FIM Superbike World Championship Donington Park, England March 26, 2011 Final Qualifying Results, After Superpole (all on Pirelli tires): From Superpole Knockout Session Three: 1. Carlos CHECA, Spain (Ducati 1098R), 1:28.099 2. Leon HASLAM, Great Britain (BMW S1000RR), 1:28.365 3. Tom SYKES, Great Britain (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 1:28.556 4. Jakub SMRZ, Czech Republic (Ducati 1098R), 1:28.561 5. Noriyuki HAGA, Japan (Aprilia RSV4 Factory), 1:28.673 6. Max BIAGGI, Italy (Aprilia RSV4 Factory), 1:28.702 7. Leon CAMIER, Great Britain (Aprilia RSV4 Factory), 1:28.737 8. Jonathan REA, Great Britain (Honda CBR1000RR), 1:29.514 From Superpole Knockout Session Two: 9. Marco MELANDRI, Italy (Yamaha YZF-R1), 1:28.803 10. Troy CORSER, Australia (BMW S1000RR), 1:28.836 11. Michel FABRIZIO, Italy (Suzuki GSX-R1000), 1:29.135 12. Joan LASCORZ, Spain (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 1:29.422 From Superpole Knockout Session One: 13. Eugene LAVERTY, Ireland (Yamaha YZF-R1), 1:29.312 14. Sylvain GUINTOLI, France (Ducati 1098R), 1:29.879 15. Maxime BERGER, France (Ducati 1098R), 1:30.002 16. Ruben XAUS, Spain (Honda CBR1000RR), 1:30.076 The Rest of the Grid: 17. Ayrton BADOVINI, Italy (BMW S1000RR), 1:30.169 18. Roberto ROLFO, Italy (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 1:30.680 19. Mark AITCHISON, Australia (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 1:31.117 20. Chris VERMEULEN, Australia (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 1:31.485 More, from a press release issued by BMW Motorrad Motorsport: Weather conditions: Cloudy and cold, but dry. Temperature: Air: 7 10 °C, Track: 5 9 °C Number of riders participating: 19 from 12 teams Fastest lap Qualifying Practices: Max Biaggi (Aprilia Racing Team) 1:28.794 min Fastest lap Superpole 3: Carlos Checa (Althea Racing) 1:28.099 min Team BMW Motorrad Motorsport will start the second round of the FIM Superbike World Championship 2011 at Donington (GBR) from the front row. Local works rider, Leon Haslam (GBR), secured the second best qualifying result ever for the team, finishing second in today’s Superpole Qualifying. His team mate Troy Corser (AUS) will start tomorrow’s races from tenth position. Leon Haslam: Fastest lap Qualifying Practices: 1:29.472 min (P7) / Fastest lap FP: 1:28.968 min (P2) / Fastest lap Superpole 3: 1:28.365 min (P2) “I am really looking forward to tomorrow now. We wanted a front row start and we have got that. We definitely made good progress from Australia to this event. Hopefully it is a dry day tomorrow, and I will try to beat the others this time. In a race anything can happen, but we are making steps in the right direction. If we can get a good start and have consistent races, we will be in with a good shot.” Troy Corser: Fastest lap Qualifying Practices: 1:29.476 min (P8) / Fastest lap FP: 1:29.861 min (P10) / Fastest lap Superpole 2: 1:28.836 min (P10) “We had no serious issues, but there were some small vibrations in the rear tyre on the second qualifier. We are still just trying to find a good set-up. The cold weather was no problem, just a bit hard on the tyre. It seems to be tearing up quite a bit with the cold, but that is okay. Overall I am happy, but not with the qualifying result. The race tyre is quite good and consistent. We just need to get a good start and then we will see what is possible.” Rainer Bäumel (Head of Race Operations): “On the whole I am happy with how Superpole has turned out for us. Troy was unlucky; he was suffering from some vibration issues which prevented him from taking full advantage of the qualifying tyre and stopped him from progressing into Superpole 3. Even so, heading up the third row is not so bad. We know Troy can get good starts and his race pace is good so we are confident. With regard to Leon we are all really happy. He has good pace on a race tyre and he will be pushing for the front tomorrow for sure.” More, from a press release issued by Pata Racing Team: Noriyuki Haga keeps his good intentions gaining the fifth place on the starting grid after the Superpole. The PATA Racing Team rider finished during today’s practice the work set with the team since yesterday sessions, and capitalized during the Superpole where he got a great fifth place that could have turned out as a pole position. Nori’s best lap has been conditioned by Max Biaggi, that finding himself on the japanese rider’s way, forced him to go out of the ideal line. Haga will start from the second row and seen his skill during the first part of the race is desirable we’ll be able to see him fight for the head-places since the beginning hoping to keep them until the end. Nitro Nori is just a little worried about his forearm that keeps on aching but that he hope to solve with the help of the medical staff. Noriyuki Haga – Aprilia RSV4R #41 – “We’ve done a great work all weekend long, reaching a good set up to face the round with. We still have a few little details to work on and we’ll do this during the warm-up tomorrow morning, when we’ll try to chose the best tyre to adopt. Hopefully my forearm pain won’t put a strain on the round. Its probably caused by a fracture I suffered here a few years ago and with this cold is much easier to feel some aches.” Marco Borciani – team manager – “Has been a really good day, I’m just concerned about that lap during the Superpole that prevent us from gaining a better result. I’m sure that Nori will express himself on the same levels during the two manches tomorrow; at the end of which we are hopeful to comment about two big outcomes.” More, from a press release issued by Infront Motor Sport: Checa wins Superpole at impressive pace Donington (UK), Saturday 26 March 2011 – Carlos Checa (Althea Racing) took his second pole of the 2011 season by posting the fastest lap of the weekend in Superpole three, a 1’28.099. Local rider Leon Haslam (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) will line up behind Checa at Leon’s home track, with another British rider, Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team Superbike) third. The last spot on the front row will be taken by Czech star Jakub Smrz (Effenbert Liberty Racing Ducati). Carlos Checa: “What can I say? Everything is working so well here at Donington, we expected to go well and we did it. Our progress from yesterday to today was quite comfortable, basically today the tyres were working well with these conditions and this cold. With one lap to get going it was not easy to get confidence but I was able to get a good enough time to get the pole and that’s important for tomorrow.” Leon Haslam: “Donington is my local circuit and me and Tom have had some great battles in the past in BSB, I’m really looking forward to tomorrow. We got a front row start which we wanted. I’ve definitely made some good progress from Australia to this event so hopefully it’ll be a dry day tomorrow and I can try and beat Carlos this time.” Tom Sykes: “I’m really happy now with this good starting slot for tomorrow’s races. I think that’s the hardest part of the weekend because qualifying is always important. We had a little problem in SP2 and had to waste a qualifying tyre but for SP3 we went out on a race tyre. The second row was guaranteed but to squeeze onto the front row was something unexpected.” Jakub Smrz: “Donington is one of my favourite races. I had a crash this morning at the very fast Craner Curves, where I have crashed before in the past but I was OK. I am satisfied with my front row position and I have a good set-up for the race, I would have liked to go a bit better in qualifying but the front row is good for me.” Noriyuki Haga (Pata Racing Team Aprilia) and Max Biaggi (Aprilia Alitalia) completed the top six, while an Aprilia trio was finished off by Leon Camier (Aprilia Alitalia) with Jonathan Rea (Castrol Honda) the final rider on the second row, making it four British riders in the top eight places. The hot track action warmed up the enthusiastic local crowd as the temperatures dipped from the highs of Friday, with the track temperatures dropping to single figures for Superpole. Leading contender Marco Melandri (Yamaha World Superbike Team) just missed out on the final Superpole session and will start Sunday’s races from ninth place and on row three. Haslam’s team-mate Troy Corser lapped his way to tenth, ahead of lone Suzuki force Michel Fabrizio (Suzuki Alstare). The Kawasaki Racing Team entry put its second rider into the top 12 when Joan Lascorz completed row three. A huge crash in the first Superpole session for Melandri’s Yamaha team-mate Eugene Laverty kept him on row four, alongside Sylvain Guintoli (Effenbert Liberty Racing Ducati), Maxime Berger (Supersonic Ducati) and Ruben Xaus (Castrol Honda). Times: 1. Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 1’28.099; 2. Haslam L. (GBR) BMW S1000 RR; 1’28.365; 3. Sykes T. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1’28.556; 4. Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R 1’28.561; 5. Haga N. (JPN) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1’28.673; 6. Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1’28.702; 7. Camier L. (GBR) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1’28.737; 8. Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 1’29.514; 9. Melandri M. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R1 1’28.803; 10. Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 1’28.836; 11. Fabrizio M. (ITA) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1’29.135; 12. Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1’29.422; 13. Laverty E. (IRL) Yamaha YZF R1 1’29.312; 14. Guintoli S. (FRA) Ducati 1098R 1’29.879; 15. Berger M. (FRA) Ducati 1098R 1’30.002; 16.Xaus R. (ESP) Honda CBR1000RR 1’30.076; etc. World Supersport Two Yamaha ParkinGO machines locked out the front two places on the starting-grid for tomorrow’s World Supersport race, with Italian Luca Scassa on pole followed by his Welsh team-mate Chaz Davies. Sam Lowes (Parkalgar Honda) was third but an early session crash hampered his efforts to go for pole and the WSS find of 2011 was unable to improve on his Q1 time. Next up were the two Kawasaki ZX-6R machines of Broc Parkes and David Salom (Motocard.com), while Gino Rea (Step Racing Team), Robbin Harms (Harms Benjan Racing Team) and James Ellison (Bogdanka PTR Honda) took the next three places for Honda. Fabien Foret (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda), who again injured his hand in a crash yesterday, struggled on regardless to qualify 12th. Foret’s team-mate Florian Marino improved to go ninth overall, while Massimo Roccoli posted tenth on his Kawasaki Lorenzini by Leoni machine. Two riders failed to qualify but a full grid of 28 riders will start Sunday’s 22-lap race in this category. Times: 1. Scassa L. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 1’31.232; 2. Davies C. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R6 1’31.250; 3. Lowes S. (GBR) Honda CBR600RR 1’31.368; 4. Parkes B. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1’31.645; 5. Salom D. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1’31.963; 6. Rea G. (GBR) Honda CBR600RR 1’32.080; 7. Harms R. (DEN) Honda CBR600RR 1’32.136; 8. Ellison J. (GBR) Honda CBR600RR 1’32.153; etc. More, from a press release issued by Castrol Honda: Second row for Rea at Donington Castrol Honda rider Jonathan Rea will start tomorrow’s two second-round World Superbike championship races at Donington Park in the UK from the second row of the grid after setting the eighth fastest time in this afternoon’s Superpole qualifying sessions. Rea’s Spanish team-mate, Ruben Xaus, was unable to progress beyond the first stage of Superpole and will start from the fourth row as his compatriot, Carlos Checa, took his second pole position of the season. Rea improved the setting of his CBR1000RR after yesterday’s tyre problems and was fastest in this morning’s second free practice session. However, he and his crew opted to use one of his two qualifying tyres in Superpole 1, which meant he was left with no qualifier in the final shoot-out with which to improve his time. In seeking to improve his own set up for Donington’s sweeping curves and stop-start hairpins, Xaus went the wrong way and the 33-year-old was unable to improve on his best time from yesterday. The first of tomorrow’s two 23-lap races around the re-invigorated 4.023km (2.5 mile) Donington Park circuit will start at 12.00 local time, with the second outing at 15.30. Jonathan Rea P8 Today was not so bad really, although I guess we could have gone a bit faster in Superpole 1 on the race tyre so that we didn’t have to use a qualifier. But we wanted to make sure of getting into the last eight and I then had to go out on a second-hand qualifying tyre which ran out of grip pretty quickly. We’ve worked hard all day trying to cover all the bases for tyre options. With the temperature changing, we need to know which of the three combinations works best in all conditions but the track temperature tomorrow will really dictate which one we use. We still need to find some time in the final corner I need a little bit more en gine braking at the end of the turn and a bit more punch to get out. I feel OK in the first three sectors though but it’s going to be a very tactical race. The ones who’ve worked hardest over the weekend will be the ones who choose the right tyre for the race conditions. Hopefully we’ve done our homework. Ruben Xaus P16 For me, this weekend is like another pre-season test. We tested during the race in Phillip Island in 30 degrees and now the conditions are much colder so we must test some more things here at Donington! The way the bike behaves is completely different here to Australia. Yesterday we were OK and had some problems in the final section of the track. We tried to improve that today, when it was much colder, and we went the wrong way and I couldn’t improve. We had grip and braking problems. As the crew said: “We know the bike, but we don’t know you so well yet.” Of course, I know myself, but I don’t know the bike so well yet! I’m much happier than I was in Phillip Island though, because there we were lost. I hope tomorrow we can make two good races and get some good top ten points and go to Assen with even more good information. Ronald ten Kate team-manager We’re definitely in better shape than we were 24 hours ago. It seems we have quite some pace, but tomorrow will be all about tyres so we won’t really know how much pace until the races are done. I believe we have found ourselves a race tyre so considering yesterday’s set back I’m quite satisfied with Jonathan’s second row start. On Ruben’s side, we went in the wrong direction today. Luckily we realised that and we’ll turn things around for tomorrow when the aim will still be for him to finish inside the top ten. More, from a press release issued by Alitalia Aprilia: MAX BIAGGI AND LEON CAMIER TO START SIDE BY SIDE FROM THE SECOND ROW AFTER A TIGHT AND DIFFICULT SUPERPOLE. THE APRILIA ALITALIA RACING TEAM WILL HAVE TO WORK OVERTIME TO BE AT THEIR BEST TOMORROW. Donington Park (UK), 26 March 2011 The forewarned drop in temperature didn’t keep anyone waiting, preceded by the disappearance of yesterday’s promising sun. After a “chilly” Superpole the Team Aprilia Alitalia riders find themselves paired up on the grid: Max in sixth place and Leon in seventh, separated by 25 thousandths of a second. Both Max and Leon made it to the third session, the one which compares the top eight riders, but not without some difficulties. The changed conditions of the track and the determination of their rivals put the Aprilia riders to the test, who in any case managed to achieve the best possible results. The races tomorrow promise to be just as heated. The sun will return, but it won’t be enough to warm up the thermometer. “Today we had some difficulties admits Max Biaggi at the end of Superpole due both to the low temperature and some choices on the bike set-up that weren’t dead on. In fact, in view of the races tomorrow I’ll talk things over with my team. I think we’ll backtrack, at least partly, to recover a bit of feeling. Unfortunately we only have the warm-up session to verify the feelings we’ve perceived today, so we’ll have to really give it our all to be at our best racing conditions”. Leon Camier on the other hand is rather satisfied: “We arrived at the last Superpole session with no qualifier left; I had to use them to get into the top eight. In spite of that we’ll be starting from the second row tomorrow after working well on our race pace. I think we’ll be able to do well, both here and in the races to come, now that I feel well physically and I’m beginning to gain familiarity with the RSV4. A bit of extra motivation riding at home can’t but help me more”. More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki: First Front Row Start For New Ninja ZX-10R At Second Round Tom Sykes gave the all-new Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R its first front row start in WSBK racing at Tom’s home round of Donington, after setting the third best lap time in Superpole three. Sykes was particularly pleased to have gone so quickly when using a race tyre in Superpole, as he had used up his two allotted qualifying tyres in the first two Superpole sessions. He had no choice but to select a race compound as he went for a front row slot and built his speed up to take a 1’28.556 for the Kawasaki Racing Team Superbike squad – and give the home fans something to cheer about on the eve of raceday. Joan Lascorz was also in the mix in Superpole, but could not use his second qualifying tyre to the best effect and he went 12th fastest overall. He starts Sunday’s two WSBK races from the third row, and hopes to take his first points scores at the recently modified English circuit. Returnee rider Chris Vermeulen rode for over 30 laps in the first practice and qualifying sessions yesterday and gained many positive insights into his Ninja ZX-10R race machine. Pain from his knee injury, however, meant that he did not ride again today. It was decided he should not race tomorrow but the experience of Friday has filled Chris and the team with the confidence that he can undertake a full weekend of practice and race action at the next round, Assen. Tom Sykes: “I was a little surprised because for the last session we only had a race tyre to use and it took me until lap four to put in a decent time. Going into Superpole three with no qualifying tyre I was not confident we could get a front row start, but I dug deep when I saw I had one minute remaining. I wanted my last fast lap to count, and it did. A front row start should make tomorrow a little easier. It is all pretty much one line around here in the first laps, from Redgate until the back straight. A front row start is good for us all in the team and a nice landmark for the new bike in only its second race weekend.” Joan Lascorz: “I improved on my best lap time when I put on the first qualifier and that is what we are aiming for. We used the second qualifier and I was not able to do the same lap time and that is why I could not go into the next Superpole session. I need a bit more understanding of the bike but I am happy, and Tom is showing that the new bike is working pretty well.” Chris Vermeulen: “It was great to get the chance to ride here and we made the most of it on the first day. My knee is just too sore to ride any more this weekend but I hope to get some more track time in on my Ninja ZX-10R before the Assen round and do a complete weekend there. The new bike feels good and I have been able to start making changes to the handlebar position and so on, so the track time at Donington has been very useful.” More, from a press release issued by Pirelli: PIRELLI MOTO SEES IMPRESSIVE LAPS AND MIX OF LEAD BIKES DURING DONINGTON PARK’S COLD SUPERPOLE Donington Park, March, 26th,2011 On the other side of the world from Pirelli’s successful debut in Formula 1™ racing, also Pirelli motorcycle tyres are recording new levels of performance at the Superbike World Championship’s second round in the United Kingdom. Recording a final pole time of 1m28.099s in his third Superpole session on Diablo Superbike tyres, opening round double-win rider Carlos Checa of Althea Ducati established a new best lap at the renovated Donington Park circuit, besting not only times from previous years qualifying but also Pirelli’s expectations based on improvements made to the tracks surface and layout. Even despite the cold March temperatures of the English countryside, Checa was able to make good of his two qualifying tyres, new for this 2011, setting his fastest time in the last of the three Superpole session. Leon Haslam (BMW) will start from second position, alongside countryman Tom Sykes (Kawasaki) in third position and Jakob Smrz (Ducati) who rounds out the front row. Another local rider, Johathan Rea (Honda) managed to squeeze in a fast lap in the second session but could not repeat in the third and was left in the last position on the second row. With the low track temperature (7°C), it was difficult for riders to get heat in the tyres and some opted to go out first on the Soft (SC1) rear race tyre, returning to the pits for a rear qualifier in midsession. This strategy did not work for Marco Melandri (Yamaha) who encountered traffic with the two Alitalia Aprilia bikes of Biaggi and Leon Camier, leaving him unable to set a fast time and thus missed out on the third Superpole. Tom Sykes (Kawasaki), on his third out impressed even further the paddock with a 1m28.556 on race tyres, having already used up his qualifiers in the previous two sessions. These new compound Superpole tyres are still ideal for 3-5 performance laps, but now offer additional warm-up and grip level for riders to shave up to three quarters of a minute from their race tyre setup. Racing Director of Pirelli Moto, Giorgio Barbier commented: “This was a really entertaining Superpole, which saw a number of different bikes vying for the front which is a great result for qualifying and a sign of strong consistency for the Diablo Superbike qualifying and race tyres. We were a bit cautious with our tyre allocation for Donington Park, bringing 4 front and 4 rear tyre solutions, primarily because we have no data from last year and must to race in March instead of June. So far the conditions have already shown quite variable, with 22°C track temperature yesterday during practice and down to 7°C today during qualifying. The lap times are still dropping though and we can certainly expect to see some personal best performances of all riders tomorrow as we look forward to the first of several European rounds of the 2011 season.” More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki News Service: Team Suzuki Alstare’s Michel Fabrizio narrowly missed a second row grid position for tomorrow’s British round of the World Superbike Championship at Donington Park during today’s Final Qualifying and Superpole. The Italian is happy with his central position on the grid and will start the 23-lap races from the third row, confident of getting a good start in both. Conditions were very different to yesterday, with freezing cold temperatures and overcast skies replacing yesterday’s sunshine; and a track surface that remained below 7 Degrees. Current series leader Carlos Checa (Ducati) put in a flyer of a lap in Superpole 3 to take his second Pole of the year, nearly three-tenths-of-a-second ahead of his nearest rival Leon Haslam (BMW). Michel Fabrizio – 11th, 1:29.135: “Considering that I ended 17th fastest yesterday, I guess you could say that 11th today is a good improvement. But of course, I would’ve preferred a place on the second row of the grid because that would have made the starts a little easier. Now I will have to make sure I make good starts in both races to be able to fight with the leaders. It feels a bit like a funnel going into turn one, so I definitely do not want to get held up entering the turn. It’s going to be a bit hectic for sure, but I certainly want to be in the top six by the time I exit the turn. “Today’s conditions were very different to yesterday and it was very cold indeed. That didn’t seem to affect our grip level though, so we were able to concentrate of finding a good set-up for the bike. At the moment we are not quite there yet, but we have improved a lot since the first session yesterday. “The feeling of the bike in Superpole 2 was good. It is this that we want to build on for the races, so we will try a few little things in the warm-up tomorrow. The difference in lap times from Pole to me are pretty small, so I don’t think anybody is going to clear off and easily win the races. There are going to be some big battles tomorrow and I am really looking forward to them.” Friday WSB Qualifying: 1 Carlos Checa (ESP-Ducati) 1:28.099, 2 Leon Haslam (GBR-BMW) 1:28.365, 3 Tom Sykes (GBR-Kawasaki) 1:28.556, 4 Jakub Smrz (CZE-Ducati) 1:28.561, 5 Noriyuki Haga (JPN-Aprilia) 1:28.673, 6 Max Biaggi (ITA-Aprilia). 11 Michel Fabrizio (ITA-Suzuki Alstare) 1:29.135. More, from a press release issued by Team Pedercini: Saturday qualifying session commenced under grey, cloudy skies at Donington, with very low temperatures compared to yesterday. Due to the poor weather conditions, Mark Aitchison and Roberto Rolfo were not able to improve on their best lap times set yesterday. Both of team Pedercini’s riders therefore concluded qualifying in the same position as yesterday, meaning that they were unfortunately unable to enter the Superpole. In the early afternoon’s free practice, both riders worked with their teams to solve some problems with the settings which prevented them from reaching the Superpole. At the end of the free session Aitchison was in eighteenth position (1’31″495) while Rolfo (1’31″537) closed nineteenth. Tomorrow they will both start from the fifth row of the grid for the two twenty-three lap races. Saturday qualifying session : 1) Biaggi (Aprilia) 2) Melandri (Yamaha) 3) Checa (Ducati) 4) Laverty (Yamaha) 5) Smrz (Ducati) “¦. 18) Rolfo (Kawasaki) 19) Aitchison (Kawasaki) Saturday free session : 1) Checa (Ducati) 2) Haslam (BMW ) 3) Sykes (Kawasaki) 4) Melandri (Yamaha) 5) Smrz (Ducati)”¦”¦. 18) Aitchison (Kawasaki) 19) Rolfo (Kawasaki) Superpole : 1) Checa (Ducati) 2) Haslam (BMW ) 3) Sykes (Kawasaki) 4) Smrz (Ducati) 5) Haga (Aprilia) 6) Biaggi (Aprilia) 7) Camier (Aprilia) 8) Rea (Honda) Roberto Rolfo: “I’m a little bit disappointed with today’s qualifying practice. We still have some set up problems to solve and in these conditions I can’t push hard enough to improve my lap times so as to enter Superpole. I worked with my team trying some different settings but I was not able to find the right feeling with my bike. I’m satisfied with the work we have done over these two days and also this afternoon we worked a lot on suspension and electronics to find a solution for our setting problems in view of tomorrow races. Anyway I will be trying my absolute best for the races although I expect it to be very tough tomorrow.” Mark Aitchison: “In the morning’s qualifying we tested some new settings to make me more comfortable on the bike, but unfortunately we did not move in the right direction and so I missed out on Superpole. The weather conditions were colder and there was less grip, but the main problem was that I did not find the right feeling with my Kawasaki. In the afternoon free practice I worked very hard with my technicians and we found some good improvements on my bike set up. Tomorrow’s races will be very difficult, starting from fifth row, but I’m still feeling positive, also because the bike’s potential is very high and the team is doing a great job considering the little time we’ve had”. More, from a press release issued by Yamaha: Cold Weather Conditions Provide a Challenging Superpole for Yamaha World Superbike Riders Donington park today saw a frustrating and challenging Superpole session for the Yamaha World Superbike riders, Marco Melandri and Eugene Laverty. Bitterly cold weather conditions and a track temperature of over 19 degrees less than yesterday’s first Qualifying session saw all 16 riders on the track struggle to complete the Superpole in ideal times. Melandri completed the first heat of Superpole in fifth position, just over three tenths of a second from pole. The second heat saw Melandri put in a series of impressive times on his YZF R1, unfortunately he was obstructed on his flying lap by another rider and subsequently ended the session in ninth position overall, just missing out on his chance to participate in the third and final heat. As a result he starts tomorrow’s two World Superbike races on the third row of the grid in ninth position. Team mate Laverty was victim of a cold track losing the front end of his bike on turn three of his out lap. The Superbike Rookie luckily walked away unhurt and managed to get back out with five minutes to go and push back up from 16th to 12th position. Unfortunately he missed out on the opportunity to partake in the second heat of Superpole by just one place after being bumped to 13th in the dying seconds. Marco Melandri, Yamaha World Superbike Team 9th, 1’28.803 “I’m disappointed to be starting on third row of the grid tomorrow, but that’s what happens in Superpole. I’m just sorry that it was another rider’s fault. Biaggi showed his true professionalism today, he cut in front of me even though he clearly had seen me and that’s not how a World Champion should be riding. I’m going out there tomorrow even more determined than ever and I believe our race pace is good. ” Eugene Laverty, Yamaha World Superbike Team 13th, 1’29.312 “It wasn’t an ideal Superpole today, Phillip Island went problem free and we finished fifth there so we were hoping to do much better here. We saw how cruel Superpole can be sometimes, we are starting from 13th on the grid tomorrow, however I’m confident I can get through the pack. Marco is just ahead of me on third row and he’s strong on the first lap so I’ve got to tuck in behind him and slice through together. Whatever set up we choose I feel confident I can ride the track to its maximum.” Yamaha World Superbike Team Manager – Andrea Dosoli “It’s definitely not the starting positions we were hoping for after the impressive times we had in free practice and qualifying practice. Unfortunately Eugene lost the front end and had a significant crash and lost some valuable time, luckily he was unhurt. He wasn’t confident to go back out on the qualifier so he used the race tyre and that didn’t provide a fast enough lap to get him through to Superpole two. I believe if Marco and Eugene can get off the grid well then they can definitely provide a good race. The weather conditions are extreme and after the sunshine yesterday we are back to the typical British weather for this time of year. It’s due to be cold again tomorrow and maybe we should try to avoid racing in the future in such cold conditions.”