Six-time and defending AMA Superbike Champion Mat Mladin took provisional pole position during AMA Superbike qualifying Friday afternoon at Road Atlanta, in Braselton, Georgia. Mladin piloted his Dunlop-shod GSX-R1000 to a time of 1:22.348 on a potential race tire, well off his lap record time of 1:21.685. Asked about the difference between his qualifying lap Friday and his lap record, Mladin said it was due to the deterioration of the track and that he hadn’t pushed his bike to the limit yet. Mladin also said he was surprised that his teammate Ben Spies (second-fastest with a 1:22.606) was as close to him in the qualifying order as he was, considering Spies is riding with a two-week-old broken right hand. Third-fastest Friday afternoon was Miguel Duhamel, who turned a 1:23.473 on his American Honda CBR1000RR. According to Duhamel’s Crew Chief Al Ludington, Duhamel had made few changes to the set-up he developed during a recent test at Road Atlanta and was concentrating on evaluating race tires. Roger Hayden earned the final spot on the provisional front row with a time of 1:24.046 on his factory Kawasaki ZX-10R. Roger Hayden’s teammate and older brother Tommy Hayden (1:24.057), Parts Unlimited Ducati teammates Ben Bostrom (1:24.327) and Neil Hodgson (1:24.355) and Duhamel’s teammate Jake Zemke (1:24.596) recorded times good enough for the provisional second row. Aaron Yates turned the ninth-fastest time (1:24.920) on the third Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000 in spite of his injured right shoulder, while Millennium KWS Suzuki’s Matt Lynn (1:25.195) was the fastest non-Dunlop qualifier, 10th, on his Pirelli-shod GSX-R1000. Only 33 riders attempted to qualify in the Superbike class Friday, compared with 44 riders in 2005. AMA Superbike Championship Presented by Parts Unlimited Road Atlanta Braselton, Georgia September 1, 2006 Provisional Qualifying Results: 1. Mat Mladin (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:22.348 2. Ben Spies (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:22.606 3. Miguel Duhamel (Hon CBR1000RR), 1:23.473 4. Roger Hayden (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:24.046 5. Tommy Hayden (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:24.057 6. Ben Bostrom (Duc 999F06), 1:24.327 7. Neil Hodgson (Duc 999F06), 1:24.355 8. Jake Zemke (Hon CBR1000RR), 1:24.596 9. Aaron Yates (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:24.920 10. Matt Lynn (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:25.195 11. Steve Rapp (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:25.283 12. Jason Pridmore (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:25.546 13. Jake Holden (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:25.666 14. Marty Craggill (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:26.039 15. Larry Pegram (Hon CBR1000RR), 1:26.058 16. Chris Ulrich (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:26.175 17. John Haner (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:26.527 18. Eric Wood (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:26.586 19. Gary Mason (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:27.192 20. Brian Stokes (Yam YZF-R1), 1:27.267 21. Jason Curtis (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:27.547 22. Cory West (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:27.568 23. Taylor Knapp (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:27.843 24. Robertino Pietri (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:28.209 25. Scott Jensen (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:28.260 26. Scott Carpenter (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:28.550 27. Dean Mizdal (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:28.674 28. Brad Hendry (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:28.979 29. Michael Sanchez (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:29.185 30. Marco Martinez (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:30.683 31. James Kerker (Hon CBR1000RR), 1:30.702 32. Fernando Amantini (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:30.925 33. Marcin Biernacki (Yam YZF-R1), 1:32.571 More, from a press release issued by Parts Unlimited Ducati: BOSTROM AND HODGSON QUALIFY SIXTH AND SEVENTH AT ROAD ATLANTA Braselton (Georgia) 1 September 2006: Parts Unlimited Ducati’s Ben Bostrom and Neil Hodgson qualified a provisional sixth and seventh on Friday for the Road Atlanta AMA Superbike races. Both Ducati 999 riders spent much of the session in third and fourth place, but were unable to improve their lap times in the crucial last few minutes of the session. Today’s action was held in warm and sunny conditions at the 2.54-mile (4.09-kilometer), 12-turn course located outside of Atlanta. Ben Bostrom was sixth with a best time of 1:24.327 on Friday. The former series champion said the team is yet to finalize a setup and is looking to improve lap times at the unique Georgia circuit. “We have two different bike setups for tomorrow and we’re working with them, trying to decide what is best,” said Bostrom. “This is a challenging track for us and we are working hard to try to find some time. We were up there for part of the session but I didn’t use a qualifier at the end. We didn’t drop our times like some of the others did. I need to pick up the pace tomorrow and the team will do our best. I’m excited to give it another shot.” Neil Hodgson was also third at one point in Friday’s qualifying session before finishing with a time of 1:24.355. The former World Superbike champion wanted a better result on Friday. “It wasn’t one of our best sessions. I don’t really feel like commenting more than that but I’m glad I have a chance to improve on it in the morning,” said Hodgson. “We feel positive about what the boys can do on race tires. Prior to everyone bringing out the qualifiers, Ben and Neil were third and fourth,” said team manager Tom Bodenbach. “After the qualifying session, the engineers and riders have had a good debrief that brought about some new ideas to test in the morning. The whole Parts Unlimited Ducati Team is working hard to finish the season on a positive note. It’s important to everyone to do well in the last three races of the year.” Saturday’s race begins at 3 PM local time.