eni FIM Superbike World Championship Nurburgring, Germany August 30, 2013 Qualifying Session One Results (all using Pirelli tires): 1. Chaz DAVIES, UK (BMW S1000RR), 1:55.034 2. Tom SYKES, UK (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 1:55.051 3. Michel FABRIZIO, Italy (Aprilia RSV4 Factory), 1:55.142 4. Leon CAMIER, UK (Suzuki GSX-R1000), 1:55.342 5. Jonathan REA, UK (Honda CBR1000RR), 1:55.434 6. Sylvain GUINTOLI, France (Aprilia RSV4 Factory), 1:55.609 7. Loris BAZ, France (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 1:55.648 8. Leon HASLAM, UK (Honda CBR1000RR), 1:55.683 9. Eugene LAVERTY, Ireland (Aprilia RSV4 Factory), 1:55.691 10. Marco MELANDRI, Italy (BMW S1000RR), 1:55.705 11. Jules CLUZEL, France (Suzuki GSX-R1000), 1:55.990 12. Davide GIUGLIANO, Italy (Aprilia RSV4 Factory), 1:56.157, crash 13. Markus REITERBERGER, Germany (BMW S1000RR), 1:56.362 14. Ayrton BADOVINI, Italy (Ducati 1199 Panigale R), 1:56.389 15. Max NEUKIRCHNER, Germany (Ducati 1199 Panigale R), 1:56.552 16. Mark AITCHISON, Australia (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 1:57.285 17. Matej SMRZ, Czech Republic (Yamaha YZF-R1), 1:57.310 18. Federico SANDI, Italy (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 1:57.939 19. Vittorio IANNUZZO, Italy (BMW S1000RR), 1:58.837 20. Carlos CHECA, Spain (Ducati 1199 Panigale R), no time recorded, crash More, from a press release issued by BMW Motorrad Motosport: Nürburgring – Free Practice & Qualifying Practice 1. Friday, 30th August 2013. Weather conditions: Partly sunny, partly cloudy. Temperature: Air: 21 – 22 °C, Track: 33 – 35 °C Number of riders participating: 20 from 13 teams Fastest lap Free Practice: Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) 1:55.904 min Fastest lap Qualifying Practice 1: Chaz Davies (BMW Motorrad GoldBet SBK Team) 1:55.034 min The BMW Motorrad GoldBet SBK Team took provisional pole-position at its home round at Nürburgring (GER). Factory rider Chaz Davies (GBR) set the fastest time in today’s first qualifying practice for the tenth round of the 2013 FIM Superbike World Championship. His team-mate Marco Melandri (ITA) finished tenth. In this morning’s free practice session Chaz and Marco were fourth and sixth respectively with their BMW S 1000 RRs. In the FIM Superstock 1000 Cup, Sylvain Barrier (FRA) from the BMW Motorrad GoldBet STK Team also took provisional pole-position after being fastest in today’s first qualifying session with his BMW HP4. His team-mate Greg Gildenhuys (RSA), who has never raced at Nürburgring before, finished 11th. Chaz Davies:? Fastest lap Free Practice: 1:56.222 min (P4)/Fastest lap Qualifying Practice 1: 1:55.034 min (P1) “It was a good day. I am happy with the RR, it was working pretty well straight away this morning. The bike was already pretty good in the dry at Silverstone and it was also working very well in Russia so that shows that we have found some decent settings in the last few races. Today we only struggled a little bit at the beginning of the first qualifying as we went in the wrong direction with the shock absorber but the guys quickly went back to a previous setting and the bike improved again. I am happy and I think that we can make another step tomorrow.” Marco Melandri:? Fastest lap Free Practice: 1:56.509 min (P6)/Fastest lap Qualifying Practice 1: 1:55.705 min (P10)? “It was quite a good day. The bike works well here despite the fact that the track is bumpy. With the hard tyres, we were fast, but with the soft tyres I was not able to ride well. I could not raise the tyre temperature properly and with the little grip I could not go faster. Tomorrow we’ll test the soft tyres again because it’s important to be fast with soft tyres, especially in qualifying. It is crucial to start from the front to have a good race but our race pace is good and we feel we can fight for the podium.”? Serafino Foti (Sport Director BMW Motorrad GoldBet SBK Team): “We are quite happy with today. Chaz has shown he’s in really good shape, he set the fastest lap and demonstrated that he feels really comfortable on this track, where last year he was very successful. We’re really happy with this result which also repays the work the team has done. Marco’s results do not show the real situation, with hard tyres he was fast and the race pace was really good. Tomorrow we need to find a solution to improve with soft tyres to put in a good performance in qualifying and to start from the front. Anyhow, Marco is focused and for sure, he’ll do very well. In the Superstock class, Sylvain got the provisional pole-position, continuing the positive trend. We need to avoid underestimating our competitors who seem to be fast on this track. Tomorrow we’ll keep concentration high in order to start from the front. Greg also did quite well, despite the fact that he is riding on this track for the first time.” Andrea Dosoli (Technical Director BMW Motorrad GoldBet SBK Team): “Overall it was a positive day. It was nice to get back to action after the long break. Our riders spent the morning session taking off some rust but I must say that they started on the right foot. Both began with our base setting and then they worked as usual on the suspension set-up and they were able to evaluate almost all tyres available. Chaz did an amazing lap claiming P1. Now we have to work on the race pace because we have seen that our competitors are quite consistent. Marco was quite fast with the used tyre and did a lot of consistent lap times but once we fitted a new soft tyre, he could not get the best out of it. This is the point we need to improve, especially for tomorrow’s Superpole because as always it is very important to start from the two front rows which is our target for tomorrow.” More, from a press release issued by Team SBK Ducati Alstare: A tough start to proceedings for Team SBK Ducati Alstare today at the Ring Nurburgring (Germany), Friday 30 August 2013: a difficult start to the weekend for Team SBK Ducati Alstare, on track today at the Nurburgring for round 10 of the 2013 World Superbike season; while Ayrton Badovini concluded first qualifying in fourteenth place, Carlos Checa suffered a crash which meant he failed to set a qualifying time. In the first free practice session this morning both team Ducati Alstare riders got off to a fairly good start. The pair were able to work consistently and made progress throughout the practice. While Badovini’s fastest time (1’56.9) placed him eleventh at the session’s end, Checa closed right behind him in twelfth thanks to a best time of 1’57.1. Unfortunately Checa crashed in the first minutes of afternoon qualifying, without having completed even one timed lap. Although it was a small crash the bike and rider were unable to return immediately to the garage due to the point of the track at which the crash took place. The bike returned to the garage with twelve minutes left on the clock but the technicians were unfortunately unable to fix it in time. Badovini meanwhile improved on lap times set in the morning. Finding a good rhythm, he dropped his times a little further in the final stages, recording a best of 1’56.3. Thanks to this time he closed first qualifying in fourteenth position. Ayrton Badovini: “We’ve made a start today, not a great one but not bad either. In the afternoon I improved slightly on lap times but we still have a few issues to resolve. I’m still lacking some grip and in certain points the bike goes wide and I can’t turn as I want to. I hope we can make a step tomorrow because the gaps between us and those ahead are too great right now. With any luck it’ll stay dry tomorrow so we can continue with the work started today.” Carlos Checa: “I’m angry and disappointed about the crash, I just lost the front. As a result we lost the entire session because they only brought the bike back to the garage a few minutes before the end. We needed today’s session, it was important, also because it might rain tomorrow. I didn’t even record one lap time. I hope it stays dry tomorrow morning so that I have a chance to enter the Superpole.” More, from a press release issued by Pata Honda Superbike Team: Rea and Haslam on pace in Germany Returning after a welcome summer break, Jonathan Rea and Leon Haslam set a good pace on the opening day of the tenth round World Superbike championship event at the Nürburgring in Germany today. The Pata Honda riders finished this afternoon’s first qualifying session in fifth and eighth places respectively, but in close contention with Chaz Davies’s provisional pole position time of 1m55.034s. After making a mistake that left him 0.6s adrift in the first sector, 26-year-old Rea, ended his best lap just 0.4s off Davies’s time, while his Pata Honda team-mate Haslam, was just two tenths further adrift. Both riders are confident of further improvement in tomorrow morning’s second qualifying session, followed by Superpole in the afternoon, as long as forecast showers stay away from the Nürburgring. Jonathan Rea – P5 1m55.434s I made a bit of a mistake in turn one on my fastest lap after we’d fitted some new tyres, but I concentrated on trying to do a long run this afternoon to try and get some rhythm. We made some positive changes and some steps in the right direction but I’m struggling a bit with corner entry. We just need to smooth out the feeling from the rear and then I know the time will come more easily because I’ll be able to pinpoint the line more accurately. For day one I’m quite satisfied, to be honest. It’s clear we need to find some pace but it’s not so worrying because we know where to find it. Leon Haslam – P8 1m55.683s We had a few issues getting dialled in this morning, mostly around the electronics, but we did the whole session on a hard tyre and we weren’t that far away – about a second off on that tyre, which I was pretty happy with. We went that second faster on the old tyre this afternoon but, when we put in a softer tyre, we had the same problem as we’ve had before and couldn’t go any faster. On the twelfth lap with that tyre though, I put in my fastest lap for P8. In general, we’re not too far away on the race tyre, but Johnny and I are both losing 0.5s in the first sector and I’m only 0.6s off at the end of the lap. So, we’re not a million miles away but we definitely need to improve sector one! Pieter Breddels – technical co-ordinator Leon is really starting to get back the strength in his leg and this morning he showed immediately that he can ride the bike better. In the end he was eighth, but it’s really close. There are still some settings to improve but it was a good day for him. Jonathan had a slightly slow start this morning but showed consistent pace and rhythm this afternoon and was fifth in the end. We need to make another step with both guys tomorrow, but we are pretty happy with our progress so far. More, from a press release issued by Althea Racing: A crash slows Giugliano down in first qualifying at the Nurburgring Team Althea Racing and its rider Davide Giugliano returned to the track after the long summer break to take part in the tenth round of the world Superbilke championship at the historic Nurburgring in the Eifel region of Germany. A dry track and warm temperatures for both the free practice and qualifying sessions today but unfortunately it was not a positive day for Genesio Bevilacqua’s team. In the morning practice, team Althea’s technicians and Davide Giugliano began working to adapt the Aprilia RSV4 to the German track. With a time of 1’56.716, Giugliano set the ninth fastest time. Unfortunately in the first qualifying session during the afternoon, after having completed just a handful of laps, Davide was the victim of a crash that damaged the bike and prevented him from returning to the track. Of the four laps completed, Davide’s best time was a 1’56.157 with which he concluded the session in twelfth place. Rain is forecast for tomorrow so Davide has at least done enough to enter Superpole if conditions are wet for second qualifying in the morning. The team hopes that the track remains dry in order for them to be able to work further on the bike’s set-up in preparation for Sunday’s races. Davide Giugliano: “This morning’s session was normal in that we started work, adapting the bike to the track. In the afternoon I made three laps on a hard tyre and then came in to the garage to change to a softer solution. Unfortunately, once back on track, I touched the kerb and crashed. The bike came back late to the garage and had been damaged in the crash so I couldn’t go back out. I’m sorry because we couldn’t continue with the work we’d started this morning. Tomorrow we’ll spend tomorrow morning’s session preparing for the Superpole, in order to gain a solid position on the grid.” More, from a press release issued by Aprilia: NOMINAL GAPS IN THE FIRST TWO SESSIONS OF WORLD SUPERBIKE AT THE NÜRBURGRING. SYLVAIN GUINTOLI’S SHOULDER IS HOLDING UP WELL AND THE FRENCH CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS LEADER IS OPTIMISTIC ABOUT THE SESSIONS TOMORROW. GOOD FEELINGS FOR EUGENE LAVERTY, JUST A FEW TENTHS OFF THE PACE TO AIM FOR THE TOP. Nürburgring, 30 August 2013 – From the looks of the first time results in today’s sessions, the Nürburgring should be the setting for a truly heated weekend. The narrow gaps (11 riders within one second of each other in the qualifiers) and the continuous changes at the top highlight an extremely balanced situation where the Aprilia Racing riders have good reason to be optimistic about this weekend. The main concern for ranking leader Sylvain Guintoli was seeing how the shoulder he dislocated before the Moscow round would hold up. The response after the first sessions is encouraging. Sylvain was able to focus on his RSV4s setting, putting in a total of 29 laps. The sixth best time he put on the boards during the qualifiers this afternoon, just a half a second from the top and riding on used tyres, was the best way possible to end the first day of sessions. Sylvain Guintoli: “My goal today was to see how my shoulder would react and I must say that, in spite of the pain, I felt a lot of improvement compared to Silverstone. This is positive, especially since we had a few problems, so being able to perform without any physical hindrances allowed me to work better. Particularly concerning my riding style, I noticed that this track demands some adapting in order to be really fast. Today when I tried to push hard I didn’t put in any remarkable times, but when I was looking for new lines and thought I was going slower my times dropped even with the worn tyre. That’s a good sign. I’m feeling good and I think that if we can improve our pace on a new tyre we’ll be able to set our sights on a good result. We’re on the right track”. The first session for Eugene Laverty got off to an uphill start with a few small problems that kept him from getting out on the track until the last few minutes. In any case, the Northern Irish rider and his team made up for it in the afternoon, working hard on the number 58 RSV4 and testing various solutions to end the qualifiers with the ninth best time. The data gathered will be analysed and lay the groundwork for the choices made tomorrow, both for Superpole and in view of the races on Sunday. Speaking of which, Eugene already seems to have identified the areas where work is needed in order to shave off those few tenths of a second needed to catch up to the fastest riders today. Eugene Laverty: “Today was partly an uphill climb. Some problems in the first session kept me from leaving the garage until the end and I was only able to put in 4 fast laps. In any case we made up for it quite a bit in the afternoon, trying a few different things that we’ll work on for tomorrow. In terms of times, to be honest we are still about 5 tenths off. Sykes was really fast and if we want to stay in the points for the championship we need to get close to him. I struggled a bit today, especially in the more winding part of the track, so we’re working on my RSV4 to make it more nimble. If we can manage to solve this problem I think that will be a big step forward”. More, from a press release issued by SBK Press Office: Close battle at the Ring as Davies leads Day 1 Nurburgring (Germany), Friday 30 August 2013 – Chaz Davies (BMW Motorrad GoldBet) stormed to first place in the closing stages of World Superbike Qualifying 1 at the Nurburgring, to finish on top in qualifying for the first time in 2013. The Welshman put in a 1’55.034s lap-time just before the chequered flag to snatch first place from long-time leader Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) for only 0.017 seconds. This was not the only change in position of the final part of the session, as many riders managed to better their lap-times at the last minute to climb up the timesheets: Michel Fabrizio… (read more) Times: 1. Davies (BMW) 1’55.034 average 160.763 kph; 2. Sykes (Kawasaki) 1’55.051; 3. Fabrizio (Aprilia) 1’55.142; 4. Camier (Suzuki) 1’55.342; 5. Rea (Honda) 1’55.434; 6. Guintoli (Aprilia) 1’55.609; 7. Baz (Kawasaki) 1’55.648; 8. Haslam (Honda) 1’55.683; 9. Laverty (Aprilia) 1’55.691; 10. Melandri (BMW) 1’55.705; 11. Cluzel (Suzuki) 1’55.990; 12. Giugliano (Aprilia) 1’56.157; 13. Reiterberger (BMW) 1’56.362; 14. Badovini (Ducati) 1’56.389; 15. Neukirchner (Ducati) 1’56.552; 16. Aitchison (Kawasaki) 1’57.285; 17. Smrz (Yamaha) 1’57.310; 18. Sandi (Kawasaki) 1’57.939; 19. Iannuzzo (BMW) 1’58.837. World Supersport Sam Lowes (Yakhnich Motorsport Yamaha) was once again on top after first qualifying of World Supersport at the Nurburgring. The Championship leader was able to break the 1’59s barrier and maintain the lead until the end of the session, even though his time was slightly slower than the one set in Free Practice 1. The big gap the Brit had in the morning with the rest of the field was narrowed down by the rivals, as Kenan Sofuoglu (Mahi Racing Team Kawasaki) finished second, with just one tenth of a second… (read more) Times: 1. Lowes (Yamaha) 1’58.993 average 155.414 kph; 2. Sofuoglu (Kawasaki) 1’59.107; 3. Foret (Kawasaki) 1’59.433; 4. Leonov (Yamaha) 1’59.677; 5. Zanetti (Honda) 1’59.686; 6. Kennedy (Honda) 1’59.701; 7. Coghlan (Kawasaki) 1’59.748; 8. Quarmby (Honda) 1’59.786; 9. Tamburini (Honda) 1’59.828; 10. Iddon (MV Agusta) 1’59.878; etc. Superstock 1000 Sylvain Barrier (BMW Motorrad GoldBet) put on a positive performance in Qualifying 1 to thanks to a competitive 1’59.434 lap-time, on his penultimate lap on track before the chequered flag. The Frenchman, who was the only rider able to lap below in the 1.59s range, put six tenths of a second between himself and Matthieu Lussiana (Team ASPI Kawasaki) and Leandro Mercado (Team Pedercini Kawasaki), who ended up second and third respectively. Niccolò Canepa, the only Barni Racing Ducati rider on track this weekend – after Eddi La Marra’s heavy crash of last… (read more) Times: 1. Barrier (BMW) 1’59.434 average 154.840 kph; 2. Lussiana (Kawasaki) 2’00.072; 3. Mercado (Kawasaki) 2’00.118; 4. Bergman (Kawasaki) 2’00.270; 5. Bussolotti (BMW) 2’00.298; 6. Guarnoni (Kawasaki) 2’00.361; 7. Canepa (Ducati) 2’00.493; 8. Jezek (Ducati) 2’00.807; 9. Ponsson (Kawasaki) 2’00.870; 10. Lanusse (Kawasaki) 2’01.131; etc. Superstock 600 The first qualifying session of the Superstock 600 European Championship was held today under sunny skies and dry conditions, and saw Alessandro Nocco (San Carlo Team Italia) leading the way courtesy of a 2’02.213 lap-time. The Southern Italian youngster was able to finish ahead of Silverstone race winner Christian Gamarino (Team GoEleven Kawasaki), who had a crash at Turn 14 during his… (read more) Times: 1. Nocco (Kawasaki) 2’02.213 average 151.319 kph; 2. Gamarino (Kawasaki) 2’02.617; 3. Morbidelli (Kawasaki) 2’02.649; 4. Duwelz (Yamaha) 2’02.840; 5. Schmitter (Yamaha) 2’03.131; 6. Mulhauser (Yamaha) 2’03.135; 7. Chesaux (Honda) 2’03.244; 8. Salvadori (Yamaha) 2’03.285; 9. Tuuli (Yamaha) 2’03.378; 10. Casalotti (Yamaha) 2’03.678; etc. More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki News Service: FIXI Crescent Suzuki got back to business today at Nurburgring in Germany for the 10th round of the eni FIM Superbike World Championship after the summer lay-off and Leon Camier immediately began from where he left off at Silverstone. Camier produced consistently-fast laps during this afternoon’s first qualifying session around the 5,137m German circuit, which saw him end the day in fourth position overall, just 0,308 off the provisional pole position. He knows where he needs to improve and will be looking to take steps tomorrow to close the gap on the very top places and push for honours on race-day. Jules Cluzel had a good start to his Superbike career at Nurburgring as he recorded a time less than a second off the best lap of the day. Cluzel used this morning’s first session to re-acquaint himself with his Yoshimura-powered Suzuki GSX-R1000 and learn the different characteristics of the circuit compared to those of his first visit to the track on a 600cc machine last year. He made constant gains on his lap-times and will be looking to push-on even more tomorrow. Today’s sessions were held in dry, but overcast conditions with track temperatures reaching 33°C. Chaz Davies on a BMW set the fastest time. FIXI Crescent Suzuki will have one more qualifying session tomorrow morning to confirm the places for the afternoon’s Superpole, where the riders will battle for the best grid positions for Sunday’s two 19-lap races. Leon Camier: “The bike has felt really good from the start of the day, but the first session didn’t really do us justice because we had a bit of a chatter issue and this caused some grip problems – we’re not sure what it was, but it didn’t feel right. In the afternoon we put in some really good lap-times on used tyres and that put us up to third at the time and then we used a new tyre at the end and continued to go well with that. There are still a few places I haven’t got quite right and there are a couple of areas where I think we can improve, especially in the first section, but the FIXI Crescent Suzuki GSX-R feels good and I think if we can make these improvements we can be quite strong.” Jules Cluzel: “Today was a day to get my feeling back on the bike after a few weeks with no riding, except for on a bicycle, so I needed to get back up to speed. This morning was quite a good session, but I felt I struggled a bit this afternoon and had to push too hard to go fast, so I think there is something not right and we have to find out what it is so we can get the bike to do some fast lap-times. We will work hard tonight to improve the bike and make it better for me to ride. It was very different here today because last year I was on a Supersport and the corner speed, braking, the gearing, everything, is different. It looks like we will be ok though because we are only nine-tenths from first and I hope that tomorrow we can be closer to the top-five. ” Paul Denning – Team Manager: “Following up from the great results at Silverstone, the three-week break has allowed us to catch-up with a lot of important work at Crescent as we prepare for a very busy run-in to the final part of the season. The slightly revised engine-spec is working well here at Nurburgring and it’s great to have Yohei san from Yoshimura here to help us over the course of the weekend. “Leon looks like he’s back to his confident best; he’s getting everything out of the bike and is able to produce good lap-times out of new and used tyres. Jules made good progress at the end of this afternoon’s qualifying session; it’s always difficult for him coming to every track with no Superbike experience, so we expect him to continue to improve over the course of the weekend, but overall it’s been a good first day.”