FIM Supersport World Championship Nurburgring, Germany September 5, 2010 Race Results (all on Pirelli tires): 1. Eugene LAVERTY, Ireland (Honda CBR600RR), 19 laps, 37:52.893 2. Kenan SOFUOGLU, Turkey (Honda CBR600RR), -5.072 seconds 3. Broc PARKES, Australia (Kawasaki ZX-6R), -15.890 4. Fabien FORET, France (Kawasaki ZX-6R), -16.911 5. Chaz DAVIES, Great Britain (Triumph Daytona 675), -28.380 6. David SALOM, Spain (Triumph Daytona 675), -28.495 7. Massimo ROCCOLI, Italy (Honda CBR600RR), -28.578 8. Michele PIRRO, Italy (Honda CBR600RR), -28.787 9. Roberto TAMBURINI, Italy (Yamaha YZF-R6), -62.199 10. Danilo DELL’OMO, Italy (Honda CBR600RR), -79.432 11. Robbin HARMS, Denmark (Honda CBR600RR), -84.011, crash 12. Christian IDDON, Great Britain (Honda CBR600RR), -90.504 13. Miguel PRAIA, Portugal (Honda CBR600RR), -111.319, crash 14. Imre TOTH, Hungary (Honda CBR600RR), -1 lap 15. Katsuaki FUJIWARA, Japan (Kawasaki ZX-6R), -9 laps, DNF, crash 16. Matthieu LAGRIVE, France (Triumph Daytona 675), -9 laps, DNF, crash 17. Vittorio IANNUZZO, Italy (Triumph Daytona 675), -12 laps, DNF 18. Ronan QUARMBY, South Africa (Honda CBR600RR), -12 laps, DNF, crash 19. Bastien CHESAUX, Switzerland (Honda CBR600RR), -14 laps, DNF, crash 20. Mark AITCHISON, Australia (Honda CBR600RR), -18 laps, DNF, crash 21. Gino REA, Great Britain (Honda CBR600RR), DQ, technical infraction World Championship Point Standings (after 11 of 13 races): 1. Sofuoglu, 223 points 2. Laverty, 211 3. Joan Lascorz, 168 4. Davies, 137 5. Salom, 90 6. Harms, 87 7. Rea, 83 8. Pirro, 66 9. TIE, Lagrive/Foret, 65 11. TIE, Fujiwara/Roccoli, 61 13. Praia, 60 14. Alexander Lundh, 23 15. Jason DiSalvo, 21 More, from a press release issued by Infront Motor Sports: World Supersport A close race at the front saw Eugene Laverty (Parkalgar Honda) take a win by only 0.058 seconds from Gino Rea (Intermoto Czech Honda), only for Rea to be disqualified because of a technical infraction with his machine. Laverty set the best time of the race on lap 17 to hold off the battling Rea. Kenan Sofuoglu (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) was eventually second and thus Sofuoglu leads the championship fight by a still comfortable margin of 12 points. Top Kawasaki rider was the returning Broc Parkes (Kawasaki Motocard.com) who was finally awarded a podium place, ahead of Fabien Foret (Lorenzini by Leoni Kawasaki). Results: 1.Laverty E. (IRL) Honda CBR600RR 37’52.893 (154,592 kph); 2.Sofuoglu K. (TUR) Honda CBR600RR 5.072; 3.Parkes B. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX-6R 15.890; 4.Foret F. (FRA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 16.911; 5. Davies C. (GBR) Triumph Daytona 675 28.380; 6.Salom D. (ESP) Triumph Daytona 675 28.495; 7.Roccoli M. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 28.578; 8.Pirro M. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 28.787; etc. Points (after 11 rounds of 13): 1. Sofuoglu 223; 2. Laverty 211; 3. Lascorz 168; 4. Davies 137; 5. Salom 90;6.Harms 87;7. Rea 83; 8.Pirro 66; 9. Foret 65; 10.Lagrive 65. Manufacturers: 1. Honda 270 (2010 champions); 2. Kawasaki 185; 3. Triumph 146; 4. Yamaha 22 More, from a press release issued by Parkalgar Honda: Laverty win closes Championship gap PARKALGAR HONDA’S Eugene Laverty won his seventh World Supersport Championship race from 11 starts at the Nurburgring in Germany to slash the gap in the title fight to just eight points with two races remaining. With Eugene’s main title rival Kenan Sofuoglu finishing third, it means the Irishman can now win the Championship if he wins the last two races something he wasn’t able to do before today’s result. Parkalgar Honda’s Miguel Praia was battling in the top 12 before crashing mid-race. He bravely remounted to finish 14th and score points. The next and penultimate round of the Championship is at Imola in Italy on September 26th. Eugene: “We needed that and it was not easy. We went a wrong direction with our set-up and the bike was a little loose in the race. I knew I had to break Kenan though so had to push the whole race and Gino came with me. The nice thing now is the title race is in my hands which it wasn’t before if I win both the last races then I will be Champion. That’s a big ask as Kenan is strong particularly at Imola but with Parkalgar Honda I have the bike, package and team to do it.” Miguel: “My start was not great as I was blocked by Foret and Fujiwara but then I started to catch and pass people and make up positions. After about five laps my bike started to feel different compared to warm-up and I had less confidence in the front end. I kept pushing and was close to the fight for the top 10 when I lost the front at turn one. I managed to pick my Parkalgar Honda up and finish the race and score some points, which is important as a top 10 finish in the Championship is still a realistic goal.” Simon Buckmaster, Parkalgar Honda Team Manager: “Eugene rode a great race and controlled it from the front. In the second half of the last lap he was masterful the way he kept momentum through the corners but selected the lines to defend his position. A great result and it is game on in the title race. Miguel was good in warm-up and on for a top 10 result when he went wide at turn one and crashed. He remounted to score two points and it shows the fight he has and he remains in touch for a top 10 Championship position.” More, from a press release issued by Hannspree Ten Kate Honda: Hannspree Ten Kate Honda rider Kenan Sofuoglu finished second in today’s 11th round World Supersport championship race at the Nurburgring in Germany. The race was won by series rival and fellow Honda rider Eugene Laverty. The result confirmed Honda’s domination of the championship and secured the Japanese firm’s eighth successive World Supersport Manufacturers’ title. Sofuoglu, 26, originally finished the 19-lap race at the historic 5.137km Nurburgring in third place, but was later promoted to second after British rider Gino Rea was disqualified for a technical infringement. The amended result leaves Sofuoglu with a 12-point championship lead over Laverty with two races remaining. Sofuoglu’s Hannspree Ten Kate Honda team-mate, Michele Pirro, battled against pain from the wrist he injured in a crash two months ago to finish eighth in today’s race. The 24-year-old Italian ended the opening lap in 15t h place before making his way through the field for a solid points finish. Kenan Sofuoglu 2nd I can’t say that it’s been a nice day for me. All the weekend I’ve been quite fast but in the race I found that I had quite a big problem with the grip at the front of the bike on entry into the corner. It was really bad in some sections of the track, I had a lot of sliding and I lost the front a couple of times and had to fight my way back it was incredible. Finally I had to settle for third place because I realised that I was riding the race with what felt like a completely different set up on the bike. After they changed the result, we have a few more points, which is useful, and now we are going to Imola, which is a circuit that I like and we have had good results there in the past. I know my crew will work hard to get the set-up back again for Imola. Michele Pirro – 8th Eighth is not such a good result but with the pain and no strength in my wrist it is not so bad either. I had a not very good start and I was boxed in at the first corner. After, I had to pass many riders and it was very difficult with no strength in my hand to pull hard on the brake. By the end of the race it felt very bad, but it was good to finish and important not to crash again, so I am quite happy. I have two weeks to make my body stronger for the next race in Italy where I hope for an even better result. Ronald ten Kate team manager We were expecting at least for Kenan to be capable of fighting with Eugene for the whole race but there wasn’t as much grip as we anticipated at all! So this made him struggle a bit to stay with the front runners. At the end of the day, he finished second after all so there is still a 12-point gap and I think it will all come down to the last round as we expected. Some compliments must also go to Michele who has been riding with his injury all weekend not so much the pain, but the lack of power in his arm was holding him back a lot. But in the race he did really well and collected quite some points, so it was good to see that determination from him. More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki: Broc On The Podium After Results Are Revised Broc Parkes and Katsuaki Fujiwara each ran up front in the WSS Race in Germany with Broc eventually awarded a podium place after another leading rider was disqualified. Fourth was already a great result for any rider returning to World Supersport for the first time in a year and a half, but an eventual third was a reward Parkes and his crew could only have dreamed of as he arrived in Germany. Broc and the team created the reality of a podium after a strong qualifying session, with Broc third on the grid, and Provec Motocard.com team regular Katsuaki Fujiwara started the race alongside him, in fourth grid spot. ‘Kats’ was in great early form but a drop off in rear traction eventually contributed to a crash. The tough Japanese rider got himself back on track again, rejoining the race. Fabien Foret, from the Kawasaki Lorenzini by Leoni team, was a strong fourth overall, having mixed it on track with both Broc and Kats for some time. Broc Parkes: “I was pretty happy with fourth, so to then get third was great for the team and myself in my first ride. The first part of my race wasn’t real good. I tried to go with the top two guys and had a couple of moments on the first and second lap. I didn’t quite have the pace and got passed by a couple of guys, until I got into a bit of a rhythm. I just lacked a little bit of confidence with the front and in the early laps I did not want to throw it down the road. I tried to learn a little bit from the other guys, and I think we are all happy with the result.” Katsuaki Fujiwara: “I started to have less side grip from the bike, like I had a slow loss of tyre pressure or something. The rear started to spin a lot. I fell on the entry to the third corner, when I lost the front. I was just trying to stay in contention. It is a shame because we were looking good for a top five finish.” More, from a press release issued by ParkinGO Triumph BE1 Racing: Chaz Davies and David Salom of the ParkinGO Triumph BE1 Racing team finished sixth and seventh respectively in Germany today, after exchanging positions until the very last lap. On the other hand, both Matthieu Lagrive and Vittorio Iannuzzo retired from the race, the former after a crash, the latter due to a mechanical issue. The “Four Musketeers” will return to the track in three weeks time for the penultimate round of the season held at Imola, where the goal will be to battle for the podium again. CHAZ DAVIES | Triumph Daytona 675 | 5th : ” We had less problems than we had yesterday, but I didn’t have any grip on the back end for the whole nineteen laps. I made a good start and got in the leading pack right away. After battling with the Kawasakis, I had to take it up a notch. My teammate Salom, Roccoli and Pirro all caught up with me. We had a nice duel for several laps, but in the end I finished in front of the group”. DAVID SALOM | Triumph Daytona 675 | 6th : “I had the same issues as my teammates. Unfortunately, this track is not the best one for our bike. I didn’t get a very good start and so I lost many positions, but recovered a few eventually. Too bad it turned out this way, I was really hoping for a better result, especially after Friday’s practice”. MATTHIEU LAGRIVE | Triumph Daytona 675 | 16th : “I made a very good start, but I crashed after just a few laps, unfortunately. Too bad, I could’ve finished in front”. VITTORIO IANNUZZO | Triumph Daytona 675 | 17th : “I’m disappointed for how this weekend turned out, I was feeling ready to aim higher. Unfortunately, we didn’t find the right setup so that myself and my teammates could perform at our best. I hope to redeem myself in front of the home crowd at Imola”. More, from a press release issued by Honda: German World Superbike at the Nürburgring Sunday September 5 2010 World Superbike and World Supersport race report 5.137km circuit – attendance 45,000 all weekend, claimed Weather: Dry, sunny, cool Temperature 15 to 16 ambient, 26 to 37 track REA WINS AGAIN AND LEAVES GERMANY AS TOP RIDER OF THE DAY Hannspree Ten Kate Honda rider Jonathan Rea took a win in race one at the Nürburgring and made it four victories for the season by holding off the challenge of Carlos Checa in race one. He has now won more races than everyone else except championship leader Max Biaggi. Following up his fabulous front-running performance in race one with second place behind race two winner Noriyuki Haga, Rea left Germany with 45 points for his day’s work, putting himself in a more comfortable third position overall. He now has 288 points to Checa’s 224, and is a much closer 51 points behind Leon Haslam in the championship standings. Biaggi still leads Haslam overall, by 58 points, 397 to 339. After the first attempt to run race one was cancelled, when two riders fell in separate incidents at the same time and the red flags came out, Rea made a great start from fourth place on the grid and headed up the field from the very start. He rode with the calm assurance that has been a signature of most of his WSBK race wins, eventually holding off Carlos Checa by 1.126 seconds and Silverstone race winner Cal Crutchlow by over ten seconds. Max Neukirchner (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) started in 15th grid position and was riding just outside the top ten until he fell. He rejoined the race but finally retired in the pits on lap seven. Rookie rider Fabrizio Lai, from the ECHO CRS Honda team, was forced into the pits on lap 19 of 20 due to a lack of fuel, missing out on a possible points score. Only 14 of the original 21 riders finished the race. In the second 20-lap race of the day, held in relatively warm conditions for this time of year at the Nürburgring, Rea was a comfortable second behind Haga, but could not get away fast enough to stay with the Japanese rider when he made a break alongside eventual faller Checa. Neukirchner battled on to take a point in race two, with Lai a finisher, but scoring no points for 18th place. Laverty Wins His Seventh Of The Year To Close The Gap On Sofuoglu Parkalgar Honda rider Eugene Laverty rode a perfect race after taking pole in qualifying, winning a remarkable seventh race of the season after 19-laps of the 5.173km Nürburgring. He was under pressure from behind almost throughout as season rookie Gino Rea, from the Intermoto Czech Honda team, made himself a shadow for almost the entire race. Rea, who had qualified fifth, had been ranked second in the provisional results, but he was excluded after a technical inspection of his machine, promoting second fastest qualifier Kenan Sofuoglu (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) to second in the race. In the overall rankings Sofuoglu now has 223 points to Laverty’s 211. Rea is still next best official Honda rider despite his no-score today, seventh, on 83 points. The race victory ensured Honda of their eighth consecutive WSS Manufacturers’ Championship today, moving an unassailable 85 points ahead with only two rounds left to run. Massimo Roccoli from the Intermoto Czech Honda team was ninth on the grid and finished seventh in the race, despite the lingering effects of a fever he has been suffering from for several days. He rode in a four-man group, and was third in this mid-race battle. Returning from injury, Michele Pirro from the Hannspree Ten Kate Honda team rode around a lack of stamina from his right wrist, which he injured in Brno. Pirro had qualified as he finished in the eventual race ranking, eighth. Parkalgar Honda rider Miguel Praia was 13th in the race, two places up on his qualifying place. He missed the first session with a technical issue and was battling to find full pace as a result. Imola hosts the next, and penultimate, WSBK round of the year on 26 September. WSBK Rider Comments Jonathan Rea, Hannspree Ten Kate Honda: Winner and 2nd – 3rd overall. “Great race, great weekend for the team. Already on Friday we were right on the pace, we came out with a bike that was good, really pushed hard, I felt comfortable on it and turned it into a good result so I’m really proud of my team. The pace in race two was similar to race one but Nori was fantastic, he rode an unbelievable race. It’s quite frustrating when you see someone ride away from you like that. A great job for my team this weekend, 45 points overall and I’m really very happy. I’m very consistent now but it’s so frustrating when I see my mid-season form.” Max Neukirchner, Hannspree Ten Kate Honda: DNF and 15th – 18th overall. “You can imagine I am not very happy. It’s very strange because yesterday I did really well and went faster much more easily like one and a half seconds faster! Today it just wasn’t possible to get into the corner and turn the bike without the tyre spinning completely. The team has looked at it on the data and they confirm that there was double the amount from yesterday. We changed nothing just put in new tyres and went. Yesterday afternoon the bike felt perfect and today it was a completely different bike. The set up we have now is not bad for me. Not perfect, but not bad. It’s just that with the tyres changing, it’s not possible to go in the top ten.” Fabrizio Lai, ECHO CRS Honda: DNF and 18th No ranking. “In practice I took time to understand the track and the bike as it was my first time with each. It was important for me to finish each race, but we ran out of fuel in race one, as one of the sensors went wrong. I finished race two with no points, but I wanted to record a finish anyway. It was hard to race this championship first time but I enjoyed it.” WSS Rider Comments Eugene Laverty, Parkalgar Honda: Winner 2nd overall. “We needed that and it was not easy. We went a wrong direction with our set-up and the bike was a little loose in the race. I think this was the hardest race of the season for me because Gino pushed me all the way and towards the end of the race I was sliding and having some trouble on the bike so I had to move my weight around. Then I lost some rear grip, so the second half of the race was not pleasant.” Kenan Sofuoglu, Hannspree Ten Kate Honda: 2nd – 1st overall. “I worked very hard in the race and at one time I was able to push closer to the front. But the grip out there today was not so good. We took some good points today and the championship is still open, two more races and we will be trying our best to win them both.” Michele Pirro, Hannspree Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR: 8th – 8th overall. “It was a difficult day because my body is still not perfect. My start was not so bad but in the first corner I was no good because the other riders were very strong and because of my injury it was impossible for me to risk a crash again. I was 15th, but after that the feeling was better and I passed some riders, even if it was quite hard to overtake. I am happy because I finished and now I have two more weeks to rest my wrist before Imola.” Massimo Roccoli, Czech Intermoto Honda: 7th 12th overall. “Today was not a good race but I was ill last week, with fever and sickness, and had to have some medicine yesterday. We still made a good qualifying, but I had a bad time in the first corner, and it was important not to crash. I arrived near fifth place, which is not bad.” Miguel Praia, Parkalgar Honda: 13th – 13th overall. “We missed the first practice session with a small problem and that did not give us enough time to get to where we wanted to be. But we were good in warm-up and in the race I was fighting in a group for sixth. They were a bit faster than me, because the front was not as I expected, so I did not have the confidence to go into corners as strong as some other riders could.” Gino Rea, Intermoto Czech Honda: Disqualified 7th overall. “It is really disappointing to not get any points because we have been improving the bike, the package and me as a rider. So as the season has gone on we just found some good settings for the bike and they worked here from the beginning. There was not so much grip today, and I had to push the front as well, as Eugene was really fast in the corners.”