FIM Superbike World Championship Portimao, Portugal March 27, 2010 Final Qualifying Results, After Superpole (all on Pirelli tires): From Superpole Three: 1. Cal CRUTCHLOW (Yamaha YZF-R1), 1:42.092 2. Max BIAGGI (Aprilia RSV4 Factory), 1:42.513 3. Carlos CHECA (Ducati 1098R), 1:42.586 4. Leon Haslam (Suzuki GSX-R1000), 1:42.596 5. Jonathan REA (Honda CBR1000RR), 1:42.807 6. Jakub SMRZ (Ducati 1098R), 1:42.889 7. Shane BYRNE (Ducati 1098R), 1:42.960 8. Troy CORSER (BMW S1000 RR), 1:43.152 From Superpole Two: 9. Sylvain GUINTOLI (Suzuki GSX-R1000), 1:42.984 10. Ruben XAUS (BMW S1000 RR), 1:42.999 11. Leon CAMIER (Aprilia RSV4 Factory), 1:43.039 12. Tom SYKES (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 1:43.199 13. Max NEUKIRCHNER (Honda CBR1000RR), 1:43.380 14. Lorenzo LANZI (Ducati 1098R), 1:43.568 15. James TOSELAND (Yamaha YZF-R1), 1:49.401 16. Luca SCASSA (Ducati 1098R), no time recorded in Superpole Two From Superpole One: 17. Michel FABRIZIO (Ducati 1098R), 1:43.564 18. Noriyuki HAGA (Ducati 1098R), 1:43.686 19. Andrew PITT (BMW S1000 RR), 1:43.781 20. Makoto TAMADA (BMW S1000 RR), 1:45.142 The Rest of the Grid: 21. Sheridan MORAIS (Honda CBR1000RR), 1:45.520 22. Matteo BAIOCCO (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 1:45.610 23. Vittorio IANNUZZO (Honda CBR1000RR), 1:45.795 24. Roger HAYDEN (Kawasaki ZX-10R), 1:45.799 More, from a press release issued by Infront Motor Sports: Crutchlow takes first pole and new best lap after Superpole qualifying Cal Crutchlow (Sterilgarda Yamaha) took his first career pole at Portimao with a new best lap, 1’42.092, beating Ben Spies’ previous record in the last session of Superpole qualifying. Crutchlow even had a qualifying tyre left in his pit box as he had completed the first two Superpole sessions using race tyres, having spent most of practice riding on worn tyres to find a strong set-up for raceday. Aprilia Alitalia rider Max Biaggi went second quickest on his vee-four machine in a session when the top five riders were competing with five different makes of machinery – Yamaha, Aprilia, Ducati, Suzuki and Honda. With both factory Ducati Xerox machines ruled out early from the reckoning, after a Superpole 1 crash for Michel Fabrizio and a tough Superpole 1 session in general for Noriyuki Haga, Carlos Checa was once more best Ducati rider, taking his private Althea machine to third-best grid placing. Leon Haslam (Suzuki Alstare) could not make the most of his qualifying tyres and was fourth on the grid, but still starts from the front row for Sunday’s 22-lap races. Jonathan Rea (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) was a battling fifth, ahead of Pata B&G Ducati rider Jakub Smrz, and Checa’s fast team-mate Shane Byrne. The last place on the second row went to Troy Corser, who recovered from a technical problem in Superpole 1 to finish eighth overall. Top Kawasaki starting slot belongs to Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) after he was 12th in Superpole. James Toseland (Sterilgarda Yamaha) crashed in Superpole two, and Max Neukirchner also had a fast fall, destroying his number one bike. He finished 13th, Toseland 15th. Chris Vermeulen (Kawasaki Racing Team) will not race at Portimao, still suffering effects from his Phillip Island crash. Cal Crutchlow: “We made some changes since the last race. Yamaha has worked really hard in the last month to work out our problems as well. The track here is better and better and our bike is also improving. I was quietly confident I could get pole and we even had one qualifying tyre left at the end because we used race tyres in the first two sessions. Pole is a bonus.” Max Biaggi: “We made a good race here last year so we know what our level would be. Now we are back where we should be, fighting with the best guys on the top. We did not make many changes just got the set-up to work as best we can. The layout of the track and the tarmac just means that our bike is working better.” Carlos Checa: “I think it is open tomorrow, because many riders have good pace with a chance to win and be at the front. We will see how the race turns out, but hopefully we will be there at the end and have a chance.” Times: 1. Crutchlow C. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 1’42.092; 2. Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 1000 F. 1’42.513; 3. Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098 R 1’42.586; 4. Haslam L. (GBR) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1’42.596; 5. Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 1’42.807; 6. Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R 1’42.8897. Byrne S. (GBR) Ducati 1098R 1’42.960; 8. Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 1’43.152; 9. Guintoli S. (FRA) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1’42.984; 10. Xaus R. (ESP) BMW S1000 RR 1’42.999; 11. Camier L. (GBR) Aprilia RSV4 1000 F. 1’43.039; 12. Sykes T. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX 10R 1’43.199; 13. Neukirchner M. (GER) Honda CBR1000RR 1’43.380; 14. Lanzi L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1’43.568; 15. Toseland J. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R11’49.401; 16. Scassa L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1’44.249 Supersport World Championship Laverty on pole at his team’s home track. Eugene Laverty (Parkalgar Honda) pushed his way to the pole time at Portimao, with Hannspree Ten Kate Honda riders Kenan Sofuoglu and Michele Pirro second and third. Top Kawasaki rider was Joan Lascorz in fourth, with the best Triumph BE1 machine under the control of Chaz Davies, sixth on the timesheets. Local rider Miguel Praia (Parkalgar Honda) was eighth and now starts from the second row. Times: 1. Laverty E. (IRL) Honda CBR600RR 1’45.169; 2. Sofuoglu K. (TUR) Honda CBR600RR 1’45.313; 3. Pirro M. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 1’45.828; 4. Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1’45.903; 5. Foret F. (FRA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1’46.082; 6. Davies C. (GBR) Triumph Daytona 675 1’46.161; 7. Fujiwara K. (JPN) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1’46.415; 8. Praia M. (POR) Honda CBR600RR 1’46.566 Superstock 1000 FIM Cup Ayrton Badovini (BMW Motorrad Italia) will start Sunday’s race from pole position, having held off the push of Maxime Berger (Ten Kate Race Junior) in combined qualifying. Marco Bussolotti (All Service System Honda) went third and Eddie La Marra (Team Lorini Honda) was fourth, each having moved up from Superstock 600 racing this year. Tempi: 1. Badovini A. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 1’45.773; 2. Berger M. (FRA) Honda CBR1000RR 1’46.241; 3. Bussolotti M. (ITA) Honda CBR1000RR 1’46.609; 4. La Marra E. (ITA) Honda CBR1000RR 1’46.759; 5. Baz L. (FRA) Yamaha YZF R1 1’46.821; 6. Magnoni M. (ITA) Honda CBR1000RR 1’46.839; 7. Antonelli A. (ITA) Honda CBR1000RR 1’46.884; 8. Baroni L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1’46.895 Superstock 600 Race – 10 Laps In the first race of the season for the Superstock 600 riders pole man Florian Marino (Ten Kate Junior Honda) was a first lap faller, leaving Jeremy Guarnoni (MRS Racing Yamaha) a clear run to the win. Second was Romain Lanusse (MRS Racing Yamaha) and third Frederik Karlsen (MTM Racing Yamaha). Times: 1. Guarnoni J. (FRA) Yamaha YZF R6 18’18.901 (150,434 kph); 2. Lanusse R. (FRA) Yamaha YZF R6 6.101; 3. Karlsen F. (NOR) Yamaha YZF R6 6.277; 4. Calero Perez N. (ESP) Yamaha YZF R6 6.527; 5. Fanelli D. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 7.916; 6. Cecchini R. (ITA) Triumph Daytona 675 10.090; 7. Lombardi B. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 10.724; 8. Major N. (FRA) Yamaha YZF R6 14.105 Paolo Flammini honoured at Portimao In a special ceremony after the completion of racing today, Mr. Paolo Alberto Flammini (CEO of Infront Motorsports) received the Merit Motorcyclists Medal for his outstanding contribution to the development of motorcycling in Portugal, from Mr. Jorge Viegas (President Portuguese Motorcycle Federation) and Mr. Paolo Pinheiro (CEO of Parkalgar). Said Mr. Flammini, “I am really honoured to receive this prestigious medal of honour from the Federação de Motociclismo de Portugal, a federation that has strong links to World Superbike. I will treasure this medal greatly, and I hope that we can continue to visit Algarve and this wonderful Portimão circuit for many years to come. We were the first event ever to take place here at the end of 2008 and since then this race has grown up in importance and has become an integral part of our racing calendar, with great satisfaction of our riders, teams and fans.” More, from a press release issued by Althea Racing: Second day of qualifying for the Althea Racing team on the Portuguese track of Portimao. After the results of yesterday, Carlos Checa and Shakey Byrne continued with the work on track today and both easily qualified for the afternoon’s Superpole. A great lap time for Checa (1m43.115) who closed in seventh position while Byrne (1m43.588) closed in eleventh. Towards the middle of the session the English rider was victim of a crash but fortunately he was unhurt. In the free practice preceding the Superpole the Althea Racing riders worked to refine the set up of their 1198s. Third place for Byrne (1m43.367) who improved on his time set morning and fourth for Checa (1m43.565), so great results for both riders who subsequently got through to the second and then the third phases of the Superpole. By the end of the session Checa had recorded the third fastest time and Byrne the seventh, meaning a positive first and second row start for the riders in tomorrow’s 22-lap races. Qualifying session : 1) Smrz (Ducati) 2) Biaggi (Aprilia) 3) Fabrizio (Ducati) – 4) Haslam (Suzuki) 5) Rea (Honda) 6) Checa (Ducati)”¦”¦”¦..11) Byrne (Ducati) Superpole : 1) Crutchlow (Yamaha) 2) Biaggi (Aprilia) 3) Checa (Ducati) 4) Haslam (Suzuki) 5) Rea (Honda) 6) Smrz (Ducati) 7) Byrne (Ducati) 8) Corser (BMW) Carlos Checa : “This result was achieved thanks to the team’s hard work. The bike has improved a lot with regard to top speed and I am also happy with the set-up which we have found that allows me to be fast even in the more technical sections of this track. There are some places where I can make further improvement but overall I’d say we’re ready and confident for the two races. This is Superbike and so it’s impossible to make any predictions, but we’ve done the ground work and will give 100% as ever.” Shane Byrne : “The second round of the Superbike world championship and a second high side for me. I cannot explain what happened this morning because my team has done a really great job during these two days and during the qualifying session I was really comfortable on my Ducati and suddenly I crashed. Fortunately my physical condition is good and I was able to enter all three sessions of the Superpole. I’m pretty happy because of my seventh position, even though my target was to reach the first row in tomorrow’s races starting grid. Second row is not so bad and I’m very happy because we found the right set up for the races. I’m happy also for Carlos’ third place, that’s a fantastic result for all our team. We are both ready for tomorrow’s two races”. Genesio Bevilacqua General Manager : “A great result for both riders. I’m of course happy for Carlos but also for Shakey’s Superpole performance. Fortunately his crash this morning did not affect him this afternoon, as it did at Phillip Island. His seventh place finish in a hard-fought Superpole such as today’s augers well for the races. Carlos has once again demonstrated his ability. He’s worked hard with his team and we hope that tomorrow he is able to be a front-runner, and to fight for the podium that’s a reachable target for him”. More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki News Service: Team Suzuki Alstare’s Leon Haslam will start tomorrow’s second round of the World Superbike Championship at Portimao in Portugal from the front row of the grid after a dramatic Superpole 3 – which saw the lead change hands several times in the 10-minute session. In the end, Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha) took Superpole with a lap of 1:42.092; almost one-and-a-half seconds inside the lap record. Second was Max Biaggi (Aprilia), with Carlos Checa (Ducati) third and Haslam fourth. Team-mate Sylvain Guintoli just missed out on a second-row spot on the grid and will start on the third row. Leon Haslam – 4th, 1:42.596: “I’m really happy with the race set-up of my bike, but I’m a little unhappy that I didn’t get my qualifying tyres to work as well in Superpole: I think I would’ve gone faster in Superpole 3 if I had used a race tyre, but the front row of the grid is OK. The track’s grip has improved since yesterday and I was consistently able to do 1:42s on race rubber, so I’m feeling very positive about the races tomorrow. Today, when the track temperature was higher, the grip was not as good, but that happens quite often. “In tomorrow’s warm-up, we’ll run back-to-back tests with both bikes, with just small adjustments to see if we can improve further. There were no dramas for me today really, except one time when I was on a fast lap and got baulked by Max Biaggi. Otherwise everything is OK and I’m looking forward to getting two good starts and two good finishes tomorrow.” Sylvain Guintoli – 9th, 1:42.984: “I’m happy with my bike set-up, but not so happy with my position in Superpole. I should’ve gone faster in Superpole one, when I was on race tyres, but for some reason I didn’t. Now I know I’ve got a lot of work to do – and make especially good starts if I am to get good results. “I struggled in some parts of the track today and although all of them are not sorted out completely, the main problem area has been solved. I don’t think we’ll make any changes to the bike in the warm-up tomorrow. The bike feels good, so the rest is up to me!” Final qualifying and Superpole: 1 Crutchlow (GBR-Yamaha) 1’42.092, 2 Biaggi (ITA-Aprilia) 1’42.513, 3 Checa (ESP-Ducati) 1’42.586, 4 Leon Haslam (GBR-Suzuki Alstare) 1’42.596, 5 Rea (GBR-Honda) 1’42.428, 6 Smrz (CZE-Ducati) 1’42.889. 9 Sylvain Guintoli (FRA-Suzuki Alstare) 1:42.984. More, from a press release issued by Hannspree Ten Kate Honda: Jonathan Rea will start tomorrow’s two second-round World Superbike championship races at Portimao in Portugal from the second row of the grid after setting the fifth fastest time in today’s qualifying sessions. As Britain’s Cal Crutchlow took pole position, Rea’s Hannspree Ten Kate Honda team-mate, Max Neukirchner, qualified 13th fastest for the two 22-lap races around the undulating 4.592km Autodromo do Algarve tomorrow afternoon. Rea has been making steady progress after his unsettling crash yesterday morning and improvements to his machine allowed the 23-year-old to set the fastest time in the second Superpole session. However, he was forced to use the second of his allocated qualifying tyres in that session, after failing to improve his time with the first. Neukirchner, meanwhile, was pleased with some late improvements to his set-up, despite a spectacular crash that destroyed his Honda CBR1000RR and left the 26-year-old German with a deep wound in his right forearm. Jonathan Rea P5 1’42.428s (Superpole 2) I didn’t time that very well, did I? My first qualifier in Superpole 2 just didn’t work so I had to go out on the second and did my best time then, which would’ve put me second fastest. Grip levels have been down a bit since the test here and the track seems a little bumpier, especially in turns seven and fifteen, which is where I crashed yesterday. But I’ll say that I’m satisfied, because I’m still rebuilding myself after the crash, the bike is not so bad and we’re getting better at the one-lap wonders. The race is my thing though, and I’m really looking forward to tomorrow because we have a package that’ll work for the duration. Our longer runs have shown that we should still have speed towards the end of the races. I’ll have to work hard in the first few laps tomorrow and get away with the leading group. I’ll then try to relax into a rhythm and, if we’re still there by lap 10, we’ll be in the hunt. Max Neukirchner P13 1’43.380s (Superpole 2) At the end we found a way forward and then I had some bad luck in Superpole. But the important thing is that we were able to improve the bike, even by a little bit. I had a qualifier in when I crashed and I was nearly upright, but maybe the shock unloaded a bit too fast. I know it was big and the bike is destroyed and I have a big hole in my arm. I’ve got some painkillers now, but I know it’ll be sore later and, I hope, not too bad in the morning. We’ll try then to improve the bike more with the direction we found at the rear today. Then I’ll do my best to get good starts in the races and get the best results that I can. Ronald ten Kate team-manager It’s been an up and down couple of days for both riders, but thankfully both are OK and ready to start tomorrow’s races. Jonathan’s confidence has returned after his crash yesterday and we made some progress with the bike to give him a good opportunity tomorrow. We still have some work to do with Max to find something that he’s comfortable with, and there’s lots of work to do tonight, but we’ll keep at it and look for more forward steps in the morning. More, from a press release issued by Team Reitwagen BMW riders Andrew Pitt and Makoto Tamada achieved their first goal of the weekend by qualifying for Superpole 1. Just two tenths of a second or so would’ve seen Andrew get into Superpole 2, but it was not to be. But he and Makoto were in good company, as both Ducati factory riders Noriyuki Haga and Michel Fabrizio also failed to make the cut. Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha) took Superpole, with a lap of 1:42.092, almost one and a half seconds inside the lap record. Second was Max Biaggi (Aprilia), with Carlos Checa (Ducati) third and Leon Haslam (Suzuki) fourth. Andrew Pitt – 19th, 1’43.781: “Today was a bit frustrating, because we are making progress every time we go out and we are so close to achieving more. The bike is better and it feels smoother, but it’s a bit of a hard ask to push it a lot harder in a one lap situation. We’re still at an early stage of our development and we’re all still learning about the bike and its possibilities. I’m also learning to adapt my riding style and use less lean angle and it’s coming, but just takes time. We tested some Bosch electronics briefly in Jerez, but will not use it in the races because there are some areas of it we need to sort out first. I feel positive about the bike and once we get everything dialled in (and maybe also get a bit of luck) we’ll be much more competitive for sure.” Makoto Tamada – 20th, 1’45.142: “We did not make as big an improvement today as I had expected, so I am a little disappointed. Changing one part of the suspension on this bike can make a big difference and when we did that today the feeling at the rear was good, but not the front. It’s something we will continue to work on and get the bike more comfortable for me to to ride. I don’t like this track so much, because there so many changes of elevation and blind corners. It is a very physical track and technically difficult and, at the moment, our bike is not working at its best here. This weekend I would be happy to score points in both races and that’s what I am aiming to do.” More, from a press release issued by Yamaha: Yamaha Sterilgarda World Superbike rider Cal Crutchlow set himself apart from the class this afternoon, storming through the Superpole heats to take pole and breaking the Best Lap record in the process. Crutchlow unleashed the full potential of the Yamaha R1’s power in ideal track conditions, leaving a gap of over four tenths of a second to second placed Aprilia rider Max Biaggi. Team-mate James Toseland had also been progressing well through the sessions with fast consistent speed until an unfortunate high-side on the last corner of the circuit in heat two relegated him to 15th on the grid for tomorrow’s two Superbike races. Although bruised Toseland was luckily uninjured in the high speed crash. The second qualifying session of the race weekend earlier in the day saw both riders focussing on the set up for race day whilst ensuring they remained within the times for the subsequent Superpole sessions. Incredibly the first 14 riders of the session were within 0.7 of a second of each other. Crutchlow’s time, just 0.6 off the front man was particularly impressive considering the entire session was run on just one set of tyres. Cal Crutchlow, Yamaha Sterilgarda World Superbike Team (1st, 1’42.092) “The Superpole lap wasn’t really a surprise to me to be honest, we had a good session beforehand and I knew we could go really well in the qualifying session this morning. We left a lot in reserve, so down in 14th place I wasn’t panicking. I knew we had a good pace for the pole session, I only used one qualifying tyre and we only needed one lap to do it. Yamaha’s done a fantastic job in the last month, it was hard work but we’ve got there in the end, all working together. I’m quietly confident we’ll do a good job tomorrow as well.” James Toseland, Yamaha Sterilgarda World Superbike Team (15th, 1’49.401) “What a disappointing end to what has been a great qualifying so far this weekend. The Sterilgarda Yamaha Team have been brilliant in how they’ve transformed the bike from where we were in Phillip Island and I want to thank them for that. The mistake for me was that I was on the second lap on the qualifier tyre and I was trying to make it work hard on the last turn as if it had been the first lap on it. Unfortunately it was a mistake, I suffered a lack of grip and the consequence is I’m now 15th on the grid.” Massimo Meregalli, Yamaha Sterilgarda World Superbike Team Manager “first of all I think a big thanks to the guys to have done such a good job since our not so great performance in Australia. I have to say Cal did a fantastic lap, we are confident that we will be in there tomorrow. The pace Cal had in practice was really good so I’m expecting good things. Unfortunately James had a big high-side during the second Superpole session which was unfortunate, but he has a good race pace which will help. For sure it will be harder for him to start from the back but I think he knows how to fight his way through. Let’s see what happens tomorrow. More, from a press release issued by Xerox Ducati: A DIFFICULT SUPERPOLE TODAY FOR THE DUCATI XEROX TEAM AT PORTIMAO Portimao (Portugal), Saturday 27th March : today did not go at all as planned for the Ducati Xerox riders Michel Fabrizio and Noriyuki Haga when they failed to reach the final phases of Portimao’s Superpole, meaning that they will line up in seventeenth and eighteenth position respectively on tomorrow’s race grid. In second qualifying this morning the top fourteen riders closed the session within six tenths of a second of each other and all fourteen registered times under 1m44. Michel made constant improvement, recording a series of fast laps. He saved his fastest lap for the final minutes of the session, thus finishing third on the combined qualifying timesheets. From mid-session Nori too recorded several fast laps, the best of which left him in eighth position overall, with both riders therefore qualifying very easily for the afternoon’s Superpole. In the first phase of the Superpole the two Ducati Xerox rider exited on race tyres. After just one lap, Michel unfortunately had a fall and although he was unhurt he inevitably lost precious time, returning to the track in the final minutes of the session on board his second bike. Fabrizio, unlike some of the other riders, did not use a qualifier and unfortunately he could not do enough to be able to pass to the next stage, finishing in seventeenth position, well below his usual standards. Haga, also ill at ease during the session, was unable to reach his normal levels of performance and finished in eighteenth place, citing grip problems. He was therefore out of the top sixteen and did not proceed to the subsequent Superpole stages. Michel Fabrizio “It’s been two days that I haven’t had good enough feeling at the front and this lack of grip was the reason for my crash. We haven’t yet understood why but it’s evident that I don’t have grip at the front. We’ve really work hard over the two days, changing many things in the process, but we haven’t yet managed to resolve the issue. We hope to solve things somehow in tomorrow morning’s warm-up but the races will obviously be extremely difficult as I’m starting from the fifth row. We will, as always however, give all we’ve got to try to score the best possible results.” Noriyuki Haga “As I’ve said several times in the past, I don’t really like this track and today I’m definitely not about to change that opinion. What can I say? In Superpole, we understood straight away that after my first exit we needed to go back out and improve. I thought I’d be able to make up at least a few tenths and so I preferred not to use a qualifier, saving them for the following two sessions. This was not the right decision to make evidently as I wasn’t able to improve on my time. We just have to wait and see tomorrow; it will of course not be easy to make a good start from 18th position on the grid.” More, from a press release issued by Aprilia: EXCELLENT SUPERPOLE FOR BIAGGI AND HIS APRILIA RSV4 The Superpole of the Portuguese round of the SBK took place today with excellent weather and track conditions at Portimao, which led to an exciting duel, with Crutchlow taking first place with the top time of 1:42:092, a new record for this track, ahead of Max Biaggi on his Aprilia RSV4 and Spaniard Carlos Checa. Max Biaggi will start of from second place tomorrow after having stopped the clock at 1:42:513, just 0:421 behind the English driver on his Yamaha. The Roman driver, who, along with Smerz, had the best time from the qualifying round this morning, moved into Superpole 1 in third place using racing tyres. During the second stage he changed to his first qualifying tyre and passed the round in second position. In Superpole 3 Max battled it out until the end for pole position, but surrendered to Crutchlow who managed to set a new record thanks to a perfect, final intermediate time. Leon Camier finished in eleventh place with a time of 1:43:039 who was not able to qualify for the final stage. The young British driver finished Superpole 1 in twelfth position with the first qualifying tyre. During the successive phase, he used the second one as well and stayed in the race for the Final 8 up until the last few seconds. “I’m very happy,” said Biaggi. “This first row is the result of the excellent work that’s been done in recent days. After the problems we had in Australia, the situation here has improved a lot and we’ve returned to the competitive levels that we had during the final races of last year. The classification is quite a short list, we’re all very close, so it’s important to start off in front and this makes me optimistic about the two races tomorrow. I want to thank my team and the Aprilia technicians for the great work that’s been done up until now.” “I’m a bit disappointed about this qualifying round,” said Camier. Unfortunately, once again I wasn’t able to find a good lap. On the other hand, I have an excellent rhythm and this is what keeps me calm for tomorrow’s races. It will be important to start off well and make a lot of passes during the first few laps in order to be able to keep up with the lead group from the outset and it will also be important not to make mistakes.” More, from a press release issued by Team PATA B&G Racing: Jakub Smrz will start from sixth place after the Pata B&G Racing rider put in another solid performance, this time in Superpole and is starting to be a menace for his rivals. He was very fast with race tyres on, both in practice and the last Superpole session, when he set his fastest time qualifying in the second row. Lorenzo Baroni did well too, posting the eighth quickest time and will start from row 2 in Superstock 1000. JAKUB SMRZ | Ducati 1098R | 6th in 1’42.889: “I’m pretty satisfied with the result. We decided to use qualifying tyres in the first two Superpole sessions given the small difference between the times. This allowed us to get into Superpole 3 but we had to put qualifying tyres on. Nevertheless, I set the sixth fastest time. We’ll make a few small changes though in warm up tomorrow, in order to get more grip on the back wheel”. Marco Borciani and Mirco Guandalini: “We’re very happy with Smrz’s performance. We’re in the top positions and hopefully will keep it up tomorrow. This is a track that our rider seems to be very comfortable on and we’re confident he’ll get a good start and get in the leading pack right away. We have high expectations from Baroni as well. He’s got what it takes to be one of the top riders in Superstock 1000”. More, from a press release issued by Troy Corser’s publicist: SECOND ROW FOR TROY DESPITE PROBLEM IN SUPERPOLE 1. Troy was forced to sprint the length of the pit-lane after his BMW suffered an engine problem in Superpole 1 today. He managed to get the bike to the entrance to pit-lane, but then had to run back to his garage and jump onto his second bike. The mechanics had changed the tyres when they saw the bike grind to a halt and Troy was just about able to get out on the track in time to put in a tremendous lap and get into Superpole 2. He also managed to get into Superpole 3 and finished with the eighth fastest lap and so will start on the second row of the grid. Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha) won Superpole, with a lap of 1:42.092, almost one and a half seconds inside the lap record. Second was Max Biaggi (Aprilia), with Carlos Checa (Ducati) third and Leon Haslam (Suzuki) fourth. Troy – 8th, 1’43.152 I wasn’t happy when I had a problem with the bike in Superpole 1 and if I had stopped straightway I would never had got back to the pits in time to jump onto my second bike. I managed to get close to the entrance of pit-lane and then had to run all the way to my garage and onto the other bike, but luckily I was able to get back on track in time and put ina good lap. It is fortunate that my second bike has a very similar set-up to to my number one bike and I had done some laps on it, so I felt pretty comfortable on it. The bike was working good today and I was able to put in a string of consistent race pace laps. Row two is OK and as long as I get my usual good starts, I’ll be in there with the leaders. The first three or four laps will be crucial and it’ll be important for me to be in contention at that stage and get into a good rhythm. There was a bit of drama in Superpole 2, when Lanzi got in my way just as we both were going along the start straight. We would’ve collided if it hadn’t been for the fact that I used my left knee to push his bike away! I don’t think I lost any time, but it was just one of those occasions when two bikes meet in the wrong place. Fortunately we both stayed on OK and I’m not even sure if he was aware how close I was. More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki: Sykes On Row Three As Vermeulen Is Forced To Withdraw Kawasaki Racing Team rider Tom Sykes and Chris Vermeulen had very different fortunes in practice at the Portuguese round, with Tom 12th in Superpole but Chris being forced out by a lingering injury. Sykes had been ninth in combined qualifying and looked capable of taking a place on the front two rows but was held back in his early Superpole efforts when baulked by another rider during a fast lap. Vermeulen attempted to ride through his right knee injury but it took only a short time on Friday morning to realise that he could not move his leg into position on right hand corners, despite modifications to his normal riding position. It was decided on Saturday morning that Chris would not ride on race day, and he will see a knee specialist in Belgium on Sunday 28th, in an effort to be fit for the next round in Valencia in two weeks’ time. For the 22-lap races Sykes is confident and motivated, having finished combined qualifying only 0.482 seconds from pole, when using regular race tyres. Between them, Sykes and his team found one second of improvement between Friday and Saturday and the Ninja ZX-10R has responded well to the latest Showa suspension developments. Tom Sykes: “We fitted a race tyre in Superpole 1 and unfortunately got blocked by another rider so I had to come in and use a qualifying tyre, which wasn’t the plan that early. I got into Superpole 2 and felt that the qualifying tyre didn’t give us quite as much outright gip as in the first Superpole. Overall, we are quite happy and we have a got little bit better understanding of the set-up for the race. I am looking forward to the races and I need to get two good starts, get my head down early and keep a strong pace all the way through.” Chris Vermeulen: “The problem is that I just could not bend my knee enough to sit properly on the bike. It was obvious that I could not ride at anything but around five seconds off the pace, and there is no point in that. So now I have gone to Belgium to get another medical opinion and I have an appointment with a knee specialist on race day, to see if there is anything that can be done to help me to be fit for Valencia. He has been recommended by a lot of motocross riders so I hope he can help the healing process along.”