Motul FIM Superbike World Championship
TT Circuit Assen, Netherlands
April 17, 2016
Race Two Results (wet-to-dry conditions, all on Pirelli tires):
1. Jonathan Rea, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), pitted, 21 laps, Total Race Time 38:02.779, Best Lap Time 1:37.706
2. Tom Sykes, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), -2.442 seconds, pitted, 1:38.213
3. Michael Van Der Mark, Netherlands (Hon CBR1000RR SP), -15.189, pitted, 1:39.216
4. Lorenzo Savadori, Italy (Apr RSV4 RF), -25.507, pitted, 1:39.142
5. Chaz Davies, UK (Duc Panigale R), -30.853, pitted, 1:38.597
6. Nicky Hayden, USA (Hon CBR1000RR SP), -36.458, pitted, 1:39.068
7. Alex Lowes, UK (Yam YZF-R1), -39.263, pitted, 1:39.547
8. Davide Giugliano, Italy (Duc Panigale R), -46.789, pitted, 1:39.555
9. Leon Camier, UK (MV Agusta F4 RR), -65.023, pitted, 1:37.974
10. Xavi Fores, Spain (Duc Panigale R), -65.468, pitted, 1:40.254
11. Sylvain Guintoli, France (Yam YZF-R1), -84.948, 1:43.760
12. Roman Ramos, Spain (Kaw ZX-10R), -95.035, pitted, 1:40.073
13. Lucas Mahias, France (Kaw ZX-10R), -1 lap, pitted, 1:39.970
14. Karel Abraham, Czech Republic (BMW S1000RR), -1 lap, pitted, 1:40.537
15. Jordi Torres, Spain (BMW S1000RR), -1 lap, pitted, 1:39.224
16. Markus Reiterberger, Germany (BMW S1000RR), -1 lap, 1:45.584
17. Mathieu Lussiana, France (BMW S1000RR), -1 lap, pitted, 1:45.929
18. Pawel Szkopek, Poland (Yam YZF-R1), -1 lap, pitted, 1:45.215
19. Peter Sebestyen, Hungary (Yam YZF-R1), -2 laps, pitted, 1:48.793
20. Dominic Schmitter, Switzerland (Kaw ZX-10R), -2 laps, pitted, 1:44.203
21. Josh Brookes, Australia (BMW S1000RR), -9 laps, pitted, DNF, crash, 1:48.995
22. Matteo Baiocco (Duc Panigale R), -11 laps, pitted, DNF, retired, 1:53.467
23. Josh Hook, Australia (Kaw ZX-10R), DNS
24. Alex De Angelis, San Marino (Apr RSV4 RF), DNS
World Championship Point Standings (after 8 of 28 races):
1. Rea, 181 points
2. Davies, 136
3. Sykes, 122
4. Van Der Mark, 90
5. Hayden, 67
6. Torres, 65
7. Giugliano, 64
8. Guintoli, 58
9. Savadori, 51
10. Lowes, 44
More, from a press release issued by Dorna WSBK Press Office:
WorldSBK Race 2: Roll the Dice
Rea completes the pair as van der Mark gets the crowd back on their feet in a tense game of chess at Assen
KRT rider Jonathan Rea took another incredible win in the Netherlands in Race 2 as a half-wet half-dry race saw tyre decisions play the key role. Joined on the podium by teammate Tom Sykes and local hero Michael van der Mark, Race 2 was characterized by nervous glances at the sky as the riders dealt their cards.
Sunday morning initially brought better weather to the TT Circuit Assen, with the sun breaking through the clouds to give the Dutch track a crisp, clear morning. With a lower breeze after the wind caused issues on Saturday, the race looked set to be in dry conditions, before a deluge interrupted World Supersport and saw a Wet Race declared for WorldSBK.
With Sylvain Guintoli getting bogged down off the line, the two Kawasakis of Sykes and Rea took to the lead, with Chaz Davies’ Ducati and Michael van der Mark and Nicky Hayden’s Hondas in hot pursuit. As the conditions caused quick position changes, it was Milwaukee BMW rider Josh Brookes who emerged in the lead, with the damp conditions suiting the reigning BSB Champion.
Saturday podium finisher Nicky Hayden, reigning Champion Jonathan Rea and local hero Michael van der Mark were the challengers, before Rea and Sykes were the first of the frontrunners to dive into the pits for dry tyres as track conditions improved, followed by Van der Mark on the next lap.
As the pack started to shuffle after the tyre changes, Pedercini rider Lucas Mahias found himself at the head of the race, with KRT pairing Rea and Sykes hunting him down, followed by van der Mark. As dry tyres became necessary, reigning Champion Rea took control of the race once again to take another win in WorldSBK and increase his Championship lead. Teammate Tom Sykes made a well-timed tyre change to come home in P2 and recover some earlier lost ground, and Dutch rider Michael van der Mark remembered Saturday’s standing ovation after a crash and kept the Honda on the track to take another home podium, keeping his WorldSBK rostrum record at 75% at his home circuit.
2015 STK1000 winner Lorenzo Savadori was another superstar decision maker as the IodaRacing rider took his Aprilia to P4 and his best ever result, followed home by Ducati’s Chaz Davies, who was the lead bike for the Borgo Panigale factory once again. Honda rider Nicky Hayden, who had been challenging for the lead in the dry, came home sixth after waiting a little too long to change to slicks, mindful of the grey skies ahead.
Alex Lowes made up ground once again to end the race in P7 on his Pata Yamaha, in front of Davide Giugliano on the second Aruba.it Ducati. Leon Camier, after giving MV Agusta their best result of P4 in Race 1, again brought home a good haul of points in P9.
Xavi Forés crossed the line to complete the top ten after an impressive showing at the start of the race, in front of front row starter Guintoli on the second Pata Yamaha YZF R1, with the points scorers completed by Roman Ramos, Lucas Mahias and the BMWs of Karel Abraham and Jordi Torres. Josh Brookes, after leading and impressing in the difficult conditions, sadly crashed out and was unable to complete the race on his Milwaukee BMW, but will be encouraged by his incredible early pace.
WorldSBK is back on track at the mythical Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari in Imola at the end of April, for the cards to be dealt and played once again.
More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki:
Rea Does The Double As Sykes Takes Second Place
The second 21-lap Assen race provided a double win for Jonathan Rea (KRT), with his team-mate Tom Sykes second this time out, as both riders continue to find success on the new model Ninja ZX-10R. The Sunday race was started in wet conditions but rapidly dried out, meaning all the riders pitted to change tyres at some stage.
Once again Rea proved to have the magic touch at Assen, winning his second race of the weekend, his 9th race in total at the Dutch track and his fifth race victory of the season in eight attempts. He now has a career total of 34 WorldSBK race wins, placing him a clear fourth in the all time race winners’ rankings.
At the start of the race, in fully wet track conditions, Sykes took the lead from his pole position grid placing. The changing weather and drying track surface saw him drop back and soon pit to change tyres but in the heat of the tyre change process he went out on intermediate tyres, not the front intermediate/rear slick he intended to use.
When Rea, who was one of six riders to lead the race at some stage as the competitors entered and left the pits at will, stopped for dry weather tyres he returned to the fray at strong pace, after finding the grip level for a lap. He and his team-mate Sykes, who had pitted for new rubber first, finally competed for the race win in the final laps.
Rea ran out the winner by 2.442 seconds, extending his championship lead in the process with his second double win of 2016.
Sykes’ intermediate rear tyre had an effect on the outcome of his race but in finishing second, after a day one crash and no score, the 2013 world champion recovered in great style and scored 20 highly valuable championship points.
In the overall championship table Rea leads by 45 points, from today’s race two fifth place rider Chaz Davies. Sykes is third overall, now 32 points ahead of the fourth place rider. Kawasaki leads the Manufacturers’ Standings by 44 points with the new model Ninja ZX-10R.
Jonathan Rea stated: “Our target this weekend was to increase our championship lead and we did that. I said to Pere my crew chief before the start of the race that the track should dry out pretty fast. We have had previous experiences like that. I have no idea why I go so well at Assen. It is nothing to do with the track itself. We got a double victory but it was not like Australia where I had more pace than the rest. We controlled the situations this weekend when we had to, we were calm and clever when we had to be, and as a team our strength shone through to get two strong results. We got the maximum from what we could achieve here so I am super, super, happy with that. Our stars aligned this weekend and it worked out, so I am just happy.”
Tom Sykes stated: “At the start of the race I just wasn’t able to get the lean angle and the power down using the wet tyres, because of the mixed conditions, so I came into pitlane early. I went for the intermediate front and we managed that front tyre well. With the mistake made for the intermediate rear, that cost us. Even considering this, our pace was very strong and second position is not too bad. Yesterday we were in the gravel and today finishing in second place is a good result. We have had strong pace all weekend, in the wet and the dry, and in warm-up we found a good rhythm this morning. It has just been one of those weekends where the results do not fit what we deserve – but that is racing. Now we can focus on the next round and build on the bike set-up that we have been working on..”
Roman Ramos (Team GoEleven Kawasaki) ended up 12th in race two, and is 14th overall in the points. Lucas Mahias (Pedercini Racing Kawasaki) led the race for a spell as he stayed out on his wet tyres for some time, but finished up 13th as he stood in for the injured Sylvain Barrier. Dominic Schmitter (Grillini Racing Team Kawasaki) was 20th and Josh Hook (Grillini Racing Team Kawasaki) was unable to start after a collision with another rider in morning warm-up.
The Italian circuit of Imola will host the fifth round of the championship, with track action starting on 29 April and ending on 1 May.
More, from a press release issued by Althea Racing BMW:
The Althea BMW Racing Team triumphs in the Stock1000 Race with De Rosa at Assen! A complicated Superbike race for the squad.
Assen (The Netherlands), Sunday 17 April 2016
The first win of the season for the Althea BMW Racing Team arrived today at the Assen TT Circuit in the Stock1000 category; in a complicated race, restarted twice, it was Althea BMW rider Raffaele De Rosa who triumphed, crossing the line more than 10 seconds ahead of his closest rival! The Italian now leads the championship.
Unfortunately, the Superbike race was a different story and, after the positive results seen yesterday, proved to be complicated.
Superbike – Race 2 – With a track that was still damp in certain sections, the race was declared ‘wet’ and got underway in cold conditions, under threatening grey cloud (air temp. 8°C, track 13°C). Due to the unknown track conditions, riders made a cautious start and, from seventh on the grid, Torres had dropped to 17th after lap one, ahead of his teammate Reiterberger, lying 21st.
In difficulty, due to what turned out to be an inopportune tyre choice, Torres came in to change the tyres, along with almost all of the other riders, around lap nine.
Once Torres was back on track, the Althea BMW riders were lying 15th (Reiterberger) and 17th (Torres) on lap fifteen. Thanks to a strong pace in the final stages, the Spaniard made up a couple of places to finish the race in eventual fifteenth position, followed by the German in sixteenth. A disappointing result for the team after the positives of yesterday’s Superpole and Race 1.
After four rounds of the 2016 Superbike World Championship, Jordi Torres moves into sixth in the general standings with 65 points, Reiterberger positions eleventh with 40 points. BMW is fifth in the manufacturer’s classification (70 points), while Althea BMW lies fourth in the team rankings (105 points).
Superstock – Race – Today’s Stock1000 race was complicated, conditioned by two red flags after various crashes in the wet conditions. After not one, but two restarts the ‘definitive’ race, comprised of just nine laps, got underway.
De Rosa immediately positioned fourth through lap one, quickly gaining confidence in conditions that were now almost dry. Pushing hard right from the off, the Italian was soon able to pass both Mercado and Russo to take the lead on lap three. Thanks to an unmatchable pace, from start to finish, the Althea BMW man continued to build his lead, to more than 10 seconds, before crossing the line first and earning 25 very important championship points.
Thanks to today’s fantastic result, and after just two events, De Rosa leads the standings, with 41 points scored thus far.
Jordi Torres:
“After trying a few things in warm-up, we decided to go backwards in terms of set-up for today’s race. The race was extremely complicated, as it wasn’t just raining but even hailing at one point. Anyway, we went out on rain tyres but I was slow because I didn’t want to risk crashing. My team told me when I should come in to change the tyres and after a good pit-stop I was back out on slicks. Unfortunately though, the bike behaved different from wet to dry and I wasn’t comfortable. I needed a few laps to get used to it but by then it was too late… Perhaps the only positive is that we didn’t crash or hurt ourselves, but now we’ll turn the page and focus on Imola.”
Markus Reiterberger:
“The second race was not easy. Before the race it had rained heavily, so I opted for a rain tyre at the front and an intermediate at the rear. I was too slow in the initial laps, before picking up in the central phase. I didn’t expect the track to dry so fast however, so others changed over to slicks and were then a lot faster than me. So it wasn’t the best for me, but I gained experience in these tricky conditions and hope to do a lot better next time.”
More, from a press release issued by MV Agusta:
LEON CAMIER FINISH 9° RACE 2 AT ASSEN
17 APRIL 2016
Leon Camier ends up in 9° position the second race of MOTUL FIM WorldSBK Championship in Assen and he gets other 7 points in Championship Standing.
The unpredictable Dutch weather forced the race direction to declare wet race, with Camier starting from the 13° place in grid and ready to battle for the top 10 of the race.
As the asphalt begin to be almost dry, MV Agusta Reparto Corse decide for a quick pit-stop, in order to set the slick tyre on his bike, the best choice with this kind of mixed weather condition. With Camier finding a better feeling on his MV Agusta F4 RC machine, the 29-years old British rider can finally starts his comeback till the top 10 of the field, closing in 9th final position.
With the 4th placement on Race 1 yesterday – the best placement ever fo MV Agusta squad in WorldSBK – Leon will be on track again in two weeks, in Imola, the iconic Italian track, home race for the whole Schiranna based squad.
Leon Camier #2 – Really difficult conditions today. In the start I felt comfortable when the track was really wet, but when it started to be dry I started to loose performance; I struggled to get enough grip to keep corner speed and to accelerate. We changed with the slick tires and was a good decision, since I started to get in the rhythm in the dry, passing some riders. I am really happy for this and for our performance on the wet but we need to understand the problem in the middle, when is still wet but start drying.
More, from a press release issued by Aruba.it Racing Ducati:
Chaz Davies 5th and Davide Giugliano 8th in Race 2 in Assen
Erratic weather conditions shuffled things up during WorldSBK’s Race 2 in Assen, which was declared wet and began on an extremely slippery tarmac, but unfolded almost entirely under the sun. All riders were thus forced to pit-in and change tyres. Davies, despite having a strong pace in the dry, had to settle for 5th place. Giugliano, who showed a better performance in the wet, finished in 8th position.
The race started in wet conditions but the sun quickly dried up the track, favoring many passes within the lead group, which included Davies and Giugliano. The Italian was among the first to come back into the pits to switch to slick tyres, during lap 10. Three laps later, it was Davies’ turn.
After the pit-stop, Giugliano initially struggled with front-tyre feeling but progressively gained momentum, while Davies found the right pace more easily but was simply too far from the leading pair formed by Rea and Sykes, who made the most of an early pit-stop. Davies thus finished the race in 5th position, Giugliano in 8th. The Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team will be back on track in two weeks’ time in Imola.
Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #7) – 5th
“Unfortunately, we didn’t choose the best strategy. I thought the Kawasakis pitted in a bit too early, as the track was still slippery, but we waited too long. I’m disappointed, because another good result was within our reach. The positive thing is that, since the WUP, we were really competitive and made another step forward in the dry compared with yesterday. I’m looking forward to Imola, it’s our home race and I hope to make it a memorable one for all the ducatisti.”
Davide Giugliano (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #34) – 8th
“It was a hectic race, during which it was easy to make mistakes. In the wet I eventually found a good pace, but the track dried up very quickly. We pitted in at the right moment, but unfortunately it took us four laps to regain confidence with the front. Still, I’m happy with the way the whole team reacted after all the difficulties we’ve encountered yesterday. In the WUP, we made a big step forward in terms of pace, an important signal ahead of Imola. Finally we’ll race ‘at home’ again!”
Ernesto Marinelli – Superbike Project Director
“The weather conditions made it a bit difficult for us today. It’s a pity, because this morning both riders had a great feeling with the bike in the dry. The rain fallen just before the race mixed things up. As for Davies, the pit-stop was done too late in retrospect, while the timing was right in Davide’s case, but he had some difficulties on slick tyres early on. Now Imola awaits, it’s our home round and we will do everything we can to reward the passion of all the ducatisti who support us.”
More, from a press release issued by Honda:
Dramatic race two in Assen ends with a podium finish for Michael van der Mark
Round 4 – The Netherlands
TT Circuit Assen, Netherlands
The Honda WorldSBK Team has completed the fourth round of the 2016 FIM Superbike World Championship with another podium finish, this time courtesy of Michael van der Mark. The young Dutchman was third at the chequered flag at the end of an unpredictable 21-lap race two at the TT Circuit Assen. This is the fourth podium of the season for van der Mark, and the third out of four WorldSBK races he has contested so far in the Netherlands. After his joyful maiden World Superbike podium yesterday, Nicky Hayden finished the second Dutch encounter with a solid sixth.
The race was declared wet by the race organisers despite the absence of rain, with the two Honda riders opting for the use of full-wet Pirellis. After a great start, both van der Mark and Hayden were part of the leading group and exchanged positions several times, while moving up the order. As the race got near its halfway point and the track surface dried, riders started to make their way back to the pits in order to switch to slicks. Van der mark came in at the end of lap nine, while Hayden waited for three more laps.
After the whole field went through the pit-stop procedure, Michael found himself in third place, although eight seconds away from the leading duo of Rea and Sykes. With no chance to bridge the gap to the front, the 23-year-old from Rotterdam decided to consolidate his position and ride his Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade SP home in third. Nicky resumed his chase from ninth place and, thanks to a good pace in the dry, he was able to make up efseveral places before the chequered flag.
With four rounds of fourteen completed, Michael van der Mark and Nicky Hayden currently sit fourth and fifth in the Championship standings. The next round of the 2016 FIM Superbike World Championship will take place at Imola in two weeks.
Michael van der Mark 60
3rd
This third place feels like a win for me, especially after yesterday’s result. The support from the crowd was really amazing; I’m quite sure there were a lot more people here today compared to the past two years. As soon as we started the warm up lap, I realised that, at some point, we would have to change tyres. We were ready for the pit-stop, as we are one of the few teams who always practice it at the end of every session. When Jonathan came past me I couldn’t stay with him, but I wanted to wait one more lap before going into the pits. I came in the following lap and it proved to be a good choice. I rode the rest of the race basically on my own, as the guys at the front were just too far ahead. I want to thank the team for the amazing job they have done, my sponsors and all my fans.
Nicky Hayden 69
6th
I can’t say I’m happy with sixth as I felt I could have finished in a much higher position. I got another great start, I went from tenth to fourth just on the first lap and everything felt right. This was the first race for me in the wet in Superbike and with these tyres, so that put a smile on my face. Then, when the sun came out, the track started to dry really quickly. I was feeling really good and I guess that made me stay out on track for a bit too long before I pitted. Even when I got back on track I could not get up to speed immediately, as for the first time I was riding a bike with a wet setup on slick tyres. At some stage I found my rhythm and went past Lowes, but then the gap to Davies was simply too big. Again, it has been a new experience for me and now I’m looking forward to Imola.
Pieter Breddels
Technical Manager
Both Michael and Nicky had a great start to the race and showed fine speed in the wet, which was really good for us. With the tyre changes, they went different ways and Michael’s choice turned out to be the right one. Despite the difference in terms of results, both riders were also able to lap consistently fast in the dry and that shows that the package we have is competitive in every condition. Overall, we’re happy with the results and most of all for the fact that we were able to place both riders on the podium this weekend. Hopefully we can take the positives into the next race.