LEON AND SYLVAIN ‘UP’ FOR ASSEN Team Suzuki Alstare rider Leon Haslam is looking forward to the next round of the Superbike World Championship in Assen next weekend and continuing his tremendous form. The young Briton has given the Suzuki Alstare team their best results for years and is already looking like a title contender. So far this season he has taken two victories and three runner-up spots and is determined to carry on with podiums in Assen – a circuit he likes. His team mate Sylvain is also really ‘up’ for Assen and is looking forward to to the flowing 4.555 kilometre track and getting back to his early season form. Leon Two wins and three seconds in six races is a pretty good start to the season and I feel confident that I can carry on with this good form. I like the bike and feel very comfortable on it and that lets me push it hard. I used to like the ‘old’ Assen circuit because it was a very flowing and great high-speed track. Since they modified it, I don’t like it as much as the old one, but it’s still a good track and very spectator friendly. I hope that the recent travel problems don’t affect the crowds much, because Assen always throws up good racing and it would be a shame for the fans to miss out on what is going to be another great Superbike weekend. I had two podiums in Assen last season and will be aiming to do the same again this year. Sylvain There were some positives from the last race weekend and I need to build on them and do much better in practice and qualifying so that I am in a good position on raceday. I like Assen and think it will suit our bike well, so I am really ‘up’ for the races this coming weekend. Despite the changes to the circuit, it is still a good track and it normally provides great racing. I will be going all-out for podiums, but I know I have to be in a good position on the grid if I’m to run with the front guys at the start of the races. I haven’t raced at Assen on a Superbike, so this will be a new experience for me. 2009 results Race 1: 1 Ben Spies (USA-Yamaha), Noriyuki Haga (JPN-Ducati), 3 Leon Haslam (GBR-Honda), 4 Tom Sykes (GBR-Yamaha) 5 Max Biaggi (ITA-Aprilia) 6 Jakub Smrz (CZE-Ducati), Sylvain Guintoli DNS Race 2: 1 Noriyuki Haga, 2 Leon Haslam, 3 Jakub Smrz, 4 Michel Fabrizio (ITA-Ducati), 5 Jonathan Rea (GBR-Honda), 6 Tom Sykes, Sylvain Guintoli DNS, More, from a press release issued by Parkalgar Honda: Turnaround time for Parkalgar Honda PARKALGAR HONDA goes to the fourth round of the World Supersport Championship at Assen in Holland fully aware it has not performed to its own high expectations at the last two rounds and a turnaround in results is needed for Eugene Laverty and Miguel Praia. The race takes place at 1330 CET on Sunday April 25th. On Friday and Saturday there are practice and qualifying sessions. To keep up-to-date with Parkalgar Honda, visit www.parkalgarhonda.com. Simon Buckmaster, Parkalgar Honda Team Manager: “The fact is we are coming off two frustrating rounds that have not delivered the points we expect or deserve. Eugene has scored two pole positions but that has not resulted in race success. He has the bike and the ability to beat anyone and as a team Parkalgar Honda will be doing everything to get back to winning ways at Assen with him. Miguel has shown promise this season and he has another opportunity this weekend to score his best ever result – we expect that from him when he takes to the track and Parkalgar Honda is doing everything it can to help him achieve it. It is turnaround time for Parkalgar Honda.” Miguel: “I am receiving physiotherapy twice a day to work on the wrist and ankle injuries I received in my qualifying crash at Valencia. I am not 100 per cent fit as I would like to be but I will not let it hold me back when I get on track. I will give maximum effort and really want to get a points scoring finish at Assen which is something I have never achieved before. I am coming back and my Parkalgar Honda team has worked hard to support me and deserves a good result.” Eugene: “I didn’t expect to win at Assen in 2009 but we came away with top honours. I went for it then and I’ll be doing the same this weekend for a repeat performance. Assen suits the Parkalgar Honda and I enjoy it. A new corner on the back straight should make the track faster and I like that as well. I want and need to bounce back from the last two rounds with a win.” More, from a press release issued by Hannspree Ten Kate Honda: The Hannspree Ten Kate Honda team heads to its home circuit at Assen in Holland this weekend (23-25 April) for round four of the 2010 World Superbike championship. The team is based just 60km south of the historic Assen circuit at the Ten Kate Motoren Honda motorcycle dealership in Nieuwleusen, where last Saturday some 7,500 visitors attended the company’s annual Pit Stop Day to look around the showroom and workshops and meet the team’s riders. The Hannspree duo remained in Holland after completing a two-day test last week at a revised Assen circuit, now slightly reduced in length to 4.542km after an alteration to the right-hander at the end of the back straight. Jonathan Rea, currently fifth in the WSBK points standings, used the Assen test to work on improving grip from his Honda CBR1000RR under acceleration out of corners, while his German team-mate, Max Neukirchner, who celebrates his 27th birthday today, concentrated on an overall set up for the Assen races next Sunday. Jonathan Rea It’s been great hanging out here for the last week and to meet all the Ten Kate fans again at the Pit Stop Day I’m feeling half Dutch already! We had a great test at Assen last week to work on making a good bike even better. The revised corner is fast but I really like the track anyway and I’ve gone OK here in the last couple of years. We completely re-evaluated the balance of the bike last week and tried shifting a lot of weight to the rear, which helped in delivering grip as it’s accelerating out of corners. It’s obviously difficult to know how it’ll transfer to other circuits but it worked OK at Assen and, without getting ahead of ourselves, I found it quite easy to adapt my riding style to suit the change. It’s hard to judge it properly until our rivals take to the track on Friday but it all looked quite positive when we overlaid the data from last year with other parts of the circuit. Max Neukirchner Saturday’s Pit Stop Day at the Ten Kate workshop was amazing a very big event! Afterwards I went back to Berlin to celebrate my birthday with friends and family. It was really important to test at Assen after we had another difficult weekend in Valencia. It’s been a tough start to the season so we’ve needed as much track time as possible to find out what’s going wrong. The level of competition in Superbike is much higher now so it’s easy to be a long way down even if the lap times are not so far behind. We were able to make some progress during the test and we will try to continue the work when we get back on the track on Friday. I like Assen a lot, although I preferred it before they made the big changes a few years ago. I got on the podium in 2008 and was going OK there last year. I know how hard ev eryone is working so I’ll try my best to get some better results for the team this weekend. Ronald ten Kate team manager Of course, last week’s test has been of benefit to us but it’s not any kind of advantage that we can count on, so we’ll have to work just as hard this weekend as we would at any other race. On Jonathan’s side of the garage we found quite a different set-up which we will develop further during the race weekend. With Max we made further progress during the test and I believe we found a potential answer to the problems we’ve been having. More, from another press release issued by Hannspree Ten Kate Honda: Kenan Sofuoglu has declared himself ‘ready to win’ this weekend’s (23-25 April) fourth round World Supersport championship race at Assen in the Netherlands. Representing his Hannspree Ten Kate Honda team’s home race, the Turkish rider is confident of a strong performance at the slightly revised 4.542km Assen circuit in the north of the country after completing a two-day test last week. Sofuoglu, 25, has finished on the podium in all three 2010 races thus far, winning round two at Portimao in Portugal. The Turkish rider currently sits just four points behind series leader Joan Lascorz. His 2010 Hannspree Ten Kate Honda team-mate, Michele Pirro, has enjoyed a varied start to the season, mixing bad luck in the opening race at Phillip Island in Australia with his first World Supersport podium at Portimao. The 23-year-old Italian fought his way back to 11th after an early race crash in the last round at Valencia, and is determined to make amends at his team’s home race this weekend. Kenan Sofuoglu I am very happy after the test at Assen last week, and it was fantastic to see so many people at the team’s Pit Stop Day last Saturday. We had some difficult problems during the race at Assen last year and I was only able to finish fifth. Now it’s like riding a completely new CBR600RR. I like the Assen circuit very much OK, they changed the layout a little bit and they said that we might go 1.5s faster. In fact, I think we were something like three seconds faster! The bike still has even more potential to improve as well and we found out a lot about tyre wear later in the race. I was still able to do fast laps at the end of a long run. So, I think you can say that I am not just ready to race at Assen, I’m ready to win! Michele Pirro The test last week was very good for me and I hope that the result of this will be a better race than in Valencia, which was a big disappointment. It was OK for me to work with the team in a very relaxed way to find a better setting and a better feeling from the bike. We found some new solutions and I look forward to using these at the weekend. I like the Assen circuit very much and the new chicane is very fast, which is OK for me. After the test, it was good to meet many fans of the team at the workshop it was a good reminder that I am a part of such a big team! Ronald ten Kate team manager We had a very good two-day test at the circuit, when Michele was working mainly on his race set-up, especially for the latter stages to get more of a feel from worn tyres. With Kenan we tested quite a few chassis and electronics ideas back-to-back to further improve his CBR machine. Both riders did long runs which were quite OK so we head to our home race with some confidence. More, from a press release issued by Infront Motorsports: Old Master A Favourite With Riders The seemingly ever-changing Assen circuit will once more deliver the Superbike World Championship a timeless atmosphere along with its latest slice of modernity, with a new track length being the main talking point in the run up to yet another potentially classic race weekend. The truly world famous Circuit van Drenthe is now 4.542km long, thanks to the slight alteration of a couple of parts of the track which have reduced the overall length by a handful of meters. This former road circuit is simply a must-do for any would-be champion, one of those race venues that demands so much from the rider that even the most successful feel there is always something new to learn with each visit. HASLAM TOP CLASS AND TOP OF THE CLASS Leon Haslam (Suzuki Alstare) has had a brilliant start to his first year with Suzuki, and now leads Max Biaggi (Aprilia Alitalia) by 18 points. Twenty-five points behind Max, another 2010 race winner Carlos Checa (Althea Ducati) is third, while last time out at Valencia Noriyuki Haga (Ducati Xerox) turned the tables on his recent run of bad luck, taking a race two win. It was his first victory of the year and his second podium in six races. FORMER ASSEN WINNERS COME BACK FOR MORE Haga was the race two winner at Assen last year and is one of the four current WSBK riders who have won a race at Assen before. The triumphant quartet also features James Toseland (Yamaha Sterilgarda), Chris Vermeulen (Kawasaki Racing Team) and Ruben Xaus (BMW Motorrad Motorsport). Only Haga is still on the same type of machine that he raced to victory on, but that is only one of many variables at work at this unique racetrack. Vermeulen will return to action this weekend, joining his team-mate Tom Sykes again to complete the original 2010 Kawasaki Racing Team line-up. Another top name comes back from injury this weekend, as Broc Parkes (ECHO CRS Honda) takes his first steps in a real race situation for his new team. OFFICIAL TEAMS PACK THE FIELD The 14 officially entered machines in WSBK racing are backed up by a solid mass of strong privateers, with seven competing manufacturers represented once more by a remarkable array of talent, with varying levels of global experience. Troy Corser (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) is on the same title count as double champion Toseland, and the Aussie star will be out to go one better than the best-ever fourth place he posted for BMW at Valencia last time out. Ruben Xaus (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) will be another in the frame for a top result, at a circuit that clearly suits his style. Opening the season with two podiums was a strong start for Michel Fabrizio (Ducati Xerox) but he will be looking to Assen as nothing less than a full-scale recovery to his best form, after two no-scores at Valencia. Jonathan Rea (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) has yet to win this year but is still a good fifth, while his team-mate Max Neukirchner is very keen to show his best again at his team’s home circuit. Sylvain Guintoli (Alstare Suzuki) sits seventh in the table, on the same points as Toseland after six races and three rounds. LEGENDARY NAME MISSES THE PARTY The official Yoshimura Suzuki Racing Team was set to make the first of a scheduled three entries to the Superbike World Championship in 2010 with four-time Superbike race winner Yukio Kagayama this weekend, but the ongoing volcanic cloud and transport situation in Europe has meant that the Japanese company has postponed its debut until possibly the Monza round. BRITISH RIDERS MAKING THEIR MARK Consistent finishes have eluded some of the seven British riders in the championship this year, but Portimao podium man Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha Sterilgarda Team), Leon Camier (Aprilia Alitalia) and Shane Byrne (Althea Ducati) have all shown fabulous pace already, with the promise of more to come. Assen has been a happy hunting ground for British competitors many times in the past, with four different UK riders standing on top of the podium in the Netherlands. Undisputed King of Assen Carl Fogarty managed it on 12 separate occasions”¦ Points (after 3 of 13 rounds): 1. Haslam 123; 2. Biaggi 105, 3. Checa 80, 4. Haga 79; 5. Rea 60; 6. Toseland 50; 7. Guintoli 50; 8. Fabrizio 46; 9. Corser46; 10. Crutchlow 41. Manufacturers: 1. Suzuki 123; 2. Ducati 107; 3. Aprilia 105; 4. Honda 61; 5. Yamaha 57; 6. BMW 47; 7. Kawasaki 13. WORLD SUPERSPORT It was all change at the top of the Supersport World Championship tree at the previous Valencia round, as Joan Lascorz (Kawasaki Motocard.com) moved into the lead, ahead of Kenan Sofuoglu (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) and Eugene Laverty (Parkalgar Honda). Lascorz won convincingly at home, meaning all of the top three riders have now taken a race win each. To add more spice to this weekend’s contest, Assen is a home race for Sofuoglu’s team, as Valencia was for Lascorz and his Kawasaki squad. Triumph riders Chaz Davies (Triumph ParkinGO BE1) and David Salom (ParkinGO BE1 Triumph) head up Fabien Foret (Lorenzini by Leoni Kawasaki) in the points after Valencia, with Foret now sixth overall. Points (after 3 of 13 rounds): 1. Lascorz 65; 2. Sofuoglu 61; 3. Laverty 41: 4. Davies 33; 5. Salom 32; 6. Foret 28; 7. Harms 25; 8. Rea 24; 9. Pirro 21; 10. Roccoli 17. Manufacturers: 1. Honda 70; 2. Kawasaki 65; 3. Triumph 42. SUPERSTOCK 1000 After the first two rounds of the Superstock 1000 FIM Cup BMW Motorrad Italia rider Ayrton Badovini has two poles, two wins and a perfect 50 points under his belt. Davide Giugliano (Team06 Suzuki) is now second after a second place race result in round two, but for Maxime Berger (Ten Kate Race Junior) fifth is now his ranking, after a no-score last time. Sylvain Barrier (Garnier Junior Racing BMW) is equal on points with Giugliano, with Loris Baz (MRS Racing Yamaha) fourth. Points (after 2 of 10 rounds): 1. Badovini 50; 2. Giugliano 29; 3. Barrier 29; 4. Baz 27; 5. Berger 20; 6. Bussolotti 18; 7. Antonelli 18; 8. Magnoni 14. Manufacturers: 1. BMW 50; 2. Honda 33; 3. Suzuki 29; 4. Yamaha 27; 5. KTM 14. SUPERSTOCK 600: Jeremy Guarnoni (MRS Racing) still leads the 600 Superstock hopefuls after two races, the young Frenchman on 45 points, 20 ahead of second place rider Florian Marino (Ten Kate Race Junior Honda) who won last time. Bernardino Lombardi (Martini Corse Yamaha) is third, with Davide Fanelli (All Service System by QDP Honda) fourth. Points (after 2 of 10 rounds): 1. Guarnoni 45; 2. Marino 25; 3. Lombardi 25; 4. Fanelli 22; 5. Lanusse 20; 6. D’Annunzio 20; 7. Karlsen 16; 8. Elliot 14; etc. PARKINGO SERIES CONTINUES TO GATHER PACE The ParkinGO Stars series, which features a movable feast of riders on identical Triumph Street Triple R machines, will have its second outing of the year this coming weekend, after its debut weekend in Spain almost two weeks ago. More, from a press release issued by Althea Racing: Valencia, April 20th 2010 – The Althea Racing team is heading to Assen, determined to be main players once more in this weekend’s racing. The fourth round of the 2010 World Superbike Championship will take place at the Dutch track, one of the most prestigious circuits on the international motorcycling scene. 4.555kms in length, with 14 corners, it is located in the north of The Netherlands and welcomes a huge number of spectators each year, not only Dutch nationals, but also visitors from the UK, Germany and Scandinavia. At this stage, Carlos Checa lies in third position in the overall standings, with 80 points. The Spaniard, after his win in Phillip Island and a second place finish in Valencia, left Spain safe in the knowledge that he is capable of competing against the best. Carlos has already stepped up to the podium twice at Assen, in 2008 (having also celebrated on the podium here while racing in MotoGP), while last year he only managed a seventh place finish. Shane Byrne put together a noteworthy second race in Spain, performing better than the final result suggested, and this has helped to boost his morale. The Englishman lies in eleventh position overall, up until now his best result was a seventh place finish in Portimao. Shane finished last year’s Assen races in eighth and eleventh place. Before leaving for Assen, Genesio Bevilacqua, team owner, commented, “We know that Assen is a track at which the Ducati is not at too much of a disadvantage. So we hope to be able to continue to build on the positive series of results achieved over the first three rounds. I hope to see Carlos on top form once more in Holland and to see Shane fight back, something we already caught a glimpse of in Valencia.” The Superbike track schedule begins at 12.45 on Friday 23rd April with the first free practice, followed at 15.45 by the first qualifying session. On Saturday, after the second qualifying at 10.45 and the second free practice at 13.50, the Superpole gets underway at 15.00. On Sunday morning there is warm-up at 9.20 while Race 1 starts at 12.00 and Race 2 at 15.30 (both races consist of 22 laps, equal to 99.924 km). The official lap record at Assen was set by Noriyuki Haga (Ducati) in 2009, a time of 1m38.680 in an average of 166,173 km/h, while Ben Spies registered a lap time of 1m37.626 (average 167,970 km/h) during practice in 2009. CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (after three rounds): 1. Haslam p. 123 – 2. Biaggi p. 105 – 3. Checa p. 80 – 4. Haga p. 79… 11. Byrne p. 33 More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki: Vermeulen Rejoins Sykes For Assen Weekend The Kawasaki Racing team will have its regular line-up of Chris Vermeulen and Tom Sykes on board for the fourth round of the championship, at the iconic Assen circuit on April 25. Sykes is currently 16th in the championship but ready to push on up the table at what is a recently modified Circuit van Drenthe, with the famous racetrack now measuring 4.542 km long, as opposed to its previous 4.555km. Vermeulen has recovered well from recent keyhole surgery on his injured right knee, but is still working hard to get full bend and strength back before practice starts. Chris has an enviable Superbike record at Assen, having taken three of his ten career victories at the Dutch circuit, before he started his MotoGP career. With a degree of Dutch family heritage Chris knows he will also be able to count on support from the enthusiastic local crowd at Assen once again. Sykes was fourth and sixth at Assen in 2009, in his first SBK visit to the Netherlands, and the Englishman is out for two strong points scores again in 2010. Tom Sykes: “Looking ahead to Assen I hope we can continue with the progress we have made over the past few races and put in solid on-track performances throughout the weekend. We worked hard on chassis issues at the previous round and finally it came together on Sunday morning, and we produced some good consistent lap times in the race. We are due some good fortune and with Chris coming back we hope that this race we’ll be able to showcase the hard work that both myself and the team are putting in behind the scenes.” Chris Vermeulen: “My knee has been improving every day since I had keyhole surgery and I have a good feeling in most of its range. The difficult part now is getting enough bend in it, and also enough strength and stability in my knee to race at Assen. I want to be able to come back and ride at my normal level. I am getting physiotherapy every day and it is all starting to pay off. I am optimistic that it will have improved even more by race weekend. Assen has lots of flowing parts so you do get a little bit more time to move your body weight around. I really enjoy racing at Assen and have had successful results. I also seem to get a lot of very welcome support there because of my Dutch heritage.” More, from a press release issued Kawasaki: Championship Leader Lascorz Heads North Joan Lascorz and his team-mate Katsuaki Fujiwara have set their sights on the fourth round of the Supersport World Championship at Assen this weekend with a high degree of enthusiasm. Joan moved into the championship lead at Valencia earlier this month after a fine race victory, and now leads Kenan Sofuoglu by 65 points to 61. Fujiwara, despite bad luck in the last race, is very much in the 2010 mix on his Ninja ZX-6R and is looking at Assen as a way to get back in among the leading points scorers. He is currently 11th in the standings, with 15 points. The famous old Circuit van Drenthe, in the north of the Netherlands, is a classic venue in every sense, but as part of a continuous programme of improvement and modernisation it is now 4.542km long, with modifications at the Ruskenhoek chicane making it both a shorter and faster section of racetrack. Last time out for Joan and Katsuaki at Assen, in 2009, it was happier day for Joan who was third in the race after missing the win by only 0.178 seconds, while Kats was 14th. The team has been making preparations for the next few races since Valencia, and will have more new suspension settings for the riders to try in practice, as part of a programme of continuous improvement on the Ninja ZX-6R race machine. Lorenzini by Leoni Kawasaki rider Fabien Foret also gets back into action this weekend, sitting in sixth place overall. The 2002 World Champion in this class of racing has won two Assen races during his career, in 2002 and 2005. Joan Lascorz: “It was great to win and go top of the championship in Valencia, it is where we want to be. The team have worked hard to get us to this point and that work never stops. I have been training at home and I am ready to race again in Assen. It will be interesting to see what has really changed on the racetrack now it is a just a few metres shorter than last year.” Katsuaki Fujiwara: “I have been training hard since Valencia and have spent some time with Makoto Tamada, working with my physical trainer in Spain. I am only focused on a good result in Assen because I am really determined to do well after the last round.” More, from a press release issued by Team Pedercini: The fourth official round of the World Superbike and the third round of the Superstock 1000 FIM Cup will be held in Dutch TT-Assen circuit, Netherlands, from April 23-25, 2010. The legendary Circuit van Drenthe is a motorsport race track built in 1955 and it is considered “the Cathedral” of motorcycling by the fans. The track, whose foundations were laid during the first Dutch TT in 1925, forms an integral part of the surrounding natural area. Following a major renovation project, which started in September 1998 and was completed in the spring of 2008, it has a capacity of 100,000 spectators, including 60,000 seats. The current track has a length of 4,555 meters and the longest straight is 560 meters. Circuit main characteristics : Length : m.4.555 Pole Position : left Longest straight : m.560 Left turns : 6 Right turns : 11 Superbike lap record: Noriyuki Haga – 2009 1’38″680 Superbike best lap : Ben Spies 2009 1’37″626 Superstock 1000 lap record Maxime Berger 2009 1’42″046 Superstock 1000 best lap Maxime Berger 2009 1’41″108 Pedercini Team is moving to Assen to continue improve its riders results. Superbike riders Baiocco and Hayden are every race more close to the points zone, due to the good improvements in their Kawasaki bikes settings. Petrucci and Leeson are eager to fight for the podium in the next Assen Superstock 1000 FIM Cup race. Matteo Baiocco : “I have just finished to race in Vallelunga, in the Superstock 1000 Italian championship race where I have reached the fourth position and now I have to leave for Assen for the Superbike championship race. I like the TT circuit (even if I preferred the track as it was before it was modified), also because the ground has got a lot of grip, even when it rains. I’m very motivated and I want get the best bike set-up at the soonest. We have learnt a lot more about our bike in recent races, so in Assen I’d like to make an important change in the season and I am really looking forward to working with my team in the Netherlands”. Roger Lee Hayden : “I’m really excited to move to Assen so quickly. It’s the first time this season I go to a track that I haven’t tested at before and so it’s gonna make things a little more difficult. Fortunately we made good progress at Valencia and both the team and me are starting to figure each other out with the language barrier and working better together. They give me 100% and I would like to get them a good result in the Netherlands. More, from a press release issued by Yamaha: The Yamaha Sterilgarda World Superbike Team head to Assen this week for round four of the World Superbike Championship. The team prepare for the Dutch round with renewed confidence following rider James Toseland’s first podium of the year last week in Valencia and a second Superpole of the season by Cal Crutchlow, signalling both sides of the garage have made significant improvements in making use of the increased performance of the 2010 WSB R1. Toseland’s podium in particular was key in moving him several places up the championship table, he arrives in Assen now sixth in the standings and looking to go higher this weekend. Assen is an historic race circuit, although road racing started in the area in 1925, the closed circuit itself was first located there in 1955. It’s undergone a number of changes since that day, including a major redesign in 2006, with the exception of the finish line which has never moved. The typical characteristics of the track include fast flat out corners and slow corners. For this year a change to the back section of the track with a fast flowing corner means the circuit is now even faster, with national classes already seeing a two second a lap quicker time over the circuit. “I’ve always loved racing at Assen,” said James Toseland. “I’ve had some good results and always gone well there. I’ve won on the Ducati and on the Honda so it would be great to get a win on the Yamaha as well. The bike has come on again from Portugal to Valencia and we knew from the last round what we needed to improve for Assen. We’ve had to do a lot of work to get competitive but on the positive side there’s still room for more and we’re not far from the front. We can improve quite a lot more and we’re going to be a strong package. On a personal side I always try hard, after the Australia crash where I broke my hand, then my mistake in qualifying in Portugal and missing out on the last Superpole session in Valencia by a thousandth of a second I thought I was going to have one of those seasons. But to go from ninth to third and be up there fighting at the front was a massive boost of confidence for me and the garage so it was good to reward the hard work of the team with a result.” “I had a good race in Assen last year in Supersport,” said Cal Crutchlow, “but it’s going to be difficult this weekend as a couple of other teams have tested there already with the new circuit changes including the new faster section at the back. Hopefully in the first free practice we’ll get to grips with it. There are some new changes coming this weekend with the bike so let’s hope we’ve made some progress and see how we get on.” Assen technically speaking according to Frankie Carchedi, James Toseland’s Crew Chief “We managed to make a major breakthrough at Valencia, and are looking for further improvement. We found a good base engine map with a user friendly torque delivery. We also found a traction control setting that uses ignition cut, allowing James to control the spin of the rear tyre. We were on the dyno as early as Monday morning after Valencia to progress further with areas of our electronics. At Assen we will concentrate on tyre life, especially for warmer conditions, as this was an area we suffered in Valencia. Assen has numerous changes of direction, some at very high speeds so we will be also working on making a quick but stable bike. We will be looking to be on the podium both races as we can’t afford to lose any more points for the championship!” Assen technically speaking according to Marcus Eschenbacher, Cal Crutchlow’s Crew Chief “Assen has more grip than Valencia so it should suit our bike better than the last track. Assen has fast sweeping corners which are banked so you have to set up the bike to suit these areas. The rear end needs enough damping support and spring rate to keep it under control in the long fast corners. We will also try a new clutch to improve our starts which is arriving from Japan. We will also try some new electronic adjustments to help with Cal’s starts from the line using the launch control system; these include new ignition mappings for Cal’s engine management system.” Massimo Meregalli, Yamaha Sterilgarda World Superbike Team Manager “I think Assen can be a good weekend for us, the characteristics of the track are well suited to our bikes, which is an advantage we have to make the most of. The developments focussed on our electronics areas from the last two races have been steadily progressing forwards which gives me a confidence that we can achieve some good results with both James and Cal. The step forwards with our mapping means we should be able to deliver better corner exits for both riders, and the new clutch we’ll be trying this weekend will hopefully mean we can get them off the line quicker to stay at the front in the crucial first corner.” More, from a press release issued by Xerox Ducati: THE DUCATI XEROX TEAM GO DUTCH Assen (The Netherlands) Tuesday 20th April: The Ducati Xerox Team, spurred on by factory rider Noriyuki Haga’s recent win, travel to The Netherlands tomorrow for the fourth round of the World Superbike Championship, taking place this weekend at the historic “TT Circuit Assen”. Superbikes have raced at Assen every year since 1992 and 2010 marks Noriyuki’s eleventh Superbike visit to Assen; he has seen highs and lows since 1998, celebrating race wins and numerous podium finishes yet also suffering several DNFs as a result of technical problems or heavy rain. He has a 50% success rate at the track, having been on the podium on ten occasions over 20 races; his best results were attained in 2009 on the 1198 when he scored a win and a second place finish. Last year’s Assen event proved to be a little more tricky for Michel who concluded the two races in ninth and fourth position. This year, and three races into the championship, Noriyuki is in fourth place in the championship, one point behind Carlos Checa on Althea Racing’s privateer 1198, while Michel lies in eighth. The stiffest competition thus far has come from young Briton Leon Haslam on the Suzuki and from Max Biaggi on the Aprilia, who lie in first and second position overall. On his last outing just over a week ago at Valencia, Nitro-Nori made up some lost ground by snatching his first win of the 2010 season from the hands of Checa in a thrilling race, won by the Japanese rider by a mere 0.025 of a second. These valuable championship points, along with those gained with a fifth place finish in Race 1, have contributed to closing the gap between himself and the current leaders. Michel had a less fortunate weekend, crashing in Race 1 before retiring in Race 2 due to problems of brake inconsistency. Post-Valencia, Michel spent two days testing at Mugello last week, working with his technicians to resolve the brake problems in time for this round. The results were very positive and auger well for this weekend’s Assen round. Noriyuki Haga (4th in championship, 79 points) Having not won at Assen since 2000, Noriyuki stormed to victory again last year in Race 2, concluding Race 1 in second position, his best ever set of results at this track. “I was very happy to win at Valencia, my first win of the season and I will do my best to back it up with two great races at Assen. Last year went well for us here, actually better than ever before at this track, and at this point I am very aware that I need two similar results this season in order to close the gap. Every weekend is a battle with so many strong riders but I’m confident we can do a good job.” Haga’s Superbike form at Assen: 2009: Race 1 2nd, Race 2 – winner 2008: Race 1 – DNF , Race 2 2nd 2007: Race 1 2nd, Race 2 DNF 2006: Race 1 DNF, Race 2 DNF 2005: Race 1 3rd , Race 2 2nd 2004: Race 1 4th, Race 2 3rd 2002: Race 1 3rd, Race 2 6th 2000: Race 1 3rd , Race 2 winner 1999: Race 1 7th, Race 2 8th 1998: Race 1 8th, Race 2 8th Michel Fabrizio (8th in championship, 46 points) Michel was on the Dutch podium in 2006 but unfortunately hasn’t stepped up there again since then. “Testing last week at Mugello was really useful and I’m feeling a lot more positive now that we seem to have found a solution to the brake problem. I’m confident that I can make a fresh start at Assen and be really competitive once more. I haven’t had much luck at this circuit so I’ll be doing my best to turn that around this time.” Fabrizio’s Superbike form at Assen: 2009: Race 1 9th, Race 2 4th 2008: Race 1 – DNF , Race 2 – DNF 2007: Race 1 12th, Race 2 6th 2006: Race 1 3rd, Race 2 10th CIRCUIT DATA: Name: TT Circuit Assen Country: The Netherlands Circuit length: 4.542 km Pole position: Left Corners left: 11 Corners right: 6 Length of race: 22 laps = 100.21 km LAP RECORDS: Best lap Haga (Ducati Xerox) 1’38.680 (2009). Superpole Spies (Yamaha) 1’37.626 (2009). 2009 RESULTS: Race 1 – 1. Spies (Yamaha); 2 Haga (Ducati Xerox); 3. Haslam (Honda). Race 2 1. Haga (Ducati Xerox) 2. Haslam (Honda); 3. Smrz (Ducati)