Friday Afternoon World Superbike Qualifying Times From Misano: 1. Troy CORSER, Suuzki GSX-R1000, 1:35.717 2. Max NEUKIRCHNER, Honda CBR1000RR, 1:35.836 3. Regis LACONI, Ducati 999F05, 1:36.012 4. Karl MUGGERIDGE, Honda CBR1000RR, 1:36.170 5. James TOSELAND, Ducati 999F05, 1:36.384 6. Pierfrancesco CHILI, Honda CBR1000RR, 1:36.492 7. Yukio KAGAYAMA, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:36.652 8. Lorenzo ALFONSI, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:36.957 9. Ivan CLEMENTI, Ducati 999RS, 1:36.990 10. Steve MARTIN, Foggy Petronas FP1, 1:37.106 11. Andrew PITT, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:37.121 12. Noriyuki HAGA, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:37.203 13. Fonsi NIETO, Ducati 999RS, 1:37.210 14. Chris VERMEULEN, Honda CBR1000RR, 1:37.223 15. Lucio PEDERCINI, Ducati 999RS, 1:37.298 16. Mauro SANCHINI, Kawasaki ZX-10R, 1:37.305 17. Jose Luis CARDOSO, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:37.329 18. Gianluca VIZZIELLO, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:37.361 19. Chris WALKER, Kawasaki ZX-10R, 1:37.487 20. Ben BOSTROM, Honda CBR1000RR, 1:37.589 21. Norino BRIGNOLA, Ducati 999RS, 1:37.835 22. Giovanni BUSSEI, Kawasaki ZX-10R, 1:37.950 23. Marco BORCIANI, Ducati 999RS, 1:38.076 24. Norick ABE, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:38.235 25. Michele GALLINA, MV Agusta F4-1000, 1:38.280 26. Lorenzo LANZI, Ducati 999RS, 1:38.486 31. Garry MCCOY, Foggy Petronas FP1, 1:39.041 More, from a press release issued by Winston Ten Kate Honda: PROVISIONAL FRONT ROW FOR MUGGERIDGE Karl Muggeridge set the second fastest time in this afternoon’s opening qualifying session for Sunday’s World Superbike championship sixth round at Misano, Italy. In hot conditions, Troy Corser took provisional pole position, despite crashing out unhurt towards the end of the hour-long session. Muggeridge’s Winston Ten Kate Honda team-mate, Chris Vermeulen, was fourteenth fastest, concentrating on fine-tuning the race set-up of his Honda CBR1000RR rather than opting for a quick lap on a qualifying tyre. Ronald ten Kate team manager: “Karl is doing well here making small but steady improvements to his set-up. With the track temperature at around 50 degrees, the level of grip is very low for everyone so every little bit extra we can find is important. The changes we’ve made to the rear of the bike after our test at Magny-Course were confirmed in back-to-back tests this morning on the bumpier Misano track. Now we’ve found that improvement, it’s easier to see where else we need to improve things. Chris didn’t use a qualifier today but with the consistent hot weather here, there should be no problem for him to be up at the front after tomorrow’s sessions.” Karl Muggeridge fourth fastest, 1m36.170s “The bike is so much easier to work with now and I’m able to give much more accurate and useful information to the guys back in the garage. We’re not there yet but we have a good idea that we think will work tomorrow. It’s nothing big but, because the track is so slippery everywhere, a little change can make a big difference. It’s really a question of finding the best balance between the front and the rear. More grip at the back makes it harder to turn but if we can find maybe four tenths, we’ll be in a good position. And four tenths is only like half a sneeze per corner so I’m pretty confident we can find it.” Chris Vermeulen fourteenth fastest, 1m37.223s “We tried a lot of different tyres and combinations today, trying to find that grip that everyone is after. The track was really hot this afternoon, which makes it really slippery so we’re just after a combination of grip and durability, because 25 laps out there on Sunday is going to be really hard on the tyres. The ones we tried today all have advantages and disadvantages so we’ll try to nail the choice tomorrow and concentrate on that. I’m pretty comfortable even though I’m fourteenth at the moment, and at least I have a couple of qualifiers to use tomorrow that the others don’t have.” More, from a press release issued by Scuderia SC Caracchi: PROVISIONAL POLE FOR GIANLUCA NANNELLI AT MISANO WELL FONSI NIETO IN SUPERBIKE, DIFFICULTIES FOR LANZI (Misano 2005, June 24) Gianluca Nannelli has carried its 749R Ducati of Scuderia SC Caracchi to provisional pole position in the first qualifying day on the track of Misano Adriatico. The Florentine rider has grabbed his result in the final five minutes of the session, passing the Honda that had monopolized up to now the qualifying in Supersport. “I can only be satisfied of the qualifying practices today afternoon.” it has been the final comment of Gianluca Nannelli. “Evidently the testing days to the Mugello circuit have been useful and have given important indications for the set up, even if it must still improve. The bike is very fast and has recorded the best speed trap. However we must make still better, the three Hondas of Fujiwara, Foret and Fabrizio are very close to me and sure tomorrow they will try to grab the pole position. I’m quite satisfied also about tyres; tomorrow we will select the one that us seems better for the race, however have already caught up a good setting in order of the race, a race that is outlined sure hardest and uncertain, also for the great warmth that on asphalt in the afternoon has caught up the 47°C and in these conditions the tyres are stressed to the maximum and after a fewe laps they begin to slip, above all in the final split of the course ,the corner Del Rio and the last chicane, where several times I found some difficult.” In Superbike good performance of Fonsi Nieto that has obtained the thirteenth position, while Lorenzo Lanzi has had diffucult to find the just set up on the treacherous circuit on the Adriatic Sea. “The job carried out to Mugello has given its results”. said an enough satisfied Fonsi at the end of practices. ” I could have obtained a better result, because when I have recorded the fast lap I was alone and did not have nobody to supply me a reference. HoweverI’m satisfied, looking better improving for a small fractions of second I would have earned two-three positions. In order to the race we have also recorded good lap times and the tyres have performed well. The machine runs very well, the top speed is in line with the fastest ones and if tomorrow we will be able to work without difficulties the things will go sure better and I’m confident to obtain a good position on the starting grid.” Lorenzo Lanzi has something to complain in this day in which she has practically rode in the times obtained with his Superstock two years ago, and this has been a large disappointment after the very good test results obtained at Mugello during the tests one week ago. “For the truth I have always used race tyres, without using soft tyres looking a better fast time in a single lap, because we have had other problems”. is the comment of Lorenzo at the end of qualifying session. “We have been not able to find a good set up and the bike hasn’t grip; this after the satisfying Mugello’s test has been a big disappointment. Now we’ll have to look with Maurizio Perlini the intervents necessary in order to recover tomorrow. The pace for the race isn’t very bad, but also in these conditions we have to work, by now in the Superbike with a gap of a second you lose ten positions and then to recover during the is difficult.” More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki: Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra rider Troy Corser showed just why Misano is one of his favourite circuits by setting the fastest time on the first day of qualifying for Sunday’s World Superbike Championship. Despite very high temperatures in the afternoon timed session, Corser posted a lap of 1:35.717, a tenth-of-a-second faster than nearest challenger Max Neukirchner (Honda) and third-placed Regis Laconi (Ducati). Corser’s team mate Yukio Kagayama was very satisfied with seventh fastest – as it is his first time at the circuit. The day was not without incident though: Corser crashed in the afternoon session when he lost the front in the middle of Tramonto – the corner at the end of the back straight. He wasn’t injured, but was a little cross at having given his mechanics some extra work to do repairing the bike. Troy Corser – 1st, 1:35.717: “In the morning I felt that the track was a bit dirty and so didn’t really push hard at all. In the afternoon the grip definitely improved, but it was quite a bit hotter so then it was the tyres we had to consider. My Alstare Suzuki is working pretty well round here and there’s not a lot we need to do to the bike except decide on a front tyre. We started off on some tyres we didn’t feel we would use, so that we could conserve what we thought we might use. That was OK this morning. “In the afternoon I just lost the front without any warning whatsoever. One minute I was up, the next I was down – it was as quick as that. That’s my first crash of the year so that’s pretty good going considering. Today I have not felt confident in my front tyre so that’s the direction we will be working on tomorrow. We may also try some different gearing but I do not reckon it’s going to make a lot of difference.” Yukio Kagayama – 7th, 1:36.652: “Considering that this is my first time here, I am happy to end the first day of practice in seventh position. Misano is not a very difficult track to learn but it is a track where it is hard to shave off those last few fractions-of-a-second. That requires circuit knowledge and, at the moment, I am building that up. I think the track has some depressions and that means you need a good suspension set-up here. “For me, today was mostly about learning which way the track goes and how to ride it fast. So, I tried to put in many laps today and learn quickly! Tomorrow we will continue our job and I will try to decide which tyres to use. If it is as hot on race day as today, then tyre wear is going to be a problem, but at least it is the same problem for all of us. After my disappointment at Silverstone my target here is at least one podium – even though I know that is going to be difficult.” More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse: LACONI AND TOSELAND ON THE PACE FOR DUCATI XEROX TEAM IN MISANO HEAT Misano Adriatico (Italy), Friday 24 June: Ducati Xerox Team riders Régis Laconi and James Toseland were on the pace in today’s opening qualifying session in sweltering heat at Misano (air 30°/track 49°). Laconi was third quickest today with a time of 1m36.012s, three-tenths off the provisional pole mark, while Toseland was two places further back with a time of 1m36.384s. “I am quite happy with my time” declared Laconi. “We did a good job for the settings in the afternoon. The heat was not making the grip worse, I was surprised about that because I thought there would be a lot less grip in the afternoon. We improved the front and the rear and tried the new big 200mm rear tyre and it was OK. I just feel so good on the bike, and the heat too was making it not too hard to ride. The race will not be easy but it’s physically it’s OK. I used the qualifying tyre in the end but my first pass was not perfect and I know I can do better”. “I’m quietly confident” declared Toseland. “Everything was going well until I put a qualifier in and got caught up in a traffic jam at the final corner with five guys spread out in front of me! I tried a new front just before the qualifier but didn’t push that much because the rear was not that good and then with the qualifier it let go a couple of times. My race times are good and I feel really comfortable. The larger rear tyre is the way to go here at Misano, because on just the three lefts it gives you more drive grip than the narrower tyre which doesn’t have as much contact space as the wider profile. Physically the heat is going to be an issue on Sunday but I’m quietly confident about that as well”.