits two places back in seventh with 187 points, 51 points behind Noriyuki Haga in sixth. “I’m all set to go this weekend after Imola,” said Cal Crutchlow. “The last Italian round was tough with the strange starting grid, but we had a great set up on what was a difficult track. I was really happy with the podium we scored and I’m confident if we can get a good grid start on Sunday in Magny Cours I can end the year with the Yamaha superbike team on a high with more podiums!” “It was a really disappointing race weekend in Italy,” said James Toseland. “I am determined to go to Magny Cours for my last two races on the R1 and deliver good results. I have always been lucky at the French circuit, after a year if lots of bad luck I think we deserve some good luck here! We had really good pace at Imola in the races and had found a great set up so I want to use that to score in France.” Magny Cours technically speaking according to Marcus Eschenbacher, Cal Crutchlow’s crew Chief “Magny Cours is a track with typical Formula one design. It has a very tight start, stop corners and tight chicanes. First our gearbox has to be adjusted to suit these conditions. Also the chassis has to be adjusted to offer a good compromise; stable enough for hard braking and agile enough to achieve fast cornering in the tight sections. As usual the weather conditions are also very critical Magny Cours can be very cold in the morning with a high chance of rain. In light of this we will keep the option of a ‘bad weather’ setup. This means that we will have two bikes with different setups if the conditions are not clear.” Magny Cours Technically Speaking according to Frankie Carchedi, James Toseland’s Crew Chief “We will be looking to finish the season strong at Magny Cours. James’s race pace was good enough to fight for the win at Imola but a bad qualifying put an end to this. We will be doing everything to finish strongly with the same set-up as Imola. In recent races we have found a set-up which has good balance and handling. Magny Cours requires both, but weather conditions could make things a little trickier. Forecasts predict a wet weekend, so we will be working hard on a good wet set-up!” Massimo Meregalli, Yamaha Sterilgarda World Superbike Team Manager “I’m looking forward to this race, we go there with the intention to finish the season with the best results possible. Hopefully we can reach this target. Yamaha was has been very competitive at the Magny Cours circuit over the last four years, with the set up we found at Imola we think we can continue the run of success.” More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki News Service: SUZUKI ALSTARE FIRED UP FOR THE SEASON FINALE Team Suzuki Alstare riders Leon Haslam and Sylvain Guintoli go into this weekend’s 13th and final World Superbike round at Magny-Cours in France fired up and ready to end on the podium. Haslam aims to make up for last weekend’s disappointment at Imola and would like nothing better to put one over on newly-crowned World Champion Max Biaggi. Since Imola, Haslam has had a chance to rest his left knee and is sure to be in much better shape than last weekend when he had to have a series of pain-killing injections in order to race. Although his knee is a long way from perfect, the young Briton will be giving 100 per cent as usual and trying to sign off the season in style. His team mate Sylvain Guintoli would also like to end with a flourish, having been close to the podium on several occasions, but not quite getting there. As it is also his ‘home’ race, the Frenchman would like to finish with a podium and give all his friends a family something to shout about. Leon Haslam: “Obviously I am disappointed how things turned out last weekend, but that has gone now and I prefer to focus on Magny-Cours and beating Max. But for a small mistake, I am sure I could’ve won the first race and that would have put a bit more pressure on Max. He still would have had a good lead in the points going into Magny-Cours, but the gap would’ve been less and it would’ve been an interesting race day for sure. “I had some good results last year at Magny-Cours on a bike that was not as good as my Suzuki this year, so there’s no reason why I shouldn’t be thinking about podiums this weekend. The circuit is not so technical, but there are lots of tight turns onto long straights and a lot of heavy braking. “I’ve only had two rounds this year where I have missed out on a podium and that’s something I don’t want to repeat at Magny. At the moment, I lead Max by 14 podiums to 13 and my aim is to still be ahead of him on Sunday night.” Sylvain Guintoli: “I am excited about racing at Magny-Cours because it is my home race and obviously I would like to do well there. I know that a lot of family, friends and fans will be there, so I would like to get a podium or two. I feel I have very close to that elusive podium many times, so now it is up to me to make my mark and get onto those steps. “This might be a home race, but I haven’t raced at Magny-Cours since 2000 and that was on a 250! The track had a slightly different layout then, so the first thing I will have to do is relearn the track. If I can do that quickly and get a decent grid position, then I have a good chance of some good results. Hopefully, I will also have recovered from whatever I had last weekend and be fully fit and raring to go right from the first practice on Friday.” 2009 Results: Race 1: 1 Ben Spies (USA-Yamaha), 2 Noriyuki Haga (JPN-Ducati), 3 Max Biaggi (ITA-Aprilia), 4 Michel Fabrizio (ITA-Ducati), 5 Leon Haslam (GBR-Honda), 6 Carlos Checa (ESP-Honda). Sylvain Guintoli DNS. Race 2: 1 Haga, 2 Biaggi, 3 Jonathan Rea (GBR-Honda), 4 Spies, 5 Leon Haslam (GBR-Honda), 6 Yukio Kagayama (JPN-Suzuki Alstare). Sylvain Guintoli DNS. More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki: Big Finish The Aim For KRT Riders WSBK, Magny-Cours, France, 29 September 2010 Official Kawasaki rider Tom Sykes is out to carry the momentum gained in the two previous rounds into the final weekend of the 2010 season, at Magny-Cours in France. At the Nürburgring and then Imola, Sykes was in the mix for top five places all the way, and scored his own first ever Superpole win in Italy last weekend, boosting confidence within the team as the final round draws closer. Once more Ian Lowry will ride the other official Ninja ZX-10R as a replacement for the injured Chris Vermeulen, having already competed on the bike at a Brands Hatch BSB round, and WSBK races in Germany and Italy. Tom is 14th in the rankings now, only three points behind the rider in front. Lowry is 24th, and out to get more points in each French race, at a circuit which has a bit of everything. Magny-Cours is a 4.411km long track in the absolute centre of France, and has been a WSBK regular in recent seasons. Tom Sykes: “I am keeping my feet firmly on the ground to see where we end up this weekend. We have a good little base setting working now, which was good in Germany and in Italy. So it is now more a case of fine-tuning the set-up of the bike around our optimum setting for the Magny-Cours round, and hopefully the bike will work well again. We will see what the weekend brings.” Ian Lowry: “I am looking forward to the weekend, and have just been resting for a couple of days since Imola. Magny-Cours will be the only WSB venue I have actually been to before starting qualifying. I raced in a one-make series there, I think in 2006, so I won’t have to spend the first session working out which way the track goes! Because of that I hope I will be a bit better this weekend.” More, from another press release issued by Kawasaki: One More Push In Supersport WSS, Magny-Cours, France, 29 September 2010 Katsuaki Fujiwara and Broc Parkes will have their last rides of the season for the Kawasaki Provec Motocard.com team at Magny-Cours this weekend, as the season reaches the 13th and final round. Fujiwara is ranked ninth right now, after a season filled with highs and lows. He has now found his form again; having scored the most recent of his three top five results in Imola last weekend. Parkes, who only joined the team at Nürburgring as a replacement for the injured Joan Lascorz, has had an exciting and rewarding impact on the team’s fortunes, taking an eventual third place at the Nürburgring and then following that up with an amazing ride though almost the entire field to go fourth at Imola. Kawasaki Lorenzini by Leoni Ninja ZX-6R rider Fabien Foret still has hopes of getting into the top ten, as he sits in 12th, only six points from a current top ten ranking. Katsuaki Fujiwara: “We will see how we go in France but it is also important to make sure I enjoy the last race. I want to finish inside the top ten but I do not want to think about that while I am racing. It is important that when I get on the bike I enjoy it, and then the result should come.” Broc Parkes: “I didn’t get a great start in the last round so that is the first thing to think about for the French round. Still one race to go this year, so I hope I can do an even better job at the final one. I usually do quite well in France, had a win and a few podiums there in WSS racing, so I’m out to finish with another good race weekend. The only question may be the weather at this time of year.” More, from a press release issued by Hannspree Ten Kate Honda: Rea waits for Magny-Cours verdict Jonathan Rea will wait until Friday morning before deciding whether he is fit enough to take part in the final round of the 2010 World Superbike championship at Magny-Cours in France. The Hannspree Ten Kate Honda rider sustained injuries to his shoulder and wrist in a Superpole crash during the last round at Imola in Italy last weekend. Despite trying to ride his Honda CBR1000RR in warm-up on Sunday morning, Rea opted to sit out the two races. The 23-year-old Northern Irishman, who has won four races this season, currently sits in third place in the championship, with the first two places decided last weekend, and he is understandably keen to retain that position if physically possible. Rea’s Hannspree Ten Kate Honda team-mate Max Neukirchner, 27, heads to Magny-Cours determined to finish the season on a high following a frustrating run of results. Jonathan Rea I flew back to the UK on Mo nday to get a detailed diagnosis on the injuries. To be accurate, I’ve ripped the scapholunate ligament between the scaphoid and lunar bones and that has broken a bit of bone off the scaphoid. There’s also been a dislocation of the AC joint in my shoulder, but it’s the wrist that’s the problem. We’re going to see how things go and make a decision on Friday about riding at Magny-Cours with a carbon cast for support and special Alpinestars glove. It feels like the season ended at Imola last weekend and there’s just no way I want it to end like that. Third place in the championship is still up for grabs so I’d really like to ride at the weekend for that, for the team and for all my sponsors and supporters. However, it’s also important that I’m in good shape to start testing for next season as soon as possible so I’ve already got the operation booked for the Tuesday after Magny-Cours. Max Neukirchner Obviously it has been a frustrating season for me but I am looking forward to the last race in Magny-Cours. I want to finish the year with some good results for both myself and my team. I like the circuit a lot I have done many laps there and I enjoy riding. I was on the podium in the 24hr race in 2007 and fourth in the Superbike that year. But in October the weather can be a little difficult sometimes so I hope it will be OK through the weekend. Ronald ten Kate team manager So, the season is almost over. It’s been a bit of a roller-coaster the whole way through and we really wanted it to finish on a high for the team. Jonathan’s great run of results, however, came to an abrupt end on Saturday at Imola. We’ll review his condition on a day-to-day basis until Friday, which is probably when we’ll make a decision about him taking part in the final round at Magny-C ours, but we have no thoughts about fielding a replacement rider. In the meantime, we all hope that Max can at least end the season on a positive note with some results that can make us all smile. More, from another press release issued by Hsannspree Ten Kate Honda: Sofuoglu prepares for final podium push Kenan Sofuoglu knows that if he can maintain his remarkable 100% podium record for the 2010 World Supersport season, the title will be his after Sunday’s final race at Magny-Cours in France. The Hannspree Ten Kate Honda rider finished second in last Sunday’s penultimate round at Imola in France, despite being skittled off his CBR600RR by his only championship rival Eugene Laverty, who finished third. Such was the pair’s pace that they had built up a sufficient gap to give them time to remount their machines and still finish on the podium. The main beneficiary of the last corner clash was Sofuoglu’s Hannspree Ten Kate Honda team-mate, Michele Pirro, who began the last lap at Imola in fourth place. The 24-year-old Italian cruised to his first ever World Supersport victory in his first year with the team. However, it is on the two championship protagonists that all eyes will be focused in Sunday’s encounter , as Sofuoglu’s aims to win his second and the team’s eighth World Supersport crown at the 4.411km Magny-Cours circuit in central France. Kenan Sofuoglu I know that what happened in Imola was really a racing incident and Sunday was an emotional day. Eugene wanted to win as much as I did and sometimes these things happen. It’s been an amazing season between him and me and it’s a shame that Joan Lascorz wasn’t able to compete in the last few races, otherwise I think it would still be a three-way battle. Of course I am happy that we can go into the last race in Magny-Cours with a 16 point advantage. I know what results are needed on Sunday, but we must approach it like any other race and aim for a win or podium because sometimes it is difficult to change your approach to get a specific result. Anyway, it has been a very good season so far and the team has worked really hard to give me a bike that has put me in this position. We must all work in the same way until Sunday. Michele Pirro Even though it was a surprise, the win in Imola was very special for me. To stand on the top of the podium for the first time at my home race in Italy with all the fans was incredible and a moment that I will never forget. But will also not forget that the team is concentrating on winning another world championship and I will do what I can to help them. Magny-Cours is a good circuit and although I qualified OK, I was only tenth in the race last year. It would be very good to finish this season again on the podium and, I hope to be there with Kenan. Ronald ten Kate team manager The World Supersport championship is coming to its climax at the final round something that for a long time we’ve all believed would happen and something that I’m sure all the fans would have hoped f or. We will treat it as any other race though, because sometimes the more carefully you plan a race, the less chance there is of it going to plan! However, we as a team and Kenan as a rider have been in this position before, so we are prepared and ready to go. Although Michele’s victory at Imola was ‘gifted’ to him, it was a good reward for his hard work throughout the season. He has been unlucky at times, too, so he was probably overdue a slice of good fortune. I hope his win marks the start of many more to follow. More, from a press release issued by Aprilia: The epilogue to the fantastic 2010 World Superbike season branded Aprilia Alitalia will take place at Magny Cours in France. The italian team, after celebrating Max Biaggi’s rider world title at Imola, aims decisively at the Manufacturers leadership. Noale, 29 September 2010 With fresh images still echoing in their minds of the Imola celebration, where thousands of fans and enthusiasts celebrated Max Biaggi as World Superbike champion, the Aprilia Alitalia Racing Team heads back to the track to close out their dream season properly. On the French Magny Cours circuit the Italian team will pursue another important objective: the first Manufacturer World Superbike championship in Aprilia history. The standings show Aprilia ahead of Ducati by 41 points, while there are still 50 points up for grabs in the last two races. This would mean, not only the umpteenth wreath for the Veneto-based Racing Division, but also proper recognition for Aprilia’s technical worth and the great commitment of the engineers, technicians and mechanics. Last year the neo-champion, Max Biaggi, took second and third place in France in confirmation of the feeling he has on the Magny Cours track. Unfortunately, as was the case in Imola, the Aprilia Alitalia Racing Team will be able to count only on Max Biaggi. Leon Camier, in fact, is continuing rehabilitation after fracturing his wrist on the Nurburgring in order to be better prepared for the end of season tests and the 2011 Superbike season. Rider Standings 1- Max Biaggi 413 pts 2- Leon Haslam 350 pts 3- Jonathan Rea 288 pts 4- Carlos Checa 274 pts “¦ 11- Leon Camier 164 pts Manufacturer Standings 1- Aprilia 433 pts 2- Ducati 392 pts 3- Suzuki 379 pts 4- Yamaha 307 pts 5- Honda 305 pts