World Superbike Superpole Results: 1. Troy Corser, Suzuki, 1:26.672 2. Karl Muggeridge, Honda, 1:26.833 3. James Toseland, Ducati, 1:26.910 4. Regis Laconi, Ducati, 1:26.982 5. Chris Walker, Kawasaki, 1:27.014 6. Noriyuki Haga, Yamaha, 1:27.044 7. Andrew Pitt, Yamaha, 1:27.192 8. Chris Vermeulen, Honda, 1:27.196 9. Lorenzo Lanzi, Ducati, 1:27.618 10. Steve Martin, Foggy Petronas, 1:27.653 11. Garry McCoy, Foggy Petronas, 1:27.672 12. Yukio Kagayama, Suzuki, 1:27.883 13. Dennis Hobbs, Yamaha, 1:27.961 14. Giovanni Bussei, Kawasaki, 1:28.230 15. Pere Riba, Kawasaki, 1:28.378 16. Ben Bostrom, Honda, no time, mechanical The rest of the grid: 17. Max Neukirchner, Honda, 1:28.145 18. Ivan Clementi, Ducati, 1:28.177 19. Pierfrancesco Chili, Honda, 1:28.205, crash 20. Marco Borciani, Ducati, 1:28.559 21. Norick Abe, Yamaha, 1:28.661 22. Sebastien Gimbert, Yamaha, 1:28.750 23. Gianluca Vizziello, Yamaha, 1:28.960 24. Lorenzo Alfonsi, Yamaha, 1:29.079 25. Jose Luis Cardoso, Yamaha, 1:29.356 26. Fonsi Nieto, Ducati, 1:29.436, crash 27. Lucio Pedercini, Ducati, 1:29.983 28. Alessio Velini, Ducati, 1:30.229 29. Michel Nickmans, Yamaha, 1:30.839 30. Miguel Praia, Yamaha, 1:30.874 More, from a press release issued by Winston Ten Kate Honda: MUGGERIDGE SECOND FASTEST AT BRANDS HATCH Karl Muggeridge will start tomorrow’s two eighth round World Superbike championship races at Brands Hatch in the UK from the front row of the grid after setting the second fastest time in this afternoon’s Superpole event. Fellow Australian, Troy Corser, grabbed pole position, with Muggeridge’s Winston Ten Kate Honda team-mate, Chris Vermeulen, setting the eighth fastest time. After earlier struggling to find the right setting for his Superbike debut at the 4.2km Kent circuit, Muggeridge improved on his regulation qualifying position of ninth place in the one-lap Superpole shoot-out. Vermeulen was the penultimate Superpole rider but was unable to improve on his time. Ronald ten Kate team manager: “After all the team’s work and the riders’ performances this weekend, I think we deserved two front row places. Karl made an excellent Superpole lap apart from a small mistake on the final corner, losing time that may have cost him his first pole position. We know Chris struggles a little with Superpole, especially being one of the last riders to go out, but at least he normally improves on his qualifying time. Having said that, we’re quite happy with the race settings for both riders and I’m sure there will be two good battles out there tomorrow afternoon.” Karl Muggeridge second fastest, 1m26.833s “After this morning, we changed a lot of things on the bike for the afternoon free practice and it felt heaps better. I was just a bit eager on the last corner of my Superpole lap I really wanted pole position and made a mistake going for that important final drive to the line. The bike probably looked a bit out of shape but it was really my wrist! It’s my best qualifying performance and we’ve made a jump forward with the bike. Brands Hatch is one of my favourite circuits so I’ll be looking for two really good results tomorrow.” Chris Vermeulen eighth fastest, 1m27.196s “I don’t know, I think I just suck at Superpole! I hate waiting in the box for the other guys to go and I just rode too slow in the first part of the lap. Ronald calls me a diesel, because I take a few laps to get going and I think I would have been flying with another lap. I didn’t want to make any mistakes though, so I just braked too early for the first three corners, although it got better in the last sector. But I know we’ve got a good set-up for tomorrow and I’m not too worried. I’ve won races from the second row before.” More, from a press release issued by FGSport Group: CORSER KING OF SUPERPOLE ONCE MORE – LAST AWAY BUT FIRST ON THE TIME SHEET Troy Corser (Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) improved on his best time at Brands Hatch in regulation qualifying to secure the Superpole win under sunny English skies. The runaway championship leader was last away in the specialist one lap discipline and set a best time of 1’26.672, only 0.4 seconds from the record qualifying lap. He had to recover from a less than perfect first split to make up time in the last sections of his lap, easing to his third Superpole win in succession. FRONT ROW PACK OUT Karl Muggeridge (Winston Ten Kate Honda) enjoyed the best Superpole qualifying performance of his rookie Superbike season to go second, only beaten by the final effort of Corser. The 2004 World Supersport champion and multiple race winner at Brands was committed throughout, to the point where he almost lost traction from the rear tyre in terminal fashion on the exit of the final corner, drawing gasps from the watching crowd. Ducati Xerox team members James Toseland and Regis Laconi also slapped their names on front row spots, Toseland after a personal best that was faster than Corser’s best qualifying time in regulation. Laconi was disappointed with fourth, but nonetheless earned a prime starting position an important item with the first Paddock Hill corner featuring such a tricky entry. WALKER MISSES FRONT ROW BUT DELIVERS GOOD RACE PACE PSG-1 Kawasaki rider Chris Walker gave his fans a good show in Superpole, threatening to finish in the top four, only just eased out after Corser’s final fast circuit. He has shown to be fast in all conditions of practice, making for two top British riders in the top five places after qualifying was completed. British based Spaniard Pere Riba (PSG-1 Kawasaki) the stand in for regular pilot Mauro Sanchini, slowed from his good regulation qualifying placing of eighth to go 15th of the 16 Superpole riders. YAMAHA RIDERS MAKE SECOND ROW STARTS Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia) and Andrew Pitt (Yamaha Motor Italia) will line up sixth and seventh on the grid at Brands as each rider rode to within 0.5 seconds of Corser’s impressive leading lap. Norick Abe (Yamaha Motor France) was a first time visitor to the English track and was a lowly 21st after regulation qualifying, missing out on Superpole. Some other big names blew their Superpole chances, as Pierfrancesco Chili (Klaffi Honda) handicapped his raceday potential by crashing early in the final timed session, losing valuable practice laps, and his team-mate Max Neukirchner was also just outside the top 16. THIRD ROW CLUB INCLUDES TWO PETRONAS MACHINES Lorenzo Lanzi had an impressive sixth placing in regulation qualifying, but slipped to ninth after Superpole, heading up row three after his flying lap of the 4.2km Brands circuit. He was just in front of both Petronas riders, Steve Martin (10th) and Garry McCoy (11th). Yukio Kagayama hurt his ribs and shoulder in his second crash of the weekend, causing the regular session to be halted for a time as he received trackside medical attention. He recovered in Superpole to take a brave 12th place, handicapped by the pain from his injuries. FOURTH ROW FEATURES UPS AND DOWNS Highest placed local wild card Dennis Hobbs (Team Nvidia) ripped to a popular 13th place on his Yamaha, ahead of regular SBK rider Giovanni Bussei (Bertocchi Kawasaki), and Riba. Ben Bostrom (Renegade Honda Koji) used the speed of his newly uprated engine to qualify ninth in regulation qualifying, but due to an electrical problem he failed to make the start in Superpole, and thus is relegated to the back of the top 16. WORLD SUPERSPORT CHAMPIONSHIP Sebastien Charpentier (Winston Ten Kate Honda) set a best ever Brands qualifying time of 1’28.376 on his way to securing pole position for Sunday’s race. Kevin Curtain (Yamaha Motor Germany) was the best of the other Supersport qualifiers, 0.8 seconds down, while the diversity of the class was underlined by the performance of Gianluca Nannelli (SC Caracchi Ducati) who went third. He was only 0.003 seconds slower than Curtain. Michel Fabrizio (Team Italia Megabike Honda) completes the front row of the Supersport grid, with Katsuaki Fujiwara (Winston Ten Kate Honda) fifth. Local wild card rider Craig Jones (Northpoint Ekerold Honda) was 12th overall, and top Brit on display. More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse: FRONT ROW STARTS FOR TOSELAND AND LACONI (DUCATI XEROX TEAM) IN BRANDS HATCH SUPERPOLE Saturday, 6 August 2005: James Toseland and Régis Laconi will both start the Great Britain Round of the World Superbike Championship at Brands Hatch from the front row of the grid after setting third and fourth quickest times respectively in Superpole. Toseland was particularly impressive in the one-lap dash, taking his Xerox-backed Ducati 999 F05 up from eleventh in qualifying to third behind poleman Corser (Suzuki) and Muggeridge (Honda). Laconi will start the two races tomorrow from the final front row grid slot. “I must have gone a bit wide on at least three or four corners” declared Toseland “and I was a bit worried that I wasn’t going to be on the front row with that time. If I had done a really good lap, a 26.5 would have been possible, but to be third on the grid at Brands Hatch, my first front-row start here, is really great. We had a few problems at the start of this weekend with the setting, after having to change quite a lot since the last race, but the team has worked fantastically well to get things moving forward and now for tomorrow I’m pretty confident.” “I’m a bit disappointed with my Superpole lap because I thought we could be closer to the pole but it’s OK” commented Laconi. “It’s very important to be on the front row at Brands Hatch because you have one of the most difficult corners in the beginning and the first part of the circuit is quite slow and difficult to pass. I will try and keep the speed up as much as possible in the early laps to have a good chance of victory. I think that we have a good chance of winning because we are starting from the first row. You never know before but I will give my best to try and win tomorrow for sure.” More, from a press release issued by Scuderia SC Caracchi: FRONT ROW FOR NANNELLI AT BRANDS HATCH GOOD PERFORMANCE FOR LANZI, BUT NO LUCKY FOR NIETO Once more a good day for Scuderia SC Caracchi riders at Brands Hatch, after the second practice day, with better weather conditions compared to yesterday, on a dry track and several degrees warmer temperature. The only black point of the day is a new occasion that the misfortune found to hit the innocent Fonsi Nieto, collided by another rider this morning too during the final qualifying session and not allowed to defend his possibilities to upgrade his grid position. Lorenzo Lanzi, on the 999RS Ducati Superbike recorded an excellent sixth place after the regular qualifying sessions, then in Superpole his short experience in the “all or nothing” lap forced him to some mistake that penalized his performance, losing some position; Lorenzo will start from the ninth position, the best ever scored during this season, but however showing to be able to compete with the leaders. “The start will be very important once more.” said at the end of the day Lorenzo Lanzi. “Unfortunately in Superpole I lack experience, but that was only the third possibility for me. So all considering that’s good, the bike is OK, the race pace is like the fastest. We have already done our selection for tomorrow’s races, I hope that the temperature will not increase too much because that would shake all our setting, in practice we would work a couple of days for nothing. However, I repeat, it will be very important to start well and stay with the best in the early laps to make a good race.” Fonsi Nieto was quite disappointed after the morning’s practice, late in the afternoon’s free practice session his mood became a bit better, bu he is not actually optimist for tomorrow’s races. “That’s not possible!” said a disappointed Fonsi Nieto back at the pit. “Also here in UK I’ve been able to found somebody that hit me and send me on the asphalt. My Chief mechanic Machi and the guys worked as crazy to rebuilt the bike after yesterday crash and during the morning i flied again. By fortune I had any physical damage and during the afternoon practice I recorded some good lap time, but to start from the seventh row to hope in a positive result is impossible, more for a rookie in such demanding track.” In Supersport the 749R Ducati of Team SC Caracchi grabbed another splendid front row position. Gianluca Nannelli improved his lap time more as 0,6 seconds, recording the third lap time overall. Gianluca worked on both his bikes, finding a good set up that give good hopeness for the 23 laps tomorrow race. “Today the asphalt temperature was changed as yesterday, it was warmer 9°C”. declared Gianluca Nannelli. “If tomorrow the weather conditions will be the same as this morning I’m confident in a good race, able to ride with Charpentier. Today I did not push hardly, there was a lot of traffic on the course and a lot of riders looking to stay in my trail. When I got the qualifying tyres I must rejoin the pit to broke the train behind me. I improved 0,6 seconds my yesterday lap time, we have already selected the race tyres, I have a fast pace in race conditions, also with a fuel thank full, so I’m quite satisfied. The team worked very well and my bike is, as always, one of the fastest of the group”. More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki: CORSER WINS BRANDS SUPERPOLE! Team Suzuki Press Office – August 6, 2005. Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra rider Troy Corser posted his fourth Pole of the season at today’s British World Superbike round at Brand Hatch. The Australian stormed around the 4.197 kilometre circuit in 1:26.672 minutes – almost two-tenths-of-a-second ahead of his nearest rival Karl Muggeridge (Honda). Third quickest was reigning champion James Toseland with his Ducati team-mate Regis Laconi fourth. Kagayama suffered a frightening high-side this morning and was taken to the Clinica Mobile with suspected broken ribs. Despite severe discomfort, he tried a few laps in the afternoon’s untimed practice but was in extreme pain. After taking some painkillers, he managed to go out in the Superpole lap and his impressively-gritty ride was rewarded with 12h place on the grid. Troy Corser – 1st, 1:26.672: “I had a feeling that the grip level would improve today and that’s what happened. I didn’t really have a chance to try a qualifier in the free practice just before Superpole, but we had an idea of which one to use so it wasn’t a major problem. I took it a bit cautiously on the first split of Superpole because the first two left-handers can cause a problem or two. But after that, I just put my head down and went for it. I knew that the second and third splits would be good, so I felt I was in with a chance of taking Superpole. “I’ll be chasing a couple of good starts tomorrow and hopefully controlling the race from the front. We’ll see what happens after that.” Yukio Kagayama – 12th, 1:27.883: “My crash this morning, when I highsided coming out of Druids, was big one and I think I may have broken a rib or two. I went to the Clinica Mobile and had some X-rays, but broken or cracked ribs are hard to see straightaway. I got my lower chest strapped up and then tried some laps in the free practice to see how bad it felt. I came in after the first lap because the pain was too great when I tried to accelerate hard. I tried again later in the session after some different strapping but it was no better. I decided not to do my Superpole lap, but then the team and I realised that it meant I might have to start the races tomorrow from last position, so I took some painkillers and did my best. “I found it very difficult to breathe but I kept going and ended 12th, so it was worth it. I hope to get a rest tonight and then see how I feel in the morning. I will try my best, but if it is too dangerous, I will not race. I am very disappointed for myself, my team – who have given me so much support and encouragement – and of course – my fans.” Final Superbike Qualifying: 1 Troy Corser (Aus-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) 1L26.672, 2 Muggeridge (Aus-Honda) 1:26.833, 3 Toseland (GB-Ducati) 1:26.910, 4 Laconi (F-Ducati) 1:26.982, 5 Walker (GB-Kawasaki) 1:27.014, 6 Haga (J-Yamaha) 1:27.044, 7 Pitt (Aus-Yamaha) 1:27.192, 8 Vermeulen (Aus-Honda) 1:27.196, 9 Lanzi (I-Ducati) 1:27.618, 10 Martin (Aus-Petronas) 1:27.653, 12 Yukio Kagayama (J-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) 1:27.833. WORLD SUPERSPORT QUALIFYING: Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra rider Javi Fores suffered suspension problems in final qualifying at Brands Hatch today and ended in 16th place on the grid. The young Spaniard now faces an uphill struggle in tomorrow’s 23-lap race and knows a rocket start is needed if he is to get a good result. Once again, series leader Sebastien Charpentier (Honda) dominated and took pole position by the healthy margin of eight-tenths-of-a-second. Second quickest is Kevin Curtain (Yamaha) with Gianluca Nannelli (Ducati) third and Michel Fabrizio (Honda) fourth. Javi Fores -16th – 1:30.512: “Today was a disaster! For whatever reason, the front and rear suspension were not working as we wanted. The bike felt very nervous and it was impossible to go any faster. Even on my quick lap I had a problem – with another rider – and that slowed me a little, so it was just one of those days. “Brands is a very difficult track but I had a better feeling about it today and I can see that it is a great track to ride. It is a beautiful track and I hope I can get some sort of good result tomorrow.” Final Supersport Qualifying: 1 Charpentier (F-Honda) 1:28.376, 2 Curtain (Aus-Yamaha) 1:29.196, 3 Nannelli (I-Ducati) 1:29.199, 4 Fabrizio (I-Honda) 1:29.270, 5 Fujiwara (J-Honda) 1:29.408, 6 Foret (F-Honda) 1:29.499, 7 Chambon (F-Honda) 1:29.709, 8 Parkes (Aus-Yamaha) 1:29.723, 9 Veneman (NL-Suzuki) 1:30.151, 10 Corradi (I-Ducati) 1:30.165. 16 Javi Fores( Spa-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) 1:30.512. SUPERSTOCK 1000 QUALIFYING: Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra rider Riccardo Chiarello ended final qualifying with the sixth fastest time after suffering from rear suspension problems today. The team tried a slightly different rear set-up today, but struggled to make a big improvement from yesterday. Riccardo Chiarello – 6th: “We changed the rear suspension set-up, but then I could not open the gas hard without the bike sliding. So we will return to our Friday set-up in the warm-up tomorrow and hope that it will be good for the race.” SUPERSTOCK 600 QUALIFYING: Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra rider Xavier Simeon is looking forward to tomorrow’s 12-lap race after ending fifth quickest in qualifying. But for a lot of traffic on his hot lap, Xavi would’ve had a front row grid place, but the young Belgian is nonetheless ready to challenge the leaders. Xavier Simeon – 5th: “I am very satisfied today and know that I should’ve been on the front row of the grid, but for the traffic. I would like to make a good start and then fight with the leaders and, if I can do that, then I think I can make a good result. That’s what I’ll be chasing right from the start.” More, from a press release issued by Yamaha Racing: WSB : Second row for Yamaha Italia duo Round: 8 – Europe Circuit: Brands Hatch Date: 6 August 2005 Temp: 24ºC Weather: Sunny Yamaha Motor Italia riders Noriyuki Haga and Andrew Pitt will start tomorrow’s two 25-lap superbike races from the second row after a strong showing in superpole at Brands Hatch today. Both riders clocked their best lap of the weekend on their grid deciding qualifying lap, with the popular Haga recording sixth with a 1:27.044 while Pitt will start alongside his Japanese team-mate, in seventh, just a fraction of a second behind with a 1:27.192. Ending regular qualifying in third and fifth respectively, there was a slight disappointment at being unable to improve the rider’s provisional grid positions but the team, boosted by Haga’s win last time out in Brno, have been impressed by the strong showings of both riders throughout the race weekend. In race trim, Haga was fastest in the final free practice session, with Pitt also able to put in consistent lap times on race settings. Yamaha Motor France rider Norick Abe endured a tough initiation to the Brands Hatch circuit, slipping back to 21st place on his first outing at the technically demanding English circuit, one place ahead of team-mate Sèbastien Gimbert. Pole position for tomorrow’s race will be championship leader Toy Corser (Suzuki). Noriyuki Haga “We have been strong all weekend. The bike is not 100 percent how I want it, but it is close and we will try a few more things to make it even better for the race. My superpole lap was ok, not perfect but not bad. I think we can be strongest when it matters most in the race.” Andrew Pitt “I made a bit of mistake at Dingle Dell, which cost me some time, but I’m happy to be on the second row and happy with our preparations for the race. I’ve had a good feeling for the bike all weekend and now I just can’t wait for tomorrow’s race. I’ll be looking for a good start and aiming to get on the podium.” Massimo Meregalli “I am very happy with how things have gone so far this weekend, but of course it tomorrow’s race that matters. Both our riders have found good settings and we are decided on which tyres we will use in the race. Noriyuki always likes to try some last minute changes to the bike, so we will try a few things there, but otherwise we are all looking forward to the races.” Norick Abe “Brands Hatch is another new circuit for me and although I was able to improve my time from yesterday, unfortunately the other riders improved more. For the race we still have a few more adjustments to make and with some good starts I can make improvements in the races.” Round: 8 – Europe Circuit: Brands Hatch Circuit Length: 4197 Lap Record: 1′ 26.755 (Shane Byrne, 2003) Fastest Lap Ever: 1′ 26.248 (Shane Byrne, 2003) Date: 6 August 2005 Temp: 24ºC Session 2 : Pos. Rider Manufacturer Nat. 1st Qualifying 2nd Qualifying Superpole 1 T. Corser Suzuki AUS 1′ 27.123 1′ 26.957 1′ 26.672 2 K. Muggeridge Honda AUS 1′ 27.742 1′ 27.569 1′ 26.833 3 J. Toseland Ducati GBR 1′ 28.072 1′ 27.674 1′ 26.910 4 R. Laconi Ducati FRA 1′ 27.652 1′ 27.173 1′ 26.982 5 C. Walker Kawasaki GBR 1′ 27.656 1′ 27.440 1′ 27.014 6 N. Haga Yamaha JPN 1′ 28.541 1′ 27.065 1′ 27.044 7 A. Pitt Yamaha AUS 1′ 28.023 1′ 27.236 1′ 27.192 8 C. Vermeulen Honda AUS 1′ 28.056 1′ 27.010 1′ 27.196 9 L. Lanzi Ducati ITA 1′ 29.863 1′ 27.424 1′ 27.618 10 S. Martin Petronas AUS 1′ 28.318 1′ 27.788 1′ 27.653 11 G. McCoy Petronas AUS 1′ 29.198 1′ 27.985 1′ 27.672 12 Y. Kagayama Suzuki JPN 1′ 27.767 1′ 28.399 1′ 27.883 13 D. Hobbs Yamaha GBR 1′ 29.093 1′ 27.956 1′ 27.961 14 G. Bussei Kawasaki ITA 1′ 29.228 1′ 27.827 1′ 28.230 15 P. Riba Kawasaki ESP 1′ 28.932 1′ 27.470 1′ 28.378 16 B. Bostrom Honda USA 1′ 28.926 1′ 27.646 21 N. Abe Yamaha JPN 1′ 29.044 1′ 28.661 22 S. Gimbert Yamaha FRA 1′ 28.750 1′ 28.813 23 G. Vizziello Yamaha ITA 1′ 28.960 1′ 29.153 24 L. Alfonsi Yamaha ITA 1′ 29.880 1′ 29.079 25 J. Cardoso Yamaha ESP 1′ 30.656 1′ 29.356 ——-