ASSEN 9th ROUND 1st, 2nd and 3rd September ANOTHER FACELIFT FOR THE GRAND OLD LADY Assen has quite rightly been regarded as one of the true classic motorcycle racing venues, just one of the reasons why the Circuit van Drenthe and World Superbike have enjoyed a mutually beneficial unbroken relationship since 1992. This year Assen has evolved once more, with the new 4.555km layout the latest in a long line of alterations to the still uniquely cambered Assen tarmac. The North Loop has been radically shortened, to allow for off-track expansion of facilities, to make the most of the circuit in the 21st century. The immediate upshot for all the riders, even World Championship leader Troy Bayliss (Ducati Xerox), will be a period of adjustment to the new circuit layout, before qualifying and racing itself gets underway. CHASING RIDERS SHARE ONE SINGLE GOAL BAYLISS Troy Bayliss (Ducati Xerox) has scored more wins than any other rider this year so far, an impressive nine, and thus his immediate aim will be to reach double-digit wins at Assen. His current championship lead of 77 points (with a maximum possible 200 points available for any rider who wins all eight races from now on) puts him in an enviable position, but a clutch of strong challengers are ranged behind Bayliss, sharing an equal level of determination to push him all the way. Second place in the championship, based on consistency rather than outright levels of winning, is Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia). He scored his first 2006 race victory at the most recent round at Brands Hatch, and has won at Assen before, albeit way back in the 2000 season. The third placed rider in the current series, 2004 champion James Toseland (Winston Ten Kate Honda) has also scored an Assen race win, taking victory in race one during his championship winning year. He sits 11 points behind Haga, and his bulldog spirit will ensure that Bayliss will be chased all the way to the finish. Assen is one of the few circuits that current overall fourth placed rider Troy Corser (Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) has never scored at least one race win at, and given his recent reversals of fortune, the 1996 and 2005 world champion could find no better place to rediscover the winning touch which he has demonstrated twice this year already. BARROS AND PITT READY TO RUMBLE Having to learn the nuances of Superbike racing in what is his rookie SBK season, the otherwise vastly experienced Alex Barros (Klaffi Honda) now finds that even the familiar will feature yet another set of learning curves, as he – like his fellow riders – approaches an unfamiliar layout of Assen circuit. A proven Assen winner in his MotoGP days, Barros is a fan of the ‘old’ Assen, and is expected to allow at least a part of his circuit knowledge to shine through from the first session to the final chequered flag. With some impressive performances under his belt already, but still no win, Assen may be his best opportunity to rediscover his podium form, and maybe even score that elusive win number one. That particular 25-point maximum landmark has already been reached by a rider in his second full season of SBK racing, Andrew Pitt (Yamaha Motor Italia), who scored his first career SBK win at Misano in June. Having got a taste for winning, Pitt will be satisfied by nothing less at Assen, as he tries to make up the short gap of nine points to Barros, in fifth place. KAGAYAMA BACK WITH A VENGEANCE After the huge misfortune of being skittled from a probable race win in round one at Qatar, Corser’s talented team-mate Yukio Kagayama (Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) has surged back into the upper echelons since his third place at round six at Misano. His double race win at Brno was possibly a surprise to some, but it underlined the class that everyone knows Kagayama has. He currently sits in a lonely seventh on points, ready for any slip form the riders above him to take his second overall top five finish in his second year of SBK competition. Behind Kagayama, a two-rider points tie sees 2005 race winner Lorenzo Lanzi (Ducati Xerox) and Chris Walker (PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse) battling for supremacy, with Walker the highest-place rider in the three man PSG-1 squad. The top ten is rounded out by another Brno sensation, Michel Fabrizio (DFX Treme Honda) who is out to add to his double podium in round seven, at Brno. ASSEN WINNER XAUS LEADS THE PRIVATEER DUCATI CHARGE Another two current riders have garnered SBK wins at Assen in previous years, with Ruben Xaus (Ducati Sterilgarda Berik) having won race one in 2003, while riding for the factory Ducati squad. His solid season thus far sees him 11th, and another private rider, Pierfrancesco Chili (DFX Honda), shares his status as a former Assen winner, thanks to a magnificent ride in the 1998 season. Chili is currently 20th, after sustaining serious injury at the mid-season point. ROCK HARD MIDFIELD FEATURES COSMOPOLITAN MAKEUP Just outside the top ten the Superbike series has taken on the mantle of a game of snakes and ladders, with each passing week providing vastly different fortunes for some seriously talented competitors. Fonsi Nieto (PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse) has scored some impressive results in his second SBK season, but inconsistency of set-up has not allowed him to make a concerted run out of the midfield, leaving him 12th, just ahead of other riders who have struggled to find form a more than fleeting companion. Norick Abe (Yamaha Motor France Ipone) finds himself ahead of multiple SBK race-winner Regis Laconi, the third PSG-1 rider in the pack, with neither rider quite able to climb onto the podium this year so far. Karl Muggeridge (Winston Ten Kate Honda) has fought injury and ill health this season, but nonetheless has put in some impressive qualifying performances, despite finishing no higher than sixth at best after the flag drops. Roberto Rolfo (Ducati SC Caracchi) has enjoyed his rookie season, but found SBK a difficult net to crack on a privateer machine, despite some bright early season adventures in the top ten. PETRONAS RIDERS OUT TO SHOW METTLE The 900cc Petronas FP-1 has always had something of a performance disadvantage in World Superbike, but this year, despite the speed and experience of Steve Martin, and the youthful aggression of rookie Craig Jones, Martin has been the team’s lone point scores, with only four so far. The never-say-never spirit of the squad is always in evidence, and Martin has often displayed a liking for Assen, despite its fast nature and his machine’s modest power output. MID SEASON SIGNINGS OUT IN FORCE SBK podium finisher in 2005, Max Neukirchner, makes a return to competitive Superbike action at Assen, riding for the Alstare Engineering team for the first time, after an unhappy start to the current season in the Pedercini team. He will line up alongside Brands Hatch Pedercini Ducati inductee Kurtis Roberts, and Bertocchi Kawasaki rider Josh Brookes, who also started his season on a Ducati, albeit in Supersport. All three will hope to score points, and in the case of Roberts and Brookes, they would be their first SBK points of the season. SUPERSPORT WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP The early season runaway performances of Sebastien Charpentier (Winston Ten Kate Honda) have been halted by a combination of pelvic and shoulder injury, plus the resurgent form of his main championship rivals, Kevin Curtain (Yamaha Motor Germany) and Broc Parkes (Yamaha Motor Germany). Charpentier and Curtain now share the lead, with Parkes some 12 points behind – and with 100 up for grabs to any rider who can win all of the last four races. Robbin Harms (Stiggy Motorsports) still sits an impressive fourth, with proven race winning rookies Massimo Roccoli (Yamaha Team Italia) and Yoann Tiberio (Megabike Honda) fifth and sixth respectively. Two podium finishes in the last two races have put Kenan Sofuoglu (Winston Ten Kate Honda) equal on points with Tiberio, and in his team’s home country the Turkish rider will be looking to help out his team-mate Charpentier, as well as going for his first career WSS win. SUPERSTOCK 1000 FIM CUP Alessandro Polita (Celani Suzuki Italia) continues to lead Ayrton Badovini (Biassono Unionbike MV Agusta) in a battle of the men most likely to score overall championship victory, but Luca Scassa (EVR Corse Ormeni Racing) run of third, second and then first (the latter at the previous round in Brands Hatch) have taken him to within 19 points of the lead, with four rounds to run. The only other 2006 race winner, Claudio Corti (Yamaha Team Italia) is forth overall, some 50 points from Polita, while the top-placed English speaking rider is Brno podium placer, Richard Cooper (MS Racing Honda). SUPERSTOCK 600 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP Xavier Simeon (Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) extended his lead over Niccolo Canepa (Ducati Xerox) to 39 points after a thrilling Brands race, while another 2006 season find, Davide Giugliano (Lightspeed Kawasaki), slips further away from the fight for the title. In this exciting class for younger riders on virtually stock machines, the top three places are held by riders on machinery of disparate origins. SBK ON THE MARCH RIGHT AFTER ASSEN After the Dutch treat at Assen the entire SBK paddock heads immediately to the Eurospeedway Lausitz for the German round of the championship, round 10, between 8 and 10 September. The final two rounds take place at Imola (Italy) and Magny-Cours (France), with racedays on 1 and 8 October respectively.