FIM Supersport World Championship Losail International Circuit Doha, Qatar March 14, 2009 Race Results (all on Pirelli tires): 1. Eugene LAVERTY (Hon CBR600RR), 18 laps 2. Andrew PITT (Hon CBR600RR), -0.063 second 3. Cal CRUTCHLOW (Yam YZF-R6), -0.625 4. Kenan SOFUOGLU (Hon CBR600RR), -0.711 5. Robbin HARMS (Hon CBR600RR), -5.200 seconds 6. Matthieu LAGRIVE (Hon CBR600RR), -5.233 7. Garry McCOY (Tri Daytona 675), -9.538 8. Massimo ROCCOLI (Hon CBR600RR), -9.551 9. Anthony WEST (Hon CBR600RR), -9.616 10. Barry VENEMAN (Suz GSX-R600), -12.159 11. Michele PIRRO (Yam YZF-R6), -15.044 12. Miguel PRAIA (Hon CBR600RR), -17.611 13. Joan LASCORZ (Kaw ZX-6R), -17.701 14. Gianluca VIZZIELLO (Hon CBR600RR), -19.897 15. Mark AITCHISON (Hon CBR600RR), -35.382, crash 16. Danilo DELL’OMO (Hon CBR600RR), -35.701 17. Arie VOS (Hon CBR600RR), -36.239 18. Russell HOLLAND (Hon CBR600RR), -36.406 19. Gianluca NANNELLI (Tri Daytona 675), -40.548 20. Tata PRADITA (Yam YZF-R6), -58.948 24. Katsuaki FUJIWARA (Kaw ZX-6R), -4 laps, DNF, retired 26. Fabien FORET (Yam YZF-R6), -16 laps, DNF, crash World Championship Point Standings (after 2 of 14 rounds): 1. Pitt, 40 points 2. Sofuoglu, 38 3. Laverty, 36 4. Crutchlow, 29 5. West, 23 6. TIE, Lagrive/Roccoli, 15 8. Harms, 12 9. TIE, Aitchison/McCoy/Lascorz, 11 More, from a press release issued by Parkalgar Honda: Laverty dedicates maiden victory to Craig Jones IRELAND’S Eugene Laverty celebrated his and the Parkalgar Honda team’s first World Supersport race victory at the second round of the Championship in Qatar and revealed that he was confused by his pit board signals and didn’t realise he had won until World Champion Andrew Pitt told him during the cool-down lap. Eugene led for 13 of the 18-laps and enjoyed a race-long battle with two World Champions – Andrew Pitt and Kenan Sofuoglu – finally winning the most dramatic of races in a last dash to the line. Parkalgar Honda Portuguese ace Miguel Praia took 12th. The third round of the Championship takes place at Valencia in Spain on Sunday 5th April. Eugene: “I was a little confused by my pit board and mid-race I thought it said seventh. I dropped back from the lead and it said fourth so I got back on the pace. When I led again I read seventh and I just decided to get my head down and do my best to win on the track and see what happened later; so it wasn’t until the second turn on the cool-down lap when Andrew Pitt congratulated me on the victory that I realised I had won. We had discussed my pit-board signals before the race and it was my mistake and it’ll not happen again. It was a strange race because it was a lot easier to drive and follow than lead; but my Parkalgar Honda CBR600RR is brilliant and I was able to get good drive and pass Andrew early on the straight on the last lap to win. It is unbelievable that for the last couple of years I have been fighting for points and now I am winning a race on my second attempt with Parkalgar Honda and challenging for a World title. All I can say is thank you to the whole Parkalgar Honda team, Simon, Brains, everyone not to mention the Parkalgar circuit, Ohlins, Motec and all the team partners. I dedicate this win to Craig Jones who did all the work bringing the team to this level.” Miguel: “It was important for me that I finish the race after having two crashes in qualifying in just 10 minutes. That meant I didn’t have a good chance at qualifying and starting from 14th was always going to be difficult in the race. I settled down into the race focussed on finishing but found I had good pace. I think I could have competed with the group in front fighting for seventh if I had got away a little quicker but overall I am happy with a good 12th place. This has rebuilt my confidence for the next round at Valencia and I will see what I can do there.” Simon Buckmaster, Parkalgar Honda Team Manager: “I can’t say enough good things about Eugene. At one point in the race he was looking over his shoulder and I wondered what he was doing it turns out he was comfortable on the bike. He kept his cool under the most enormous pressure and won, it was a fantastic ride. What a job the boys in the team did to put the Parkalgar Honda CBR600RR under him, well done to Brains and the whole squad, I am proud of them all. It was a great team effort and I cannot thank our sponsors enough, in particular Paulo Pinheiro at the Parkalgar circuit because without him none of this would be possible. I am also pleased for Miguel finishing 12th, equalling his best result of last year at only the second race in 2009. His confidence is back and he beat a lot of good riders and race winners today. I think he can take heart from that and go to Valencia realistically targeting the top 10 or maybe even a little better.” More, from a press release issued by Team YZF Yamaha Doni Tata Pradita progresses of 10 positions In the second race of the Supersport World Championship in Losail, Qatar, Indonesian rider Doni Tata Pradita finished in 20th position on his Yamaha R6, after a race incident relegated him to the 30th place in the first lap. His experience is growing and this race was very useful for him to learn his new category. Doni Tata Pradita started quite well, but in the first lap some riders bumped into each other in four separate incidents. Four riders crashed, but fortunately Doni could stay on his wheels. Of course, he lost a lot of time in the process and he was 30th, but steadily he increased his speed and went faster and faster. He could pass a few riders and finished in 20th position, which is not very far from the top 15 riders who earn points. This weekend was not easy for the young Indonesian rider who doesn’t like the track of Losail. But he progressed every day and got more experience and more confidence. His progress is impressive and he can for sure look forward to better results in the future. The race was won by Eugene Laverty on his Parkalgar Honda, in front of reigning World Champion Andrew Pitt, on a Ten Kate Honda. Doni Tata Pradita: “I had a good start and I was in a good position. Then in the second corner of the first lap, we touched with other riders and I had to go wide. Then it was difficult because I had to pass slower riders. After that, it was OK. I pushed hard and it was coming better and better. The result is not good enough, I want more at the next races, and I want points. I am sorry for my Indonesian friends. I am progressing step by step. This is good for learning. I will be stronger for the next race, with more confidence.” Team-manager Martial Garcia: “Doni keeps on learning. He had a good top speed and he could catch the guys in front of him. He finished 58 seconds behind the winner, which gives and idea of the progress to be made. No doubt that Doni will succeed in the future. The set-up of the engine and the chassis were perfect. Doni will progress step by step, race after race, and he will be in the top 10 by the end of the season. Thank you very much to the team who worked very had this week. Our program now is to do some testing on tracks that Doni doesn’t know, so he can discover them before the races. We shall test in Monza during the week after the Valencia event.” More, from a press release issued by HANNspree Ten Kate Honda: Andrew Pitt finished second in today’s second round 2009 World Supersport championship encounter in Qatar. The Hannspree Ten Kate Honda rider was edged off the top step of the podium by Honda-mounted Eugene Laverty. Cal Crutchlow completed the podium, with Pitt’s team-mate, Kenan Sofuoglu winner of the opening race in Australia two weeks ago finishing in fourth place. In a classic Supersport slipstreaming battle around the 5.38km Losail circuit just outside Doha, Pitt and Sofuoglu traded places with Laverty and Crutchlow, with each of three Honda riders taking spells leading the race. On the last lap, Pitt appeared to have timed his final move to the front perfectly, but Laverty, riding the 2009 Honda CBR600RR, was able to out-drag the Australian to the flag, while a mistake at the final corner prevented Sofuoglu from joining Pitt on the podium. Andrew Pitt P2 I gave everything I had during the race and, although I didn’t win, at least we’ve bagged another 20 points. We struggled early in the weekend but the team has worked really hard again to put a good bike underneath me. Congratulations to Eugene and the Parkalgar Honda team they were knocking on the door last season and deserve to be there. Bring on Valencia, when we’ll have the 2009 CBR to play with and the straight is a little shorter! Kenan Sofuoglu P4 I’m not so happy, really. After my two crashes yesterday I was a little bit nervous and then I was losing some speed on the straight to everyone else. I had to try and make up for that by braking late into the corners and that made me a little tired and I began to feel the knocks I received yesterday. Then I made a mistake going into the final corner, when I was third, and this allowed Crutchlow through. Still, I have some more points and it’s not such a bad result considering the tough weekend we’ve had. Ronald ten Kate team manager It’s not been the easiest weekend, so I was pleased to see both riders fighting for the win right through the race. Although we would love to have won, the victory went to the 2009 CBR600RR and to another well-respected Honda team, so congratulations to them. At the end of the day, we’re still 1-2 in the championship and we’re looking forward to getting back to Europe where our own 09 bikes are waiting and we cannot wait for Valencia. More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki: Lascorz Fights Hard In Qatar WSS, Losail, Qatar, 14 March 2009 Joan Lascorz took his 2009 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R to 13th place at Losail today, after experiencing some difficult moments in the 18-lap race at the 5.380km circuit. His team-mate Katsuaki Fujiwara was up as high as seventh at one point but was forced backwards due to chatter on a race set-up. He retired on lap 15, when out of the points scoring positions. It was a particularly busy race for Lascorz, who had only stared from 15th place, was 14th on lap one, then worked his way up to ninth before dropping back down to finish with three points for 13th. He is now 11th overall, on 11 points, after his eighth place in Australia is taken into consideration. Joan Lascorz: “At the moment the bike feels heavy to turn and it was not easy to put it on line in the corners. When you cannot do that it makes things very hard. On the straight, in the beginning I could stay with them but I had to force too much in the early laps. I had a touch with another rider on the last corner of one lap and that dropped me back a bit. Without that I could have been sixth or seventh. Then when the bike began to slide front and rear it was impossible for me to push forward any more.” Katsuaki Fujiwara: “I made a very good start and was about seventh or eighth after the first two laps. I was not comfortable on the bike after the third lap because we had a lot of chatter. We used basically the same settings as yesterday, just one click different. I went backwards very quickly. I tried to push and push, but when I dropped out of the points I decide to pull in and not take a big risk for no reward.” More, from a press release issued by Yamaha: Crutchlow fights it out to put Yamaha on the podium in Qatar World Supersport rookie Cal Crutchlow put everything into a tough ride for his second race of the championship, fighting with rivals Eugene Laverty, Andrew Pitt and Kenan Sofuoglu for the coveted podium positions. A missed gear in the closing laps cost Crutchlow valuable time, however with tires fading he made it back up and finished the race third following a dramatic pass on Sofuoglu in the final lap. Crutchlow’s team-mate Foret had a tricky start, and was then held up to 15th place avoiding trouble on the track. The Frenchman got onto a good race pace but an unfortunate high-side left him out of the race on the 3rd lap. Cal Crutchlow, Yamaha World Supersport Team “A bit disappointing for me today, I feel I should have won the race, I think we still need to improve on some areas. I had a couple of moments on the edge of the track at the end, but you’ve got to put it out there to win! Hopefully when we get to Valencia and more European circuits I’m familiar with I can get closer to a victory.” Fabien Foret, Yamaha World Supersport Team “Not a great day for me, unfortunately I got caught up on the first lap which pushed me back down quite a few places. I wasn’t feeling too comfortable but was pushing to come back up the field. Unfortunately I had a high-side coming out of the corner. I’m a little sore but determined to make up for it at Valencia and get into the top pack for the championship fight.” Wilco Zeelenberg, Yamaha World Supersport Team Manager “I’m happy we managed to get third and on the podium, we’re slowly moving forwards. Fabien had a bad start, got hooked up on the first lap so dropped to fifteenth, and then couldn’t find the feeling. He lost the rear tire and crashed out. It was disappointing of course. Cal had a good race, the track conditions were terrible, nearly 48 degrees, so he lost the front a couple of times, and also missed a shift which lost him even more time. He caught up but was unable to slipstream on the straights enough to overtake. He has a decent position in the championship though and everything is still to play for with the rest of the season still to come. Everything is really close together so the championship is still open for those top four or five riders.” More, from a press release issued by Team ParkinGO Triumph BE1 Racing: Team ParkinGo Be1 Racing is satisfied with today’s result, as Garry McCoy finishes seventh, after overtaking several riders. The Australian was involved in several melees in the first corner. As a consequence, he ended up in twentieth place. As the TV cameras focused on the ferocious battle at the front of the field, McCoy quietly demonstrated both his class and the Triumph’s speed by matching, and often surpassing, the pace of the podium men as he carved through to take seventh place by the final lap. Without the significant time penalty incurred in the first corner melee, McCoy could well have pushed for Triumph’s first world championship podium finish. Meanwhile, Nannelli had a solid ride to work his way into a points scoring position, only to make a mistake on the last lap and drop back to 19th at the flag. GARRY McCOY | Triumph Daytona 675 | 7th place: “I’m very satisifed with today’s race but not with the result. I finished the race at only 9 seconds from the winner. I know I could’ve fought for the podium if I hadn’t been hit at the first corner. Nevertheless, we’re getting better and better and I’m confident that very soon we’ll have great results. After today’s result I’m sure we’re going to score a podium in the near future”. GIANLUCA NANNELLI | Triumph Daytona 675 | 9th place: “What a disaster!!! I thought I would have a great race, unfortunately the start ruined it all. I went off track and lost a lot of time. I tried to recover, I knew I could do well. I recovered a few positions but I touched an opponent’s bike and went off track again. It’s a real pity. I really wanted to finish in the top 10. I hope to redeem myself in Valencia”. GIULIANO ROVELLI – TEAM MANAGER: “After such a race I am really pleased. Garry’s final result is very good but I’m especially happy with his performance. We’ve had the proof that we’ re quickly reaching the top teams’ level. Unfortunately, we’re not very lucky, we hope to redeem ourselves in the next round at Valencia. I also have to congratulate the entire team who have done a great job enabling Garry to pull off a spectacular recovery”.