From Ducati Corse:

WORLD SUPERBIKE CHAMPIONSHIP

Round 10 – Brands Hatch (UK), 28 July 2002

PREVIEW – EUROPEAN ROUND

After some of the most spectacular racing seen all year at Laguna Seca, World Superbike returns to Europe for the most popular event on the calendar at Brands Hatch. The Kent circuit, on the outskirts of London, offers exciting racing and unparalleled viewing for the 100,000 plus crowd that is expected to turn up to see whether or not Troy Bayliss (Ducati Infostrada) can continue his extraordinary run of success.

The reigning world champion, winner of 14 of the 18 races so far this season, needs just three more wins to reach the all-time record held by Doug Polen (Ducati) in 1991. The Australian’s success story continued last week in the USA, where he shared the wins with eternal rival Colin Edwards (Honda), increasing his championship lead to 53 points over the Texan, with four rounds remaining and 200 points still left on the board.

“I came away from Laguna feeling sad and sorry for myself after a couple of crashes, and on Sunday I was a lot sorer than what it looked like on the bike. So basically I’ve just been at home since then getting ready for this race” commented Troy. “Physically I feel at 90% but on the bike it’s completely different and you can be sure I’ll be going out there aiming to win. I enjoy coming to Brands Hatch, it’s a place I’ve raced at a lot, and I’ll be planning to get some good results this weekend. I don’t really have to worry so much, because although the championship is very important I’ve got a points cushion of a couple of races over my closest rival Colin”.

Ruben Xaus (Ducati Infostrada) had an up-and-down weekend at Laguna with a superb second place in race 1 before crashing out in the second race. The young Spanish rider currently lies sixth in the table with 172 points. “I really hope to do well this weekend so I can go to the summer break with a lot more points on the board and get close to third place in the championship” declared Ruben. “I’m feeling a bit under the weather with ‘flu at the moment so my aim is to get better in half-a-day to be ready for first qualifying tomorrow. I like all the circuits on the WSBK calendar but Brands Hatch is one of my favourites. There’s always a good crowd here and the atmosphere around the track is simply fantastic”.

Twelve months ago Ben Bostrom (Ducati L&M) won both races with a superb display of riding around the Kent track. The Californian is fourth in the championship on 184 points. “I’m really excited about the Brands round because it’ll be good to get back on the bike after the big disappointment of Laguna. I will only be satisfied with winning here because that’s the only true satisfaction. Brands Hatch is an interesting circuit, it’s like any other track with its ‘goods’ and ‘bads’. It’s a weird track, you ride around thinking you’re going fast but you’re not, and then on the next lap something just clicks and it works and that’s what makes it so interesting”.

THE BRANDS HATCH CIRCUIT

Motorsport at Brands Hatch dates back to 1926 when a group of enthusiasts used the venue for grass track racing. The surface was asphalted in 1950 and soon became a popular venue for car racing as well. Circuit length was increased to 2.65 miles (4.24 kms) making it ideal for hosting top international races. World Superbikes first came to Brands Hatch in 1993 and every year since 1995 it has hosted the European Round at the start of August. The event has grown massively in popularity over the years and in 2001 a record crowd of 122,000 spectators crammed into the Kent circuit for the World Superbike round.

CIRCUIT RECORDS

Lap record: Bostrom (Ducati) 1’26.884 (2001); Superpole: Hodgson (Ducati) 1’26.381 (2000); Qualifying: Haga (Yamaha) 1’26.235 (2000). Race distance: 2 x 25 laps/105.525 kms.

2001 RESULTS

Race 1: 1. Bostrom (Ducati), 2. Hodgson (Ducati), 3. Edwards (Honda). Race 2: 1. Bostrom (Ducati), 2. Hodgson (Ducati), 3. Bayliss (Ducati).

POINTS (after 9 of 13 rounds): Riders – 1. Bayliss 405; 2. Edwards 352; 3. Hodgson 221; 4. Bostrom 184; 5. Haga 182; 6. Xaus 172, etc. Manufacturers – 1. Ducati 415; 2. Honda 357; 3. Aprilia 182; 4. Kawasaki 157; 5. Suzuki 101, etc.

TV COVERAGE

Eurosport (pan-European): Sunday 28 July, Race 1 1245 CET (live), Race 2 2315 CET (delayed). BBC (UK): Sunday 28 July, Race 1 1145 BST (live), Race 2 1520 BST (live). La7 (Italy): Saturday 27 July, Superpole, 1655 CET (live); Sunday 28 July, Race 1 1255 CET (live), Race 2 1755 CET (delayed).