Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By Glenn LeSanto

Hodgson delights swelling crowd with Superpole victory

The crowd here at Brands hatch in England already looks like a substantial race day attendance, and yet it’s only Saturday afternoon. Neil Hodgson sent the crowd wild by recording a stunning Superpole lap to secure pole for Sunday’s races.

Another hero of the Superpole session was Troy Bayliss, riding with a cracked rib sustained in a crash in the morning qualifying session. He still managed to get his Ducati onto the front row with a 1:26.801 lap. It was an incredible effort given the amount of pain he must be in from his injuries.

Colin Edwards couldn’t answer Hodgson’s sub-1:26 lap, settling for second on the grid with a time of 1:26.050. Hodgson was one of only three riders improving on his qualifying time in Superpole; the other improvers were Toseland and Borja, who both climbed up the grid as a result.

Wild card rider Michael Rutter did enough to put his privateer Ducati on the front row, lapping at 1:26.771 third fastest. Ruben Xaus had another disappointing Superpole, dropping back to 12th on the grid. The second row starts with Pierfrancesco Chili who lines up alongside James Toseland, Juan Borja and Ben Bostrom.



World Superbike SuperPole Results From Brands Hatch:

1. Neil Hodgson, Ducati, 1:25.752
2. Colin Edwards, Honda, 1:26.050
3. Michael Rutter, Ducati, 1:26.771
4. Troy Bayliss, Ducati, 1:26.801
5. Pierfrancesco Chili, Ducati, 1:26.871
6. James Toseland, Ducati, 1:26.970
7. Juan Borja, Ducati, 1:26.987
8. Ben Bostrom, Ducati, 1:27.036
9. Shane Byrne, Ducati, 1:27.162
10. Chris Walker, Kawasaki, 1:27.170
11. Noriyuki Haga, Aprilia, 1:27.246
12. Ruben Xaus, Ducati, 1:27.490
13. Glen Richards, Kawasaki, 1:27.653
14. Steve Martin, Ducati, 1:27.702
15. Gregorio Lavilla, Suzuki, 1:28.001
16. Dean Ellison, Ducati, 1:28.297