FIM Supersport World Championship Valencia, Spain April 5, 2009 Race Results (all on Pirelli tires): 1. Cal CRUTCHLOW (Yam YZF-R6), 23 laps, 38:15.613 2. Anthony WEST (Hon CBR600RR), -0.171 second 3. Kenan SOFUOGLU (Hon CBR600RR), -8.408 seconds 4. Mark AITCHISON (Hon CBR600RR), -12.421 5. Katsuaki FUJIWARA (Kaw ZX-6R), -16.529 6. Matthieu LAGRIVE (Hon CBR600RR), -19.242 7. Michele PIRRO (Yam YZF-R6), -26.124 8. Barry VENEMAN (Suz GSX-R600), -34.525 9. Eugene LAVERTY (Hon CBR600RR), -35.436 10. Fabien FORET (Yam YZF-R6), -38.337 11. Gianluca VIZZIELLO (Hon CBR600RR), -39.759 12. Robbin HARMS (Hon CBR600RR), -39.970 13. Andrew PITT (Hon CBR600RR), -50.532 14. Massimo ROCCOLI (Hon CBR600RR), -51.506 15. Doni Tata PRADITA (Yam YZF-R6), -62.755 16. Patrik VOSTÁREK (Hon CBR600RR), -72.275 17. Arie VOS (Hon CBR600RR), -84.237 18. Miguel PRAIA (Hon CBR600RR), -91.250 19. Joan LASCORZ (Kaw ZX-6R), -1 lap, pitted 20. Yannick GUERRA (Yam YZF-R6), -1 lap 23. Russell HOLLAND (Hon CBR600RR), -8 laps, DNF, retired 25. Garry MCCOY (Tri Daytona 675), -10 laps, DNF, retired 26. Gianluca NANNELLI (Tri Daytona 675), -12 laps, DNF, mechanical Championship Point Standings (after 3 of 14 races): 1. TIE, Crutchlow/Sofuoglu, 54 points 3. TIE, Laverty/Pitt/West, 43 6. Lagrive, 25 7. Aitchison, 24 8. Pirro, 18 9. TIE, Roccoli/Veneman, 17 More, from a press release issued by Parkalgar Honda: Fast finish gives Laverty ninth in Spain PARKALGAR HONDA’S Eugene Laverty showed maturity and speed to deal with a damp but drying race to take a points scoring ninth place at the third round of the World Championship in Valencia in Spain. Parkalgar Honda racer Miguel Praia finished just out of the points in 18th place after qualifying in 19th and struggling with the conditions early on. The race was won by Yamaha’s Cal Crutchlow. The next round of the World Championship takes place at Assen in Holland on April 26th. Eugene “I was worried about spinning up at the start with the damp track and didn’t get away well while everyone else got normal starts. I got behind Andrew Pitt and normally he is a demon at the start of a race and I thought I would follow him through. Instead, people came past me. I sat behind Andrew for too long and was too cautious. On the warm up lap I had ridden with my foot on the floor and knew the slippery corners and should have pushed by Andrew earlier. The Parkalgar Honda is working well and at the end in the dry my lap times were good. I am only 11-points behind the Championship lead after being 14-points behind after the opening round. We are still in good shape for the Championship scoring points on days like today that can make the difference between winning and losing title races.” Miguel “It was a difficult race; we did not expect rain as we took to the grid. I had to start with dry tyres in the damp and for me that is the worst conditions. I never felt comfortable in the damp and after a good start I nearly crashed many times before I could understand how hard to push. I had to slow down a little and by the time I had an understanding of the conditions it was too late. This is a shame as I had a good warm-up matching my qualifying time but the conditions were the worst for me. I will now put this race behind me and look forward to Assen.” Simon Buckmaster, Parkalgar Honda Team Manager “There were very iffy conditions, Eugene didn’t get a good start but once he got going he had good pace. Obviously he would have liked to have finished higher up the results sheet but he has scored valuable points and that is better than having pushed too hard early on and maybe being caught out by the conditions. It is a long Championship and he is still there in contention. Miguel doesn’t like damp half-dry tracks and doesn’t perform well; today was the worst possible conditions for him but at least he finished ahead of his qualifying position and can look forward to the next round.” More, from a press release issued by HANNspree Ten Kate Honda: Hannspree Ten Kate Honda’s Kenan Sofuoglu climbed the podium in today’s third round World Supersport championship race, finishing in third place behind Cal Crutchlow and fellow Honda-mounted Anthony West. Starting from eleventh place on the grid, Sofuoglu shot into the lead at the start of the race before dropping down to sixth, after a brief shower had delayed the start, leaving the 4.005km Ricardo Tormo circuit damp in places. Riding the new Honda CBR600RR, Sofuoglu battled in the leading trio for most of the race before settling for another solid points haul and joint place at the top of the championship table with Crutchlow. The Turkish rider’s Hannspree Ten Kate Honda team-mate and reigning Supersport world champion, Andrew Pitt, struggled throughout the race to get a good feeling from his bike and finished in thirteenth place. Kenan Sofuoglu P3 That was not such a bad result after the bad qualification we had yesterday. It’s been a very tough weekend so, at the end of the race, I just took the points that were on offer. Last night and again this morning, my crew tried hard to find something for me, so big thanks to them for this result. I knew it would be difficult to win but they gave me the chance to reach the podium. We will work on the new bike some more now and hopefully arrive at Assen with a better feeling and try to win again. Andrew Pitt P13 Whether you call it damage limitation or whatever, it’s very disappointing. I felt we’d made a bit of progress this morning in warm-up after a difficult day yesterday. But in the race today, I had no real feeling and found it difficult to turn the bike. In the early laps when it was still a bit wet, I couldn’t really tell what the rear was doing and I had some shifting problems, too. As the track dried, I just couldn’t turn on the throttle out of corners and had to wait until I was nearly upright before I got on the gas. We’ve got some work to do before Assen, but I know the team will get it sorted. Ronald ten Kate team manager After yesterday it was easy to conclude that we had some problems, but we did a lot of work through the night on suspension and general set-up. This morning in warm-up, both riders reported a positive feeling so we’re very happy to see Kenan on the podium. We’ll have to analyse the data to see what happened with Andrew because he clearly had a completely different feeling to this morning. Anyway, now we go to Assen and our home race, so we’ll be working hard for another positive result there. More, from a press release issued by Stiggy Racing: West stars in Valencia race Anthony West put in a blistering performance today on his new Stiggy Racing Honda CBR600RR, but lost his 13 lap strong lead in the ultimate lap of the race to Cal Crutchlow. From his front row start West made a smooth move to the front of the field in an attempt to put his disappointing performance of the last race in Qatar behind him. West and Crutchlow, who started from pole position, tussled the lead before West firmly put the Yamaha behind him halfway the race. From then on it was West who tried to extend his lead and secure his potential first win for his new team, but Crutchlow managed to pick up the pace in the last minutes and made a move past West on the straight before going into the last lap, leaving West with little to no opportunity to recover his position. West went out today determined to win and deserved to do so but was forced to step back and take second. West’s Supersport result came after a week of hard work by the team as they developed their new bikes and engines and succeeded in their quest to finish their bikes top of the Honda’s in a field that is dominated by the Japanese manufacturers’ machines. Anthony West now holds an equal third place in the Championship standings alongside Andrew Pitt and Eugene Laverty, while Gianluca Vizziello sits in 16th position. The latter had to dig deep today to keep up the progression he started this weekend, but managed to ride a consistent race and finished in 11th position. Anthony West, P2; “I came here to win this race and am a bit disappointed that I got beaten in the last lap after leading most of the race. But it is definitely a better result then the last race in Qatar where I got beaten by all the others. My mechanics have put a lot of time and work into developing the new engine and the new bikes we got for this weekend and today shows how strong and competitive the bike really is. For the next race we will work on further improving the engine to prepare us even better for the next race. I was so close today and now I just want to win. I like the track in Assen and am eager to take victory there.” Gianluca Vizziello, P11; “This result was very important for me and the team. I was rather angry with myself after the qualifying sessions. We just couldn’t work out what was wrong and where we had to find the improvement. My mechanics made some improvements on the bike and the suspension and the results clearly showed off today. I think that I can make another step forward in the next round in Assen.” Johan Stigefelt, Team Manager; “We had some issues in the Qatar race and worked hard on finding the solution. It worked out well over the last couple of days and Anthony became faster in each outing. He went out today determined to win he deserved to do so, but unfortunately he made a small mistake in the first corner after Crutchlow had past him and couldn’t make up. It’s great to come back like this and I’m very pleased to see Anthony confident and happy again. The way he rides the bike is unbelievable and shows the potential. I want to thank my team for all the effort and hard work they have put into making this happen today. Vizziello also made a big step from where he was in qualifying and set his best lap of the race in the second last lap. If he can continue his progress he will be able to make another step in Assen.” More, from a press release issued by Honda: TWO NEW 2009 HONDAS ON THE PODIUM IN SPAIN In round three of the World Supersport Championships, Kenan Sofuoglu (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR) finished the race third after starting the race 11th on the grid, and his podium finish puts him on a class-leading total of 54 points, shared with Valencia race winner, Cal Crutchlow. Sofuoglu had to work hard for his points and podium finish today, as his team used their 2009 spec Hondas for the first time at this race meeting, having started the season on 2008 machinery, which was more familiar to them. Best-placed Honda rider in the Valencia WSS race was Anthony West (Stiggy Racing Honda CBR600RR) who qualified third and finished second having led the race for 13 of its 23-lap distance. He is now one of three Honda riders tied on 43 points, in joint third place. The others are Qatar race winner Eugene Laverty (Parkalgar Honda CBR600RR) and reigning champion, Andrew Pitt (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR). Laverty battled through from 13th in qualifying and 16th place on lap one, as he rode with care on a damp track, in a race that was delayed to ensure that the short fall of light rain that started soon after WSB race one would pass by before the start of track action. The race was declared dry, albeit started in slightly damp track conditions, which made all the riders more cautious than usual in the early laps. Laverty went ninth in the race itself. For Pitt, the move to his new machinery did not go as smoothly as he expected, and he crashed three times in the new single qualifying session, on Saturday. He started the race ninth on the grid, on row three, and could only finish 13th, scoring only three points. Mark Aitchison (Honda Althea CBR600RR) was a season best fourth in the race, his team-mate Matthieu Lagrive (Honda Althea CBR600RR) sixth, as the pairing started the races from row two of the grid. In the championship, Lagrive has 25 points in sixth place; Aitchison has 24 points in seventh overall. Six of the top seven machines in the riders’ rankings are Hondas, and Honda leads Yamaha by 16 points in the Manufacturers’ Championship after three rounds. Gianluca Vizziello (Stiggy Racing Honda CBR600RR) was 11th and satisfied with it after some set-up issues initially appeared in qualifying, Robbin Harms finished 12th on the Veidec Racing Honda with teammate Arie Vos 17th while Miguel Praia (Parkalgar Honda CBR600RR) was out of the points in 18th, the last rider not to be lapped. WSB Rider Quotes Leon Haslam said: “I am happy with my top five results today. I didn’t really have the best of starts in the second race and had to pass all the other Hondas so by the time I caught Neukirchner and passed him for fifth the leading group was gone again. My pace was quick enough to run with the front group if I had the start that we wanted. We made some good progress and got the most out of what we had for this weekend.” Jonathan Rea said: “I got a pretty good start in race one and had the bike cranked right over coming out of the first right-hander. The next thing I knew I was up in the air, hanging on to the bike but missing the seat when I landed. And that was that. We didn’t really have any information to change anything for race two but it wasn’t great. It’s been a tough few days so all I can do is thank my team for all their hard work this weekend and say that we’ll re-group for Assen and try to get some decent results for the team’s home race.” Carlos Checa said: “Race one was a little bit better than race two, but still not where we want to be. In the first race, my start was not so good and as I approached the final turn behind Tom Sykes, I hit the white line during braking. There was no grip so I had no alternative but to go into the gravel. I tried to get some data from the tyre, but it wouldn’t let me go fast enough to learn anything so I pulled in. My start in race two put me in a better position for braking into the first turn, but when the race settled down I found that I couldn’t open the throttle with the bike on its side.” Ryuichi Kiyonari said: “I In the first race, I thought on the sighting lap that the rear felt a little strange but thought it was just because the tyre was cold. When the race started I knew I was going to have some problems and I nearly highsided on the way into the first right-hander at turn three. I had no grip for the remaining 23 laps so 12th was the best I could do. In race two, the start was OK but Troy Corser ran into the side of me in the last turn early on and I lost some time and a few positions. The grip was a little better after we changed the settings, so I was able to regain some places. I caught Biaggi near the end but did not have enough to get past.” John Hopkins said: “I went from 16th to sixth in the first lap of race two. We lost a little bit of ground and Leon pulled away from me, then I had a lonely race until we had to slow down when the fuel limiter started to cut in, and a few other riders passed me. This weekend was always going to be a learning experience, but we proved that we really could do the lap times. It’s not going to be easy but I am confident that we can be running at the pointy end of the field before the season is out.” Tommy Hill said: “All weekend we have been struggling with some gearing problems. I am hitting the limiter in places yet third gear feels flat. We had a problem with the swingarm in race one, so we changed it before race two. I wanted to get a better result but I had no confidence or feeling from the front.” WSS Rider Quotes Anthony West said: “The first few laps were a bit dodgy with the wet track so I took it easy until Cal came past and then started following him. I came here wanting to win this race, and led most of it, and only got passed on the last lap. I had no chance to get him back but I am happy with the race after the result we had in Qatar. We had a new bike this weekend and it was a big step forward, so I am pretty happy and we can improve a lot on what we have already.” Kenan Sofuoglu said: “The result is not so bad because I had qualified in 11th position. In the race I saw my chance but I could not stay with the front two and I realised I had to take the points. This is a long championship, and I needed to stay on the bike. We have a new bike now and we need to improve our settings. The mechanics worked late into the night to find us a new set-up and our new settings were better. It was my goal to win but I knew I could not today, so that has to be a goal for me in the next few races.” Mark Aitchison said: “The race for me was quite good in the middle and at the end, while in the beginning I wanted to test the track condition and so I did not push very hard. After six or seven laps I improved my race pace and I started to pass a few riders in front of me. I maintained a consistent lap time until the end of the race and took fourth place.” Andrew Pitt said: “I didn’t get a good start and never got a good feeling from the rear at the start. The bike just didn’t come to me during the race as the track dried out. We had trouble entering the turns and holding the lines. We made a bit of a gamble on the set-up and obviously it didn’t work.” Matthieu Lagrive said: “My start was very good and during the first laps and I was very fast, but starting from the third lap I felt some vibrations coming from my rear wheel, due to the tyre. I couldn’t really chase the riders in front of me and the only thing I could do was try and finish the race.” Eugene Laverty said: “I was worried about spinning up at the start with the damp track and didn’t get away well while everyone else got normal starts. I got behind Andrew Pitt and normally he is a demon at the start of a race and I thought I would follow him through. Instead, people came past me. I sat behind Andrew for too long and was too cautious. At the end in the dry my lap times were good.” Miguel Praia said: “It was a difficult race; we did not expect rain as we took to the grid. I had to start with dry tyres in the damp and for me that is the worst conditions. I never felt comfortable in the damp and after a good start I nearly crashed many times before I could understand how hard to push. I had to slow down a little and by the time I had an understanding of the conditions it was too late.” Gianluca Vizziello said: “This result was very important for me and the team. I was rather angry with myself after the qualifying sessions. We just couldn’t work out what was wrong and where we had to find the improvement. My mechanics made some improvements on the bike and the suspension and the results clearly showed it today. I think that I can make another step forward in the next round in Assen.” Robbin Harms said: “The weekend went well overall, but the race was not so good. I started steadily because of a lack of grip, but when I tried to push harder I had problems with my bike’s handling. I tried the whole race to push as hard as possible but I just wasn’t able to keep up with the riders who passed me. We will have to strip the bike down to see if there is a problem. I am happy with the points I scored and with the progress we’ve made this weekend, and I would like to thank my team for that. We shall take this with us to Assen, a track I really like, and I will battle for a top-ten position there!” Arie Vos said: “It was a tough race today. After the start the track was still very slippery but I did feel comfortable and able to run with the rest of the pack. However, when the track started to dry they raised the pace and then it started getting harder for me. I was losing most time exiting the corners so we will have to find out if that was because of my riding style or if we have to make some changes to the bike. I am positive about the improvements we have made and, although we had one practice session less than we had at the last race, we managed to make some good steps forward.” Jesco Günther said: “I had already noticed on the warm-up lap that we had chosen the wrong tyres. So, just 5 minutes of rain destroyed my whole weekend. The grip on the track in Valencia can be very unpredictable and I didn’t expect the track to dry so fast after the rain shower. We made the wrong choice and I noticed very quickly that I wouldn’t be able to finish the race on the soft tyres we had fitted. As you can imagine, I am pretty fed up with that. However, we did manage to improve the settings of the bike over the weekend, though, and I hope we can continue to improve in Assen, so I can go there and score some much-needed points.” More, from a press release issued by Yamaha: Crutchlow Dominates in sensational Valencia debut Cal Crutchlow left no questions unanswered today in the Spanish sunshine. The British rider looked confident from the start and was rarely out of the lead as he powered his R6 to victory. A brief rain shower before the start of the Supersport race meant the first couple of laps got underway slowly with cautious riders looking to avoid a spill. Cal picked up the pace quickly however, fighting with Lascorz and Pirro for the top spot before taking the lead on lap five. He held on until lap 12 when Honda rider Anthony West overtook. Crutchlow then tucked up behind before re-taking the lead in a stunning pass on the first corner of the last lap and taking the chequered flag for his first World Supersport Championship race win. Crutchlow’s team-mate Foret had a difficult start in the slippery conditions, initially dropping down to 20th position. The Frenchman found his race pace six laps in and steadily worked his way back up to tenth position, taking ten places along the way but too late to climb any higher. Crutchlow leaves Valencia leading the World Supersport Championship with 54 points, team-mate Foret is currently 12th with 15 points. Cal Crutchlow, Yamaha World Supersport Team, (1st) “I knew where we were strongest into turn one and out on the back straights, however West was really strong in the places where we were a bit weaker. We’ve been chasing a perfect set-up all weekend and luckily we found it for the race. It was dodgy conditions for the start but we got through it and got on the pace. The team have put in such a lot of effort since the last race. To come here and win is really good for me and really good for Yamaha.” Fabien Foret, Yamaha World Supersport Team, (12th) “For me it was a very frustrating race, the slippery conditions made it hard to get a good start and by the time I’d found a good rhythm and pace I was back down the field. I worked hard though and found a good pace and stuck to it and was happy to make up some of those places and get back up to tenth for the end. I’m looking forward to getting to Assen and fighting for a podium.” Wilco Zeelenberg, Yamaha World Supersport Team Manager “It’s great to be back on top of the podium as it’s been a while! We’ve been working really hard to get back here so the team deserve it. We are leading the championship with Cal, he worked really hard all weekend and followed a superb pole position and lap record with a fantastic win. So one side of the box is really happy as you can imagine. For Fabien it’s a little disappointing, the rain just before the race meant he couldn’t get onto the pace straight away. Six or seven laps in he was as fast as the leading group but it was too late. For Cal it was an amazing job, taking over Anthony on the last lap was fantastic. I’m very happy!” More, from a press release issued by Team YZF Yamaha Doni Tata Pradita scored his first point Indonesian Yamaha rider Doni Pradita scored today his first point in the Supersport World Championship in Valencia (Spain). At the third round of the Supersport championship, Doni Tata Pradita improved again. He couldn’t finish the first race in Australia (technical problem), was 20th in Qatar in the second round, and finally in Valencia he progressed again with the 15th position and his very first Supersport point. The race was very difficult because there was some light rain before the start. When the flag dropped, the track was still a little bit wet and the riders had to use extreme caution in the first lap. Doni was careful, and he was in 20th position at the end of the first lap. Then he progressed to 18th place on lap 3, to position 17 on lap 4, and went back for a while to make sure not to crash. He was 19th on lap 9 (out of 23 laps) and jumped to 15th position on lap 12 and stayed there until the chequered flag. This is a great success for the 18 year old rider, who used very well his head and his experience to achieve a great result. Doni Tata Pradita: “I am happy today. In the first 3 races I get 1 point and it’s not so bad. It is a good experience. Now I want more points. This race was done in difficult conditions. The beginning was hard. After 5 laps, I pushed more and more. In the beginning, I was 19th or 20th, and I tried hard so I went to the 16th place, and then 15th. I am really happy. It was difficult in the beginning of the race because the surface was wet and (as it did not rain during the practice) we did not have any rain setting. But the rain stops and the sun came. I am happy.” Team-manager Martial Garcia: “It’s great to be in the World Championship points. Doni confirms his progression with the point of the 15th place. He was helped by a well performing Yamaha. He does better and better, and everybody can see that his career is progressing. He is adapting very well to the Supersport category.” More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki: Fujiwara Top Five After Busy Valencia Race WSS, Valencia, Spain, 5 April 2009 Katsuaki Fujiwara rode from 11th place on lap one to fifth on the final lap to secure his first points of the year and prove the competitiveness of both himself and his 2009 Ninja ZX-6R machine. The Japanese rider was back to his old self this weekend, with the bike and rider feeling the benefits of a recent Valencia test session, as he passed many of his fellow riders after a slow start from the front row. He had qualified fourth, two places behind his team-mate, Joan Lascorz. The Spaniard, riding in his and his team’s home race, was desperately unlucky to find his rear tyre punctured, having been in the running for the win despite a track surface that started out slightly damp, even though the race direction declared a dry race. Many riders took it very steadily in the first few corners but Lascorz chased down early leader Michele Pirro to take the lead, then he was passed by eventual race winner Cal Crutchlow. Lascorz finished 19th after pitting to take on a new tyre, hoping in vain to gain at least a single point. Katsuaki Fujiwara: “Today was much better than before and I am very happy for all in the team. They have worked well and the bike is much improved. I think most of the riders, like me, were quite nervous of the early conditions, and went easy until we realised if it was wet or dry. I had to make up a lot of ground but to finish top five was a good result. We have a much better level of performance as a base now. We are not quite there yet, but we have a good pace now and can compete.” Joan Lascorz: “I was riding with the leaders but I had to stop as the rear tyre had a puncture. We fitted a new tyre and I went out and set fast laps but we had lost too much time. It’s a big disappointment to lose points in this way because things were looking good for a strong result. It was not our fault and so there was nothing we could do about it.” More, from a press release issued by Team ParkinGO Triumph BE1 Racing: Team ParkinGo Triumph BE1 Racing will try to forget the unlucky weekend at Valencia. On the Spanish track, Gianluca Nannelli and Garry McCoy had to return to the pits much too early after two races in which they had different choices. Just a few minutes before entering the track, the rain kind of ruined everything forcing the teams to change strategy. McCoy chose rain tyres for the race as the surface was still damp and it was cloudy. It was a bad choice as the track dried off rapidly and forced him to retire. Gianluca Nannelli instead chose dry tyres, putting on a great recovery. He got very close to the top 3(at about 3 seconds and a half). Unfortunately, in lap 12 his Daytona 675 broke down and he was forced to retire from the race as well. GIANLUCA NANNELLI | Triumph Daytona 675 | retired, retired: “At first I managed to recover some positions and the leading pack was not very far away. Unfortunately, I was unlucky yet again and I coulnd’t finish the race. It’s a shame because we had found a setup that would’ve enabled us to fight with the top riders, after the difficulties we had during practice”. GARRY McCOY | Triumph Daytona 675 | retired, retired: “I made a bad choice using the wets. It dind’t rain as we hoped despite the uncertain weather. In the first few laps everything went smoothly but later the track dried off and at that point it was almost impossible for me to finish the race”.