FIM Superbike World Championship Silverstone, England July 31, 2010 Final Qualifying Results, After Superpole (all on Pirelli tires): From Superpole Three: 1. Cal CRUTCHLOW, Great Britain (Yamaha YZF-R1), 2:04.091 2. Jonathan REA, Great Britain (Honda CBR1000RR), 2:04.763 3. Michel FABRIZIO, Italy (Ducati 1098F10), 2:05.083 4. Jakub SMRZ, Czech Republic (Aprilia RSV4 Factory), 2:05.168 5. Leon HASLAM, Great Britain (Suzuki GSX-R1000), 2:05.595 6. Max BIAGGI, Italy (Aprilia RSV4 Factory), 2:05.682 7. Troy CORSER, Australia (BMW S1000RR), 2:05.740 8. Ruben XAUS, Spain (BMW S1000RR), 2:06.787 From Superpole Two: 9. Shane BYRNE, Great Britain (Ducati 1098R), 2:05.026 10. Carlos CHECA, Spain (Ducati 1098R), 2:05.035 11. Sylvain GUINTOLI, France (Suzuki GSX-R1000), 2:05.066 12. James TOSELAND, Great Britain (Yamaha YZF-R1), 2:05.397 13. Tom SYKES, Great Britain (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 2:05.564 14. Lorenzo LANZI, Italy (Ducati 1098R), 2:05.903 15. Noriyuki HAGA, Japan (Ducati 1098F10), 2:06.425 16. Leon CAMIER, Great Britain (Aprilia RSV4 Factory), 2:10.663 From Superpole One: 17. Josh BROOKES, Australia (Honda CBR1000RR), 2:06.271 18. Max NEUKIRCHNER, Germany (Honda CBR1000RR), 2:07.325 19. Broc PARKES, Australia (Honda CBR1000RR), 2:07.636 20. Luca SCASSA, Italy (Ducati 1098R), no timed recorded The Rest of the Grid: 21. Roger HAYDEN, USA (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 2:07.677 22. Ryuichi KIYONARI, Japan (Honda CBR1000RR), 2:08.689 23. Matteo BAIOCCO, Italy (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 2:10.431 24. Tom BRIDEWELL, Great Britain (Honda CBR1000RR), 2:11.057 25. Akira YANAGAWA, Japan (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 2:11.230 More, from a press release issued by Xerox Ducati: FABRIZIO (DUCATI XEROX) SCORES THIRD IN TODAY’S SUPERPOLE AT NEW-LOOK SILVERSTONE Silverstone (UK), Saturday 31st July : Ducati Xerox rider Michel Fabrizio was more than satisfied with today’s Superpole result at Silverstone when, despite some very stiff competition from several riders, particularly the British contingent, he closed the session with the third fastest time, ensuring himself of a front row start for tomorrow’s races, alongside Cal Crutchlow, Jonathan Rea and Jakub Smrz. Rain overnight meant that this morning’s second qualifying took place on a still damp track. Despite their best efforts, the Superbike riders were largely unable to improve on yesterday’s best times, with only two riders managing to go any faster. Noriyuki and Michel made good use of the 45-minute session, making small but all-important set-up refinements but, with the outcome conditioned by the damp track surface, results had not changed by the close of play, Fabrizio thus closing fifth and Haga twelfth, based on yesterday’s lap times. Superpole 1: both factory riders opted for race tyres in this first fourteen-minute phase and neither Michel nor Nori needed to make a second exit, having done enough to progress safely to the second stage, Fabrizio closing in second and Haga in twelfth. Superpole 2: this time the Ducati Xerox pair went out on qualifiers but after a first exit that left them in sixth (Michel) and fifteenth (Haga) both returned to the track on soft rear race tyres. The Italian rider ducked under 2m05 for the first time this weekend, recording a fastest lap of 2m04.6 and finishing this session in third position. His team mate Noriyuki had more difficulty and, citing grip problems, closed this phase, and today, in fifteenth place. Superpole 3: given the outcome of the previous session, Fabrizio selected the soft race tyre once more for this final phase, and registering a best time of 2m05.0 to ensure himself of a place on the front row of tomorrow’s grid, third behind the British duo of Rea (Honda) and Crutchlow (Yamaha). Michel Fabrizio “I’m really happy with today’s result and I dedicate it to my team who have been working so hard this weekend. I love this new track and after the second session yesterday I felt confident that I’d be able to qualify on the front row today. Superpole went very well; I chose to use a race tyre in the last phase because the first qualifier I’d used earlier hadn’t given me a great feeling, and my choice proved to be a good one. We have a good race pace I think, though Cal is faster, and I must say I’m feeling quite confident ahead of tomorrow’s races.” Noriyuki Haga “Unfortunately I continued to have some problems today and the difficulty I was having in turning the bike as I want haven’t yet been resolved. I hoped that with the qualifier we could have done better but that wasn’t the case today and I’m back on the fourth row. There are many strong riders here, including the Brits, and the races are going to be really tough. We’ll see what we are able to achieve.” More, from a press release issued by Alitalia Aprilia: Sixth place for Max Biaggi at Silverstone after an adventurous Superpole. The ranking leader is confident for the two races tomorrow anyway. Silverstone, 31 July 2010 The Superpole round was also run on dry track at Silverstone in spite of threatening clouds which hover in the unpredictable English sky. Leader of the rider rankings Max Biaggi was a key player in a truly heated session which saw him enter the top eight with just over three tenths gap behind second place. In the battle of the top eight Max landed the sixth time (2’05.682) and by just a few seconds was unable to launch himself into a higher spot during a very decisive final lap. Team mate Leon Camier was unfortunate, looking quite fast during the practice rounds, but ending his day in the second pole session (sixteenth, 2’06’064) after having his best time deleted for letting his rear wheel go outside the regulation track. An oversight which in any case doesn’t undermine the rider’s confidence in light of his performance in the previous sessions. The words of Max Biaggi forecast a demanding Sunday: “We still have some problems, especially in the section where the asphalt is the roughest. Lap performance is in fact conditioned by these difficulties, but tomorrow over the long distance the dynamics could change. We expect two hard races, hoping that the weather gives us a hand although anything is to be expected here in England. The home riders are doing very well we are still lacking something in order to be quick. I hope that my team can put me into some better conditions tomorrow.” “The deleted time was only the last problem stated Leon Camier since I was never able to close out a clean lap due to the traffic on the track. It’s a shame when you think about what we demonstrated during all of the sessions. Honestly I didn’t expect to start on the fourth row. Anyway, I like Silverstone, we’ve done a good job, so I’m looking ahead and thinking about the two races tomorrow. It will be hard work!” More, from a press release issued by BMW Motorrad Motorsport: Weather conditions: Overcast. Temperature: Air: 24 – 25°C, Track: 26 – 29°C Number of riders participating: 25 from 15 teams Fastest lap Qualifying Practices: Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha Sterilgarda Team) 2:05.664 min Fastest lap Superpole 3: Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha Sterilgarda Team) 2:04.091 min Both BMW Motorrad Motorsport riders Troy Corser (AUS) and Ruben Xaus (ESP) will start in Sunday’s Superbike World Championship races at Silverstone from the second row of the grid. In today’s Superpole Qualifying, Team BMW Motorrad Motorsport was the only team to have both riders in the third and final session. Both Troy and Ruben set their fastest lap times in the final session under difficult circumstances: while Ruben had to go into the third Superpole session with used qualifying tyres, Troy set his quickest lap time on used race tyres. Troy will start on Sunday from seventh position, Ruben will start eighth. Troy Corser: Bike: BMW S 1000 RR Fastest lap Qualifying Practices: 2:06.052 min / Fastest lap Free Practice: 2:06.339 min / Fastest lap Superpole 3: 2:05.740 min “I am a bit disappointed. The bike is getting better and better. We have been playing a bit with the throttle connection and tried out what we already had in Misano and Mugello. But for this layout it did not work so well, so I think that we go back to what we had at the last race weekend. The only real problem today were the tyres, we ended up with the wrong tyre to the wrong time. It was a brand new set of tyres, but I had little grip and went out on the grass. That was a bit strange. The race tyres seem to be okay and on used tyres I am not so far off the pace. I’ll try to make a good start and then we’ll see where we go. A podium is possible, for sure.” Ruben Xaus: Bike: BMW S 1000 RR Fastest lap Qualifying Practices: 2:07.101 min / Fastest lap Free Practice: 2:06.875 min / Fastest lap Superpole 3: 2:06.787 min “Although tomorrow’s starting position is not bad at all, I cannot be happy with the third Superpole session. I was a little bit unlucky: We decided to go for the used qualifying tyres, and with these tyres you only have one quick lap. I followed Troy and Leon Haslam on my flying lap, and when Troy ran wide into the grass, Leon had to come off the gas, and I nearly lost the front. That was it. I see a big question mark for tomorrow’s races: our starting position is not too bad, but my lap times on race tyres were not too good so far. Nevertheless, I am a fighter, and I will push tomorrow.” Davide Tardozzi (BMW Motorrad Motorsport Team Manager): “I am happy with today’s second Superpole session: We did very well with both riders, doing a 2:04.9 minutes on race tyres. In Superpole 3, Troy made a mistake on his flying lap and went onto the grass. So he was not able to do a good lap. But we must be happy with what we achieved with the race tyres in qualifying 2. We start from the second row, and we think that both riders can fight for the podium tomorrow.” More, from a press release issued by Yamaha: Crutchlow claims fifth World Superbike Superpole on home ground at Silverstone Yamaha Sterilgarda rider Cal Crutchlow sent a clear message today in the Superpole session, the British rider putting in devastatingly fast laps through the heats to claim his fifth pole position start of the year. Crutchlow´s fastest flying lap was just 0.7 seconds off the recent MotoGP pole time taken by Lorenzo at Silverstone and would have put the Yamaha Sterilgarda rider on the second row of the GP grid to start. Whilst his time on a qualifier was impressive, Crutchlow´s first Superpole heat delivered an equally astounding 2´04.5 on race rubber. Crutchlow´s team mate James Toseland had a more frustrating end to his qualifying day. Toseland had been fast all weekend and determined to perform well in front of his home crowd. Having passed comfortably through the first Superpole heat he fell during the second. An unexplained tuck at the front saw him low-side midway through the lap, leaving him on the third row of the grid for tomorrow´s two races. Toseland has displayed fast consistent race pace all weekend so a good start will be needed to take the fight to the front. Cal Crutchlow, Yamaha Sterilgarda World Superbike Team, (1st, 2´04.091) ˝It is nice to have pole again, especially here at our home race, I had it last year at Donington as well. Coming back to the new Silverstone circuit is really good, it is a little but bumpy but not too bad. The lap time in Superpole was pretty good, I was absolutely desperate to do a 2.03, that was the target and the whole team were pumping me up to try it as it is the MotoGP pole time. Unfortunately I made a mistake coming out of the fast left-handers so it was not to be. I think there are a lot of fast people here this weekend so it should be close exciting racing tomorrow. All credit to the Yamaha team they have delivered a really good package this weekend so I am looking forward to the racing.˝ James Toseland, Yamaha Sterilgarda World Superbike Team (12th, 2´05.397) ˝Things have been going pretty well this weekend, I have been quite pleased with the bike and things have been moving forward. The lap where I crashed I had my second qualifier in, it was working really well and when I came through the new section I tipped it left and it felt like something touched and picked up the front of the bike and away it went. It has really been one of those years this year. I am bitterly frustrated but we are still clinging on to the third row. We just have to brush ourselves down and get on with it tomorrow.˝ Massimo Meregalli, Yamaha Sterilgarda World Superbike Team Manager ˝Cal did a really impressive lap in Superpole, I think he really wanted to show that in all the practices he was the fastest rider. The pace he has is good so now we are waiting to see what he can do in the races. James had a crash during the second Superpole session, It was unfortunate but with the race tyre we know he is fast so we know he has the pace to be in front tomorrow depending on his start. We think that we can be up there with both riders.˝ More, from a press release issued by Hannspree Ten Kate Honda: Jonathan Rea will start tomorrow’s two 10th round World Superbike championship races from the front row of the grid after setting the second fastest time in this afternoon’s Superpole qualifying session. Pole position was taken by fellow British rider, Cal Crutchlow, after Rea had topped the timing sheets in this morning’s second qualifying session when the 5.902km Silverstone circuit was still damp in patches following overnight rain. The new Silverstone layout has received an enthusiastic thumbs up from Rea and his World Superbike rivals, despite changes in track surface and its bumpy nature. He and Crutchlow are joined on the front row by Michel Fabrizio and Jakub Smrz. Rea’s Hannspree Ten Kate Honda team-mate Max Neukircher was unable to improve the set-up of his CBR1000RR Fireblade in this morning’s damp conditions. The German qualified for Superpole thanks to his time from yesterday’s session but he was unable to progress beyon d Superpole 1 and will start tomorrow’s two 18-lap races from 18th place on the grid. Jonathan Rea P2, 2’04.763s It’s really fun to ride here and tomorrow should deliver two fantastic races there are so many good passing places. I want to thank all my fans and sponsors for coming out for my home race and I’ll certainly ride with a smile on my face tomorrow. The last two weeks have been a little crazy but it’s great to start the weekend at Silverstone like this. It’s the front row, and you can’t ask for much more than to start a race from there. It was a great time by Cal and it was too fast for me today, but I’m enjoying riding the bike, it’s a lot of fun, and I think the 18 laps are going to go quite fast compared to my Suzuka adventure last weekend. So I’ll need to pull the pin quite early on and see what happens, but the bike’s good, the team’s good and track is awesome you can’t help but smile when you’re riding round here ! Max Neukirchner P18, 2’07.041s The problem is that I can’t keep the line in the corners and I don’t have any grip at the rear. It was bad yesterday but today it is even worse. We’ll try to make the bike completely different for tomorrow, like we had in the Assen test and working mostly on the rear, and we will see what happens. For now, it’s difficult to adapt my riding style to the bike when it is not turning. It has been a difficult day and tomorrow’s races will not be easy. I will try to get some good starts and do my best to get some better results. Ronald ten Kate team manager We’re happy to have Jonathan on the front row of the grid that was the mission for him today. He seems to have already found quite a good pace for the race and that’s what tomorrow is all about. We’re still looking at a few things on the bike but we’re ready to race with the top guys being fairl y close to each other on race tyres. With this new track layout, I think the races are going to be very nice to watch. More, from a press release issued by Infront Motor Sports: Cal takes fifth Superpole of 2010 at home track Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha Sterilgarda) took a home pole position at Silverstone, with a new best lap of 2’04.091. He held off the charge of Jonathan Rea (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) by 0.672 seconds, and Michel Fabrizio (Ducati Xerox) by 0.992 seconds. Jakub Smrz (Pata B&G) moved forward impressively with some great single laps to go fourth on the grid. Smrz beat both of the official factory Aprilia machines and was one place up on championship challenger Leon Haslam (Suzuki Alstare). Max Biaggi (Aprilia Alitalia) went sixth fastest starting from the same row as his big championship rival Haslam. Troy Corser was eighth after running wide on his fast lap, and finished seventh for BMW Motorrad Motorsport, one place up on his team-mate Ruben Xaus. Shane Byrne (Ducati Althea) was the last rider to miss the cut into Superpole three, and now starts ninth at his home round. Carlos Checa, his team-mate, made the top ten after looking good for a front row start at one stage. Sylvain Guintoli (Alstare Suzuki) was 11th, James Toseland 12th after falling when looking set for a better placing. A strong ride from Tom Sykes put his Kawasaki Racing Team machine on the front of the fourth row, ahead of privateer Lorenzo Lanzi (DFX Corse Ducati), Noriyuki Haga (Ducati Xerox) and Leon Camier (Aprilia Alitalia), who had his best time deleted for cutting the chicane. Wild card rider Josh Brookes (HM Plant Honda) was 17th in Superpole, Max Neukirchner (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) was 18th, Broc Parkes (ECHO CRS Honda) 19th but Luca Scassa did not set a lap in Superpole, starting from 20th place on his Supersonic Racing Team Ducati. Cal Crutchlow: “It’s nice to have pole again, especially here at the home race. My lap time was good, I was absolutely desperate to do 2.03, that was the target and the whole team were pumping me up to try and do it, but I made a little mistake coming out of one of the fast left handers and it wasn’t to be. We’re in the same boat as Brno, where we had a big gap in qualifying, but the bike’s hard to ride over a race distance and we know that’s going to be the case tomorrow.” Jonathan Rea: “It’s been a great start to the weekend, front row you can’t ask for much more for the race. It was a great time but Cal was a bit too fast for me. I’m enjoying riding the bike, it’s a lot of fun and these 18 laps will surely go by quite fast compared to my Suzuka adventures. I need to pull the pin quite early, but I’m pretty confident. The new Silverstone is awesome, a little bit bumpy but the layout is phenomenal.” Michel Fabrizio: “I am very happy with my form today, and I want to dedicate the result to all of my team. Let’s hope things will go even better tomorrow. My race pace is not bad at all, but I think Cal’s is a bit quicker than mine.” Times: 1. Crutchlow C. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 2’04.091; 2. Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 2’04.763; 3. Fabrizio M. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 2’05.083; 4. Smrz J. (CZE) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 2’05.168; 5. Haslam L. (GBR) Suzuki GSX-R1000 2’05.595; 6. Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 2’05.682; 7.Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 2’05.740; 8. Xaus R. (ESP) BMW S1000 RR 2’06.787; 9. Byrne S. (GBR) Ducati 1098R 2’05.026; 10. Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 2’05.035; etc. Supersport Eugene Laverty (Parkalgar Honda) posted the best time in Supersport qualifying at Silverstone, with a 2’09.426 lap on the final qualifying session. Kenan Sofuoglu (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) pushed his way to second, with the final rider in the championship ‘big three’ going third Joan Lascorz from the Kawasaki Motocard.com team. The top three riders are separated by only 0.035 seconds. Bike Service RT Yamaha rider Roberto Tamburini was an impressive fourth fastest, local star Gino Rea (Intermoto Czech) was sixth because he could not improve on his Friday time today. Times: 1. Laverty E. (IRL) Honda CBR600RR 2’09.426; 2. Sofuoglu K. (TUR) Honda CBR600RR 2’09.456; 3. Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-6R 2’09.461; 4. Tamburini R. (ITA)Yamaha YZF R6 2’09.537; 5. Harms R. (DEN) Honda CBR600RR 2’09.816; 6. Rea G. (GBR) Honda CBR600RR 2’09.916; 7. Fujiwara K. (JPN) Kawasaki ZX-6R 2’10.190; 8. Roccoli M. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 2’10.256; 9. Davies C. (GBR) Triumph Daytona 675 2’10.258; 10. Salom D. (ESP) Triumph Daytona 675 2’10.262; etc. Superstock 1000 Ayrton Badovini (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) moved himself into pole position in the final qualifying session, with a 2’09.742. Maxime Berger (Ten Kate Race Junior) slotted in second, and Andrea Antonelli (Team Lorini Honda) got into the top three thanks to his first day best time. Sylvain Barrier (Garnier Racing Junior BMW) is now also a front row starter, finishing fourth in the practice rankings. The top Ducati rider was Lorenzo Baroni (Pata B&G Ducati), fifth. Times: 1. Badovini A. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 2’09.742; 2. Berger M. (FRA) Honda CBR1000RR 2’09.964; 3. Antonelli A. (ITA) Honda CBR1000RR 2’10.509; 4. Barrier S. (FRA) BMW S1000 RR 2’10.613; 5.Baroni L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 2’10.653; 6.Burrell B. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX 10R 2’11.700; 7.Petrucci D. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX 10R 2’11.716; 8. Zanetti L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 2’11.739; 9. Magnoni M. (ITA) Honda CBR1000RR 2’11.744; 10. Giugliano D. (ITA) Suzuki GSX-R 1000 2’11.798 Superstock 600 – Race Local rider Luke Mossey (Sondelsport Yamaha) won a thrilling race with championship challenger Florian Marino (Ten Kate Race Junior), a contest that came right down to the very last corner. Mossey held off Marino to win by only 0.036 seconds, with Jeremy Guarnoni (MRS Racing Yamaha) third and Davide Fanelli (All Service System by QDP Honda) fourth. In the championship standings, Guarnoni now leads Marino by 26 points. Results: 1. Mossey L. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R6 17’55.916 (157,984 kph); 2. Marino F. (FRA) Honda CBR600RR 0.036; 3. Guarnoni J. (FRA) Yamaha YZF R6 4.102; 4. Fanelli D. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 4.295; 5. Lombardi B. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R 4.653; 6. Le Coquen S. (FRA) Yamaha YZF R6 10.232; 7. Duwelz G. (BEL) Yamaha YZF R6 12.060; 8. Elliott J. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX-6R 17.268; 9. Calero Perez N. (ESP) Yamaha YZF R6 22.066; 10. Covena T. (NED) Yamaha YZF R6 27.070; etc. Points (after 7 rounds of 10): 1. Guarnoni 152; 2. Marino 126; 3. D’Annunzio 70; 4. Lombardi 70; 5. Fanelli 64; 6.Karlsen 51; 7. Calero Perez 51; 8. Lanusse 44; 9. Le Coquen 42; 10. Elliot 31 More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki Alstare: LEON JUST MISSES THE FRONT ROW. Team Suzuki Alstare rider Leon Haslam just missed out on a front row grid place today in final Superpole when he was held up by a slower rider on his flying lap. He will now start tomorrow’s pair of 18-lap races from the second row of the grid, just behind the poleman, Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha). Crutchlow took Superpole today, with a blistering lap of 2:04.091 and with it, his fifth Superpole win of the season. Second was Jonathan Rea (Honda), with Michel Fabrizio (Ducati) third and Jakub Smrz (Aprilia) fourth. Leon’s team mate, Sylvain Guintoli, ended with the 11th quickest lap in Superpole and will start from the third row of the grid. Leon – 5th, 2:05.595 If I hadn’t have been held up on my quick lap in final Superpole, I think I would’ve been on the front row of the grid. I think it was Ruben Xaus in the way, but that’s how it goes sometimes. Fifth is not so bad because I am directly behind Cal on pole and, as long as I make two good starts, I feel I can be in contention tomorrow. I’m pretty happy with the bike set-up, but I’m always looking for improvements and we’ll just try a few tweaks in the warm-up tomorrow morning. I feel fairly well dialled in with the track now and much happier with the tyres than I was in the last round in Brno. My aim is to make two good starts and go all-out for a pair of wins or podiums. Hopefully Max will be somewhere behind – preferably with a few people between me and him! Sylvain -11th, 2:05.066 It’s the same story in that this championship is so close and competitive that the tiniest of margins can make such big differences. It was such a small amount between me and Superpole 3 and a shame I couldn’t make it. But the good news is that I have a good feeling with the race tyres and I am much more happy with the bike’s set-up today. We’ve made good progress since the first practice. I feel I’ve got good race rhythm so we’ll probably stick to what we’ve got now, or very close to it. In one of my Superpoles, I saw a yellow flag and maybe I was a bit too cautious and eased off a bit too much – just to be safe. That was because of Toseland’s crash, but perhaps I could’ve gone a bit quicker, even though the flag was out. I am ready for the big fight tomorrow and hoping to have some fun – especially as I have so many friends and family here. More, from a press release issued by Team PATA/B&G Racing: Jakub Smrz returned to form and finished fourth in Superpole today, position which will allow him to start from front row tomorrow. This important result was scored after an extensive preparation, with Smrz managing to find a good feeling with the bike and a proper setup for his riding style . The rider is confident for tomorrow as well and hopes to repeat the performance from today. Lorenzo Baroni did well too, qualifying fifth on the grid and is eager to battle for the top slots tomorrow. JAKUB SMRZ | Aprilia RSV4 | 4th in 2’05.168: “We made a huge step forward compared to Brno and I feel more comfortable than ever before on the Aprilia. I’m more confident and we can see the results and so my goal for tomorrow is to do just as well as today, but I have to make a good start and stay in the leading pack until the chequered flag”. MIRCO GUANDALINI – team manager: “We really needed this, especially for the rider’s morale, who hasn’t been very lucky lately. I’m also happy for the team who have proven that we can overcome hardship and the results arrived . I expect a good performance from Baroni as well, who has improved race after race and is more focused now”. More, from a press release issued by Troy Corser’s publicist: SECOND ROW FOR TROY. Troy once again easily managed to get into Superpole 3, but a problem with his qualifying tyre prevented him from taking a place on the front row of the grid. His qualifying tyre in Superpole 3 didn’t work as well as his qualifier in Superpole 2 and the difference was so great that Troy almost crashed. He recovered, went back to the pits and put on some regular race rubber as soon as he good, but just could not force his way onto the front row. Briton Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha) once again dominated Superpole today, taking his fifth win of the season, with a superb lap of 2:04.091. Second was Jonathan Rea (Honda), with Michel Fabrizio (Ducati) third and Jakub Smrz (Aprilia) fourth. Troy – 7th, 2:05.740 Actually today wasn’t too bad. It was just unfortunate that my qualifying tyre didn’t work in Superpole 3, otherwise I think I could’ve got on the front row of the grid for sure. I used a qualifying tyre in Superpole 2 and it worked OK, though to be true I didn’t feel a big difference between the race tyres and the qualifiers this afternoon. I used my last qualifier in Superpole 3, but it gave no grip and was spinning straightaway. I ran off the track and almost crashed! I went back to the pits, put on some race rubber and immediately went faster! Generally, I am pretty happy with the bike, though we do need to fix the throttle connection a bit because I feel I’m getting a bit of a delay, instead of it just working as quickly as normal. If I get my normal good starts, I think I can be in the first four going into turn one and that’s pretty crucial because otherwise the front group can get away. Turn one is quite bumpy going in and on the exit, so it’s going to be pretty interesting for the fans there! There are quite a few passing places round here, but you’ve got to have the tyre to make it work. Hopefully, all will be OK tomorrow and I can challenge for the podium in both races. More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki: Superpole Qualifying Puts Sykes On Row Four at Silverstone WSBK, Silverstone, Great Britain, 31 July 2010 Tom Sykes powered his way into Superpole qualifying and ended up 13th on the grid for Sunday’s two 18-lap races at his home circuit of Silverstone. Tom’s team-mate for this weekend Akira Yanagawa worked hard to get on terms with his World Superbike Ninja ZX-10R machine, which is a very different spec of race bike to that he uses in Japan, and he was 25th on the grid. The long 5.902km Silverstone circuit, back on the WSBK calendar in quite a different form from the version last used by WSBK in 2007, proved fast and bumpy in places but it met with great approval from the mass of competitors. Sykes is racing at his circuit for this round but has little in the way of local knowledge of the new Silverstone. He worked well in practice to qualify easily for Superpole, and was in the top ten after regulation qualifying. It was not possible for Tom to maximise his qualifiers in exactly the way he wanted to in Superpole, but he pushed all the way as he worked hard towards taking two good race results on Sunday. Akira found arriving back in a very welcoming World Superbike paddock a difficult task on track at least, particularly at round ten of a long season when rival team and rider combinations are now well used to meshing as a unit. Kawasaki Racing Team riders and technical staff will now use the last available practice session, the 20-minute warm-up on Sunday morning, to make final adjustments and tyre choice confirmations. Tom Sykes: “We did a reasonable time on race tyres and I pushed hard on qualifiers. I feel we reached the maximum potential of where we are at right now. Overall I am happy enough but tomorrow we need to keep working to get a little bit better balance for full race distance. We have been working well so far and I want to carry that through to race day. The track is good, I am enjoying riding around it.” Akira Yanagawa: “I am still having to study how the World Superbike Ninja ZX-10R machine works, and also the tyres. I used another tyre manufacturer when racing in Japan and this makes a lot of difference, especially in the corners. The World Superbike machine has a lot of power and a lot of electronics, so although the bike is nice to ride, the electronics can take over control on the exit of the corners. I have to learn to trust the electronics and work with them. In the morning, in warm-up tomorrow, I have 20 minutes to try something else to find a faster pace and I have to push more myself.” More, from a press release issued by Team Pedercini: Wet conditions for this morning’s Superbike qualifying session in Silverstone, U.K. Because of the wet track, both Pedercini team’s riders couldn’t improve their yesterday’s best lap time and for this reason they missed the Superpole. Hayden placed twenty-first (2’07″677) and Baiocco finished twenty-third (2’10″431). In the afternoon free practice on a dry track Hayden confirmed his twenty-first position (2’08″466) while Baiocco was able to improve his best lap time (2’10″067) ending in twenty-fifth place. Sixth row for both Kawasaki’s riders in tomorrow’s 18-laps races. Superbike qualifying 2 : 1) Crutchlow (Yamaha) 2) Rea (Honda) 3) Corser (BMW) 4) Camier (Aprilia) – 5) Fabrizio (Ducati) “¦.. 21) Hayden (Kawasaki)”¦”¦”¦23) Baiocco (Kawasaki) Superbike Superpole : 1) Crutchlow (Yamaha) 2) Rea (Honda) 3) Fabrizio (Ducati) – 4) Smrz (Aprilia) – 5) Haslam (Suzuki) “¦.. 21) Hayden (Kawasaki)”¦”¦”¦23) Baiocco (Kawasaki) Matteo Baiocco :”This morning the wet track conditions did not allow us to work properly on my bike. I was not able to improve my best lap time and so I missed the Superpole. This afternoon the track was completely dry and I worked hard with my team to improve my bike performances. We knew we had a couple of issues to sort out which took some time. We were also struggling for grip to start with but we made some changes which worked. I’m confident for tomorrow’s races also because we’ll try some new solution during tomorrow morning warm up”. Roger Lee Hayden :”Due to the wet track conditions, this morning I lost a good opportunity to work with my technical staff to solve a few of our set up problems. Fortunately this afternoon we’re heading in the right direction. We’ve still got some work to do on the rear so I can take some of the corners like I want to, but I’m pretty happy for the improvements we have done in these two days and I want to thanks the guys in the team who have done a great job”. More, from a press release issued by Athea Racing: Silverstone, 31 luglio 2010 Both of the Althea Racing riders will line up on the third row for tomorrow’s races at the English circuit of Silverstone, with Shane Byrne and Carlos Checa having recorded the ninth and tenth fastest times respectively. The Spanish rider, having registered the fourth fastest time in the first Superpole phase, closed the second phase with the tenth fastest time, just missing out on a spot in the final phase by 41 thousandths of a second. “It was so easy to find yourself out of Superpole by just a fraction of a second today”, said Carlos. “With the first tyre I caught Camier who unintentionally slowed me down while with the second tyre I didn’t have a great feeling. I’m satisfied however with my race pace and I hope to make a strong start tomorrow in order to do my part. It will undoubtedly be a close race.” Shane Byrne was also satisfied, despite just missing out a top eight finish. “I am really happy”, said Shane, “because after Brno I have finally understood the Superpole. And to have taken my best Superpole result yet here at my home track is of course great news. The team’s has done a really good job and tomorrow I will do my best to run two great races.” Tomorrow’s warm-up takes place at 9.20 while Race 1 gets underway at 12.00 and Race 2 at 15.30; both are 18 laps in length, or 106.236km.