FIM Supersport World Championship Imola, Italy September 26, 2010 Race Results (all on Pirelli tires): 1. Michele PIRRO, Italy (Honda CBR600RR), 19 laps, 36:07.906 2. Kenan SOFUOGLU, Turkey (Honda CBR600RR), -2.888 seconds, crash 3. Eugene LAVERTY, Ireland (Honda CBR600RR), -4.569, crash 4. Broc PARKES, Australia (Kawasaki ZX-6R), -4.865 5. Katsuaki FUJIWARA, Japan (Kawasaki ZX-6R), -5.718 6. Massimo ROCCOLI, Italy (Honda CBR600RR), -6.102 7. Mark AITCHISON, Australia (Honda CBR600RR), -9.977 8. Cristiano MIGLIORATI, Italy (Kawasaki ZX-6R), -18.563 9. Roberto TAMBURINI, Italy (Yamaha YZF-R6), -19.987 10. Gianluca VIZZIELLO, Italy (Honda CBR600RR), -28.436 11. Matthieu LAGRIVE, France (Triumph Daytona 675), -28.508 12. Vittorio IANNUZZO, Italy (Triumph Daytona 675), -42.347 13. Alessio PALUMBO, Italy (Kawasaki ZX-6R), -65.502 14. Giuseppe BARONE, Italy (Yamaha YZF-R6), -65.930 15. Alexander LUNDH, Sweden (Honda CBR600RR), -1 lap, pitted 16. Chaz DAVIES, Great Britain (Triumph Daytona 675), -1 lap, DNF, mechanical 17. Imre TOTH, Hungary (Honda CBR600RR), -6 laps, DNF, retired 18. Robbin HARMS, Denmark (Honda CBR600RR), -9 laps, DNF, mechanical 19. Gino REA, Great Britain (Honda CBR600RR), -16 laps, DNF, crash 20. David SALOM, Spain (Triumph Daytona 675), -17 laps, DNF, mechanical 21. Fabien FORET, France (Kawasaki ZX-6R), -19 laps, DNF, crash 22. Miguel PRAIA, Portugal (Honda CBR600RR), -19 laps, DNF, crash 23. Ronan QUARMBY, South Africa (Honda CBR600RR), -19 laps, DNF, crash World Championship Point Standings (after 12 of 13 races): 1. Sofuoglu, 243 points 2. Laverty, 227 3. Lascorz, 168 4. Davies, 137 5. Pirro, 91 6. Salom, 90 7. Harms, 87 8. Rea, 83 9. TIE, Fujiwara/Roccoli, 71 11. Lagrive, 70 12. Foret, 65 13. Praia, 60 14. Parkes, 29 15. Tamburini, 25 16. Lundh, 24 17. Jason DiSalvo, 21 18. Iannuzzo, 15 19. Dell’Omo, 13 20. Vizziello, 10 More, from a press release issued by Parkalgar Honda: Laverty third in thrilling Imola showdown PARKALGAR HONDA’S Eugene Laverty and his title rival Kenan Sofuoglu played a high-speed game of cat and mouse while leading the 12th round of the World Supersport Championship at Imola in Italy, climaxing in a final chicane crash and both riders remounting with Eugene finishing third. Parkalgar Honda’s Miguel Praia was confident of a top 10 result but in the first corner another rider crashed and took him out of the race. Eugene is now 16-points behind Sofuoglu in the Championship with just one round and 25-points remaining – it takes place next Sunday October 3rd at Magny Cours in France. Eugene: “I am angry with myself because my left arm started to go numb towards the end of the race and I was riding the bike with my right arm only. It is an old injury that came back today and my priority now is to get it sorted properly. In the race when I took the lead I tried to cruise a little to protect my arm but when Kenan came by I had to go with him. I couldn’t set myself up as precisely as I wanted on the last lap but came up the inside on the run to the chicane. He put pressure on me and I lost the front so we crashed. I got my bike up but it took a moment longer than Kenan to get going again. Now I will go to Magny Cours and try my best to end the season with a win and see what happens there.” Miguel: “I could do nothing. I went into the first corner and another rider crashed into me and that finished my race. I tried to restart but couldn’t. I am very frustrated as I could have scored good points in the top 10 I am sure. My left thumb is a little sore so I will get it checked by the clinic just to make sure it is OK. Now I am focussing on the final race and finishing the season on a high.” Simon Buckmaster, Parkalgar Honda Team Manager: “That was a fantastic race between the two best Supersport racers in the World and I am sure it thrilled the crowds. Neither racer was prepared to give an inch and the end result was Kenan took four more points than Eugene. The Championship is now a long shot being 16-points behind but we will not give up and will be racing again next week going for another win. Miguel was very unlucky being taken out by another rider as we are all confident he would have been well inside the top 10 it just makes him and Parkalgar Honda more determined to finish the season with a strong top 10 finish in France.” More, from a press release issued by Hannspree Ten Kate Honda: Advantage Sofuoglu, as Pirro wins Imola thriller Hannspree Ten Kate Honda’s Michele Pirro took his debut World Supersport championship race victory in today’s 12th round at Imola in Italy. His team-mate and series leader, Kenan Sofuoglu, was second, but the story might have been very different. Starting from pole position for the 19-lap race, Sofuoglu spent the early laps trading positions and fastest laps with his only championship rival, Eugene Laverty, who came to Italy 12 points down on the Turkish rider with two races to go. The Honda-mounted pair were so dominant that they quickly opened a seven-second gap from the chasing group, which included Pirro, who had also started from the front row of the grid. Sofuoglu and Laverty engaged in a high-speed game of cat and mouse, with neither rider able to open a gap of more than 0.3s for the entire 19-laps. The result of the race and, possibly, the championship would come down to the last lap. Sofuoglu rode supe rb lines to prevent Laverty getting the lead he desperately needed to boost his hopes of the championship title. But at the final chicane the Irish rider made an optimistic lunge that resulted in him losing the front of his CBR600RR, taking out Sofuoglu in the process. As both riders scrambled to get their machines back on track, it was Pirro who rode through to take the chequered flag having passed third placed man, Chaz Davies, who retired with a technical problem on the final lap. Sofuoglu and Laverty were able to remount and cross the line for second and third places respectively, with the championship points difference going into next weekend’s final round at Magny-Cours in France being 16 instead of the 17 had they finished in their earlier 1-2 formation. Michele Pirro P1 It is incredible to win my first World Supersport race and I’m very happy because this is my home race and the rest of the season has not been very good. OK, I was able to win because Kenan and Eugene crashed at the last corner but I am still very happy. Congratulations to all the team who did a great job today to get a win and a second place. Now we can move to the last race in Magny-Cours and aim for another podium to finish the season in a good way. Kenan Sofuoglu P2 All weekend I was very confident and it was the same for the race today. We were definitely ready to go for the win but I am not sure that Eugene had enough speed to go with me. He was able to follow but his aim in the race when he was leading seemed to be to slow me and to block me. I pushed hard for the last few laps and he was still able to follow me but I think that the final attack he made was too much on the limit. I was already braking very late into that corner and it seemed like his idea was to crash and take me with him. I was very lucky and my bike was sti ll able to run and I could get back up to finish in front of Eugene. Of course, I really wanted to win this weekend but it didn’t happen. The positive thing is that I have a 16-point advantage going to Magny-Cours. Ronald ten Kate team manager Well, finishing first and second with our riders makes it, of course, a great day. Congratulations to Michele for his very first World Supersport victory, the whole team is very happy for him. For sure, the biggest challenge here was for the title and accidents like the one at the last corner can happen in racing. But it did seem a pretty desperate move, especially at the part of the track where Kenan had been by far the latest on the brakes. Having said that, it doesn’t change the result”¦ a lot. Instead of a lead of 17 points, it’s now 16, so yeah, we’ve got to keep our act together for Magny-Cours next week and try to get the fat lady to sing. More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki: Determination From Parkes And Fujiwara Earns Them Top Five Results Broc Parkes was fourth and Katsuaki Fujiwara fifth at Imola, in a welcome dry race after the practice days had been adversely affected by rain. Parkes is now 14th overall, after only two races. For Parkes fourth was an unlikely final outcome at the end of lap one, when he was only 14th, having been almost last after being run wide in the first corner. He rallied strongly, despite his recent viral infection, and simply charged through the field to fifth, before a technical issue for another rider on the last lap put him fourth. The last rider Broc overtook was his own team-mate, as Fujiwara scored fifth, finding some rear traction issues later in the race. Kats is now back into the overall top ten, capitalising on his strong front row performance in qualifying, and earning 11 points for fifth place. Team regular Joan Lascorz, injured at Silverstone, is now guaranteed third place in the championship, as the only rider capable of overtaking his static points total of 168 retired on the last lap today. Kawasaki Lorenzini by Leoni Ninja ZX-6R rider Fabien Foret got involved in a first chicane multiple rider incident, which put him out of the race before a lap had been completed. Broc Parkes: “I got hit in the first corner, maybe because I didn’t get the best of starts, so that left me almost last. I had to run wide and then I was really a bit upset! So I pushed with everything all the way through the race and made some pretty big moves in the first few laps to come through. I could even have possibly had a podium at the end, but I have to be happy to have made the race I did from where I started.” Katsuaki Fujiwara: “My bike was consistent, but it was difficult to find a good setting for the gearbox; last year was the same here. The beginning of the race was good but at the end it was too busy, too many gear changes and when the tyre grip drops off it makes it difficult to control. I was getting lots of little slides. Broc and I were inside the top five places, so not so bad for the whole team.” More, from a press release issued by ParkinGO Triumph BE1 Racing: It could have been a historic first victory of a British bike in World Supersport, instead the outcome was the opposite with just a few corners to go. The race started very well, with Chaz Davies managing to get in the leading pack right away. After a nice battle with Roccoli and Pirro, the young Brit took third place. On the last lap however, Laverty slipped while desperately trying to clinch the victory. His bike crashed into Sofuoglu’s, allowing Chaz Davies to take the lead, but at the same time the monitors were displaying that Triumph no. 7 had stopped. As a consequence, Michele Pirro prevailed, despite being fourth before the last lap. David Salom was unlucky as well as Quarby crashed into him shortly after the start of the race. The South African’s mistake caused Salom a broken rib and forced him to return to the pits after just two laps. The only Triumph machines making it to the finish line were Lagrive’s , who finished eleventh and Iannuzzo’s, who took twelfth place. CHAZ DAVIES | Triumph Daytona 675 | retired : ” It was a disaster. Shortly after what had happened to Laverty and Sofuoglu, my bike just stopped. After returning to the pit box, I found out that the fuel pump was broken . I went from ecstasy to agony just like that. The only thing I can somewhat be satisfied about is being so close to winning the race and proving yet again that I am capable of battling for the top”. DAVID SALOM | Triumph Daytona 675 | retired : “What am I supposed to say? I was hoping to ride a good race, instead I might not be able to race next round…and it was definitely not my fault”. MATTHIEU LAGRIVE | Triumph Daytona 675 | 11th : “I didn’t get the start that I wanted and so I wasn’t able to perform at my best. That’s what I’m disappointed about, I really wanted to end the season in the top 10. Unfortunately, this is it for me because I’m racing in Endurance and I can’t make it to the next round”. VITTORIO IANNUZZO | Triumph Daytona 675 | 12th : “I got a very good start, went up, but I wasn’t very incisive on the first few laps. Later on, I had a better pace and maintained the same gap to the group ahead of me and kept the position I was on until the chequered flag”. GIULIANO ROVELLI – TEAM OWNER : “Chaz was so close to winning, but I am aware that each race ends under the chequered flag. It’s not a big deal, our team is very strong and we will redeem ourselves in the closing round of the season, held at Magny-Cours next week”.