Bayliss World Champion, Abe 9th Congratulations to Troy Bayliss (Ducati) the 2006 Superbike World Champion! Norick Abe finished this Sunday 9th and 11th, while Shinichi Nakatomi ended up 11th and 12th. Sebastien Gimbert, injured, did not have the possibility to show his talent. Starting from the 15th position on the grid, Norick Abe had a great start in race 1, being already in 7th position by the end of the first lap. Shinichi Nakatomi was 19th and Sebastien Gimbert 22nd. Unfortunately, the Frenchman had to retire because he was injured, including a broken rib. After 7 laps (first third of the race), Norick Abe was in 10th position and Shinichi Nakatomi in 14th. After 14 laps (second third), Abe was 10th and Nakatomi 12th. Finally under the chequered flag, Abe ended up 9th and Nakatomi 11th. In race 2, Abe did not have such a great start and was 15th at the end of the first lap; Nakatomi was 20th and Gimbert 28th. Again, despite his courage, Sebastien Gimbert could not finish the race. After 7 laps, Abe was 13th and Nakatomi 17th. The second third of the event saw Abe gaining one position (12th) and Nakatomi four (13th). The two Japanese riders finished almost together in 11th and 12th positions. Norick Abe: “In race 1, I had a good start. But the bike had some grip problems and was moving too much. So for race 2 we changed the setting a little bit. The bike was obviously working better, but some of the grip and movement problems were still there. I am conscious that my result was helped by the fact that some riders crashed. I was lucky.” Shinichi Nakatomi: “I started from the 22nd position on the grid and then I passed some riders. My lap times and positions went better and better from Friday to Sunday. I finished the 2nd race 1.8 behind Abe. My fastest lap was on the 19th of the 21 lap. For my first time on this track, it is good progress.â” Martial Garcia (team manager): “It is a good overall result with one 9th position, two 11th and one 12th. Our two riders are in fact the first privateers on this very difficult and dangerous track with a bad surface. So we have many reasons to be happy. Sebastien Gimbert, injured at Assen and the Bol d’Or, tried everything but unfortunately he had to retire. Abe is now 13th in the Championship standings and Nakatomi, for his first year, is 17th which is good because the level is very high. We hope that Sebastien Gimbert will feel better at Magny-Cours and that he will be able to express himself on his bike.” Race 1: 1-Barros (Honda), 2-Toseland (Honda), 3-Pitt (Yamaha), 4-Haga (Yamaha), 5-Bayliss (Ducati)…9-Abe (Yamaha), 11-Nakatomi (Yamaha) Race 2: 1- Bayliss (Ducati), 2- Barros (Honda), 3-Kagayama (Suzuki), 4-Pitt (Yamaha), 5- Toseland (Honda)…11- Abe (Yamaha), 12-Nakatomi (Yamaha) World Championship standings: 1-1- Bayliss (Ducati) 2006 Superbike World Champion, 393 points, 2- Toseland (Honda) 295, 3- Haga (Yamaha) 293, 4- Pitt (Yamaha) 239, 5- Barros (Honda) 231… 13- Abe (Yamaha) 105, 17-Nakatomi (Yamaha) 42, 21-Gimbert (Yamaha) 18 12th and last round of the Superbike World Championship: October 8th at Magny-Cours (France) More, from a press release issued by Winston Ten Kate Honda: TOSELAND SECOND IN IMOLA RACE AND CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS James Toseland (Winston Ten Kate Honda) scored a hard-fought second place in the first race of the Imola weekend, and followed it up with an even tougher fifth place in race two. His race performances mean that he is now two points ahead of his rival for second place overall, Noriyuki Haga. Karl Muggeridge (Winston Ten Kate Honda) scored eighth on two occasions, and sits 12th overall. Troy Bayliss was crowned champion after race one, and went on to win race two. In the first 21-lap race of the day, held in glorious sunshine, Toseland was leading for a time, but could not hold back the challenge of first time race winner Alex Barros after his machine developed an electronics glitch. Toseland’s 20 points for second place propelled him back to second in the championship, however. Muggeridge was eventually eighth but in a fight for sixth for most of the race. Not enjoying a great start on his spare bike in race two, Toseland battled on and improved to an eventual fifth, one place ahead of Haga. In the title fight Bayliss has 393 points, Toseland 295 and Haga 293. Ronald Ten Kate – Team Manager “Race one was OK, and we had quite a good pace from James, until we had an electronics problem on the machine and that cost us quite a bit of time; but still a podium was OK. We swapped to the other bike for the second race but the start was pretty bad and we didn’t manage to catch up any ground. On Karl’s side I was a bit sorry because I thought he could make up a bit more ground today, but in the first race he got cramp in his arms, and the second race was not too bad, to be honest. But all in all, the results have been a bit disappointing.” James Toseland – Winston Ten Kate Honda Rider (2nd and 5th 2nd in the world championship with 295 points) “I didn’t get a perfect start in race one but it was OK. The second one we used the spare bike and it started off OK but then the clutch released and started to grab and I went back to eighth or ninth and lost a lot of time. I wanted to pull some good points back to Haga today, not just a couple. The battle for me after race one was for second in the championship, and I beat Haga in both races. I need to go to Magny Cours now and make sure I finish the job to finish runner-up in this championship.” Karl Muggeridge – Winston Ten Kate Honda Rider (8th and 8th – 12th in the world championship with 113 points) “In the last lap I started to run out of fuel, so I lost another two seconds to the leader, but I had a better ride in race two, and a better start. I got held up by Neukirchner, and he held me up for ages. Then Corser as well. It meant I lost the small gap I had back from James, which I knew I could have bridged. I had a very bad start in race one – 19th at the start because someone knocked me off the track. We made the bike better in race two, and we were close, but not quite there.” WORLD STANDING: 1. Bayliss – Ducati – 393 points 2. Toseland – Winston Ten Kate Honda – 295 points 3. Haga – Yamaha – 293 points 4. Pitt – Yamaha – 239 points 5. Barros – Honda – 231 points 12. Muggeridge – Winston Ten Kate Honda – 113 points More, from a press release issued by FGSport Group: BAYLISS THE CHAMPION AT IMOLA – BAYLISS GETS HIS REWARD AS BARROS TAKES FIRST SBK WIN Troy Bayliss (Ducati Xerox) finally wrapped up the championship he had led for so long with a safe fifth place in race one, before underlining his abilities with a second race victory in front of an enthusiastic crowd at Imola. Alex Barros (Klaffi Honda) broke his personal SBK duck in the first race, setting a new lap record of 1’50.266 as he powered through from eighth on lap one to the victory. James Toseland (Winston Ten Kate Honda) secured second in race one and Andrew Pitt (Yamaha Motor Italia) third, while in race two, Barros was second behind Bayliss, with Yukio Kagayama (Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) third. Bayliss now has an impressive 393 points, with Toseland up to second overall on 295, and Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia) third on 293. Pitt is fourth (239) and Barros fifth (231). RACE ONE A brilliant race of strategy and sheer pace gave Barros his first ever win in World Superbike. He had been down the order in the early laps, but slowly worked his way forward at a pace no-one could match, and even scored a new lap record on lap five, as he caught up with the leading group. Toseland, in second, was on his own at the finish, with Pitt third and Haga fourth. Troy Bayliss made his championship sure with a safe finish in fifth, and changed his crash helmet for one with cycling champion’s colours on it his slow-down lap, to take the plaudits of a the adoring Ducatisti – 86,500 of whom thronged to the Imola circuit during this weekend. RACE TWO In race Bayliss was uncaged from his championship concerns, and would not be denied – even by the astonishingly rapid Barros. Suffering a terrible start, Barros still managed to score second, making him the highest points scorer on the day. Kagayama was aggressive in third, with Pitt fourth and Toseland fifth, riding his second machine after electronics problems in race one. CORSER WORKS HARD AT IMOLA BUT SLIPS TO SIXTH OVERALL Another difficult raceday, despite a good qualifying performance, from outgoing champion Troy Corser (Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) left him a non-finisher in race one and only ninth in race two. He thus drops to sixth overall in the championship. His team-mates, Kagayama and Max Neukirchner (Alstare Engineering Suzuki) had tangled and fallen in race one, and Neukirchner would fall again, from a strong top ten placing, in race two. Haga was a slowing sixth in race two, nine seconds from the victor, Bayliss. LANZI BATTLES WELL ON HOME TARMAC In front of a voluble home crowd Lorenzo Lanzi (Ducati Xerox) scored sixth in race one, and despite there being less fallers in race two, he still managed a seventh. In a difficult day for all Kawasaki riders, the high water mark was set by Fonsi Nieto (PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse) with a seventh in race one, despite struggling with a shoulder injury. He was a fatigued 13th in race two. MUGGERIDGE SCORES IDENTICAL FINISHES Karl Muggeridge (Winston Ten Kate Honda) had some issues to contend with in each race, and ran out eighth in each contest. Ruben Xaus (Sterilgarda Berik) was on form in each race, but fell from leading position on each occasion. Chris Walker (PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse) was in trouble from the outset, having qualified only 19th, and he finished 12th and 14th, scoring a handful of points. Third PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse rider Regis Laconi, three times a winner at Imola, was tenth in two races, suffering from front traction issues in the first race. Norick Abe was also in the points twice (ninth and 11th) the best placed Yamaha Motor France rider on show. Pierfrancesco Chili (DFX Treme Honda) riding in his last race on home tarmac, went 16th and 18th, scoring no points. SUPERSPORT WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP Sebastien Charpentier (Winston Ten Kate Honda) and Kenan Sofuoglu (Winston Ten Kate Honda) dominated the Supersport race at Imola, and with championship leader Kevin Curtain (Yamaha Motor Germany) only third, the race for the championship itself was not decided, and now goes to Magny-Cours. The table now has Curtain on 187 points, Charpentier on 169 and Sofuoglu third, on 137. Broc Parkes (Yamaha Motor Germany) is still recovering from injury, and was thus sixth in the race (behind the impressive local duo of Gianluca Nannelli and William De Angelis) and Parkes now sits fourth overall, on 129 points. SUPERSTOCK 1000 FIM CUP The Superstock 1000 FIM Cup championship race saw the on-track winner Luca Scassa (EVR Corse Ormeni MV Agusta) disqualified, and thus the race win was given to original second place rider Brendan Roberts (HP Racing Suzuki) – and the championship to Alessandro Polita (Celani Team Suzuki). Polita held off a strong and brave push on the last lap from Claudio Corti (Yamaha Team Italia) to take third, leaving Corti a close fourth, with each rider promoted one place in the final classification. After Scassa’s disqualification Polita was put into an unassailable lead over Claudio Corti (Yamaha team Italia) 157 to 131. TO FRANCE FOR THE FINALE Magny-Cours is the venue for the final round of the season, next weekend, between 6 and 8 October. More, from a press release issued by Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra: 2006 Superbike World Championship Round 11, Imola, Italy Circuit: 4.959 kms. Crowd: 86,500 Weather: Dry, mostly sunny 27-28 Sunday 1st October PODIUM FOR YUKIO. TITLE FOR BAYLISS. It was not the best of days for Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra riders at Imola today, but at least Yukio managed to take a hard-fought for podium in race two. The first race saw both Yukio and Troy fail to finish for very different reasons. Yukio’s GSX-R1000 was hit by the falling bike of Max Neukirchner on the opening lap and that was that. Troy was forced to retire after his bike kept finding false neutrals and it would have been too dangerous to continue. The first race was won by Alex Barros (Honda), with James Toseland (Honda) second and Andrew Pitt (Yamaha) third. Pitt led the early stages of the race before being passed by Bayliss (Ducati), Toseland, Haga (Yamaha) and Barros – all on the same lap. Barros charged to the front on lap twelve and from then on in was never headed on his way to his first ever WSBK win. Bayliss finished fifth and that was enough to take the 2006 title. The start of race two was far more encouraging for Team Alstare, with Troy in second at the end of lap one, behind Bayliss. But it wasn’t long before he began to develop tyre problems and gradually began to slip down the order. Meanwhile Yukio moved up the order and was second with eight laps to go. But he too, started suffering tyre problems and could do nothing when Barros came past. Bayliss took the win – to the roar and approval of the huge partisan crowd – with Barros runner-up and Yukio third. YUKIO – Race 1: DNF, Race 2: 3rd Strange day today and I am not happy with the results. My first race never really started because I was hit on the first lap and crashed. I thought about getting back on the bike, but it was too badly damaged. In between the first and second races, my team did amazing work to repair my bike so that I could ride it in race two – and for this I say a ‘big thank you.’ The start of the second race was very fast and it was difficult to overtake anybody. Also, my front tyre feeling was not very good and I kept thinking I would crash every lap! But I did not want to give in, so I tried my hardest to keep the bike upright and close in on the leaders. I managed to do this and got into second place, but when Barros came past my tyres would not let me fight him back. So I settled for third place. It was one of the hardest races I’ve ever done, because Imola is a very physical track and when your tyres do not work it makes it even more physically tiring. Now I want to go to Magny-Cours and get two podiums! TROY – Race 1: DNF, Race 2: 9th What a day! One to forget for sure! I have had some bad luck this season and it seems to be carrying on and on. There’s not much to say really – especially about the first race. After a few laps, my bike found a false neutral on the downhill approach to a left-hander. I had to take to the gravel but I managed to stay on the bike and get back on the circuit. On the next lap, I got some false neutrals again and it became quite scary as I didn’t know when or where the bike would do it. It happened a couple more times, so I decided to pull in rather than crash and that was it for race one. Race two started better and I was with Bayliss from the off. After 5-6 laps, the rear tyre started going off and that, together with a lot of wheelspin, meant that I couldn’t get any drive or grip. From then, it was a real struggle to keep up and soon my lap times began to get worse and prevented me getting any decent result. I have no idea or explanation how or why all this is happening at the moment, but I’ve got to believe that it can’t last for ever. Results Race 1: 1 Barros (Bra-Honda), 2 Toseland (Honda ), 3 Pitt (Yamaha), 4 Haga (Yamaha), 5 Bayliss (Ducati), 6 Lanzi (Ducati), 7 Nieto -(Kawasaki),8 Muggeridge (Honda), 9 Abe (Yamaha), 10 Laconi (Kawasaki), TROY CORSER (Aus-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) DNF, YUKIO KAGAYAMA (J-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) DNF, Race 2: 1 Bayliss, 2 Barros, 3 YUKIO KAGAYAMA (J-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra), 4 Pitt, 5 Toseland, 6 Haga, 7 Lanzi (I-Ducati), 8 Muggeridge (Aus-Honda), 9 TROY CORSER (Aus-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra), 10 Laconi (I-Kawasaki), Points 1 Bayliss 393, 2 Toseland 295, 3 Haga 293, 4 Pitt 239, 5 Barros 231, 6 TROY CORSER 218, 7 YUKIO KAGAYAMA 193, 8 Lanzi 152, 9 Walker 140, 10 Nieto 139, More, from a press release issued by Scuderia SC Caracchi: AT IMOLA GOOD RACE FOR NANNELLI IN SUPERSPORT, ROLFO ENDED TWICE INTO THE POINTS IN SUPERBIKE (Imola 2006, October 1) Gianluca Nannelli recorded once more a very brilliant race in the fired Superport event at Imola, earning a seventh final place that does not explain exactly the great show gived by the Florentine rider. “I didn’t take a good start, The bike started in a wheelie and I’ve lost some position.” related Gianluca Nannelli at the end of the race. “In front I had De Angelis, very hard to pass, and I’ve lost too much time from the top of the race. When finally at fifth lap I’ve been able to get rid by this time the leaders were far before me, and I’ve been not able reduce the gap, also because the bike wasn’t so fast like yesterday. Then I’ve done a mistake at Variante Alta chicane and I’ve lost four positions, I rejoined my chase, but by this time I stressed the tyres and i could only overtake just Fujiwara before the chequered flag. It’s a pity, because I was sure to grab a better result after the practice session of yesterday.” Into the points in both the races Roberto Rolfo in Superbike. Roby started behind in the grid after the difficult in yesterday’s practices, so I had to race always to close the gap. “Starting back in the grid make everything more difficult.” commented Roberto Rolfo at the end of the day. “More I got a bad start and I remained in the group, and in such conditions at the end of the first lap I have a 7-8 seconds gap, and you couldn’t believe to recover it. I’ve been able to grab the points in both the races, so looking at all it has been a positive day, but I feel in myself that we could get more and more, and it’s frustrating do not get it.” Points for Stuart Easton too in Supersport, after a hard fight in the central group of the riders. “Today I’ve been not very fast as I’m used to at the start.” said Stuart Easton. “I remaned prisoner in the group, but my bike was very very fast today too and I could recover several positions to finish in the points. To contest the World Championship gave me a graet experience and that has been fantastic for a rider.” Today too Luka Nedog had not too much luck: he has been not very brilliant at the start, also with a jump start violation, so he became nervous and, trying to recover he crashed, finishing the race in the gravel. “That’s true, when I’ve seen my jump start failure I became nervous.” – has been the Nedog’s comment back in the box. “Most because I had any advantage from this violation, on the contrary! Then trying to recover I went too far and I crashed. That’s a pity, after yesterday’s practices I was confident for a good race.” More, from a press release issued by Team Klaffi Honda: Barros gets first victory for Klaffi-Honda Alex Barros (Team Klaffi Honda) snatched his first SBK victory at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Farrari in Imola. It was also the first heat win for the Klaffi-Honda-Team, since entering in SBK in 2005. In front of crowd of more than 86 000 Barros also put in an excellent show in the second heat, recovering from 11th position up to second place. Alex Barros: “I have to say thank you to the team. They worked fantastic and the bike was very competitive. In the first heat the two crashes ahead of me cost me some ground. Once I was in the lead, I could control it easily. The start to the second race was a disastrous. I spent some time behind Muggeridge, actually we came together at the Variante Alta, which cost me about two seconds, because I had to go over the grass. Maybe with a few more laps I could have caught Bayliss. Anyway it is a great result and we want to continue on this level in Magny Cours.” Klaus Klaffenböck, Team Manager: “Alex did a great job. We knew about his ability to ride consistent laps about 1:50 after the qualifying sessions. I hope we can continue with this team for 2007 and get a second rider. We proved, that we are capable to win.” RESULTS SBK IMOLA, Race 1: 1. Alex Barros, Klaffi-Honda, 39:00,096(= 160,207 km/h). 2. James Toseland, Honda, +4,351. 3. Andrew Pitt, Yamaha, +6,809. 4. Noriyuki Haga, Yamaha, +11,179. 5. Troy Bayliss, Ducati, +11,57. 6. Lorenzo Lanzi, Ducati. 7. Fonsi Nieto, Kawasaki. 8. Karl Muggeridge, Honda. 9. Norick Abe, Yamaha. 10. Regis Laconi, Kawasaki. Race 2: 1. Bayliss, 38:57,069 (= 160,415 km/h). 2. Barros, +1,413 sec. 3. Kagayama, 4,355. 4. Kagayama, +7,396. 4. Pitt, 5,387. 5. Toseland, +6,418. 6. Haga. 7. Lanzi. 8. Muggeridge. 9. Corser. 10. Laconi. Championship Standings (after 11 of 12 rounds): 1. Bayliss, 393 pts3. Toseland 295. 3. Haga 293. 4. Pitt 239. 5. Barros 231. 6. Corser 218. 7. Kagayama 193. 8. Lanzi 152. 10. Nieto 140. Circuit: Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, Imola, Italy. Track length: 4933 m. Fastest lap: Alex Barros, Honda, 1:50,266 (= 161,903 km/h). More, from a press release issued by Xerox Ducati: BAYLISS (DUCATI XEROX) TAKES THE 2006 WORLD SUPERBIKE TITLE AT IMOLA Imola (Italy), Sunday 1st October: Troy Bayliss (Ducati Xerox) won the World Superbike Championship for the second time today at Imola. In the penultimate round of the series, held at the Autodromo Enzo & Dino Ferrari in front of 86,000 spectators, the 37 year-old Australian, WSBK champion back in 2001, took the crown with a fifth place in race 1, won by Alex Barros (Honda). In the second race of the day Troy held the lead from start to finish, taking his eleventh win of the year in this extraordinary season. Bayliss’s triumph takes the number of Riders’ titles won by Ducati in the production-based series to twelve, while the battle for the Manufacturers’ title is still open with one round left. “I’m really happy for myself and for Ducati Xerox with the title win” declared Troy. “We’ve worked well all year, the second half has been a little bit up and down but I’ve just had to ride harder. I got a good start in race 1, I really wanted to go for the win but I think we chose the wrong rear tyre and I was struggling a bit so in the end I was happy to let Pitt pass me and then I let Nori pass me as well. It’s been very busy today with all the Ducati factory here but I’m happy as well for everyone who made this win possible, Xerox and Shell Advance above all, but to do it at Imola today was very special. I’ve got a great team, and a lovely bike, and I wanted to win the second race to put the icing on the cake!” Federico Minoli, Chairman of Ducati Motor Holding, commented: “It’s a great satisfaction to have Troy as World Champion for the second time. He has come back home, he has given the best of himself, the bike is there, the team also, so this is the crowning of teamwork that began a long time ago: congratulations to Troy and everyone, it’s been a great day!”. Two determined races for Lorenzo Lanzi earned him a sixth place in race 1, followed by a seventh place in race 2. “I was a bit unlucky today” said Lorenzo. “In the first race I was hit by Neukirchner, which lost me six positions. Afterwards I managed to get back up to sixth place. In race 2, someone touched me, maybe Toseland, at the first corner. Once again I managed to get back up the field, lapping in some good times, to finish seventh”. RACE 1: 1. Barros (Honda); 2. Toseland (Honda); 3. Pitt (Yamaha); 4. Haga (Yamaha); 5. Bayliss (Ducati Xerox); 6. Lanzi (Ducati Xerox); 7. Nieto (Kawasaki); 8. Muggeridge (Honda). RACE 2: 1. Bayliss; 2. Barros; 3. Kagayama (Suzuki); 4. Pitt; 5. Toseland; 6. Haga; 7. Lanzi; 8. Muggeridge. POINTS (after 11 of 12 rounds): Riders – 1. Bayliss 393 (Campione del Mondo 2006); 2. Toseland 295; 3. Haga 293; 4. Pitt 239; 5. Barros 231; 6. Corser 218; 7. Kagayama 193; 8. Lanzi 152. Manufacturers – 1. Ducati 412; 2. Honda 373; 3. Yamaha 368; 4. Suzuki 336; 5. Kawasaki 211; 6. Petronas 19. More, from a press release issued by Honda: World Supersport and Superbike Championships 2006 Round 11, Imola Italy Weekend Crowd – 86,500 (claimed) Temperatures: 29°C air, 39°C track – dry and sunny Imola Race Report 29 September – 1 October 2006 World Supersport Round 11 of 12 CHARPENTIER AND SOFUOGLU 1-2 GIVES HONDA MANUFACTURERS’ TROPHY A perfect 1-2 team performance in qualifying for Sebastien Charpentier (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR) and Kenan Sofuoglu (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR) was mirrored in triumphant style in the 21-lap Imola race, with Charpentier finishing first and Sofuoglu second. Their points helped Honda win the Supersport Manufacturers’ Trophy for the fourth year in succession, with one race still to run. The Winston Ten Kate Honda team-mates’ joint efforts took them almost ten seconds clear of championship leader Kevin Curtain, who was third at Imola. Charpentier now enters the final round at Magny-Cours next weekend needing to make up an 18-point deficit to retain his champion status, having made great inroads into the 27-point disadvantage he suffered from before the Imola weekend. A return to form for Katsuaki Fujiwara (Team Megabike Honda CBR600RR) saw him as high as third in the early order, mimicking his practice performance, but slowly dropping down to finish eighth, as his wrist injury slowed his progress. His team-mate, Yoann Tiberio (Team Megabike Honda CBR600RR) finished ninth, after once more experiencing problems with set-up and ultimate traction. Charpentier knows that Imola was an important step in his personal recuperation and championship challenge, and he is fully aware of the possibilities he has in front of his home fans next weekend. “I am happy, because after the German race it was not easy for me in my head,” said Charpentier, clearly back his best after a tough mid-season, plagued by injuries. “Now, for sure, the victory was perfect for me, and my team, and Honda. This was very important for the championship, because the last race is in Magny-Cours, in France, and I hope to win again. The package of our bike and the choice of tyres were good today and my team-mate was very good. After my crash in Brno it was not easy, even if my hand was not completely perfect today, because I hurt it in Germany. The start was not ideal for me, but I closed the gap step-by-step. Robbin Harms crashed in front of me and it would have been easy to hit him or make a mistake. I have to say thanks to everyone for the good weekend we have enjoyed here. Sometimes it is not so easy, like after Germany, but thanks to everyone, the team and my family, for the good support.” Sofuoglu’s fantastic start made the Imola event a straightforward one for him, and his personal aim of taking third in the championship is now right on schedule, as he has 137 points, compared to Curtain on 187, Charpentier on 169 and fourth place rider, Broc Parkes, on 129. “Of course I am really happy with this race, and with Sebastien and I finishing first and second,” said Sofuoglu. “Sebastien was trying for the championship so I did not really try too hard – but Sebastien was already riding really fast anyway. We had good bikes and good set-up. I hope in Magny-Cours we can win the championship and I can be on the podium too. We will keep working hard and looking to next week.” Fujiwara was disappointed to finish so low down after such a good start, but knew he had taken the best result he could. He now sits 12th in the championship, on 30 points. “My wrist injury was better than before but there was still pain from my scaphoid,” said Fujiwara. “I was at least happier with my riding in the early laps and it was important that I qualified third to make a good start.” Yoann Tiberio’s Imola is not one to be remembered fondly by the young Frenchman, especially after qualifying only 11th. He is seventh overall as he approaches his home race in Magny-Cours, with a total of 74 points. “It was tough today and very difficult for the tyres,” said Tiberio. “I rode at my maximum all the race but it was dificult to find a good setting all weekend and that made it hard in the race.” World Superbike Round 11 of 12 BARROS SCORES HIS FIRST SBK WIN AS TOSELAND REGAINS SECOND PLACE OVERALL Alex Barros (Klaffi Honda CBR1000RR) scored his first SBK race win the hard way after a superb run from eighth on lap one of the opening 21-lap contest and he was only 1.413 seconds from the win in race two, after an even worse start from the second row of the grid. James Toseland (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR) was a lonely second in the first race and after scoring a fifth in race two, he promoted himself back to second overall, by two points, from Noriyuki Haga. The Riders’ Championship win was decided in favour of Troy Bayliss at Imola, but the Manufacturers’ Championship will not be awarded until the outcome of the Magny-Cours season finale in known. Karl Muggeridge (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR) was eighth on two occasions, while Pierfrancesco Chili (DFX Treme Honda CBR1000RR) finished each race, but was out of the points each time, finishing 16th and 18th. Michel Fabrizio (DFX Treme Honda CBR1000RR) retired because of technical problems in each race. Race one was the sole property of Barros, who came through from a careful first lap to score his first ever win in World Superbike, having been fast in regular qualifying, yet only eighth in Superpole. He was the quickest rider over a single in race one, setting a new lap record of 1m 50.266s and made his advantage in pace and set-up count with a clear victory over the only rider who could live with his charge for a time, James Toseland. Andrew Pitt was third. Karl Muggeridge went eighth (after finishing Superpole 13th). In race two Barros was arguably even more impressive than in race one, and with more two or three more laps would have caught and passed eventual winner Troy Bayliss. Toseland had to race his spare machine in race two, after experiencing some problems with the electronics on his new machine in race one. Third place went to Yukio Kagayama, with Toseland fifth, but ahead of his main rival Haga. Toseland moves from third to second overall after Imola, with Bayliss on 393 points, Toseland 295, Haga 293 and Pitt 239. Barros is now fifth, with 231 points, while Muggeridge is 12th on 113, only four points behind the non-scoring Fabrizio. Toseland’s aim now that the championship win has become a mathematical impossibility is to finish second overall, and he made some progress at Imola, if not quite as much as he wanted. “I didn’t get a perfect start in race one but it was OK,” said Toseland. “In the second one we used the spare bike and it started off OK but then the clutch released and started to grab and I went back to eighth or ninth and lost a lot of time. I wanted to pull some good points back to Haga today, not just a couple. The battle for me after race one, when Bayliss took the title, was for second in the championship, and I beat Haga in both races. I need to go to Magny-Cours now and make sure I finish the job to be runner-up in this championship.” Barros had to work hard for his win and second place and had to avoid some early problems in race one. “In the first race I was held up by two crashes,” said Barros. “So I did not get away with the leaders. I really had to try hard to avoid Xaus, and then I just got my head down to get with the leaders. I knew that the last ten laps would be critical for the tyres so it was good that I could set fast lap times all the way through and I could go away from the rest of the leaders.” Muggeridge had an eventful raceday, with niggling problems getting in the way of a better pair of results. “I had a better ride in race two, and a better start,” said Muggeridge at the end of raceday, “but I got held up by Neukirchner, and he held me up for ages. Then Corser as well. It meant I lost the small gap I had back from James, which I knew I could have bridged. I had a very bad start in race one – 19th at the beginning, because someone knocked me off the track. We made the bike better in race two, and we were close, but not quite there.” Chili found his physical condition once more the main drawback to his race challenges. “It was very hard work for me,” said Chili. “I am still not back to full fitness after my recent crashes and that was my main problem today. In race two it was even worse but I wanted to finish both my home races.” Fabrizio was disconsolate at his misfortunes, but looks to Magny-Cours to finish his rookie SBK season on a high. “The bike just stopped in the first race,” said Fabrizio. “In race two the engine temperature started to go up so I decided to come in, just in case something worse happened.” The WSS and SBK series now goes Magny-Cours for the final round of the year, between October 6 and October 8. More, from a press release issued by Team Alstare Engineering Corona Extra: 2006 Superbike World Championship Round 11, Imola, Italy Circuit: 4.959 kms. Crowd: 86,500. Weather: Dry, mostly sunny 27-28 C. Sunday 1st October DISAPPOINTMENT FOR MAX! It was a disappointing Imola for Team Alstare Engineering Corona Extra rider Max Neukirchner, who left the Italian circuit with no points after two DNFs. A crash on the opening lap of race one, which resulted in his bike taking out Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra’s Yukio Kagayama, was followed by a tumble after twelve laps of race two. The first race was won by Alex Barros (Honda), with James Toseland (Honda) second and Andrew Pitt (Yamaha) third. Pitt led the early stages of the race before being passed by Bayliss (Ducati), Toseland, Haga (Yamaha) and Barros – all on the same lap. Barros charged to the front on lap twelve and from then on in was never headed on his way to his first ever WSBK win. Bayliss finished fifth and that was enough to take the 2006 title. In race two, Bayliss took the win he and the huge partisan crowd wanted so much – with Barros runner-up and Kagayama third. MAX I am very disappointed today, especially after such a good Superpole. I do not know what happened in the first crash, because I braked at the same point I had used through qualifying , but this time I just crashed! Unfortunately my bike took out my fellow Alstare rider Kagayama and I’m sorry about that. My second race was a slow-speed crash at Tosa. This time I just lost the front and down I went. It’s not a good feeling to have two crashes on the same day and the only good news, if there is some, is that I didn’t hurt myself. On a positive note, every time I get on the bike, I learn some more, so I hope I’ll be able to learn a lot more at Magny-Cours next weekend. Results Race 1: 1 Barros (Bra-Honda), 2 Toseland (Honda ), 3 Pitt (Yamaha), 4 Haga (Yamaha), 5 Bayliss (Ducati), 6 Lanzi (Ducati), 7 Nieto -(Kawasaki),8 Muggeridge (Honda), 9 Abe (Yamaha), 10 Laconi (Kawasaki), Max Neukirchner (D-Alstare Engineering Corona Extra) DNF, Race 2: 1 Bayliss, 2 Barros, 3 Kagyama (J-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra), 4 Pitt, 5 Toseland, 6 Haga, 7 Lanzi (I-Ducati), 8 Muggeridge (Aus-Honda), 9 Corser (Aus-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra), 10 Laconi (I-Kawasaki), Max Neukirchner (D-Alstare Engineering Corona Extra) DNF, Points 1 Bayliss 393, 2 Toseland 295, 3 Haga 293, 4 Pitt 239, 5 Barros 231, 6 Corser 218, 7 Kagayama 193, 8 Lanzi 152, 9 Walker 140, 10 Nieto 139, 18 Max Neukirchner 22, More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki Press Office: Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra rider Yukio Kagayama raced to a podium in the second leg of today’s World Superbike Championship round at Imola in Italy as team mate Troy Corser suffered with a DNF in the opening race. The first race saw both Kagayama and Corser fail to finish for very different reasons: Kagayama’s GSX-R1000 was hit by the falling bike of Max Neukirchner on the opening lap and Corser was forced to retire after his bike kept finding false neutrals. The start of race two was far more encouraging for Team Alstare, with Corser in second at the end of lap one behind newly-crowned Champion Troy Bayliss. But it wasn’t long before he began to develop tyre problems and gradually began to slip down the order. Meanwhile Kagayama moved up the order and was second with eight laps to go. But he too started suffering tyre problems and could do nothing when Barros came past. Bayliss took the win Barros runner-up and Kagayama third. Yukio Kagayama – Race 1: DNF, Race 2: 3rd: “Strange day today and I am not happy with the results. My first race never really started because I was hit on the first lap and crashed. I thought about getting back on the bike, but it was too badly damaged. In between the first and second races my team did amazing work to repair my bike so that I could ride it in race two – and for this I say a ‘big thank you.’ The start of the second race was very fast and it was difficult to overtake anybody. Also, my front tyre feeling was not very good and I kept thinking I would crash every lap! But I did not want to give in, so I tried my hardest to keep the bike upright and close in on the leaders. I managed to do this and got into second place, but when Barros came past, my tyres would not let me fight him back, so I settled for third place. It was one of the hardest races I’ve ever done because Imola is a very physical track and when your tyres do not work it makes it even more physically tiring. Now I want to go to Magny-Cours and get two podiums!” Troy Corser – Race 1: DNF, Race 2: 9th: “What a day! One to forget for sure! I have had some bad luck this season and it seems to be carrying on and on. There’s not much to say really – especially about the first race. After a few laps, my bike found a false neutral on the downhill approach to a left-hander. I had to take to the gravel but I managed to stay on the bike and get back on the circuit. On the next lap, I got some false neutrals again and it became quite scary as I didn’t know when or where the bike would do it. It happened a couple more times, so I decided to pull in rather than crash and that was it for race one. “Race two started better and I was with Bayliss from the off. After 5-6 laps, the rear tyre started going off and that, together with a lot of wheelspin, meant that I couldn’t get any drive or grip. From then, it was a real struggle to keep up and soon my lap times began to get worse and prevented me getting any decent result. I have no idea or explanation how or why all this is happening at the moment, but I’ve got to believe that it can’t last for ever.” Superbike Results: Race 1: 1 Barros (Bra-Honda), 2 Toseland (Honda ), 3 Pitt (Yamaha), 4 Haga (Yamaha), 5 Bayliss (Ducati), 6 Lanzi (Ducati), 7 Nieto -(Kawasaki),8 Muggeridge (Honda), 9 Abe (Yamaha), 10 Laconi (Kawasaki). Troy Corser (Aus-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) DNF, Yukio Kagayama (J-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) DNF. Race 2: 1 Bayliss, 2 Barros, 3 Yukio Kagayama (J-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra), 4 Pitt, 5 Toseland, 6 Haga, 7 Lanzi (I-Ducati), 8 Muggeridge (Aus-Honda), 9 Troy Corser (Aus-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra), 10 Laconi (I-Kawasaki), Championship Points: 1 Bayliss 393, 2 Toseland 295, 3 Haga 293, 4 Pitt 239, 5 Barros 231, 6 Troy Corser 218, 7 Yukio Kagayama 193, 8 Lanzi 152, 9 Walker 140, 10 Nieto 139. SUPERSTOCK 600: Having already wrapped up the title, Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra rider Xavier Simeon had one of the best fights of the season in the ninth round of the championship at Imola. He was involved in a ding-dong battle with Italian Davide Giugliano (Kawasaki) for the entire nine lap race before overtaking his rival on the approach to the final chicane on the last lap. But then he missed a gear and was forced to go straight on instead of making the turn and that allowed Giugliano to take the chequered flag. Xavier Simeon – 2nd: “Although I already had the title, I wanted to stamp my authority on the Championship with a win here at Imola. Giugliano and I had a great battle in the race and I decided to make my move on the final lap. I passed him on the brakes going into the final chicane, but then I missed a gear and had to go straight on. I was carrying too much speed to make the turn, so I was forced to straighten the bike up and go across the grass. I am disappointed because I know that if I hadn’t had the gear problem I would have won the race for sure. But now at least I can celebrate the title before going to the last round at Magny-Cours – where I intend to finish the season with a win.” Results: 1 Giugliano (I-Kawasaki), 2 Xavier Simeon (B-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra), 3 Barrier (F-Yamaha), 4 Magnoni (I-Yamaha), 5 Ten Napel (NL-Yamaha), 6 Beretta (I-Suzuki). Championship Points: 1 Xavier Simeon (B-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) 196, 2 Canepa 151, 3 Giugliano 145, 4 Colucci 75, 5 Antonelli 68, 6 Jezek 61. More, from a press release issued by Foggy Petronas Racing: Near miss for Foggy PETRONAS Racing at Imola Foggy PETRONAS Racing riders Craig Jones and Steve Martin narrowly missed out on points-scoring finishes at the 11th round of the Superbike World Championship in Imola, Italy. Craig continued his recent improvement with a battling 17th place in the first race and Steve followed that with 16th in race two. But both riders also suffered mechanical problems, with Steve forced to retire after two laps of the first race and Craig lasting just six laps of race two before an oil leak caused him to pull in. Alex Barros won his first World Superbike race and Troy Bayliss’ fifth place was good enough to secure the championship before he resumed his domination by winning the second race. Craig said: “Until half-way through the first race everything was pretty good. My times kept coming down and I got into a rhythm. I was behind Rolfo, pushing really hard and chasing a points-scoring position. Then four or five little problems cropped up which amounted to a big disadvantage so I backed off to make sure I finished. The second race was really disappointing for everyone but, considering this was my first visit here, the weekend fills me with confidence that I could run near the front next year.” Steve said: “I did the best that I could in the second race. A lit bit more power would have made a big difference but the bike was handling well. However, it was misfiring for the first few laps, which cost me a few spots that were difficult to regain. Then, once I had passed Chili and Brookes, it was a lonely race. In the first race the bike suffered a wheel speed sensor failure, which wasn’t apparent on the warm-up lap. It was causing the bike to misfire and it was impossible to ride so I had no option but to pull in.” Race two results, Superbike World Championship round 11, Imola, Italy: 1 Bayliss; 2 Barros +1.413; 3 Kagayama +4.355; 4 Pitt +5.387; 5 Toseland +6.418; 6 Haga +9.615; 7 Lanzi +12.429; 8 Muggeridge +14.895; 9 Corser +19.708; 10 Laconi +20.577; 11 Abe +23.473; 12 Nakatomi +25.368; 13 Nieto +31.340; 14 Walker +32.993; 15 Rolfo +34.596; 16 Martin (Foggy PETRONAS Racing) +41.830 Race one results: 1 Barros (Klaffi Honda); 2 Toseland (Winston Ten Kate Honda) +4.351; 3 Pitt (Yamaha Italia) +6.809; 4 Haga (Yamaha Italia) +11.179; 5 Bayliss (Ducati Xerox) +11.537; 6 Lanzi (Ducati Xerox) +20.974; 7 Nieto (PSG-1 Kawasaki) +23.055; 8 Muggeridge (Winstin Ten Kate Honda) +23.747; 9 Abe (Yamaha France) +27.289; 10 Laconi (PSG-1 Kawasaki) +29.160; 11 Nakatomi (Yamaha France) +30.792; 12 Walker (PSG-1 Kawasaki) +32.109; 13 Clementi (Team Pedercini) +38.537; 14 Rolfo (Ducati SC Caracchi) +45.410; 15 Brookes (Kawasaki Bertocchi) +48.494; 16 Chili (DFX Treme) +48.656; 17 Jones (Foggy PETRONAS Racing) +1:00.950 More, from a press release issued by Yamaha Racing: POLISHED PERFORMANCE MOVES PITT UP TO FOURTH Andrew Pitt continued his rich vein of form at Imola today, scoring a podium finish in the day’s opening race to move up to fourth in the championship ahead of next weekend’s final round of the season. The Yamaha Motor Italia rider backed up his hard fought third place in race one with a tremendous fourth around the demanding Imola circuit in race two. Meanwhile team-mate Noriyuki Haga fought set-up problems to post a fourth and sixth place finish, keeping his hopes of finishing second in this year’s championship well and truly alive. Race one saw both the red Yamahas fighting for the lead, with Pitt overtaking pole man Troy Bayliss (Ducati) on the second lap. The Yamaha man rode confidently at the front for five laps, only to slip back to fifth after the rear of his machine slid violently as he exited a corner. Despite struggling for rear grip, the Australian was able to regain a good rhythm and pass his way through to third, behind the Hondas of Alex Barros and James Toseland, by lap 19 of the 21-lap race. Haga too found himself plagued by rear grip problems. After holding third in the opening laps, he had no answer to the advancing Barros and Toseland. The Japanese stuck diligently to his task and was rewarded with fourth place at the flag, overtaking Bayliss as he crossed the line for the final time. Both of the Yamaha riders made slight adjustments to their machines for the second outing and it looked like the changes would pay dividends as they occupied second and third behind Bayliss in the opening laps. Pitt was able to push his fellow Australian harder than anyone else, but eventually the Yamaha man succumbed to front end grip problems and was passed by the slow-starting Barros and Yukio Kagayama (Suzuki), who crossed the line in second and third. Bayliss took the chequered flag for his 11th win of the season, with Haga behind Toseland in sixth. Norick Abe was Yamaha Motor France’s leading rider in Imola, scoring 12 points from ninth and 11th place finishes to move him up one place, to 13th, in the championship. Team-mate Shinichi Nakatomi had one of the best weekend’s of his rookie world superbike season, finishing 11th and 12th in the races, although the team’s third member, Frenchman Sebastien Gimbert, had a disaster at one of his favourite circuits. Still racing with an injury sustained in Assen he retired from both races. Bayliss’ performances secured him his second world title with one round remaining, while Barros’ win makes him the eighth different race winner in what has proved an exciting season. The battle for the silver medal is very much alive, with Haga trailing Toseland by just two points following today’s races. Pitt currently lies fourth in the series and will also be looking to defend his eight point advantage over Barros in France. Andrew Pitt (Yamaha Motor Italia) “Overall I’m pretty happy, although I’d have liked to have got another podium in the second one as well. In the first race the rear grip was gone after a few laps but after I had a big slide I was able to find my rhythm again and work my way through to the podium. For the second race we made quite a few changes and moved some more weight onto the front of the bike. It was a definite improvement and the bike worked better for longer, but as the fuel went down the front started pushing a bit. I thought that maybe I could get past Kagayama, as he was making some mistakes, but by the end the front tyre was gone and I couldn’t take the risk. At the end of the day we’ve come to a track that we felt wouldn’t be one of the best for our bike and got some good results to move up to fourth in the championship. On Friday we were struggling but my team is working very hard and it’s always great to give them a podium at one of their home races, so it’s been a good day.” Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia) “In the end it was not such a bad result. All weekend we found it difficult to get a perfect feeling with the bike and this made the races hard work, especially around this demanding circuit. In both races I was able to make a good start and fight for a few laps. In the end I had to ride for the points. Ten years ago I think I would have crashed trying to win the race, but today I was able to use my head and think of the championship. Now we go to Magny Cours two points behind Toseland, so this is not so bad and possible for us to overcome.” Norick Abe (Yamaha Motor France) “So many riders crashed in race one that the result maybe looked better than it was. I was lucky to be ninth. We had problems with rear grip, lots of sliding and moving. Then between the races we changed a few small settings and maybe the bike worked better, because the lap times were faster. But we were still sliding everywhere, uphill and downhill!” Shinichi Nakatomi (Yamaha Motor France) “I started from the 22nd position on the grid and then I passed some riders. My lap times and positions went better and better from Friday to Sunday. I finished the second race 1.8 behind Abe and my fastest lap was on the 19th of the 21 laps, so for my first time on this track, it is good progress.” Massimo Meregalli (Team Coordinator – Yamaha Motor Italia) “Of course, we would prefer to be winning the races but I think that today we did a good job as we had a problem getting race distance out of our tyres. Andrew rode very well in both races and is now fourth in the championship. Noriyuki has had some small problems over the weekend and although we lost some points to Toseland he made sure he didn’t crash and got as many points as possible. We have two riders in the top four of the championship and our targets for Magny Cours are now clear: for Noriyuki it is to finish second in the championship, while Andrew must defend his fourth place.” Martial Garcia (Team Manager – Yamaha Motor France) “It is a good overall result with one ninth position, two 11th and one 12th. Our two riders are in fact the first privateers on this very difficult and dangerous track with a bad surface, so we have many reasons to be happy. Sebastien Gimbert, injured at Assen and the Bol d’Or, tried everything but unfortunately had to retire. Abe is now 13th in the championship standings and Nakatomi, for his first year, is 17th which is good because the level is very high. We hope that Sebastien Gimbert will feel better at Magny Cours and that he will be able to express himself properly on bike.” More, from a press release issued by Tom Tunstall Racing: TUNSTALL IN CONTENTION IN THRILLING IMOLA RACE Tom Tunstall put in another strong weekend performance in the penultimate round of the World Supersport Championship at Imola where he narrowly missed out on a top twenty finish. Riding the Hardinge Ice Valley Motorsport Honda CBR600RR, Tom finished in 21st spot after a thrilling last lap manoeuvre nearly netted him 18th place. After a tough race weekend last time out in Germany, Tom and the Hardinge Ice Valley Motorsport team arrived at the historic Imola circuit in Italy, focussed on turning around their fortunes. From the opening practice session Tom immediately felt more comfortable on the bike and quickly set about learning the technical and undulating 4.959 KM circuit. “Qualifying went well and from the first session we were able to find a good setting on the bike which allowed us to get into a good rhythm and start improving the lap time. In every session I went faster and we were able to get the bike dialled in to the technical nature of the track and I finished in 26th place.” explained Tom. The 21 lap race got underway in bright sunny conditions with Tom making a characteristic strong start to move up to 22nd place in the opening lap after a committed move around the outside at turn one. Tom then became involved in a tough battle for position and dropped to 24th before regrouping and beginning a strong fight back. With his composure regained he closed down the group in front of him and by lap ten he’d dispensed of top Italian rider Alessio Corradi to move up into to 21st spot. Not content with the position, Tom showed his high fitness levels and commitment as he continued to close down the group in front. After securing 19th place Tom continued making strong progress and on the final lap went for a pass which would have seen him move into 18th place, but unfortunately he collided with Finnish rider Vesa Kallio and ended up running off the track and dropping back to 21st spot. “I was planning on going up the inside coming into the first corner but I think that was everyone else’s plan so I ended up cutting across to the outside and managed to pick a few places in the process. In the early laps I saved a big moment exiting the Acque Minerali corners which lost me a couple of places. After that I was actually pushing too hard and as a result I was making mistakes and losing time, but I realised what I was doing and was able to get back into my rhythm.” said Tom “I found that I my strongest section of the track was down in to Villeneuve corner, which was where I was able to make most of my passes. I got Corradi into there and then after a bit of a fight with him I had a three second gap to the guys in front. It took me a few laps to close it down but by the end of the race I was on the back of them. I passed Lauslehto and tried the same move on Kallio a lap later but we ended up hitting each other and I was forced to go through the gravel before getting back on track, which lost me three places. It’s disappointing to be 21st but I would have been more disappointed if I’d stayed a safe 19th and not tried to make the pass on the final lap I had to go for it.” He continued. The final round of the World Supersport Championship takes place at Magny Cours in France this weekend where Tom and the Hardinge Ice Valley Motorsport team will be going all out for a point scoring finish at the fast Formula 1 circuit.