Motul FIM Superbike World Championship
Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli, San Marino
June 17, 2016
Free Practice Two Results (all on Pirelli tires):
1. Nicky HAYDEN, USA (Honda CBR1000RR SP), 1:35.263
2. Markus REITERBERGER, Germany (BMW S1000RR), 1:35.385
3. Tom SYKES, UK (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 1:35.388, crash
4. Jordi TORRES, Spain (BMW S1000RR), 1:35.477
5. Chaz DAVIES, UK (Ducati Panigale R), 1:35.479
6. Alex LOWES, UK (Yamaha YZF-R1), 1:35.493
7. Jonathan REA, UK (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 1:35.532
8. Michael VAN DER MARK, Netherlands (Honda CBR1000RR SP), 1:35.643
9. Davide GIUGLIANO, Italy (Ducati Panigale R), 1:35.749
10. Xavi FORÉS, Spain (Ducati Panigale R), 1:35.771
11. Lorenzo SAVADORI, Italy (Aprilia RSV4 RF), 1:36.068
12. Anthony WEST, Australia (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 1:36.263
13. Roman RAMOS, Spain (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 1:36.331
14. Niccolo CANEPA, Italy (Yamaha YZF-R1), 1:36.412
15. Leon CAMIER, UK (MV Agusta 1000 F4), 1:36.429
16. Alex DE ANGELIS, San Marino (Aprilia RSV4 RF), 1:36.793, crashed twice
17. Josh BROOKES, Australia (BMW S1000RR), 1:37.177
18. Karel ABRAHAM, Czech Republic (BMW S1000RR), 1:38.360, crash
19. Pawel SZKOPEK, Poland (Yamaha YZF-R1), 1:38.438
20. Dominic SCHMITTER, Switzerland (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 1:38.523
21. Fabio MENGHI, Italy (Duc Panigale R), 1:38.601
22. Peter SEBESTYEN, Hungary (Yamaha YZF-R1), 1:38.960
23. Gianluca VIZZIELLO, Italy (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 1:39.433
24. Saeed AL SULAITI, Qatar (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 1:40.318
More, from a press release issued by Dorna WSBK Press Office:
Hayden Fastest on Friday
Entry to Tissot-Superpole 2 decided as American legend leads the way
The first day of track action at Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli saw Kentucky Kid Nicky Hayden set the fastest lap of the day, as the American WorldSBK rookie put his Honda at the top of the timesheets. Misano veteran Hayden headed fellow WorldSBK rookie Markus Reiterberger in P2 in an impressive showing for Althea BMW, ahead of KRT rider Tom Sykes – the man who has been on pole for the last 4 weekends at Misano.
Ducati’s Davide Giugliano ended Day 1 in P4 as the fastest Italian and fastest Ducati, ahead of second Althea BMW rider Jordi Torres who locked out the top 5. Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Championship challenger Chaz Davies was sixth fastest on the first day of track action, just ahead of Pata Yamaha rider Alex Lowes.
Lowes, after breaking his collarbone in Malaysia, was back on track to head the Pata Yamaha charge at the home Round for their Italian title sponsor, with the Brit having tested at Misano despite his injury and able to take part in the weekend after the disappointment of having missed his home Round at Donington Park. Lowes ended Day 1 in P7 and goes straight to Tissot-Superpole 2, with temporary teammate Niccolo Canepa – in for injured Sylvain Guintoli – looking to join him by graduating from Superpole 1 after ending the day in P14.
Reigning Champion Jonathan Rea ended Day 1 in P8 and safely moves into Tissot-Superpole 2, ahead of Honda rider Michael van der Mark in P9. The final top 10 rider of the day was Xavi Forés for Barni Racing, who just edged out Italian rookie Lorenzo Savadori. Aprilia rider Savadori had positive pace and just missed the cut, and will be looking to put that right in Superpole 1. Leon Camier had a difficult first day for fellow Italian marque MV Agusta, rounding out the top 15 and hoping for a big improvement in qualifying to continue his run of incredible form.
Tissot-Superpole begins on Saturday 18th June at 10:30 local time (GMT +2), ahead of lights out for Race 1 at 13:00 as the legendary Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli gets ready for another fantastic showdown.
P1 – Nicky Hayden @NickyHayden
Honda World Superbike Team @HondaWSBK
“We started off with a good base setting because luckily for us we tested here a few weeks ago, and the bike was working quite good. We made a few adjustments. The afternoon actually wasn’t a great session for me – we had a few little problems – but I’m happy to be fastest! I´m not happy with my rhythm but at the end on a new tyre I was quickest and for me, we did a really good lap time. “
P2 – MarkusReiterberger @Reiti21
Althea BMW Racing Team @AltheaRacing
“For me the day was really good. We started with a good base setting and only made some small adjustments to the bike and electronics. I feel really good on the bike and in the second session we tested a lot of tyres and I felt good. We did some really good, really fast laps so I feel good about tomorrow.”
P3 – Tom Sykes @TheRealTomSykes
Kawasaki Racing Team @KRT_WorldSBK
“It’s a good start and right away we had really good pace so I’m a bit surprised because we didn’t test here. We weren’t as consistent as we’d like and we had a small crash being caught out by the rear tyre into T2 but we have good information and I´m confident for tomorrow. We didn’t go the right way at the end of the session but it was one way or the other and now we know – I can sleep easy!”
P4 – Davide Giugliano @DavideGiugliano
Aruba.it Racing – Ducati @ArubaRacing
“Today was good and we did a lot of work so I’m happy. This morning I was fast and this afternoon very fast, and also consistent. I have a good basis for tomorrow and now I’ll go to the garage and speak with my crew to make a little step for tomorrow.”
More, from a press release issued by Aruba.it Racing Ducati:
Davide Giugliano in fourth place after Friday’s sessions in Misano, Chaz Davies is sixth
The Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team resumed action in Misano for the eighth round of the WorldSBK championship. The first day of practice was characterized by a particularly close fight at the top as only half a second separates the first ten riders in the timesheets, where Davide Giugliano and Chaz Davies sit in fourth (+0.197) and sixth (+0.216) position respectively.
Giugliano took charge in FP1, posting the best time with a 1:35.460. As the focus of his work shifted to race pace in FP2, during which he ran one set of tyres over race distance to evaluate wear, the Italian rider did not improve in the afternoon. Davies, on the other hand, took over half a second off his best time between FP1 and FP2, closing with a 1:35.479 and trying different compounds in search of the optimal grip. Both riders gained direct access to Superpole 2, scheduled for 10:55 local time (CET) in anticipation of Race 1 at 13:00.
Davide Giugliano (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #34) – 4th
“Today has been more than positive. In the morning, we managed to be the fastest, while in the afternoon we focused more on race pace, taking a rear tyre over race distance and posting our best time of FP2 at the very end of the session. Now we need to work on the fastest sector of the track to gain a couple of tenths, improving acceleration and stability, but our rhythm over the long distance is very competitive.”
Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #7) – 6th
“Today we worked mostly on the chassis, trying also different tyre compounds to better understand wear. The temperatures were higher than during our last test, but the lap times didn’t change significanty. At the moment, we struggle a bit with the first touch of the throttle at maximum lean angle, but only in certain corners. We just need a bit more grip and support, and now we’ll work together with the whole crew to make the necessary step forward ahead of Race 1.”
More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki:
Sykes And Rea Start Strongly On Day One At Misano
A close first day of practice and qualifying in the FIM Superbike World Championship race weekend at Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli saw KRT’s Tom Sykes third fastest and his team-mate Jonathan Rea eighth on their Ninja ZX-10Rs. Rea was only 0.269 seconds from the leading rider in the combined opening day times.
In warm conditions and on a dry track surface the official KRT pairing worked towards a race set-up for race one on Saturday and race two on Sunday, with Sykes achieving his position as third fastest rider at the end of play, even after a slow speed fall early in the afternoon.
Neither Sykes nor Rea had tested at Misano after the recent Donington round which gave many of their rivals an early advantage at this track. The KRT riders did, however, make use of their own testing days at Jerez de la Frontera to find their best possible early set-ups at Misano.
With the top ten riders just over half a second from the pre-Superpole best time, and the top eight just over a quarter of a second apart, it was a particularly tight opening day at the flat and largely flowing Misano circuit.
Sykes posted a best lap time of 1’35.388 today; just over a second from the outright WorldSBK record. Rea posted a 1’35.532.
In sometimes high winds Rea was still well on the single lap pace despite his eighth place ranking overall, working through tyre options and completing a positive long run to evaluate tyres and real race pace.
Now both Tom and Jonathan will complete a 15-minute third practice session on Saturday, and then head directly into Superpole 2 to challenge for their final grid positions in readiness for race one on Saturday and race two on Sunday.
Tom Sykes, stated, “I am surprised with our pace because we did not test here, unlike some of our rivals. At the start of the afternoon session I felt really good and then we changed a few things to get more information. We did not finish as strongly as we wanted but this was just because needed to check what we were doing and where we were going with bike set-up. We did those checks and now we know what to do tomorrow. This is all positive. The focus for Saturday is to improve on the last small details for the race itself. I think our set-up is relatively good in general. Misano is quite a different track from the previous one at Donington but we are not far away at this circuit already. I feel tomorrow we have the chance to make some small modifications, which I hope will be improvements.”
Jonathan Rea, stated: “We are not far away and we made a good step in between FP1 and FP2, just to make it a little bit more easy. I suffered with a bit too much pitching at the beginning but in the afternoon it was OK. We managed to do a long run, a race simulation, and we have good information from that now. The track is behaving a lot differently to last year, when the asphalt was new. It seems the track is using the tyre more than it did last year. Some split times are very constant whether we use a new or old tyre, and some are going away. It also got quite windy out there in the middle of the session, especially going through the really fast corner. We were lucky today because the weather was super hot and we managed to evaluate a new rear tyre that Pirelli brought, which seems to be working well. I am quite satisfied with the opening day.”
After the official KRT runners Anthony West (Pedercini Racing Kawasaki) was the fastest of the Kawasaki privateer entrants, in 12th place, with Roman Ramos (Team GoEleven Kawasaki) 13th. Dominic Schmitter (Grillini Racing Team Kawasaki) completed the top 20, as Gianluca Vizziello (Grillini Racing Team Kawasaki) went 23rd and Saeed Al Sulaiti (Pedercini Racing Kawasaki) placed 24th.
More, from a press release issued by Honda:
Hayden tops timesheets on opening day at Misano
Round 8 – Riviera di Rimini
Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli, Italy
Nicky Hayden was the fastest rider at the end of today’s two free practice sessions for the eighth round of the 2016 FIM Superbike World Championship, which is currently underway at the Misano World Circuit ‘Marco Simoncelli’ in Italy. His Honda WorldSBK teammate Michael van der Mark was ninth at the chequered flag this afternoon. This means that both riders are seeded directly into Superpole 2.
After finishing second in the morning’s first free practice session, Hayden managed to stay in the top 5. But as the session was drawing to a close and with a set of new tyres fitted on his Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade SP, the 34-year-old from Owensboro, Kentucky, was able to put together a 1’35.263 time to come out on top of what was an ultra-close hour of afternoon track-action at Misano.
Michael van der Mark made an important step forward between FP1 and FP2 to improve his quickest lap-time by six tenths of a second, as the young Dutchman was gradually building speed onboard his Honda machine. His final time of 1’35.643 was only 0.380 seconds shy of the top and only 183 thousandths of a second away from fifth place.
World Superbike action will resume tomorrow morning for the 15-minute free practice 3 at 8.45, while Superpole 2 and race 1 will get underway at 10:55 and 13:00 local time (GMT+2), respectively.
Nicky Hayden 69
1st
It was nice to be fastest today! In the end, we put a new tyre on and I was able to drop my time quite a bit. The track was definitely dirtier than in testing and there was not as much rubber down, so it took a little bit of time for the grip to improve. I have to admit that I’m not particularly happy with my pace; this morning things went quite smoothly but this afternoon we had a few issues with the electronics: they were showing me the wrong lap-times and split-times. In the end we were able to recover and put together a good lap and that’s good, but we need to work on our rhythm a bit more tomorrow morning.
Michael van der Mark 60
9th
This morning, when we went out on track, the grip was nowhere near like in testing two weeks ago. We had a few small issues with the bike that surely didn’t help, but with the changes made this afternoon the bike felt much much better, although for some reason the quick lap-time wasn’t forthcoming. We kept making small changes that gave us some more small improvements and in the end, with my last outing, I was finally happy with how the bike felt. Ninth place is better than how it looks on paper, as we’re all so close in the top 10. I’m happy to be in Superpole 2 and cannot wait for tomorrow.
Pieter Breddels
Technical Manager
Nicky was able to be quick right from the get go, then in the afternoon he ran into a few issues with electronics which sort of upset his momentum a little. In the last attempt he was able to put together one really quick lap-time that catapulted him into first place. We are of course happy with his position but we need to work a little more on the problems we encountered today and on finding a good race race pace. Michael didn’t enjoy the same good start and it took a bit more to find the right set-up with the new conditions. He struggled a bit in getting the bike stopped but after some changes everything was better, although I think there is still room for improvement. He is not too far from the top so, all in all, things look pretty positive for tomorrow.
More, from a press release issued by Althea Racing BMW:
Reiterberger and the Althea BMW Racing Team second in Misano SBK practice; De Rosa on top in the Stock1000
Misano Adriatico (Italy), Friday 17 June 2016
The eighth World Superbike round got underway today at the Misano World Circuit with the Althea BMW team making a very positive start to proceedings; the Italian squad’s Superbike riders Markus Reiterberger and Jordi Torres closed the timed practice sessions in second and fifth place, while in the Stock1000 category, Raffaele De Rosa dominated to close today’s sessions at the front of the pack.
This morning, in good conditions, the Althea BMW riders and technicians began work to adapt their BMW S 1000 RR bikes to the Italian track. In the first timed practice, both Jordi and Markus were able to make good progress during the sixty minute session, which saw Reiterberger close in sixth place thanks to a best of 1’35.926 and Torres eleventh (1’36.718).
Later in the day, in the second timed practice session, both picked up the pace to improve on their best times of the morning, making small modifications to their BMWs to find those extra tenths. Reiterberger’s quickest time, a 1’35.385 set in the final minutes, put him up into second position overall, meaning he will participate in tomorrow’s Superpole 2 together with teammate Torres who closed fifth thanks to a fastest time of 1’35.447.
De Rosa, the current Superstock 1000 championship leader, made his presence felt in both of today’s Stock1000 free practices, continuing to lower his times throughout the day to finish with the overall fastest time, an impressive 1’37.082, set in the afternoon session.
Markus Reiterberger:
“Today was a really good day, we have a good base set-up and only really made one adjustment in terms of electronics. We also spent time testing the tyres, which all went well, and in the final stages I was able to put together some really fast laps. I’m feeling good on the bike and have good grip. Misano’s a special track for me after I wildcarded here last year so I’m excited to do well this weekend, and I’m pleased to have qualified directly for tomorrow’s Superpole 2. We’ll see what we can do.”
Jordi Torres:
“Today ended well, and we did a good job. Having said this, even though we’ve been able to complete a good flying lap, we still need to improve in terms of race pace, and work to reduce the bike movement. We’ve already made a good step forward, between this morning and this afternoon, and the bike has calmed down a little but we need to make another step. I don’t want to make any predictions ahead of tomorrow, as the race will be very long… but we’ll do our best as ever.”