WSBK: Rea Leads British Domination Of Portimao Tests

( from SPeed.com, Written by: Media Release, 01/24/2010, Portimao (POR
(pics by Jim Race)

Jonathan Rea powered to the best time at the end of the three-day Infront Motor Sports official Superbike test session at Portimao in Portugal. The Northern Ireland youngster’s time of 1 minute 42.270 seconds was quicker even than Ben Spies’ 2009 pole mark for Yamaha.
The battle between Rea and his fellow-Brit Leon Haslam, who had been quickest on day 1, continued right until the very end, the Suzuki Alstare man ending up three-tenths behind.
British rider domination continued with Shane Byrne taking his private Althea Ducati 1098 to third place in the timesheets, and with Cal Crutchlow, one of Yamaha Sterilgarda’s two new 2010 signings, in fourth.
In the final stages, after most of the top riders had used their soft tires normally reserved for Superpole, Michel Fabrizio (Ducati Xerox) found himself in fifth place with a time of 1’43.137 ahead of former double world champion James Toseland (Yamaha Sterilgarda), who returns to Superbike after a gap of two seasons.

Max Biaggi (Aprilia Racing) was the only one of the leading runners not to go out on softer rubber and the Italian finished the test in seventh place with a time of 1’43.364, just ahead of 2009 runner-up Noriyuki Haga (Ducati Xerox), forced to slow with a technical problem during his quick lap.

Jonathan Rea: “This test was a lot of fun, we worked through everything methodically and we are in good shape to begin the season. We got most of the big things like suspension spec, linkage and swing-arm teed off so now we can go to Phillip Island and fine-tune our racing. To say we are ready to go racing at Phillip Island, we’re not sure about that, but the bike is ready and now I plan to put the next three or four weeks to good use with my trainer and hopefully I’ll be ready. We’re all excited about the prospect of racing for a world championship.”

Leon Haslam: “It’s been a really positive test, we managed to test the Suzuki for the first time in the rain and intermediate conditions. We had a few issues at the end of the day but ended up second and I was really happy with that. Every test I’ve been to so far, this is our fourth, we’ve not been outside the top 2. Hopefully we can continue progressing and I can take it to Phillip Island.”
Shane Byrne: “This is my third year riding the Ducati and I honestly thought I knew everything there was to know about these bikes, but this year Genesio (Bevilacqua, team owner) has put together a fantastic team and we have two very good bikes. I have a strong teammate, everything about the team is very good, the bike is so different from last year, and we made some really good progress in three days. I wish the second day had been dry also, so we still have some more work to do now at Valencia and Phillip Island before the first race.”

The 2010 winter tests will conclude at Phillip Island the week before the start of the season at the same circuit in Australia on February 28th. In the next few days however several teams, including BMW, Aprilia and Ducati, will be heading to Valencia for some extra testing.

Portimao Testing - Superbike Overall (Friday/Saturday/Sunday)
1 65 Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 1'42.270
2 91 Haslam L. (GBR) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1'42.557
3 67 Byrne S. (GBR) Ducati 1098R 1'42.877
4 35 Crutchlow C. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 1'42.960
5 84 Fabrizio M. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'43.137
6 52 Toseland J. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 1'43.157
7 3 Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 1000 F. 1'43.364
8 41 Haga N. (JPN) Ducati 1098R 1'43.417
9 76 Neukirchner M. (GER) Honda CBR1000RR 1'43.471
10 50 Guintoli S. (FRA) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1'43.508
11 7 Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 1'43.629
12 2 Camier L. (GBR) Aprilia RSV4 1000 F. 1'43.749
13 11 Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 1'43.931
14 77 Vermeulen C. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX 10R 1'44.108
15 66 Sykes T. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX 10R 1'44.365
16 111 Xaus R. (ESP) BMW S1000 RR 1'44.570
17 23 Parkes B. (AUS) Honda CBR1000RR 1'44.751
18 31 Iannuzzo V. (ITA) Honda CBR1000RR 1'45.348
19 95 Hayden R. (USA) Kawasaki ZX 10R 1'46.990
20 12 Fores J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX 10R 1'47.293

WSBK - 2010 Calendar & Provisional entry lists

Dates Country Circuit
Feb-28 Australia Phillip Island
Mar-28 Portugal Portimão
Apr-11 Spain Valencia A
pr-25 Netherlands Assen
May-09 Italy Monza
May-16 South Africa Kyalami
May-31 United States Salt Lake City(***)
Jun-27 San Marino Misano
Jul-11 Czech Rep. Brno
Aug-01 Great-Britain Silverstone
Sep-05 Germany Nürburgring
Sep-26 Italy Imola(*)
Oct-03 France Magny-Cours


2010 Provisional Entry List
N° Rider Nat Team Motorcycle
1 41 Noriyuki Haga JPN Ducati Xerox Team Ducati 1098R
2 84 Michel Fabrizio ITA Ducati Xerox Team Ducati 1098R
3 35 Cal Crutchlow GBR Yamaha Sterilgarda Team Yamaha YZF R1
4 52 James Toseland GBR Yamaha Sterilgarda Team Yamaha YZF R1
5 65 Jonathan Rea GBR HANNspree Ten Kate Honda Honda CBR1000RR
6 76 Max Neukirchner GER HANNspree Ten Kate Honda Honda CBR1000RR
7 2 Leon Camier GBR Aprilia Racing Aprilia RSV4 1000
8 3 Max Biaggi ITA Aprilia Racing Aprilia RSV4 1000
9 50 Sylvain Guintoli FRA Team Suzuki Alstare Suzuki GSX-R1000
10 91 Leon Haslam GBR Team Suzuki Alstare Suzuki GSX-R1000
11 11 Troy Corser AUS BMW Motorrad Motorsport BMW S1000 RR
12 111 Ruben Xaus ESP BMW Motorrad Motorsport BMW S1000 RR
13 66 Tom Sykes GBR Kawasaki World Superbike Racing Team Kawasaki ZX 10R
14 77 Chris Vermeulen AUS Kawasaki World Superbike Racing Team Kawasaki ZX 10R
15 96 Jakub Smrz CZE Borciani-Guandalini Racing Team Ducati 1098R
16 95 Roger Lee Hayden USA Team Pedercini Kawasaki ZX 10R
17 TBA Team Pedercini Kawasaki ZX 10R
18 TBA DFX Corse Ducati 1098R
19 7 Carlos Checa ESP Althea Racing Ducati 1098R
20 67 Shane Byrne GBR Althea Racing Ducati 1098R
21 31 Vittorio Iannuzzo ITA Squadra Corse Italia Honda CBR1000RR
22 23 Broc Parkes AUS ECHO CRS Grand Prix Honda CBR1000RR
23 88 Andrew Pitt AUS Reitwagen Motorsport BMW S1000 RR
24 123 Roland Resch AUT Reitwagen Motorsport BMW S1000 RR
25 49 Makoto Tamada JPN Pro-Ride World Superbike Racing Team Honda CBR1000RR
26 99 Luca Scassa ITA Supersonic Team Ducati 1098R

wsbk- Berno - FP1+QP1

Italian flavour for opening Brno qualifying

Friday, 24 July 2009 18:10 worlsbk.com

Two Italians, Max Biaggi (Aprilia Racing) and Michel Fabrizio (Ducati Xerox) powered to the top two slots on the opening day of World Superbike qualifying at Brno in the Czech Republic. The multiple world champion was the only rider to dip under the two minute mark, when he set the quickest time of 1 minute 59.982 seconds right at the very end of the session. Less than one-tenth behind was Fabrizio, with both riders confirming their exceptional feeling with the Czech circuit. Third place went to another man with considerable experience of the Brno track, Spain's Carlos Checa (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda), while Ben Spies (Yamaha World Superbike), who has never seen the place before, was fourth quickest.

Italian colours were also held high by Lorenzo Lanzi, in fifth place for the private DFX Ducati team, while BMW confirmed its recent Imola testing progress as Troy Corser and Ruben Xaus set sixth and eighth quickest time respectively for the German manufacturer. One illustrious top 10 outsider at the moment is the returning Japanese rider Noriyuki Haga (Ducati Xerox), the points leader, who was injured at Donington, preferring to ease back into the pace without taking any risks and guarantee himself a position in Superpole. Haga currently lies in 15th.

Kawasaki also showed some progress in the first session, with Broc Parkes placing ninth and Makoto Tamada 17th, but the Japanese rider's fourth quickest time at the end was annulled because he had started his quick lap after the chequered flag had been shown. While some way down the field for the moment can be found Jonathan Rea (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) and home favourite Jakub Smrz (Guandalini Ducati) in 13th and 14th place respectively.

Brno Superbike - Free Practice 1st Session

Friday, 24 July 2009 13:55

1 3 Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 2'01.353
2 121 Hopkins J. (USA) Honda CBR1000RR 2'01.399
3 19 Spies B. (USA) Yamaha YZF R1 2'01.573
4 84 Fabrizio M. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 2'01.616
5 11 Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 2'01.733
6 9 Kiyonari R. (JPN) Honda CBR1000RR 2'01.761
7 7 Checa C. (ESP) Honda CBR1000RR 2'01.829
8 111 Xaus R. (ESP) BMW S1000 RR 2'01.881
9 71 Kagayama Y. (JPN) Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 2'01.951
10 57 Lanzi L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 2'02.032
11 65 Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 2'02.071
12 100 Tamada M. (JPN) Kawasaki ZX 10R 2'02.087
13 56 Nakano S. (JPN) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 2'02.136
14 23 Parkes B. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX 10R 2'02.331
15 14 Lagrive M. (FRA) Honda CBR1000RR 2'02.393
16 67 Byrne S. (GBR) Ducati 1098R 2'02.395
17 96 Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R 2'02.570
18 41 Haga N. (JPN) Ducati 1098R 2'02.668
19 91 Haslam L. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 2'02.689
20 10 Nieto F. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 2'02.710
21 66 Sykes T. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 2'03.168
22 53 Polita A. (ITA) Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 2'03.549
23 25 Salom D. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX 10R 2'03.847
24 99 Scassa L. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX 10R 2'03.865
25 77 Iannuzzo V. (ITA) Honda CBR1000RR 2'04.077
26 94 Checa D. (ESP) Yamaha YZF R1 2'04.250
27 88 Resch R. (AUT) Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 2'05.556
28 51 Cihak M. (CZE) Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 2'06.820

Brno Superbike - Qualifying 1st Session

Friday, 24 July 2009 17:30

1 3 Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1'59.982
2 84 Fabrizio M. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 2'00.066
3 7 Checa C. (ESP) Honda CBR1000RR 2'00.205
4 19 Spies B. (USA) Yamaha YZF R1 2'00.558
5 57 Lanzi L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 2'00.581
6 11 Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 2'00.603
7 56 Nakano S. (JPN) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 2'00.648
8 111 Xaus R. (ESP) BMW S1000 RR 2'00.731
9 23 Parkes B. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX 10R 2'00.887
10 71 Kagayama Y. (JPN) Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 2'00.958
11 67 Byrne S. (GBR) Ducati 1098R 2'01.017
12 121 Hopkins J. (USA) Honda CBR1000RR 2'01.021
13 65 Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 2'01.023
14 96 Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R 2'01.031
15 41 Haga N. (JPN) Ducati 1098R 2'01.062
16 66 Sykes T. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 2'01.070
17 100 Tamada M. (JPN) Kawasaki ZX 10R 2'01.385
18 91 Haslam L. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 2'01.403
19 9 Kiyonari R. (JPN) Honda CBR1000RR 2'01.439
20 14 Lagrive M. (FRA) Honda CBR1000RR 2'01.720
21 99 Scassa L. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX 10R 2'02.155
22 77 Iannuzzo V. (ITA) Honda CBR1000RR 2'02.346
23 10 Nieto F. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 2'02.644
24 25 Salom D. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX 10R 2'02.691
25 94 Checa D. (ESP) Yamaha YZF R1 2'02.785
26 53 Polita A. (ITA) Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 2'02.940
27 88 Resch R. (AUT) Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 2'04.041
28 51 Cihak M. (CZE) Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 2'04.905

wsbk- Berno - Before the race weekend

Track Map, from trackpedia.com

Track info from: highrevs.net

Brno

Track country: Czech Republic

Track length: 5403m, 3.357miles

Track width: 15m

Longest straight: 636m, 0.395miles

Track left corners: 6

Track right corners: 8

Track time zone: GMT +1

track record: from: automotodrombrno.cz

Superbike:
2008	M. Fabrizio	Ducati	1:59,979	Dry

A look back at Brno - The last three editions

Wednesday, 22 July 2009 18:19 .worldsbk.com

2006 - The star of the Championship, Troy Bayliss, was out at the first turn after a collision with Laconi and thus the fight for the win was wide open. A group formed of Toseland, Kagayama, Haga and Pitt took the lead, but after a handful of laps Toseland and Kagayama parted company, fighting for the win alone. Yukio had the upper hand and on the fifteenth lap attacked and passed James. On the following lap he had one and a half seconds over Toseland and started to pull away for the win. Behind Kagayama and Toseland, Fabrizio took third, his first Superbike podium, obtained with a broken collarbone.

In race 2 Haga rocketed away at the start and after five laps had an advantage of a couple of seconds over his rivals, a group composed of Toseland, Corser, Bayliss and Kagayama. Bayliss however dropped off soon: he opted for a softer compound that gave him traction problems. Troy was forced to race in the middle of the pack and in the closing stages Lanzi gave him the eighth place for an extra point in the World Championship standings. Among Haga's pursuers Kagayama was in a class of his own: he passed Toseland and Corser and on the fifteenth lap he started chasing Noriyuki. It took him only a couple of laps to recover his 2.5 seconds deficit and when he arrived on his back, Haga waved him past: he was in trouble with his tyres and he wasn't able to fight for the win. Kagayama then took the double and on the last lap there was a spectacular fight for second place that saw Haga, Corser and Fabrizio involved. The Italian was behind his more experienced rivals but in the last couple of turns he was able to pass them and score his best career result, a second place.

2007 - Biaggi came to Brno for the first time in the World Superbike Championship as the king of the circuit, boasting a scoreboard of seven wins collected in the 250 and MotoGP classes and he confirmed his state of form by qualifying in second. He was beaten only by a spectacular Haga, the only man to go below the two minutes mark in the history of the circuit with an incredible lap in Superpole. In race 1 after a few laps Toseland, Biaggi, Haga and Kagayama formed a group that fought for the lead. Haga maintained the lead until traction problems sent him back and thus Toseland remained in front, followed closely by Biaggi. Everyone expected Biaggi to attack in the last laps, but his rival was perfect and Max couldn't make his move, Toseland won, Biaggi behind him and further back Kagayama and Haga. A memorable moment involved Troy Bayliss: the Aussie had setup problems and was fighting for a lowly tenth place when he was rammed by Muggeridge and both ended their run on the gravel trap. Troy right after the collision went to Muggeridge and... thanked him because he wasn't having much fun so far back in the pack.

The start of race 2 was delayed for a few drops of rain, the race was declared wet, but the tarmac was practically dry (everyone was on slicks). Biaggi was not so sure about the conditions, he didn't take any risks in the first laps and he fell in seventh place, while out in front the two Yamahas of Haga and Corser were able to make the difference and set off in formation, pulling away from the rest. After five laps however Corser's engine expired and Haga was left alone with a couple of seconds over Toseland and Biaggi; the Italian had recovered the positions he lost at the start and sat behind the Honda Ten Kate machine, which he was able to pass on the eleventh lap. Haga's pace was good and everyone expected a win by the Japanese rider, but after ten laps a problem that often afflicted the Yamahas hit Noriyuki: lack of traction. His lap times increased dramatically and he was passed by Biaggi and then Toseland. Soon afterwards Max changed pace and pulled away, winning by a good margin over Toseland. Behind them was Fabrizio, who passed Haga four laps from the end. Biaggi won the race with three stitches in his left hand, after he had been hit by a stone raised by Toseland's bike in race 1 that pierced the fairing of his Suzuki.

2008 - Going into Brno very few people would have placed their bets on the Ducati Xerox squad, given the hard times they had had in the past at the Czech track, but the 1098 worked wonders and was also able to turn the tables in Brno. Bayliss took pole in front of Corser, Fabrizio and Biaggi, and with three Ducatis in the four top spots, the outcome of the race seemed pretty clear. In race 1 Biaggi took the lead at the first corner, only to be repassed by Corser soon afterwards. The duo kept on changing places in front with Bayliss right behind, overlooking the whole affair. After a handful of laps Biaggi managed to hit the front for good, just as Neukirchner joined the company, but he wasn't a factor as he started dropping back after ten laps or so. The tyres started to tell and after a couple more laps also Biaggi had trouble with his front and on the twelfth lap both Bayliss and Corser passed him. Bayliss had saved his tyres and recorded some impressive laps leaving Corser behind. The Ducati rider had so much in reserve that he was even able to set the fastest lap of the race three laps from the finish, when pretty much everybody else was struggling for front-end grip. Corser came home second, while Biaggi eventually fell into the clutches of Fabrizio and Kiyonari and was passed by his fellow countryman at the penultimate corner, losing third place.

Race 2 was a repetition of race 1, with Biaggi taking a cautious approach: he changed the front compound to a harder one and stayed on Bayliss' and Corser's tail to save his rubber. Corser led the first laps, then Bayliss took the lead by lap 9 and led the group of the front runners, who included Corser, Biaggi and Neukirchner, the German after ten laps dropped back like in race 1. Bayliss five laps from the end accelerated abruptly and left Corser and Biaggi to fight for second. The Roman was able to pass on the penultimate lap, but on the last lap Fabrizio came from behind and again pipped him completing the Ducati Xerox 1-2. Biaggi was third confirming that the 1098 had no rivals on this track. Compared to the 999 the new 1200 cc engine had more grunt that helped Bayliss & Co. considerably out of the corners and up the hills of the Czech track. The four cylinders were left powerless and Bayliss' lead in the Championship became huge: the Australian left Brno with 79 points over Neukirchner and 91 over Corser. The leitmotiv of the season continued as the rivals of Bayliss kept on having highs and lows: Checa was never in the game, soundly beaten by Kiyonari and also suffering a traction control failure in race 2, while Haga wasn't able to match Corser's pace in the races. In race 2 he came into the pits before the start claiming that the engine was not working properly and swapped bikes starting thus from the back. That maybe was a case of paranoia as the team said afterwards that there weren't any problems on his bike.

Yamaha head to Brno looking for more points before the summer break

Yamaha World Superbike Team riders Ben Spies and Tom Sykes head to Brno this weekend for their first race on the Czech Republic circuit. Both Spies and Sykes are on confident form having given their 2009 R1 race bikes a thorough shakedown and test at the official World Superbike test at Imola last week. Spies comes to Brno just 14 points behind championship leader Noriyuki Haga with everything to play for whilst team mate Sykes has his eyes fixed firmly on the top five with five rounds left to run in the 2009 championship.

The Automotodrom Brno is a 5.403km circuit that features constant elevation changes and the fastest chicane in WSB. The uphill straight towards the last chicane features an incredible power sapping 7.5% gradient, which will test the strongest engines on the grid.

"We had a good test at Imola last week so I'm in a confident mood," said Ben Spies. "Brno is yet again another new track for us so I'm really looking forward to running around the circuit this week and then getting out on the bike on Friday to get a feel for it. We only have ten races left now to the end of the championship so we need to make every one count. Everybody is going to be working hard to be up front this weekend so it's going to be a tough race but I'm excited about it." "I'm really looking forward to showing some more of my recent pace," said Tom Sykes. "I've been getting faster and faster all year as we've resolved some issues with the set up and now I feel we've got a package I can use to challenge and stay with the front pack. I haven't ridden Brno before but I think we can pick it up quickly on Friday and get cracking on the bike set up."

Kagayama goes solo for Suzuki this weekend

Thursday, 23 July 2009 12:44.worldsbk.com

After the very unfortunate injury to Team Suzuki Alstare Brux rider Max Neukirchner in his comeback at the Imola tests last week, Yukio Kagayama will be the teams sole rider in Brno this coming weekend. Max suffered damage to four of his vertebra when he fell in Imola and faces a lengthy spell on the sidelines as he recovers from his injuries. With Brno so soon after Maxs crash, the team have decided not to replace him this weekend, preferring to consider their future plans in a calm and considered manner, especially as there is a five week break after this weekend.

"I feel very sorry for Max. It is a great pity that he hurt himself in the first time back on the racebike. This season has not been a lucky one for our team and also we have not found it so easy getting the bike to where we would like it. The bike seems very sensitive and finding a good base set-up at every track has been difficult sometimes. We tried many things in our recent tests, but I do not think we found a good solution or direction. Brno circuit is a flowing track, so I am hoping that it will suit our K9 GSX R1000 better. I like the track and I will fight my hardest for the best possible results - as usual."

Biaggi and Aprilia advantaged by Brno tests

Thursday, 23 July 2009 11:36.worldsbk.com

Aprilia's new RSV4 machine should not be at much of a disadvantage against its rivals on the Czech track, according to Italian Max Biaggi, who returns to a circuit where he has won many times in his career. During private testing at Brno, Aprilia's designated test-track, on July 1 and 2, riders and team engineers managed to establish a good base setting with which to begin the Brno weekend, as well as testing new components for the development of the four-cylinder machine.

Brno is a magic track for Biaggi, who has won eight times there, 4 in 250, 3 in 500/MotoGP and once in SBK in 2007 in race 2, while last year he picked up a fourth and a third place. In the tests, which Biaggi tackled with a cracked bone in his right foot from Donington, he recorded a best time of 2'00.75 over 122 laps.

Shinya Nakano, who ran a total of 135 laps in testing with a best time of 2'00"78, won at this circuit in 2000 in 250 GP, while last year in MotoGP he finished in fourth place in his first race on a factory Honda.

"We come from an excellent second place in Britain, where the team did a great job on the bike" declared Biaggi. "We continued the work at Brno a few days later in two days of testing during which we tested several components for the development of the RSV4 and we found a good starting base for the race. In this way we are at less of a disadvantage against our rivals. I really like this track, for me it's the best in absolute, I've always had excellent results and it adapts itself well to the characteristics of our bike. We've done a lot of work in the last few weeks and I think we can get some good results".

Rea thrilled to return to Brno

Wednesday, 22 July 2009 18:56 .worldsbk.com

Last year Jonathan Rea's initial promise in the WSS class came to real fruition with his first ever race win at Brno. Unsurprisingly, the venue holds a special place in the heart of the 22-year-old rider, and he cannot even think about Brno without breaking into a smile. He has already won a race in the Superbike class since he made his step-up in the winter, and sees Brno as the perfect place to go for a second swim in the pool of victory.

Being fastest rider in the most recent test session at Imola also buoys his confidence. He said, "That test was good for us - not just the result and the progress that we were able to make, but because of the way we went about it. It showed how well everyone is working as a team now and how motivated we all are to get the kind of results that we know we can achieve. Brno was good on the Supersport bike last year and I think the track should suit the Superbike even better. We've got a good setting with the new package now and we'll be pushing on as hard as we can to get some more good results this weekend."

WSBK- Race results from Donington

Spies closes gap at the top with double triumph at Donington

Sunday, 28 June 2009 19:49worldsbk.com

Ben Spies (Yamaha World Superbike) pulled off another amazing double triumph in the ninth round of the Hannspree FIM Superbike World Championship in front of 61,000 spectators at Donington Park. The Texan has now reduced the 48 point gap at the top of the table to 14 from Noriyuki Haga (Ducati Xerox), who crashed in race 2, picking up a broken vertebra in the process. Haga's Italian team-mate Michel Fabrizio was third in race 2 and is now 51 points behind. Aprilia had a good first race, with Max Biaggi second at the finish, while the best of the numerous British platoon present at Donington was Leon Haslam (Stiggy Racing Honda), who finished second to Spies in race 2.

Race 1

Spies continued to steamroller his way to the wins in World Superbike as he took his ninth victory of the year in the first race. After setting his eighth pole in qualifying, the Texan rider dominated the 23-lap race but was shadowed all the way by Max Biaggi (Aprilia Racing). The Italian ran faultlessly in second until the final lap, when Ben upped the ante to power to the chequered flag, but Biaggi also encountered a fuel problem a couple of hundred metres from the flag and risked losing out on second. This was Biaggi's first podium since Qatar. Third went to points leader Haga, who limited the damage in a race where he was not in a position to challenge for the win. In the all-British battle for fourth place, Haslam got the better of Shane Byrne (Sterilgarda Ducati). Aprilia's excellent performance was completed by a sixth place for Shinya Nakano. Home idol and Misano winner Jonathan Rea (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) could only finish in seventh, ahead of John Hopkins (Stiggy Racing Honda). Michel Fabrizio (Ducati Xerox) had a gear change problem and could only finish 12th, while Ruben Xaus scored one point for BMW.

Ben Spies: "It was a tough race for us, Max was there the whole time and we were both able to do quick laps. I got a bit of a gap then made a couple of mistakes and he got back on me. The last three laps I rode as hard as I could, we got down to the 30s, then I couldn't hear Max coming into the chicane on the last lap so knew something was wrong and I took the last corners easy. We can't be too conservative now, we have to claw back and get a whole lot of points in a couple of races."

Max Biaggi: "I am very happy with this result after a very hard decision we made in free practice and qualifying. Yesterday we found a way to go fast and we made the right choice in tyres and the balance was correct. In the warm-up we had some problems but for the race we fixed most of them. Just on the last lap at the last chicane we had some trouble, I don't know what, the bike just stopped and then went back again in the last few metres before the flag. I think I deserved second!"

Noriyuki Haga: "I tried to do my best but the front two guys were very fast. I tried to catch up for the victory but I had to settle for third position. Of course during the laps I tried to push and catch them up but it was quite difficult. Our package was quite different but for the next race we try to change something to improve the riding of the bike."

Results: 1. Spies B. (USA) Yamaha YZF R1 34'57.230 (158,831 kph); 2. Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 7.156; 3. Haga N. (JPN) Ducati 1098R 10.968; 4. Haslam L. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 18.843; 5. Byrne S. (GBR) Ducati 1098R 19.125; 6. Nakano S. (JPN) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 21.286; 7. Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 23.644; 8. Hopkins J. (USA) Honda CBR1000RR 32.849; 9. Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R 32.904; 10. Kiyonari R. (JPN) Honda CBR1000RR 33.192; 11. Checa C. (ESP) Honda CBR1000RR 34.535; 12. Fabrizio M. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 35.093; 13. Camier L. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 35.441; 14. Lanzi L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 39.034; 15. Xaus R. (ESP) BMW S1000 RR 41.067; 16. Lagrive M. (FRA) Honda CBR1000RR 46.4

Race 2

Spies also dominated the second race, but this time without any pressure from his rivals. The Yamaha man immediately pulled away at the start to pick up a seven second lead, which he administered easily to pick up his tenth win of the year. Spies' double coincided with a disaster for Haga, who crashed out of second place on lap 5 while trying to make up ground on the leader. The Japanese rider was taken to hospital in Derby with a fractured vertebra and other injuries. Race 2 saw a British rider on the podium, thanks to Haslam, who held off Fabrizio. With the outcome of this race, the Italian keeps alive his title chances. Byrne put on another good show, finishing fourth ahead of fellow Brit Tom Sykes. Xaus again scored points for BMW, this time with a positive ninth place. Both Aprilia riders crashed out, Biaggi suffering a hairline crack in his right foot in the process, but remounting to finish 21st, while John Hopkins (Stiggy Racing Honda) did not make it to the start of race 2, the still-injured American totally exhausted after his race 1 efforts.

Ben Spies: "It was a picture perfect weekend, I know Haga had a big crash and hope he's OK. That's not the way you want to do it but you've got to capitalize when things go wrong. The track was definitely hot in the second race and a little bit slick so we made some changes to the bike that made it better. Fortunately we didn't have to push to the absolute limit but it all worked great today."

Leon Haslam: "We've been struggling for the past few rounds with unknown circuits and I really wanted to get on that podium today. I feel good, obviously feel sorry for Haga because I was pushing him hard and I was pretty happy to get second. In the first race I was really suffering from chatter but everyone in the team has been behind me all weekend so a big thanks to them."

Michel Fabrizio: "Today Ben was very fast and it was impossible to catch him. In the first race I had a problem with the gear change, while in the second I had a great battle with Haslam. I am very happy with the result, but very sorry for Haga and his crash."

Results: 1. Spies B. (USA) Yamaha YZF R1 35'14.788 (157,512 kph); 2. Haslam L. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 6.622; 3. Fabrizio M. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 6.816; 4. Byrne S. (GBR) Ducati 1098R 7.349; 5. Sykes T. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 8.145; 6. Camier L. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 13.463; 7. Kiyonari R. (JPN) Honda CBR1000RR 15.751; 8. Ellison J. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 16.837; 9. Xaus R. (ESP) BMW S1000 RR 22.891; 10. Andrews S. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX 10R 30.347; 11. Lanzi L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 30.622;12. Lagrive M. (FRA) Honda CBR1000RR 31.562; 13. Kagayama Y. (JPN) Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 32.148; 14. Parkes B. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX 10R 32.607; 15. Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 32.806; 16. Scassa L. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX 10R 34.269

Points (after 9 of 14 rounds): 1. Haga 308; 2. Spies 294; 3. Fabrizio 257; 4. Rea 177; 5. Haslam 167; 6. Biaggi 155; 7. Sykes 141; 8. Smrz 115; 9. Checa 114; 10. Byrne 113. Manufacturers: 1. Ducati 383; 2. Yamaha 337; 3. Honda 273; 4. Aprilia 162; 5. Suzuki 131; 6. Bmw 70; 7. Kawasaki 47

Surgery a success, Haga will return to Italy today

Tuesday, 30 June 2009 11:14 worldsbk.com

At 5pm this afternoon Ducati Xerox rider Noriyuki Haga underwent successful surgery at the Derby City Hospital. Having fractured the ulna in his right arm in Sunday's crash at Donington Park, Noriyuki today had a plate and screws inserted to set the bone. The surgical team deemed the surgery a success and there were no unforeseen complications.

Prior to the operation, medical staff took a closer look at his right shoulder blade and an x-ray unfortunately confirmed that he has multiple fractures to his left scapula. The scapula will not necessitate surgical intervention and the bone should knit itself back together in time; this complication should not prolong Noriyuki's recovery time. The Japanese rider should be discharged from hospital today and he and his family will fly back to Italy so that Noriyuki can begin the necessary physiotherapy treatment.

The Ducati Xerox rider will not participate in the next tests at Imola but it is foreseen that he will compete in the next round at Brno.

Spies takes Donington pole

Spies takes Donington pole

Eurosport - Sat, 27 Jun 16:44:00 2009

Ben Spies took Superpole at Donington Park after setting a quickest lap just before rain prevented anyone from challenging him in the British leg of the World Superbike Championship.

His eighth pole position of the season, Spies's effort of one minute 29.846 seconds was timed to perfection as the riders struggled to react on the increasingly slippery surface.

It meant the first lap attempts would prove crucial, allowing Max Biaggi, Shane Byrne and Shinya Nakano to complete a surprise front row.

Provisional pole sitter Michel Fabrizio was forced to settle for fifth, ahead of team-mate Noriyuki Haga.

Carlos Checa and Jakub Smrz completed the second row, the latter having left it too late to set a representative time.

Crash.Net / Eurosport
Ben Spies: "It was a good session for us, but we almost got caught out. I was one of the last to leave the garage and as soon as I went out of pit-lane I could see the drops starting to come, so I had to really attack the warm-up lap to make sure I got around and get relaxed in case it started raining. The first sector was brilliant, but then the rain started to come and I had to be careful not to touch the paint. It was good to get pole, this circuit has a short start for turn one so it's good positioning. The bike's working well on race tyres so we need a good start tomorrow."

Max Biaggi: "In the last session I was really lucky because no one expected any drops and then it really started to rain. I started soon because I had nothing more to learn after what I had done in free practice and I thought I must put my head down and go as fast as I can. Second place is good for us, for tomorrow I'm quite OK, maybe not exactly the way I wanted to be but OK. It's great to be here, I like this track, my bike could be a little bit better but I think I can go well tomorrow."

Shane Byrne: "I think we got a little bit lucky because the bad weather came in quickly. Fortunately we got through the first Superpole session without using qualifying tyres, but I was kind of hopeful of a good result anyway. We've been doing a lot of work on both bikes this weekend and we ended up with them going in different directions, but I'm happy with the direction that we've been going since America and Misano. I'm delighted with getting the first front row of the season for myself and the team."

Shinya Nakano: "Like Max said we had some luck today, but so far this is my best qualifying performance in Superbike. On Friday we were struggling but things went much better today and I am looking forward to racing here at the Donington Park track." moto-live.com

Full Superpole qualifying times for the ninth round of the World Superbike Championship at Donington Park, Great Britain.

1. Ben Spies USA Yamaha WSB YZF R1 1min 29.846s

2. Max Biaggi ITA Aprilia Racing RSV-4 1min 30.080s

3. Shane Byrne GBR Sterilgarda Ducati 1098R 1min 30.535s

4. Shinya Nakano JPN Aprilia Racing RSV-4 1min 30.671s

5. Michel Fabrizio ITA Ducati Xerox 1098R 1min 30.734s

6. Noriyuki Haga JPN Ducati Xerox 1098R 1min 31.023s

7. Carlos Checa ESP HANNspree Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR 1min 31.342s

8. Jakub Smrz CZE Guandalini Racing Ducati 1098R 1min 34.797s

9. Leon Haslam GBR Stiggy Motorsport Honda CBR1000RR 1min 30.159s

10. Tom Sykes GBR Yamaha WSB YZF R1 1min 30.229s

11. John Hopkins USA Stiggy Motorsport Honda CBR1000RR 1min 30.272s

12. Jonathan Rea GBR HANNspree Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR 1min 30.387s

13. Gregorio Lavilla ESP Guandalini Racing Ducati 1098R 1min 30.612s

14. James Ellison GBR Airwaves Yamaha YZF-R1 1min 0.816s

15. Troy Corser AUS BMW Motorrad S1000RR 1min 30.916s

16. Ruben Xaus ESP BMW Motorrad S1000RR 1min 31.120s

17. Leon Camier GBR Airwaves Yamaha YZF-R1 1min 31.176s

18. Yukio Kagayama JPN Alstare Suzuki GSX-R 1000K9 1min 31.215s

19. Lorenzo Lanzi ITA DFX Corse Ducati 1098R 1min 31.260s

20. Ryuichi Kiyonari JPN Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR 1min 31.217s

Positions 21 to 31 decided in Q2

21. Luca Scassa ITA Team Pedercini Kawasaki ZX-10R 1min 31.874s

22. Broc Parkes AUS Kawasaki SRT ZX-0R 1min 31.887s

23. David Salom ESP Team Pedercini Kawasaki ZX-10R 1min 32.183s

24. Matthieu Lagrive FRA HANNspree Althea Honda CBR1000RR 1min

32.243s

25. Jamie Hacking USA Kawasaki SRT ZX-10R 1min 32.245s

26. Simon Andrews GBR MSS Colchester Kawasaki ZX-10R 1min 32.343s

27. Alessandro Polita ITA Celani Suzuki GSX-R1000 1min 32.584s

28. Blake Young USA Alstare Suzuki GSX-R 1000K9 1min 32.735s

29. David Checa ESP Yamaha France GMT 94 1min 32.811s

30. Roland Resch AUT TKR Switzerland Suzuki GSX-R 1000K9 1min 33.384s

31. Vittorio Iannuzzo ITA SCI Honda CBR1000RR 1min 33.408s

Spies takes Donington pole

Spies takes Donington pole

Eurosport - Sat, 27 Jun 16:44:00 2009

Ben Spies took Superpole at Donington Park after setting a quickest lap just before rain prevented anyone from challenging him in the British leg of the World Superbike Championship.

His eighth pole position of the season, Spies's effort of one minute 29.846 seconds was timed to perfection as the riders struggled to react on the increasingly slippery surface.

It meant the first lap attempts would prove crucial, allowing Max Biaggi, Shane Byrne and Shinya Nakano to complete a surprise front row.

Provisional pole sitter Michel Fabrizio was forced to settle for fifth, ahead of team-mate Noriyuki Haga.

Carlos Checa and Jakub Smrz completed the second row, the latter having left it too late to set a representative time.

Crash.Net / Eurosport

Full Superpole qualifying times for the ninth round of the World Superbike Championship at Donington Park, Great Britain.

1. Ben Spies USA Yamaha WSB YZF R1 1min 29.846s

2. Max Biaggi ITA Aprilia Racing RSV-4 1min 30.080s

3. Shane Byrne GBR Sterilgarda Ducati 1098R 1min 30.535s

4. Shinya Nakano JPN Aprilia Racing RSV-4 1min 30.671s

5. Michel Fabrizio ITA Ducati Xerox 1098R 1min 30.734s

6. Noriyuki Haga JPN Ducati Xerox 1098R 1min 31.023s

7. Carlos Checa ESP HANNspree Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR 1min 31.342s

8. Jakub Smrz CZE Guandalini Racing Ducati 1098R 1min 34.797s

9. Leon Haslam GBR Stiggy Motorsport Honda CBR1000RR 1min 30.159s

10. Tom Sykes GBR Yamaha WSB YZF R1 1min 30.229s

11. John Hopkins USA Stiggy Motorsport Honda CBR1000RR 1min 30.272s

12. Jonathan Rea GBR HANNspree Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR 1min 30.387s

13. Gregorio Lavilla ESP Guandalini Racing Ducati 1098R 1min 30.612s

14. James Ellison GBR Airwaves Yamaha YZF-R1 1min 0.816s

15. Troy Corser AUS BMW Motorrad S1000RR 1min 30.916s

16. Ruben Xaus ESP BMW Motorrad S1000RR 1min 31.120s

17. Leon Camier GBR Airwaves Yamaha YZF-R1 1min 31.176s

18. Yukio Kagayama JPN Alstare Suzuki GSX-R 1000K9 1min 31.215s

19. Lorenzo Lanzi ITA DFX Corse Ducati 1098R 1min 31.260s

20. Ryuichi Kiyonari JPN Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR 1min 31.217s

Positions 21 to 31 decided in Q2

21. Luca Scassa ITA Team Pedercini Kawasaki ZX-10R 1min 31.874s

22. Broc Parkes AUS Kawasaki SRT ZX-0R 1min 31.887s

23. David Salom ESP Team Pedercini Kawasaki ZX-10R 1min 32.183s

24. Matthieu Lagrive FRA HANNspree Althea Honda CBR1000RR 1min

32.243s

25. Jamie Hacking USA Kawasaki SRT ZX-10R 1min 32.245s

26. Simon Andrews GBR MSS Colchester Kawasaki ZX-10R 1min 32.343s

27. Alessandro Polita ITA Celani Suzuki GSX-R1000 1min 32.584s

28. Blake Young USA Alstare Suzuki GSX-R 1000K9 1min 32.735s

29. David Checa ESP Yamaha France GMT 94 1min 32.811s

30. Roland Resch AUT TKR Switzerland Suzuki GSX-R 1000K9 1min 33.384s

31. Vittorio Iannuzzo ITA SCI Honda CBR1000RR 1min 33.408s

WSBK arrives in Donington

British WSBK invasion returns home for Donington round

Thursday, 25 June 2009 16:16worldsbk.com

The top World Superbike riders got together for a meet and greet with the media this morning at the Donington Park Grand Prix Collection museum in the build-up towards round 9 of the championship. Following the spectacular racing at Misano World Circuit just a few days ago, this weekend will surely see more of the same as the season moves into its second half. Anglo-American rivalry will be one of the key aspects of the weekend as this year's top influx of British riders return to home ground, while the Ducati-Yamaha battle at the top becomes even more intense.

Britain's Jonathan Rea (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda), who became the fourth winner this year at Misano, started the ball rolling: "It was nice for me and the whole team to win at Misano because they've been working so hard since the start of the year. For me to be the guy who gets the team's first win of the year is really surreal because Carlos and Kiyo are such accomplished riders and it's really set me up with some momentum for my home race here".

Noriyuki Haga (Ducati Xerox), who leads the table on 292 points, has been coming to Donington since 1998, when he picked up a double win: "I remember coming here many years ago and winning both races against Corser and Fogarty, which was a great satisfaction for me. I actually like this track and always find strange conditions here, but I hope this weekend it will be sunshine and I have to try and win again. With Ducati I try to push hard and win the title this year".

For Ben Spies (Yamaha World Superbike), the Donington circuit is a familiar track on this year's calendar, as he did the MotoGP race last year: "We were here last year, so I know this one! This weekend's important for us, it's good with all the British guys in town. Right now for me, we need a good result, it could backfire but we're going to give it everything, hopefully we'll get some good weather and some good racing. My team-mate Tom knows the circuit well, so I'm going to be latching on to him in the first session!".

Shane Byrne (Sterilgarda Ducati) finally scored his first podium of the year last week with a second place in race 1, and could even have come away with a sensational win: "It wasn't for lack of trying!" said Shakey. "It was a good race and nice to have a bit of success. Since the winter test, things have been very difficult but it was a good time to get back to form with Donington coming up this weekend and I'm really looking forward to it".

Derby-born Leon Haslam (Stiggy Racing Honda) had an excellent start to the season with a brace of podiums, but has found it difficult to keep the momentum flowing in recent races: "The last four rounds have been pretty tough because the last four circuits I've not been to but Phillip Island and Assen, which I do know, have produced good results so I'm going to try and get back on the podium this weekend at my home round. The effort that the team is putting in is second to none, it's fantastic, but it gets a bit frustrating sometimes because we know we can finish on the podium at every race".

About Donington Park

The Donington Park circuit is situated near Castle Donington and is one of Britain's most famous and most popular venues. The original track was opened in 1931 and initially used for motorcycle races, but was then closed in 1939 due to World War 2. In the early 1970s the circuit was bought by Tom Wheatcroft, who funded the rebuilding of the circuit, which was re-opened in 1977. The Melbourne Loop was built in 1985 to increase the lap distance to 2.5 miles (4.02 km) and allow the track to host Grand Prix motorcycle races. In recent times Donington has held World Superbike, MotoGP, British Touring Car Championship and British Superbikes, as well as the 1993 F1 European Grand Prix.

Lap records: Race - Troy Bayliss (Ducati) 1'31.575 (2007); Best lap - Troy Bayliss (Ducati) 1'30.370 (2007).

The UK Round of the HANNspree FIM Superbike World Championship takes place from Friday 26th through Sunday 28th June. The action starts with free practice and qualifying the first two days, followed by WSBK Superpole on Saturday at 15.00. The two 23-lap (92.529 km) Superbike races are scheduled to run on Sunday at 12.00 and 15.30, with the 22-lap (88.506 km) Supersport race at 13.25 local time.

Gang of Four winners meet up at Donington

Wednesday, 24 June 2009 18:13worldsbk.com

The echoes of a splendid weekend of racing at Misano World Circuit are still ringing loud and clear as the Hannspree FIM Superbike World Championship crosses the English Channel for its next appointment, round 9 at Donington Park. The British circuit, situated directly under the East Midlands Airport landing strip, measures 4.023 km, has 15 curves and is a difficult track to master, a severe test for the resistance and concentration of riders, especially if it should rain.

The championship heads into its second half of the season with Noriyuki Haga, Ben Spies and Michel Fabrizio the big favourites, but also with Jonathan Rea, who took a fantastic win in race 2 at Misano, now part of the gang of four winners. Haga is the current rider who has the most wins at Donington, three, and he is followed by Troy Corser (2) and Kiyonari on 1. The most successful rider is Carl Fogarty with six wins to his name, followed by Scott Russell with 5. On the manufacturer front, the lion's share goes to Ducati with 16 in 34 races, then Yamaha and Honda equal on 6, Kawasaki on 5 and Suzuki on 1.

TRADING WINNING PLACES - Even though six rounds remain (and 300 points are up for grabs), the fight for the title appears to be a three-way affair between the Ducati Xerox duo of Noriyuki Haga and Michel Fabrizio, and Yamaha World Superbike's Ben Spies. Nitro-Nori has led the standings since the start of the season, but has not had a positive run recently and has given the impression of racing somewhat in defense. He still has a 48 point lead over Spies, who picked up his eighth win at Misano, but had it not been for the various technical problems that have afflicted him, the Texan would be right there with his rival. At least this time around Spies is not faced with a totally unfamiliar track, having raced here last year for Suzuki in MotoGP as stand-in for the injured Loris Capirossi, finishing 14th. As for Fabrizio, after unleashing all of his talent in race 2 at Monza, the Italian has just kept on going and has accumulated a constant sequence of podiums without however stepping onto the top rung. Fabrizio is in excellent form, has nothing to lose and will surely be a contender this weekend.

HOME RUN FOR HOME RIDERS - Jonathan Rea (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) might not be a part of the title battle as he is 125 points behind, but he may yet have a say in the matter. Race 2 at Misano brought out the Northern Ireland youngster's talent, and this, together with the improved competitiveness of the Hondas following a switch to Ohlins suspensions, means that he will be a potential winner this weekend at the only British round in this year's championship. Eyes out as well for Tom Sykes (Yamaha World Superbike), who finished runner-up to Bayliss last year in race 1, Leon Haslam (Stiggy Racing Honda), Shane Byrne (Sterilgarda Ducati), galvanized by his Misano podium, and also Ryuichi Kiyonari (Ten Kate Honda) who, despite clearly not being British, twice won the BSB championship as well as the second race here last year. It will also be interesting to see how the young wild-card, and current BSB points leader, Leon Camier fares on the Airwaves Yamaha R1 machine against the WSB regulars at his home track.

MID-SEASON SLUMP - After a positive (Aprilia) and fairly good (BMW) start to the season, the two rookie WSB manufacturers now appear to be in a mid-season slump against their racing cousins, Ducati, Yamaha, Honda and Suzuki. At Misano the Aprilia Racing duo of Max Biaggi and Shinya Nakano only succeeded in bringing home a handful of points, without ever getting a look-in. BMW fared even worse, with just two points scored for 14th by Ruben Xaus, and none by a still sore Troy Corser. Immediately after the Donington round both the Italian and German squads have scheduled testing sessions to try out new updates and evolution components. For this weekend Aprilia probably have the higher ambitions, as Biaggi has a particular feeling with Donington; the Italian has finished his four SBK races here with a second, two thirds and a sixth place.

YOUNG AMERICAN - The American contingent in the championship goes up by one at Donington after the Alstare Suzuki team, while waiting for the return of Max Neukirchner, opted to replace Fonsi Nieto with the young American Blake Young. The 21 year-old from Wisconsin is thought to be one of the best young talents around and comes with the ‘backing' of racing legend and former champion, Kevin Schwantz. Young joins his fellow Americans Ben Spies, Jamie Hacking and John Hopkins in the series.

The X-Rea Factor

Wednesday, 24 June 2009 15:53 worldsbk.com

The list of world Superbike race winners grew to 62 in total last weekend, when Jonathan Rea (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) found the X- factor he and his team had been missing so far as he posted his first career victory. Honda, and the ‘conventional' four-cylinder machines in general, also took a first race win of the 2009 season.

It was a reward for Rea for his perseverance and sheer determination to succeed, and for his team's endless hard work to find ‘the combination' to allow their true potential to be translated into their first win since Ryuichi Kiyonari's at Donington last year.

Rea is of course highly positive about his prospects at Donington this coming Sunday, not just because it is his home race. "You could say I know which way the circuit goes..." joked Rea at the post race press conference in Misano. "It is really nice there and we'll come back strong at Donington. We have only had four or five days with our new suspension so with another seven in between we will get even better."

The cool-headedness which typified his approach to the race-long fight with Fabrizio at Misano is a characteristic that singles Rea out as a real prospect for the immediate and long-term future. His businesslike comments only 30-minutes or so after such a landmark win for him and his team just add to the impression that Rea is really going places. "I don't want to get carried away because I want to keep winning," said Rea. "When I crossed the line for the last time I didn't know what to think, but my first thought was that ‘I hope the boys in my team really enjoy this.' So I wanted them to have a few beers and savour the moment because next week we have another tough job ahead."

Still only 22 years old, Rea's racing education on a Superbike has been long in the making and a story of ever-increasing achievement. So although he may be a rookie in WSB, he is no stranger to Honda Fireblades.

He raced in Red Bull Honda colours in BSB as far back as 2005, finishing 16th that year, and even securing a pole position. One season later he was fourth overall, with four podiums and two poles. One year after that, in the official HM Plant Honda team, he was runner-up behind Kiyonari, taking five wins along the way. As an official Honda rider Rea has also had the chance to impress the Honda bosses in Japan, by running strongly in testing and racing at the Suzuka 8-Hour, so it looks like Honda is the way forward for the man from Northern Ireland.

His Supersport exploits in 2008 are well documented to regular WSS followers - three wins, six podiums in all and a runner-up spot only to his more experienced team-mate, Andrew Pitt.

With one WSB win down, Rea must be a favourite at a circuit he knows better than any other on the WSB trail.

World Superbike Misano Results

Chris McNeil from:motorcycle-usa.com

Sunday, June 21, 2009

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Race 1

Ben Spies (Yamaha World Superbike) scored his eighth win of the season in the first World Superbike race at the Misano World Circuit in San Marino, Italy. Drama unfolded as the race was held in flag-to-flag conditions, all riders starting with their full wet tires and switching mid-way to finish in the dry. Shane Byrne (Sterilgarda Ducati) had a dominate lead over Ruben Xaus, Michel Fabrizio and Spies mid-way through the 24-lap race. Spies and Fabrizio both chose to change to their dry bikes on the 13 lap, which proved the turning point of the race. Equipped with his slick tires the Texan slipped back on the track behind Fabrizio in eighth. By lap 17 he had taken the lead from Xaus and set the pace for the rest of the race, finishing almost eight seconds ahead of runner-up Byrne.

Ben Spies' focus was on getting ahead of Michel Fabrizio, who has been running at a similar pace throughout the weekend and last few rounds of World Superbike.

"I stayed as close as I could to Fabrizio, I couldn’t run Byrne’s pace but wanted to stay with Michel as he was the one who mattered to me in the championship, " explained the rider known as the Texas Terror. "I picked the right moment to come in and get out on dry tires and switch bikes and put in good pace and we managed to win the race."

It took a couple laps for Fabrizio to find feeling with his Ducati 1198, but he was able to hold-off the rapidly charging poleman Jakub Smrz (Guandalini Racing Ducati) in a very close battle for the last podium position. Despite being 20 seconds behind Smrz, Haga managed to garner 11 points as he passed fellow Japanese rider Yukio Kagayama (Suzuki Alstare) to take fifth.

Jonathan Rea (Hannspree Ten Kate) was the first Honda to the checkered-flag despite starting from the back of the grid and also picking up a ride-through penalty. Tom Sykes made up for an average qualifying position to take eight more points for Factory Yamaha, adding to Spies' first-place trophy of 25. Shinya Nakano was the top Aprilia rider in ninth, with Biaggi also collecting three points in 13th. World Superbike rookie Matt Lagrive, who was chosen by the Honda Althea team to permanently replace struggling English racer Tommy Hill in Round 5, scored his first points of the season in tenth.

Ruben Xaus led the race with seven laps to go, but received a 'ride-through' penalty for exceeding the pit lane speed after coming in to switch bikes. Xaus would finish in 14th and take the only points for the BMW team in Round 8, with his teammate Troy Corser sitting out Race 1 after an electronic problem caused him to high-side during the warm-up lap. Fortunately the Australian ride did not further injure his shoulder in the crash. The last point went to Alex Polita, who replaces Celani Suzuki's injured Karl Muggeridge during this round and the next at Donington.

The 2008 British Superbike champion Shane Byrne took his first podium of the 2009 World Superbike season in Race 1.
Ben Spies: "It was a hard one, we knew from the start it was going to get dry and in that first half hats off to Shakey, he rode great. I had the feeling in the rain that I wasn't quite happy but I tried as hard as I could to stay close to Michel. My box showed me that some riders were starting to come in for a change so I said that it was time to get in now. It was a hectic race, pretty eventful, not a great race but I was happy to pull this one off."

Shane Byrne: "That was a fantastic race. It's a shame it didn't stay wet for a little bit longer because I had a really big lead at one point. I wasn't sure what to do with the tyre situation and all the time the lead was going up, and I didn't know whether to stay out or not. I switched bikes with about seven laps to go and the first two laps were really difficult. Ben had done a couple more dry laps than I had, he passed me and there was no way I was going to get him. It was a fantastic result for the team at their home circuit, they've all worked really hard."

Michel Fabrizio: "That's not a bad result, it was a great battle with Jakub for the final podium slot. When I saw that on the big screen that he was getting closer and closer, I knew that I had to invent something special on the last lap. I was unable to find the best possible feeling immediately with the dry tyres and I slipped back a bit but I've had a lot of bad luck in recent years at Misano so I'm very happy to get onto the podium." (worldsbk.com)

Misano World Superbike - Race 1 Results
1. Ben Spies (Yamaha YZF-R1) 45'02.773
2. Shane Byrne (Ducati 1098R) +7.931
3. Michel Fabrizio (Ducati 1098R) +11.836
4. Jakub Smrz (Ducati 1098R) +11.886
5. Noriyuki Haga (Ducati 1098R) +31.670
6. Yukio Kagayama (Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9) +33.241
7. Jonathan Rea (Honda CBR1000RR) +35.772
8. Tom Sykes (Yamaha YZF-R1) +41.931
9. Shinya Nakano (Aprilia RSV4) +51.507
10. Matthieu Lagrive (Honda CBR1000RR) +59.921
11. Carlos Checa (Honda CBR1000RR) +1'04.285
12. Leon Haslam (Honda CBR1000RR) +1'04.313
13. Max Biaggi (Aprilia RSV4) +1'19.822
14. Ruben Xaus (BMW S1000RR) +1'22.412
15. Alex Polita (Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9) +1'31.635
16. Jamie Hacking (Kawasaki ZX 10R) +1'39.830
17. Broc Parkes (Kawasaki ZX 10R) +1'42.964
18. Fonsi Nieto (Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9) +1'43.303
19. Lorenzo Lanzi (Ducati 1098R)
20. Vittorio Iannuzzo (Honda CBR1000RR)
21. David Checa (Yamaha YZF R1)
22. Gregorio Lavilla (Ducati 1098R)
23. David Salom (Kawasaki ZX 10R)
NC. Roland Resch (Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9)
RET. Luca Scassa (Kawasaki ZX 10R)
RET. Matteo Baiocco (Kawasaki ZX 10R)
RET. Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda CBR1000RR)
RET. Troy Corser (BMW S1000RR)
NP. John Hopkins (Honda CBR1000RR)

Race 2
(motorcycle-usa.com)
Hannspree Ten Kate Honda rider Jonathan Rea took his maiden World Superbike victory after regaining the lead from Ducati's Michel Fabrizio on the final lap of Race 2, crossing the finish-line just 0.06 of a second ahead of the Italian. Championship leader Noriyuki Haga led the race in the opening laps, but was passed by Rea and then forced to battle with his teammate for second. Fabrizio passed Haga and then Rea to take the lead on the 16th lap, where he remained until Rea's ultimate race winning maneuver. Haga easily took the final spot on the podium as he finished over three seconds ahead of the next group of riders. Fabrizio remains third in the Championship, but narrows Haga's lead by nine points.

Privateer Ducati rider Jakub Smrz converted his pole position into another fourth-place finish when he passed Carlos Checa on the final lap as the tires of the Spaniard's Honda CBR1000RR began to peel off. Finishing just behind Checa in sixth was Shane Byrne, pairing another good run with his Race 1 podium. Tom Sykes was the first of the Yamaha World Superbike riders across the line as he battled with Leon Haslam (Stiggy Racing Honda) to win eighth. Sykes' teammate Spies dropped from second to 17th at the start following a technical issue with his clutch. The 24-year-old sorted the problem and fought his way through the field to take ninth. Although the mechanical failure undoubtedly caused Spies to miss-out on potential points, the American still managed to reduce the points lead of Haga from 53 to 48 points over the weekend.

Max Biaggi broke into the top-ten on his Aprilia RSV4, while his teammate Shinya Nakano also scored three more points for the rookie Aprilia World Superbike team. Yukio Kagayama and Fonsi Nieto each netted points for Suzuki, but the Kawasaki and BMW riders failed to finish in the top 15.

Jonathan Rea takes his first win of the season after scoring podiums in each of the last rounds.
Jonathan Rea: "To win my first race in Italy here is really special for me before my home round next weekend at Donington. As everybody's aware we switched suspensions, and tried them for the first time on Monday at Magny-Cours and the team all did a marvelous job to get me to win the race here so this is really special for them as well. I got settled into my own rhythm and Michel came past but he couldn't outbrake me and that spared my bike from doing all the running. I could pass where I wanted to pass and I saved it to the last lap. I'm really over the moon with the win!"

Michel Fabrizio: "In race 2 I didn't have a perfect feeling with the front and Rea's Honda accelerated better out of the corners than me. It's a pity I didn't win today but two podiums are my best result on this track and knowing that I did my best makes me happy. I'm just a few points behind Spies in the table and maybe I can start thinking about the title now although I realize that to be a serious candidate I have to keep on getting good results and even win a few races".

Noriyuki Haga: "Race 2 was much better than the first one: I got a good start but then Johnny and Michel passed me and it was hard to keep their pace, maybe because they're much younger than me! Seriously though we have taken home some good points and that's important because Misano is not one of my favourite tracks. Now I'm looking forward to racing at Donington where in recent years I've always had good results."(worldsbk.com)

Misano World Superbike - Race 2 Results
1. Jonathan Rea (Honda CBR1000RR) 39'11.204
2. Michel Fabrizio (Ducati 1098R) +0.063
3. Noriyuki Haga (Ducati 1098R) +0.457
4. Jakub Smrz (Ducati 1098R) +3.635
5. Carlos Checa (Honda CBR1000RR) +4.460
6. Shane Byrne (Ducati 1098R) +4.538
7. Tom Sykes (Yamaha YZF-R1) +12.679
8. Leon Haslam (Honda CBR1000RR) +12.763
9. Ben Spies (Yamaha YZF-R1) +13.237
10. Max Biaggi (Aprilia RSV4) +14.412
11. Yukio Kagayama (Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9) +20.073
12. Fonsi Nieto (Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9) +20.239
13. Shinya Nakano (Aprilia RSV4) +22.351
14. Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda CBR1000RR) +24.547
15. Gregorio Lavilla (Ducati 1098R) +24.696
16. Ruben Xaus (BMW S1000RR) +25.615
17. Broc Parkes (Kawasaki ZX 10R) +31.887
18. Lorenzo Lanzi (Ducati 1098R) +34.751
19. Troy Corser (BMW S1000RR) +38.061
20. Luca Scassa (Kawasaki ZX 10R) +47.717
21. Matthieu Lagrive (Honda CBR1000RR) +48.973
22. Jamie Hacking (Kawasaki ZX 10R) +51.027
23. Alex Polita (Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9) +52.526
24. Vittorio Iannuzzo (Honda CBR1000RR) +57.589
25. Roland Resch (Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9) +1'36.359
RET. David Salom (Kawasaki ZX 10R)
RET. David Checa (Yamaha YZF R1)
RET. Matteo Baiocco (Kawasaki ZX 10R)

Misano- WSBK- Day 1

WSBK: Fabrizio edges out Spies

At end of Misano Q1( moto-live.com)

19/06/09 19:16

Michel Fabrizio Michel Fabrizio (Ducati Xerox) slammed in two quick laps in rapid succession at the end of today's Misano Q1 to end up with the provisional pole at the Misano World Circuit. The Italian's time of 1 minute 37.016 seconds was good enough to edge out Ben Spies (Yamaha World Superbike) from the top slot, after the Texan rookie had headed the standings almost throughout. Third and fourth on the provisional front row of the grid went to the still injured Yukio Kagayama (Suzuki Alstare) and British rider Jonathan Rea (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda). The top 19 positions in today's standings are all contained within one second, confirming the current equilibrium reigning in Superbike. The provisional front row is also made up of four different manufacturers - Ducati, Yamaha, Suzuki and Honda – with a fifth, Kawasaki, opening up the second row following a superb performance by Broc Parkes. The session also confirmed the constant improvement of the Ten Kate Honda team, with Ryuichi Kiyonari and Carlos Checa in sixth and seventh position respectively, ahead of points leader Noriyuki Haga (Ducati Xerox), four-tenths of a second down on his team-mate. After two difficult events, BMW have bounced back into the top 10, with Troy Corser running well throughout and ending up tenth overall. This time round BMW went better than Aprilia, as Shinya Nakano could only manage 11th and Max Biaggi 16th, eight-tenths off the polesitter. For the moment John Hopkins (Stiggy Racing Honda) is outside the Superpole top 20, the American down in 26th position on his return to action following his Assen crash. Misano Superbike - Free Practice 1st Session (worldsbk.com) 1 19 Spies B. (USA) Yamaha YZF R1 1'38.049 284 Fabrizio M. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'38.154 3 65 Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 1'38.591 4 36 Lavilla G. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 1'38.616 5 9 Kiyonari R. (JPN) Honda CBR1000RR 1'38.645 6 41 Haga N. (JPN) Ducati 1098R 1'38.746 7 7 Checa C. (ESP) Honda CBR1000RR 1'38.750 8 91 Haslam L. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 1'38.935 9 3 Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1'39.043 10 56 Nakano S. (JPN) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1'39.047 11 11 Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 1'39.095 12 10 Nieto F. (ESP) Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 1'39.154 13 96 Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R 1'39.155 14 67 Byrne S. (GBR) Ducati 1098R 1'39.165 15 57 Lanzi L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'39.181 16 71 Kagayama Y. (JPN) Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 1'39.302 17 111 Xaus R. (ESP) BMW S1000 RR 1'39.590 18 23 Parkes B. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX 10R 1'39.659 19 121 Hopkins J. (USA) Honda CBR1000RR 1'39.814 20 14 Lagrive M. (FRA) Honda CBR1000RR 1'39.863 21 66 Sykes T. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 1'39.907 22 2 Hacking J. (USA) Kawasaki ZX 10R 1'39.978 23 15 Baiocco M. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX 10R 1'40.196 24 53 Polita A. (ITA) Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 1'40.297 25 99 Scassa L. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX 10R 1'40.305 26 77 Iannuzzo V. (ITA) Honda CBR1000RR 1'40.385 27 94 Checa D. (ESP) Yamaha YZF R1 1'40.443 28 25 Salom D. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX 10R 1'40.772 29 88 Resch R. (AUT) Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 1'42.365 Misano Superbike - Qualifying 1st Session (worldsbk.com) 1 84 Fabrizio M. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'37.016 2 19 Spies B. (USA) Yamaha YZF R1 1'37.102 3 71 Kagayama Y. (JPN) Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 1'37.209 4 65 Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 1'37.238 5 23 Parkes B. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX 10R 1'37.281 6 9 Kiyonari R. (JPN) Honda CBR1000RR 1'37.396 7 7 Checa C. (ESP) Honda CBR1000RR 1'37.441 8 41 Haga N. (JPN) Ducati 1098R 1'37.451 9 91 Haslam L. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 1'37.490 10 11 Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 1'37.503 11 56 Nakano S. (JPN) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1'37.630 12 57 Lanzi L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'37.702 13 96 Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R 1'37.710 14 111 Xaus R. (ESP) BMW S1000 RR 1'37.773 15 36 Lavilla G. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 1'37.786 16 3 Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1'37.813 17 67 Byrne S. (GBR) Ducati 1098R 1'37.898 18 10 Nieto F. (ESP) Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 1'37.979 19 66 Sykes T. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 1'37.992 20 2 Hacking J. (USA) Kawasaki ZX 10R 1'38.441 21 25 Salom D. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX 10R 1'38.522 22 14 Lagrive M. (FRA) Honda CBR1000RR 1'38.671 23 99 Scassa L. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX 10R 1'38.755 24 15 Baiocco M. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX 10R 1'38.827 25 94 Checa D. (ESP) Yamaha YZF R1 1'38.828 26 121 Hopkins J. (USA) Honda CBR1000RR 1'38.856 27 77 Iannuzzo V. (ITA) Honda CBR1000RR 1'39.067 28 53 Polita A. (ITA) Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 1'39.308 29 88 Resch R. (AUT) Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 1'40.489 Hopkins is back on track At Misano 19/06/09 15:51 (moto-live.com) American John Hopkins makes his return to the series this weekend for a second chance to show how well he can fare on the Stiggy Racing Honda Superbike. The high profile entrant to the Superbike series made a promising start with his new team at Valencia, but had to back down only two weeks later, after a horrific crash in the opening practice at Assen sidelined the ex-MotoGP rider for four rounds. A tough and determined John Hopkins has recuperated from his injuries in just six weeks time though, and is eager to hunt down the front runners of the Superbike field once again at one of his favourite tracks this weekend. " Misano is a track I do like a lot. I had some decent results there in the past, and got on the podium in the 2007 MotoGP race. It is a circuit I enjoy well, and the audience is always great. People really take a liking towards the World Superbike series, and I expect the atmosphere to be similar to the one we received at the MotoGP races”, he said. “It is going to be an exciting race and hopefully I can be out there from the start. Right now, I am not going to make any promises of running at the front of the field. I am just taking it step-by-step and focus on getting a good feeling with the bike again and set the best possible results for the team and myself." In the remaining seven rounds and 14 races of the championship there are another 350 points to divide, before the new World Superbike champion will be crowned. Ben Spies Ben Spies, Yamaha World Superbike Team (2nd, 1'37.102) "It was a good first day for us, the second session we opted to run race set up and we never put any new tyres on. A race is 22 laps around here, on the 22nd lap today we were half a second off the fastest lap done here. I'm pleased with that and we ran our whole race simulation in the 37's. I'm ecstatic about the bike and tomorrow if it stays dry we know we've got a good package. We know if we put sticky tyres on it's definitely going to go fast. If it rains, I guess we get some good rain time and go play in the rain. It's still tough for us coming and learning these new tracks so I'm glad we picked it up as quickly as we did. There is still some more settings to find to be more comfortable but the speed is there. If it is wet then I hope we'll be up there too, I don't have as much time on this bike in the wet but I like riding in the rain." Tom Sykes Tom Sykes, Yamaha World Superbike Team (19th, 1'37.992) "I think today we've made big improvements, this morning we lost a bit of track time with a couple of things but this afternoon we went from a high 39 to a 37.9 so we've found two seconds. I'm only eight or nine tenths of the front guys which is not a lot and considering it's my first time here it's not bad. We can still make improvements over the weekend and hopefully we'll make it work and see what tomorrow brings." yamaha-racing.com