FIM Superbike World Championship Misano, San Marino June 27, 2010 Race Two Results (all on Pirelli tires): 1. Max BIAGGI, Italy (Aprilia RSV4 Factory), 24 laps, 38:58.149 2. Leon HASLAM, Great Britain (Suzuki GSX-R1000), -4.095 seconds 3. Michel FABRIZIO, Italy (Ducati 1098F10), -4.631 4. Cal CRUTCHLOW, Great Britain (Yamaha YZF-R1), -5.014 5. Carlos CHECA, Spain (Ducati 1098R), -6.256 6. Sylvain GUINTOLI, France (Suzuki GSX-R1000), -7.677 7. Shane BYRNE, Great Britain (Ducati 1098R), -10.144 8. Luca SCASSA, Italy (Ducati 1098R), -10.942 9. Noriyuki HAGA, Japan (Ducati 1098F10), -13.640 10. Troy CORSER, Australia (BMW S1000RR), -16.279 11. Leon CAMIER, Great Britain (Aprilia RSV4 Factory), -17.799 12. Jonathan REA, Great Britain (Honda CBR1000RR), -22.793 13. Lorenzo LANZI, Italy (Ducati 1098R), -24.131 14. Max NEUKIRCHNER, Germany (Honda CBR1000RR), -28.212 15. Chris VERMEULEN, Australia (Kawasaki ZX-10R), -36.551 16. Tom SYKES, Great Britain (Kawasaki ZX-10R), -49.636 17. Broc PARKES, Australia (Honda CBR1000RR), -50.041 18. Roger HAYDEN, USA (Kawasaki ZX-10R), -51.246 19. Matteo BAIOCCO, Italy (Kawasaki ZX-10R), -58.174 20. Federico SANDI, Italy (Aprilia RSV4 Factory), -70.588 21. James TOSELAND, Great Britain (Yamaha YZF-R1), -14 laps, DNF, crash 22. Ruben XAUS, Spain (BMW S1000RR), -17 laps, DNF, retired 23. Jakub SMRZ, Czech Republic (Ducati 1098R), -22 laps, DNF, retired World Championship Standings (after 16 of 26 races): 1. Biaggi, 307 points 2. Haslam, 270 3. Checa, 172 4. Rea, 158 5. Haga, 151 6. Corser, 149 7. Toseland, 138 8. Fabrizio, 131 9. Camier, 130 10. Crutchlow, 120 11. Guintoli, 116 12. Byrne, 97 13. Smrz, 61 14. TIE, Xaus/Scassa, 53 16. Sykes, 43 17. Neukirchner, 35 18. Lanzi, 33 19. Vermeulen, 10 20. TIE, Sherdian Morais/Andrew Pitt, 3 More, from a press release issued by Hannspree Ten Kate Honda: Round eight of the 2010 World Superbike championship proved to be one to forget for the Hannspree Ten Kate Honda squad following a hot and frustrating weekend at Misano in Italy. With difficult qualifying sessions leading to lower grid positions, today’s two 24-lap races were a true test for riders Jonathan Rea and Max Neukirchner. Rea started both races well, catapulting his Honda CBR1000RR from 16th on the grid into positions that would allow him to challenge for top ten placings. However, the chatter that has plagued the 23-year-old from Northern Ireland all weekend, returned to force him back down the field in both races. Rea ended the day with 13th and 12th place finishes. His team-mate Max Neukirchner also suffered again from chatter problems, but the German rider improved on his grid placing to finish 14th in both outings, which were won by local rider Max Biaggi. Jonathan Rea 13th and 12th I’m sure you don’t need me to tell you how I’m feeling after this weekend, and most of what I’m feeling you wouldn’t be able to publish anyway. It’s unbelievably frustrating to be held back by this problem when it wasn’t that long ago that we were winning together. We just haven’t been able to sort things out this weekend and the results show that more clearly than anything else. We’ve got to get it together and I’m hoping that a two day test will allow us an opportunity to do that. Max Neukirchner 14th and 14th It’s been the same problem for me this weekend. The start of the races were both OK but when the front tyre was new and gripping better, the chatter seemed to be worse. It meant that I nearly crashed a few times. It improved a little as the grip got less, but by then it was too late to do very much about it. It’s been a bad weekend for the whole team, so we’ve got lots of work to do at the test this week to try to improve things. The only good thing from the weekend is that the German football team got to the quarter finals in the World Cup. Ronald ten Kate team-manager I can understand the frustrations of the riders since we couldn’t solve the issues we seem to have had on the bike this weekend. If I wasn’t able to remember the racecraft displayed by Jonathan at Assen, Monza, Kyalami, when rider and machine seemed to be in a perfect balance, I’d be at my wits’ end. As it is, we have to find a solution to this and it’s really important that we find a step forward at the Imola test this week. More, from a press release issued by BMW Motorrad Motorsport: Weather conditions: Sunny. Temperature: Air: 28 – 32 °C, Track: 28 – 50 °C Number of riders participating: 23 from 14 teams Fastest lap Race 1: Carlos Checa (Althea Racing) 1:36.670 min Fastest lap Race 2: Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha Sterilgarda Team) 1:36.546 min Again, there is reason to celebrate for Team BMW Motorrad Motorsport: After Saturday’s first ever pole position in the team’s young history, Troy Corser (AUS) secured the German team its second podium on Sunday, finishing race 1 in third. It was Troy’s 130th podium finish, and his 50th third place finish in his World Superbike career. Ruben Xaus (ESP) did not finish the race due to a mechanical problem. There was smoke coming from Ruben’s bike when the oil line touched the exhaust pipe and burned. In race 2, Troy was not able to hold on to his starting position. He was in the top five until the final lap when he missed a gear when downshifting before Tramonto corner. He ran off the track and lost a couple of positions. Ruben was involved in some collisions right after the start and was not able to finish the race as he was hit by another rider’s bike. The impact caused a bruise and a haematoma inside the muscle of his left calf. Troy Corser: Bike: BMW S 1000 RR Result Race 1: 3rd, Gap to 1st: 00:00.822 min / Fastest Lap Race 1: 1:36.876 min Result Race 2: 10th , Gap to 1st : 00:16.279 min / Fastest Lap Race 2: 1:36.713 min “I am really happy with the way this weekend has gone. It has been our team’s best performance so far, with our first ever pole position and a podium finish in race 1. But at the same time I am also a little disappointed because I felt we had the pace to win both races today. In the first race I felt comfortable leading the race, and had it not been for a mistake towards the end of the race I think I would have finished second or even first. It was just a case of trying a little too hard. In race 2 we made some slight changes to the setup to give more grip to the rear wheel, but this meant we lost some feeling from the front tyre and this affected the handling of the bike. Unfortunately at the end of the race I hit a false neutral on the down change before Tramonto which meant I missed my brake point, forcing me into the gravel.” Ruben Xaus: Bike: BMW S 1000 RR Result Race 1: DNF Result Race 2: DNF “This was a day to forget. It started with the technical problem we had in race 1. After the start of the second race I braked hard into the corner but was hit by another rider moving me out. I managed to stay on the bike but at the next direction change I was again hit hard by another rider crashing into my left leg. Again, I stayed on the bike but really felt a bad pain in the leg, which made my muscles react very slowly. I started missing the gears, and very soon I missed a gear in the corner, and my knee hit the tarmac heavily. I lost my knee pad, and that was it. I will now try to recover for the tests in Imola.” Berthold Hauser (BMW Motorrad Motorsport Director): “Congratulations to the entire team. Everybody has done a great job over the course of the weekend, and we were rewarded. It was a weekend with ups and downs, but the positive side outbalances the negative side: We took our first ever pole position, got another podium finish, and lap time wise we are up to speed. I feel really sorry for Ruben and his crew – this weekend luck was not on his side. But that’s racing, and we will not hang our heads. I am happy with everyone’s efforts over the weekend.” A seven week long break after the last race in Monza (ITA) has not slowed down Ayrton Badovini (ITA) and his BMW S 1000 RR in the FIM Superstock 1000 Cup: He won his fifth race out of five, 2.576 seconds ahead of his closest rival Maxime Berger (FRA). In the riders’ standings, Ayrton now has 125 points, and he has increased his lead on Maxime (66) to 59 points. BMW leads the manufacturers’ standings with 125 points, 32 ahead of Honda. More, from a press release issued by Yamaha: There were no easy points to be had today for the Yamaha Sterilgarda team as a hot track surface and rapidly disappearing grip tested the skills of both riders. Despite being mobbed by riders in the first corner of race two, Cal Crutchlow fought back with an inspired push, coming from ninth all the way up to take third from Michel Fabrizio by lap 19. He held for a further three laps but was passed back with two laps to go, taking fourth at the line. Race one had seen Crutchlow lose the front early on as he pushed on to catch the leaders, forcing retirement from the race. Race two also saw Crutchlow make the new lap record as he worked his way through the pack, scoring an impressive 1’36.546. Team mate James Toseland also experienced a tough race day at the Misano circuit. Starting from a less than perfect 13th on the grid on the hard to overtake track, Toseland fought to pass several riders, taking tenth at the line. Race two saw him losing the front end going into a corner on the tenth lap and forcing early retirement. Crutchlow leaves Misano in tenth place in the championship standings on 120 points, just ten behind Leon Camier in ninth. Team mate Toseland sits in seventh on 138 points, just 23 points adrift of Checa in fifth as they head to Brno in two weeks time. Cal Crutchlow, Yamaha Sterilgarda World Superbike Team (DNF, 4th) “I had an ok start in race two, but got beaten up a bit in the first corner on the first lap and basically had to recover from then on. I was disappointed to lose out to Fabrizio at the end, I just lost a bit of drive out of the corner and he managed to get back under me. To come here and do the race pace we did at these grip levels was incredible, hopefully we can make some improvements at this week’s Imola test and be even better. Race one was a stupid mistake, I had a full tank of fuel and just pushed the front a bit too hard trying to catch the front runners and lost the front, but I think I redeemed myself in race two.” James Toseland, Yamaha Sterilgarda World Superbike Team, (10th, DNF) “What can you say, another tough weekend. I’ve got the pace when the tyre grip is good but just find it difficult when losing the grip on the bike to keep with the other bikes coming off the corners. We need to work hard on this area as it’s so important. We’ll meet about it tonight, if we can improve that it’ll be a big help. The time I’m losing on the corners to the others means I have to keep catching up on the brakes which means pushing the front, which is why I crashed in the second. Brno is a little bit faster and flowing so if we can keep the revs high we shouldn’t have too many problems.” Massimo Meregalli, Yamaha Sterilgarda World Superbike Team Manager “After the test last week we were expecting better results. By Friday we realised this weekend was going to be tougher than we thought. Cal did a good job in the second race, although unfortunately he crashed in the first. He didn’t have the best start in the second and he was pushing really hard to catch the front pack. Unfortunately this meant he destroyed his rear tyre which meant at the end the rear grip was suffering but he pushed to the line for fourth. James had a difficult weekend, for sure starting from the fourth row is always hard. He did what he could and unfortunately he didn’t finish the second race due to a crash. Fortunately he is not hurt. Tuesday and Wednesday we will go to Imola to test and hopefully we can fix some of the issues we have.” More, from a press release issued by Infront Motor Sports: Another incredible double for Biaggi the championship leader Max Biaggi (Aprilia Alitalia) continued along the rich seam of form he has been displaying for the past two rounds by taking his fourth double win of the year, the Italian utterly dominating raceday at Misano and moving further ahead in the championship standings. In front of 69,000 fans Max was eventually imperious after some early flurries of overtaking activity, but Superpole winner Troy Corser (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) was a co-star in race one, leading for 16 laps before yielding to Max, then finishing third. Leon Haslam (Suzuki Alstare) fought back from eighth in race one to go second in race two, and keep Biaggi in his sights for the final five rounds of the year. In the overall championship Biaggi has 307 points, Haslam 270 and Carlos Checa (Althea Ducati) 172. Race 1 Biaggi took his seventh win of the season in race 1, finally overtaking long time leader Corser and then proving able to hold off Checa’s Ducati in the final laps. Checa was second, Corser third, the top three veteran riders covered by only 0.822 seconds at the flag. Michel Fabrizio (Ducati Xerox) was fourth, Sylvain Guintoli (Suzuki Alstare) fifth. Leon Camier, on the second Aprilia RSV4, was an eventually lonely sixth. Noriyuki Haga (Ducati Xerox) ended race one seventh after working hard at Misano; Haslam a disappointed eighth, having some technical set-up issues that held back his possible charge. Shane Byrne (Althea Ducati) and James Toseland (Yamaha Sterilgarda) were ninth and tenth respectively. Max Biaggi: “I’m obviously happy with this victory. Especially because I didn’t expect it and because doing so well in Italy, in front of our supporters has a very special flavour for us. The conditions are difficult because of the lack of grip. Already after five or six laps I started to “drift”. After overtaking Troy I tried to push as hard as possible because I saw that the times were still high, but I couldn’t shake him or Checa because the risk for mistakes was too high.” Carlos Checa: “I felt we had a good chance here, we’ve been working very hard. Tyres with hotter temperatures mean that the race is not the same for all the riders, but we stayed quicker throughout the race and it was a very close battle with Max at the end, but not close enough and I had to settle for second.” Troy Corser: “I got another good start and dropped back inside Max to get the lead. The track was really slippery compared to this morning, so it took a few laps to get a feel for the tyre and get a good rhythm. I made a mistake and Max came past, I tried a bit too hard and that was about it for me. It was positive all the same because we managed to stay in front for a good while.” Results (Pirelli Race Tyre Selection – Front/Rear): 1.Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 38’59.319 (156,082 kph) (C/A); 2. Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 0.387 (A/C); 3. Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 0.822 (B/C); 4. Fabrizio M. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 4.911 (B/C); 5. Guintoli S. (FRA) Suzuki GSX-R1000 5.916 (B/B); 6. Camier L. (GBR) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 8.658 (C/A); 7. Haga N. (JPN) Ducati 1098R 11.872 (B/C); 8. Haslam L. (GBR) Suzuki GSX-R1000 11.907 (B/A); 9. Byrne S. (GBR) Ducati 1098R 16.490 (A/B); 10. Toseland J. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 18.458 (B/C); 11. Scassa L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 18.646 (B/C); 12. Lanzi L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 19.315 (B/C); 13. Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 25.405 (B/A); 14. Neukirchner M. (GER) Honda CBR1000RR 31.671 (B/A); 15. Sykes T. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX 10R 39.658 (C/A); 16. Vermeulen C. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX 10R 48.137 (B/B); 17. Hayden R. (USA) Kawasaki ZX 10R 56.316 (A/A); 18. Sandi F. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 1000 F. 56.667 (C/A); 19. Baiocco M. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX 10R 57.218 (B/B) Race 2 Max Biaggi (Aprilia Alitalia) was in unbeatable form in race 2, surviving some hard early passing moves by his main rivals to get clear of the pack and push on to win, easing up across the line, by 4.095 seconds. This was double number four for the season. Haslam was a committed second after changing his machine and rear tyre as he attempted to halt Biaggi’s championship surge. Fabrizio returned to some of his best form by going third, holding off the determined Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha Sterilgarda). Checa was fifth after being ambushed in the early laps, Guintoli sixth and Byrne seventh. Luca Scassa was an impressive eighth for the local Supersonic Ducati Team, with Haga ninth and early leader Corser tenth after losing ten seconds in one lap. Max Biaggi: “In such a tough and well balanced championship, all of the victories are earned with hard work and sweat. In race 2, to be honest, maybe I rode… pushing the envelope a bit, maybe even risking too much. But on the other hand, without risk there is no gain! This race represents a crucial moment for us and for our season we are coming out with our heads held high. As always I want to thank everyone from the bottom of my heart: from the guys on the team to our supporters. Victories like this never happen by chance and these ones in particular are well deserved by a large family which works together toward a common goal” Leon Haslam: “We have had a tough weekend and after the first race eighth was the best we could have done because we had a few issues. The team came up trumps for me in race two and we finished in second place behind Max in race two. Second is never good for me behind Max as he is the championship leader but today we will take it.” Michel Fabrizio: “In the second race we didn’t win but we got on the podium, which is a good result. It wasn’t easy and once Max passed me, I had no chance of counterattacking him, and I had to do everything possible to hold onto third place with Crutchlow behind me. I’d like to dedicate the podium to my team because every week my engineers are working hard and continuing to believe in me”. Results: 1. Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 38’58.149 (156,16 kph); 2. Haslam L. (GBR) Suzuki GSX-R1000 4.095; 3. Fabrizio M. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 4.631; 4. Crutchlow C. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 5.014; 5. Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 6.256; 6. Guintoli S. (FRA) Suzuki GSX-R1000 7.677; 7. Byrne S. (GBR) Ducati 1098R 10.144; 8. Scassa L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 10.942; 9. Haga N. (JPN) Ducati 1098R 13.640; 10. Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 16.279; 11. Camier L. (GBR) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 17.799; 12. Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 22.793; 13. Lanzi L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 24.131; 14. Neukirchner M. (GER) Honda CBR1000RR 28.212; 15. Vermeulen C. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX 10R 36.551; 16. Sykes T. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX 10R 49.636; 17. Parkes B. (AUS) Honda CBR1000RR 50.041; 18. Hayden R. (USA) Kawasaki ZX 10R 51.246; 19. Baiocco M. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX 10R 58.174; 20. Sandi F. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 1000 1’10.588 Pirelli Race Tyre Selection – Front/Rear: All riders on same solutions with the exception of Guintoli, Haslam, Byrne and Baiocco who chose the “C” rear, Vermuelen and Scassa who chose the “A” rear and Sandi who chose a “B” front for Race 2. Points (after 8 rounds of 13): 1. Biaggi 307; 2. Hslam 270; 3. Checa 172; 4. Rea 158; 5. Haga 151; 6. Corser 149; 7. Toseland 138; 8. Fabrizio 131; 9. Camier 130 70; 10. Crutchlow 120. Manufacturers: 1. Aprilia 313; 2. Suzuki 283; 3. Ducati 250; 4. Yamaha 177; 5. Honda 169; 6. BMW 152; 7. Kawasaki 47 World Supersport Eugene Laverty (Parkalgar Honda) got the better of his peers at Misano and in taking another win he went back into the lead in the championship. Pole man Michele Pirro (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) crashed out of contention early on, leaving Joan Lascorz (Kawasaki Motocard.com) to finish second. Kenan Sofuoglu (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) could have taken that runner-up position but ran off line or off track on several occasions, and finished third. Britain’s Gino Rea had an awesome start on the Intermoto Czech Honda machine but was taken out in the collision with Pirro. In the championship Laverty now has 161 points, Sofuoglu has 158, and Lascorz 148. Results: 1. Laverty E. (IRL) Honda CBR600RR 36’46.369 (151,697 kph); 2. Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-6R 3.876; 3. Sofuoglu K. (TUR) Honda CBR600RR 6.557; 4. Davies C. (GBR) Triumph Daytona 675 12.815; 5. Tamburini R. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 12.927; 6. Harms R. (DEN) Honda CBR600RR 14.248; 7.Roccoli M. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 19.641; 8. Foret F. (FRA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 24.360; 9. Praia M. (POR) Honda CBR600RR 36.260; 10. Salom D. (ESP) Triumph Daytona 675 36.598; Points (after 8 rounds of 13): 1. Laverty 161; 2. Sofuoglu 158; 3. Lascorz 148; 4. Davies 97; 5. Salom 64; 6.Harms 61; 7. Pirro 58; 8. Rea 54; Manufacturers: 1. Honda 195; 2. Kawasaki 148; 3. Triumph 107; 4. Yamaha 11 Superstock 1000 Ayrton Badovini (BMW Motorrad Italia STK) set a new track best and lap record of 1’39.189 on his way to the race win at Misano, in a race which was red-flagged after 11 laps of the scheduled 14. This was his fifth win in five starts this year, and he now has 125 points to second place rider Maxime Berger’s 66. The Ten Kate Junior Race rider was also second in the race today, ahead of local man Michele Magnoni (Team Shiner Honda). Magnoni is now third in the overall rankings, on 63 points. Results: 1. Badovini A. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 18’21.537 (151,924 kph); 2. Berger M. (FRA) Honda CBR1000RR 2.576; 3. Magnoni M. (ITA) Honda CBR1000RR 2.807;4. Antonelli A. (ITA) Honda CBR1000RR 3.872;5. Bussolotti M. (ITA) Honda CBR1000RR 15.071; 6. Baz L. (FRA) Yamaha YZF R1 16.266; 7. La Marra E. (ITA) Honda CBR1000RR 16.449; 8.Giugliano D. (ITA) Suzuki GSX-R 100016.721; 9. Barrier S. (FRA) BMW S1000 RR 17.043; 10. Petrucci D. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX 10R 19.830; Points (after 5 rounds of 10): 1. Badovini 125; 2. Berger 66; 3.Magnoni 63; 4.Giugliano 53; 5. Barrier 47; 6. Antonelli 41; 7.Baz 37; 8. Bussolotti 37; Manufacturers: 1. BMW 125; 2. Honda 93; 3. Suzuki 60; 4. Yamaha 39; 5. Kawasaki 36; 6. Ducati 26; 7. KTM 25; 8. Aprilia 13. Pirelli Official Tyre Supplier “Pirelli’s weekend at Misano opened with success starting from Corser’s pole position of 1’35.001 on his BMW, their first in WSBK, on Superpole tyres whose personalized labels feature the flag of San Marino as a celebration of the host of this round. Pirelli offered 1 brand new ‘A’ rear and 2 front (‘A’ and ‘C’) tyre solutions for Superbike, as well as 1 front and 1 rear performance option for Supersport, along with reference tyres for both classes. Fantastic performances from the Diablo Superbike and Diablo Supercorsa tyres were absolute, having seen 12 different riders set fast times in R1 and R2 below last years lap record of Noriyuki Haga (Ducati); the final time and Pirelli BEST LAP of 1’36.546 was recorded by Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha) on the new ‘A’ rear tyre solution. The two SBK races saw a 12 and 13 second overall race time improvement over last year’s dry Race 2, respectfully, and nearly a 5 second improvement in SSP. With these new solutions at hand, an incredible podium diversity saw 4 manufactures and 5 different riders on the podium, confirming the new solutions which have been developed for Misano. After next week’s testing at Imola, we are confident to continue deliver tyre grip and stability to teams and riders for faster and more exciting racing.” – Giorgio Barbier, Racing Director, Pirelli Moto SBK Race 1 – Pirelli BEST LAP Carlos Checa (Althea Racing), 1’36.670 (Lap 2) SBK Race 2 – Pirelli BEST LAP Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha World Superbike), 1’36.546 (Lap 4) Total BEST LAP (SBK): Checa C. (Althea Racing): 6, Rea J. (HANNspree Ten Kate Honda): 3, Biaggi M. (Aprilia Alitalia Racing): 2, Crutchlow C. (Yamaha World Superbike): 2, Haslam L. (Suzuki Alstare): 1, Guintoli S. (Suzuki Alstare): 1, Fabrizio M. (Ducati Xerox Team): 1 WSS – Pirelli BEST LAP Kenan Sofuoglu (HANNspree Ten Kate Honda), 1’39.239 (Lap 6) Total BEST LAP (WSS): Sofuoglu K. (HANNspree Ten Kate Honda): 4, Laverty E. (Parkalgar Honda): 2, Pirro M. (HANNspree Ten Kate Honda): 1, Lascorz J. (Kawasaki Motocard.com): 1 Stk1000 Pirelli BEST JUMP FORWARD Marco Bussolotti (All Service System by QDP), From 13th to 5th (8 positions) More, from a press release issued by Team Alstare Suzuki: LEON MAINTAINS HIS PODIUM AT EVERY ROUND Despite problems throughout the weekend and in the the first race, Team Suzuki Alstare rider Leon Haslam maintained his impressive runs of at least a podium in every round at Misano today. He struggled with clutch/electronics problems in race one, but carried on fighting hard and took eighth place. The team came up with some ideas to improve the bike for race two and fortunately they worked! This time Leon was able to compete as normal and battled from seventh on the grid up to a superb second place and his eleventh podium of the season. Leon’s team mate Sylvain had his best result of the year, since the opening round in Australia back in February. He took fifth in race one and sixth in race two. Local favourite Max Biaggi (Aprilia) won both races. In race one, he narrowly beat Carlos Checa (Ducati) with Troy Corser (BMW) third, but race two was much more comfortable. He took his second chequered flag of the day, over four seconds ahead of Leon, with Michel Fabrizio (Ducati) third. Leon – Race 1: 8th, Race 2: 2nd After the issues we’ve had this weekend (to do with the clutch and electronics) I thought that 8th in race one was probably the best we’d get this weekend. But, all credit to the team because they went back to a setting that we used in USA and South Africa and the bike was much better in the second race. Race two felt like normal and the bike felt a million times better than race one, but I’ve got so many blisters on my hands because I was trying so hard. I took a lap or two too long to pass Troy (Corser) and Michel (Fabrizio) in the second race and by then Max was too far ahead to catch. Max is riding well and the Aprilia is currently the package to beat, but I’m confident that, as long as we all work hard, we can beat him. We do all our own development work and it’s because of all the hard work, that we are competitive. If Suzuki Japan wanted to give us some more help, it would be much appreciated and it would be a great benefit to us all. In the meantime, I’m going to keeping fighting for more and podiums. That was my aim before the season began, and it’s still the same now. Sylvain – Race 1: 5th, Race 2: 6th Well this has been a pretty good weekend for me and I feel I am now becoming a better Superbike rider. This championship is so competitive that you have to be right on your game in every practice, qualifying and race and it’s not something that comes easily – it requires a lot of work, from me and the team. That’s not say that we have not been working hard up to now, because we have been working hard. It’s just that WSBK is different to BSB and I have to work in a different way. Today, I had a better feeling with the bike in race one, but funnily enough my lap times were better in race two! The good news though, is that today I had the podium pace and I really enjoyed my racing. Now, I just need to keep this feeling up and be even more competitive next time. Next up is Brno. It is a track I know and like a lot, so I am expecting a lot. More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki: Hot Work for Kawasaki Pairing at San Marino Round WSBK, Misano, Republic of San Marino, 27 June 2010 Tom Sykes and Chris Vermeulen took turns to finish ahead of each other at Misano, with Tom scoring a point in race one and Chris securing a point in race two after some hot and intense track action. Tom was 15th in race one, then 16th in the second leg, while Chris’s results were a mirror image of Tom’s; 16th in the opener then 15th in the second. In race two Tom had the additional difficulty of being dropped to last place after colliding with another rider, recovering with real aggression and focus to get up to 16th place. Chris, starting from row six in each race, implemented changes to his set-up for race two, including a change of tyre choice for the slightly hotter track temperatures, and found them all a benefit. He improved both his race time and his result and was confident of even more had he started further up the grid. The team now undergoes two days of testing at Imola on 29 and 30 June, in readiness for that round of the series in September – but before that race there is the ninth round of this busy season to contest, at Brno on July 11th. Tom Sykes: “We tried a big list of things on the bike this weekend but unfortunately we really struggled to get a good set-up in the high track temperatures. We also started on the back foot having not tested here like the majority of teams last week, but that’s no excuse as we just had to try and get down to business. Unfortunately our qualifying position didn’t help us a lot and it was difficult to play catch up in the races, Misano is a hard track to pass. In race two I got away to a good start but got caught up in the first corner with a few riders and ended up in the back. My bike suffered in the front due to a clash with another rider but I fought back to 16th from last.” Chris Vermeulen: “It’s been a challenging weekend and we were disappointed to have missed out Superpole for the first time this year. We made small improvements over the weekend and took a different direction for race two, which was a big improvement. I ran 12 seconds closer to the front than in race one and we went for a softer tyre on the rear, which gave much better grip from the start. We still have a lot of work to do on making progress with the bike but I’m looking forward to the two day test this week in Imola, my first test since the start of the season, so we can make further progress and be more competitive in the races.” More, from a press release issued by Xerox Ducati: UNDER THE MISANO SUN, FABRIZIO (DUCATI XEROX) GRITS HIS TEETH TO TAKE THIRD IN RACE 2 Misano (Italy), Sunday 27th June: at the end of a hot and tiring day at the Misano World Circuit, the Ducati Xerox team were pleased to see Italian rider Michel Fabrizio step up to the podium in race 2 of the eighth round of the World Superbike championship. In Race 1 the two Ducati Xerox riders made a pretty good start, Michel finding himself in fourth position after the first corner with his team mate Noriyuki Haga behind him in sixth. Although Sylvain Guintoli quickly passed Michel, the Roman rider was able to move back up to fourth by passing the Frenchman on the fifth lap. In front of him, Max Biaggi, Carlos Checa and Troy Corser battled it out for the win while Fabrizio was unfortunately unable to close the gap, finishing in fourth, the position he had held for the best part of the race. Noriyuki on the other hand, starting from ninth on the grid, found that the feeling with his 1198 improved after the first few laps but problems, particularly on entry into the corners, meant he was unable to catch the leading group of five. The Japanese rider stuck with Leon Haslam through the second half of the race, managing to get past him on the last of the 24 laps, to conclude Race 1 in seventh position. For Fabrizio the start of Race 2 was a copy of the first; fourth place for the Roman rider, behind Corser, Checa and Biaggi, at the first corner. Haslam got past him during the first lap but Michel quickly responded by passing not only Haslam but Biaggi too on the next lap, thus moving into third position. By the end of the sixth lap Fabrizio was leading the race but unfortunately this did not last and the aforementioned pair got by once more, leaving Michel to battle against Cal Crutchlow on the Yamaha for third. Roman rider Michel gritted his teeth and a final push ensured he crossed the line in third, happy to be on the Misano podium in front of the Italian crowd. Team-mate Noriyuki, on the other hand, lost a couple of positions at the start and then made a small mistake during the fifth lap which left him in thirteenth place. He gained somewhat during the race and his pace remained constant but he was unable to reach the frontrunners, closing the second race of the day in ninth position. Noriyuki Haga, having finished both of today’s race in the top ten, remains in fifth position in the overall standings with 151 points while Michel Fabrizio, having attained 29 points today, moves up into eighth place. Ducati lies in third position in the manufacturers championship with 250 points. Michel Fabrizio (Race 1 4th , Race 2 – 3rd) “It was very hard today; in race 1 I couldn’t have done any more, I pusher until the end and had to be happy with fourth. In Race 2 we didn’t win but we got on the podium which is nevertheless a good result. It wasn’t at all easy and once Max got past me there was no way I was going to be able to stick with him; instead I had to do everything to hold on to third, with Crutchlow pushing all the way. I dedicate the podium to my team as my technicians work so hard every week and continue to believe in me. I will continue to give 100% in the next rounds and we hope Brno, a track that’s traditionally favoured the two Roman riders, brings me good results.” Noriyuki Haga (Race 1 7th, Race 2 9th) “In Race 1 the level of grip seemed to improve after the first few laps and I had better feeling but it was difficult to catch Haslam, I was having trouble braking, going into the corners. In the end I got past Haslam to finish seventh but I had hoped to do better. In race 2 I used my other bike, with a similar set up but just a different front fork. Feeling improved but I still wasn’t happy with the traction; then I made a couple of small mistakes and, once I lost ground, it was almost impossible to make it back up. I’m hopeful we can do better at Brno, a track I enjoy.” More, from a press release issued by Honda: REA FOURTH IN THE CHAMPIONSHIP AFTER CHALLENGING MISANO WEEKEND The return to racing in Europe did not prove to be a happy homecoming for the Hannspree Ten Kate Honda team and its riders Jonathan Rea and Max Neukirchner, with each rider finding chatter holding back their raceday efforts. During the eighth round of the championship, at a hot Misano World Circuit, Rea posted 13th and 12th place finishes, dropping one place in the overall ranking to fourth, on 158 points. Neukirchner was one place from Rea in race one, and two behind in race two, 14th each time. Max Biaggi won a double again, and extended his championship lead to 37 points over Leon Haslam, 307 points to 270. Carlos Checa was a podium man in race one, and is now third, on 172 points. Rea started from only 16th on the grid after a disappointing Superpole, but was up to sixth after one lap of race one, dropping back as his grip dropped off. In race two he had an early moment mid pack and lost time, once more slowly dropping back despite fighting for each position. Neukirchner improved on his qualifying performance of 17th in each race today, but had to wait until his bike set-up began to work on worn tyres to push to the maximum. Both he and Rea lost their front mudguards in race two, after contact with other riders. ECHO CRS Honda’s Broc Parkes felt unlucky to have been disqualified for jump-starting after not obeying the ride through signals in race one. In race two he stuck to his task despite suffering chatter like his fellow Honda riders, finishing 17th. Laverty Wins and Goes Back To The Top Of The Standings Eugene Laverty from the Parkalgar Honda team missed out on pole by 0.167 seconds at Misano but had an immaculate race at the hot and humid Italian circuit, winning from Joan Lascorz (Kawasaki) by 3.876 seconds after 22-laps. In taking his fifth win of the year, Eugene finally regained the championship lead, as former leader Kenan Sofuoglu (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) was unable to make his frequent attempts to pass Lascorz stick. Sofuoglu finished the race third, taking 16 points and his eighth podium finish in eight races. Kenan had superior pace compared to Lascorz near the end but ran off track more than once, as his impatience almost became his downfall. He had qualified in an unusually low sixth place. He is now only three points behind Laverty, with Eugene on 161 points, Sofuoglu on 158, and Lascorz on 148. With five rounds remaining, the championship now looks like being a straight fight between these three riders, as the fourth ranked competitor is currently 51 points behind Lascorz, 64 behind Laverty. Before Laverty could break away to win the race, he had to deal with the exuberant early pace of rookie WSS rider Gino Rea, from the Intermoto Czech Honda team. Gino had taken the lead for himself for a short time on lap one. Rea was firmly in the top group until he was hit from behind by Hannspree Ten Kate Honda rider Michele Pirro, in the final turn of lap five. Both riders fell, and neither scored points. Pirro, racing at his local track, had taken pole position on Saturday with a new track best of 1’38.444. In the Manufacturers’ Standings, Honda now has a 47-point lead over Kawasaki. Massimo Roccoli, from the Intermoto Czech Honda team, went eighth in qualifying and seventh in the race, fighting in the pack of riders disputing fourth place for a long time, but not quite able to keep his highest pace until the end. Parkalgar Honda competitor Miguel Praia won his own fight with those riders around him, going ninth from a starting position of 12th on the grid. Round nine of both WSB and WSS championships takes place at Brno, Czech Republic, on July 11. WSBK Rider Quotes Jonathan Rea, Hannspree Ten Kate Honda: 13th and 12th – 4th overall. “We still have a lot of problems with chatter, although we have made quite a few changes over race weekend. It’s unbelievably frustrating to be held back by this problem when it wasn’t that long ago that we were winning together. We have a test at Imola next week and Brno will be a new race weekend. We will start afresh there with an open mind. But it is hard to see positives in this weekend.” Max Neukirchner, Hannspree Ten Kate Honda: 14th and 14th – 17th overall. “It’s been the same problem for me this weekend. My starts were OK but when the front tyre was new and gripping better, the chatter seemed to be worse. It meant that I nearly crashed a few times. It improved a little as the grip went down, but by then it was too late to do very much about my positions. We’ve got lots of work to do at the test this week to try to improve things.” Broc Parkes, ECHO CRS Honda: Disqualified and 17th – 24th overall. “I was pretty upset about the first race because we got penalised for a jump start but I was last into the first corner and didn’t take any advantage. I hopped forward but I came back again. I felt pretty good in race two but we have struggled again and I am really looking forward to testing at Imola this week. We need to do something new in development and I have some things I want to try.” WSS Rider Comments Eugene Laverty, Parkalgar Honda: 1st – 1st overall. “It has taken us a while to get back into the championship lead but we have only dropped five points since finishing off the podium at Valencia, so we have been improving all the time. It was easier at the end of the race but at the beginning it was tough, back in third position behind Gino Rea and having to take some time to get past him. He was strong and focused. I knew I was not going to be able to get away from the other guys easily so I had to bide my time and chose my moment.” Kenan Sofuoglu, Hannspree Ten Kate Honda: 3rd – 2nd overall. “For me all the weekend was not very good, qualifying sixth and not having a great feeling, but in the race I knew we would have enough for a win or a podium. I made too many mistakes and ran off the track but I got back each time to score a podium and some good points.” Michele Pirro, Hannspree Ten Kate Honda: DNF – 7th overall. “I crashed and I think maybe Rea pushed the brake a little early and it was difficult to stop the bike. I touched with Gino and we crashed. My start was not so good, and I did not have a good first three or four laps. I had made a hard rear tyre choice, so after five or six laps it would have come better. Sorry for my team and fans but this is racing sometimes.” Gino Rea, Intermoto Czech Honda: DNF – 8th overall. “I got taken out by Pirro but I suppose that’s racing. It is just frustrating because when you put in hard work to be able to get up there with the leading riders, and then finally manage it, it all came to halt. But you have to put up with some of these things in racing. You have to take the good with the bad, but we proved we have good pace today.” Massimo Roccoli, Czech Intermoto Honda: 7th – 12th overall. “I am happy to finish this race and we got seventh place and nine points. I would have liked to finish higher up but for the last few laps I could not stay with the second group. Next week we have a test in Brno so it will be important to use this test to stay in the top five from now on. This weekend we worked a lot with electronics and suspension.” Miguel Praia, Parkalgar Honda: 9th – 13th overall. “A big fight in the race but we got a top ten finish. I lost some places straight away and then lost contact with the group that was fighting for fifth to seventh places, but I won my own battle with two other riders. I had a very hard and fair race with Salom and Lagrive.” More, from a press release issued by Althea Racing: Misano Adriatico, June 26th 2010 – The Race 1 podium for Carlos Checa cancelled any bad memories of Miller, and meant that the Althea Racing Team is thinking positively once more. Spanish rider Checa made two great races which confirmed both his status and that of the Italian team’s Ducati 1198. In Race 1 Carlos battled against Max Biaggi and Troy Corser, taking a well deserved second place finish. In race 2 he kept pace with the frontrunners in the first laps, efore losing some ground; finding himself in sixth position, he continued to lap at a similar pace to the leaders. “I’m happy with the podium of course”, said Carlos, “and incredibly I was the youngest on it! After America we needed a race like this, that one of my technicians felt was the longest race of the season. Race 2 was great but I didn’t obtain the same result unfortunately. Crutchlow and Haslam had better grip than me and when Biaggi escaped I lost contact with them. I found it a bit difficult to keep pace with the four cylinders on the straights but the weekend was positive, seeing as I’m back in third position overall.” Satisfaction also for Shane Byrne who closed race 1 in ninth position, ahead of Toseland, and race 2 in seventh, in front of Scassa (a long time rival of the English rider), proof that his determination is not waning. Genesio Bevilacqua, General Manager of Althea Racing declared: “Race 1 was hard fought. Ahead of us were some very consistent riders on high performance bikes. In Race 1 Carlos made the most of the Ducati’s potential. Byrne showed us that he’s back on form but he can undoubtedly improve further. In race 2 Carlos started well, as he did in the first race. He had a moment of hesitation and then, when he pushed, he was ruffled by Michel’s pass. His lap times were fast but to get past riders of this caliber on this particular track is difficult. Shane continued to ride with determination, obtaining a better result in race 2 than in race 1. All in all it’s been a positive weekend and I’d like to thank the entire team for the great work carried out here.” More, from a press release issued by Alitalia Aprilia: ANOTHER DOUBLE WIN! MAX BIAGGI DOMINATES AGAIN IN RACE 2 AT MISANO. EIGHTH VICTORY FOR MAX. FOURTH CONSECUTIVE TRIUMPH AND FOURTH DOUBLE VICTORY IN EIGHT ROUNDS. MAX STRENGTHENS HIS HOLD ON THE CHAMPIONSHIP RANKINGS (+37 POINTS IN FRONT OF THE SECOND PLACE RANKING) APRILIA FIRST IN MANUFACTURER RANKINGS (+30). Misano Adriatico, 27 June 2010 Max Biaggi triumphs again in race 2 and takes home his eighth victory of the season. This is the fourth consecutive affirmation for the four-time world champion on the heels of the double victory in the United States round. Max is the leader now more than ever in the world championship rankings and has now widened the gap over second place Leon Haslam, on Suzuki, to 37 points (307 vs 270). There was a 15 point gap before this triumphant Romagna weekend. The second race was a test of strength for Biaggi who, drawn into the brawl which broke out at the beginning of the race, found himself in fourth place trailing Corser (BMW), Checa (Ducati) and Fabrizio (Ducati). On the fifth lap he began an unstoppable progression which, with spectacular passes to the damage of the riders ahead of him, brought him to the lead in the ninth lap. From then on Biaggi masterfully handled his Aprilia RSV4, increasing the gap more and more until finally, two laps from the end, he was almost eight seconds ahead of the second place rider who at that point was Leon Haslam. Max ended the race easily in control with more than four seconds of gap. With this result Aprilia strengthens its hold on the manufacturer first place ranking and has a 313 point advantage over the closest pursuers: Suzuki (283) and Ducati (250). A bitter-sweet weekend for Leon Camier, reigning British Superbike champion who, after a nice ride which took him to sixth place in race 1, suffered in the second race, also slowed by mechanical problems with the bike, and ended in eleventh place. “In such a tough and well balanced championship Max Biaggi commented right after the race all of the victories are earned with hard work and sweat. In race 2, to be honest, maybe I rode… pushing the envelope a bit, maybe even risking too much. But on the other hand, without risk there is no gain! This race represents a crucial moment for us and for our season we are coming out with our heads held high. As always I want to thank everyone from the bottom of my heart: from the guys on the team to our supporters. Victories like this never happen by chance and these ones in particular are well deserved by a large family which works together toward a common goal” Leon Camier: “A shame about the problems we had in race 2. I probably stressed the clutch too much at the start so I had output problems for the entire race. I pressed forward battling for the whole race with poor power management. In those conditions I just kept losing time. Really a shame because in race 1, which I was very happy with, I had a good result and demonstrated that in spite of the difficulties during the tests we were able to do a good job. OK… now we’ll go to Brno hoping to learn from our team’s experience on that track”. More, from a press release issued by Team PATA/B&G Racing: Unsatisfying weekend for team PATA B&G Racing at Misano today. The day kicked off with the World Superstock 1000 race, where Lorenzo Baroni started from second position. The Italian lost a few positions at the start, but quickly managed to pass a rival. While trying to overtake another rider, went wide in mid corner and lost control of the bike, crashing to the ground. Immediately afterwards, it was Jakub Smrz’s turn to shine, but he had to retire from the race as well. He returned to the pit box after only one lap due to an issue technicians will have to look into, a malfunction which probably was the reason of the second retirement for Smrz, after three laps. JAKUB SMRZ | Ducati 1098R | retired, retired: “I’m disappointed I couldn’t technically ride a proper race at Misano , especially because here I’ve always gone very fast. Unfortunately, it’s not going very well for us lately, but I hope to redeem myself at Brno in 15 days-time, at my home track”. LORENZO BARONI | Ducati 1098R | retired: “I’m really disappointed. The riders who finished on the podium had the same pace as mine in race and earlier in practice . Unfortunately, I was maybe to eager to go in front in under braking, so in order not to hit Giuliano I pushed the back brake too much and crashed”. More, from a press release issued by Troy Corser’s publicist: TROY ON THE PODIUM AGAIN. After dominating Superpole, Troy started race one from pole position, led for the first sixteen laps and looked on course for his maiden win with BMW. But the smallest of errors cost him dearly and, in the end, he had to be satisfied with third place – repeating the result he had in Monza last month. Even though he wasn’t able to win today, he showed that he and the BMW are now genuine podium contenders, thanks in part to the big improvements to the bike made recently. Troy’s team marginally changed the set-up of the bike to improve rear grip, but the plan didn’t work. Although Troy led the first six laps, he struggled to stay in front because he was having difficulty getting the bike to turn and stop in the corners. He kept going and ended 10th. Local favourite Max Biaggi (Aprilia) won both races to increase his championship lead over Leon Haslam (Suzuki) to 37 points. In race one, he narrowly beat Carlos Checa (Ducati) with Troy third, but race two was much more comfortable. He took his second chequered flag of the day, over four seconds ahead of Haslam, with Michel Fabrizio (Ducati) third. Troy – Race 1: 3rd, Race 2: 10th I should have won the first race and the only reason I didn’t was because I made two small mistakes. This series is so hard that it only takes the smallest of mistakes or errors to lose a win and that’s what happened today. The bike has come on a lot recently and most of it is to do with a new set-up at the rear. It’s something that I’ve wanted to try for some time, but it’s not something that we felt we could try during a race weekend. We tried it at the recent Mugello tests and now I have bike I can ride easily without thinking about it – and that’s a great feeling. Now the bike is probably the best it has ever been at any stage and I felt comfortable leading the first race. I made a small mistake on lap seventeen when I went a bit wide at a left-hander and had to go on the grass. I couldn’t get my normal drive out of the turn as a result and Max (Biaggi) overtook me. On the next lap, I left a bit too much space going into another left-hander and Carlos (Checa) dived underneath me. From then on in, I matched them for lap times but just couldn’t pass them. Because it now takes such a long time for the interviews in parc fermé, the podium ceremony and the interviews in the Paddock Show, I wasn’t able to have a proper debrief with my team. We spoke briefly when I got back to the parc fermé and I told the boys that I was pretty happy with the bike and if they wanted to make some small adjustments they could do so. They wanted to improve the rear grip, so changed the front forks a little, but the plan didn’t work and the bike was actually harder to stop in the corners and this is why I started going backwards. It was a shame, because otherwise I felt that another podium was on the cards. Our tyres don’t like it when the track temperature goes over 30C, but I think that’s probably the same for everybody. Today Max and the Aprilia were a good package. They can be beaten, but our bike needs to be perfect to do it. As I said, I’m really happy with the bike now and I am enjoying leading races and challenging at the front. My goal is to try and finish third in the championship. I don’t know if that’s realistic, but that’s what I’m aiming for.