Former World Superbike and Supersport Champion Fabrizio Pirovano won the second round of the Suzuki GSX-R European Cup at Monza today in comfortable fashion in front of a huge crowd. Pirovano, on his home circuit as a non points-scoring ‘Wild Card’ entry, rode smoothly and controlled the race from the second lap. Belgian Xavier Simeon made a good start and led Pirovano at the end of the first lap. But he decided not to play around and charged into the lead on lap two. From then on in he was never headed on the way to the chequered flag. Simeon was way ahead of third-placed Philipp Hafeneger, so settled into second spot in the race, safe in the knowledge that although Pirovano would win, his ‘Wild Card’ status meant that he wouldn’t score any points. Fabrizio Pirovano – 1st: “I just had to win here – my home track – and even though I don’t race regularly, the feeling when you win is something special. As I said before, Monza is special, so winning here is very special. The youngster Simeon rode well all weekend and he is going to be a real star very soon. He’s fast and aggressive, but he has an old head on his shoulders and he knows what to do on the race track.” Xavier Simeon – 2nd: “It is no disgrace coming second to Pirovano, because he’s a racing legend. And he’s been around Monza more than any other racer for sure. I enjoyed the race today and I’m happy with the 25 points, but it would have been nice to beat him. Maybe I’ll do it the next time we are in the same race.” Race Result: 1 Pirovano, 2 Simeon, 3 Hafeneger, 4 Van der Marel, 5 Delhalle, 6 Castellani, 7 Mahr, 8 Junod, 9 Beretta, 10 Seidel. Championship Points: 1 Simeon 50, 2 Hafeneger 33, 3 Mahr 30, 4 Van der Marel 25, 5 Delhalle 21, 6 Castellani 21.