Lanzi Wins World Superbike Race Two In Germany 1. Lorenzo LANZI, Ducati 999F05 2. Chris VERMEULEN, Honda CBR1000RR, -0.840-second 3. Noriyuki HAGA, Yamaha YZF-R1, -4.598 seconds 4. Yukio KAGAYAMA, Suzuki GSX-R1000, -5.291 5. Karl MUGGERIDGE, Honda CBR1000RR, -16.236 6. Andrew PITT, Yamaha YZF-R1, -18.362 7. Max NEUKIRCHNER, Honda CBR1000RR, -26.360 8. Norick ABE, Yamaha YZF-R1, -26.453 9. Steve MARTIN, Petronas FP1, -27.076 10. Pier francesco CHILI, Honda CBR1000RR, -37.303 11. James TOSELAND, Ducati 999F05, -40.997 12. Giovanni BUSSEI, Kawasaki Z-10R, -44.309 13. Troy CORSER, Suzuki GSX-R1000, -44.485 14. Sebastian GIMBERT, Yamaha YZF-R1, -48.459 15. Ben BOSTROM, Honda CBR1000RR, -53.264 16. Norino BRIGNOLA , Ducati 999RS, -1:04.546 17. Alessio VELINI, Ducati 999RS, -1:24.524 18. Miguel PRAIA ,Yamaha YZF-R1, -1:24.896 19. Garry MCCOY, Petronas FP1, -1 Laps 20. Michel NICKMANS, Yamaha YZF-R1, -3 Laps More from a press release issued by FGSport: 2005 CORONA EXTRA SUPERBIKE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 10TH ROUND – EUROSPEEDWAY LAUSITZ 9th , 10th, 11th SEPTEMBER Eurospeedway Lausitz, Sunday 11th September 2005 VERMEULEN AND NEW SENSATION LANZI SHARE GERMAN WIN – A STARTLING DAY IN SUPERBIKE PROVIDES DRAMA APLENTY An outstandingly unpredictable day of race action at EuroSpeedway Lausitz saw wins for championship challenger Chris Vermeulen (Winston Ten Kate Honda) and factory debutant, Lorenzo Lanzi (Xerox Ducati). Two of the youngest riders in the top echelons of Superbike, Vermeulen and Lanzi, both 23, were fast in practice and fast off the line, with Lanzi too quick into the first corner in race one. Vermeulen took that win from Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia) and Championship leader, Troy Corser (Alstare Suzuki). In the second race, Lanzi earned his first ever SBK race win; in his first ever race within a factory team, from Vermeulen and Haga. Championship leader Corser crashed out, but restarted to finish 13th. CHRIS CROSSES ANOTHER RUBICON For Vermeulen race one delivered him his third race win in a row, after a long fight with Noriyuki Haga, albeit in a race that was foreshortened artificially due the advent of a few spots of rain. Called a result at 20 of the 24 laps, Vermeulen won by 0.269 seconds from Haga, with Corser third. Lorenzo Lanzi, who had run on at the very first corner after his pole position start, rejoined the race 11th after a ride through penalty, yet worked his way up to eighth at the flag. LANZI DRIVES DUCATI WILD A Superpole winner at the first attempt in factory colours Lanzi became a race winner too, holding onto a long term lead despite intense pressure from behind – from first Noriyuki Haga (who was third) and eventual second place man Vermeulen, who had to make his way through the pack from a slow start. The end result of Corser’s lap two crash and eventual three points for 13th are that his championship lead has been slashed to a still impressive 60 points, with 100 up for grabs by Vermeulen if he wins all four remaining races. TOSELAND UP AND DOWN AS KAGAYAMA IMPROVES James Toseland (Ducati Xerox) was a solid fourth in race one, albeit seven seconds behind the winner, but in race two he had an off track excursion and finished 11th, earning only five points. A better day was enjoyed by Qatar race winner Yukio Kagayama (Alstare Suzuki) who took fifth in race one and improved it to fourth in the second race. Karl Muggeridge was a faller in race one and restarted only to retire in the pits, but in race two he slowly faded from a good start as grip decreased, his imperfect machine set-up dropping him to fifth. A brace of sixth places, his pace affected by chatter, were the reward for Yamaha Motor Italia rider Andrew Pitt, who also had tyre choice issues to deal with, largely because the track temperature in race one was considerably cooler than in qualifying. NEUKIRCHNER HAPPY WITH TWO SEVENTHS IN HIS HOME RACE Feeling the pressure from his home race commitments, local SBK rookie Max Neukirchner (Klaffi Honda) took two seventh places, results he was not disappointed with. He won a personal battle with Norick Abe (Yamaha Motor France) in race two, and was three seconds clear of Lanzi’s race one charge. Ben Bostrom (Renegade Honda KOJI) took a tenth place in race one, but a malfunctioning clutch in race two dropped him to fifth. Pierfrancesco Chili (Klaffi Honda) had an engine failure in race one, recovering on his spare bike in the second race to take tenth, one place ahead of a recovering Toseland. PETRONAS HOPEFULS EARN POINTS Once more the trend of Petronas riders having differing results in each race continued, as Steve Martin finished two laps down and 18th in race one but took an impressive ninth in race two. In the first race Garry McCoy had been the leading Petronas runner, taking 11th before he was forced to retire in the pits in race two. WORLD SUPERSPORT CHAMPIONSHIP Yamaha scored its first win in World Supersport since Silverstone in 2004, thanks to Kevin Curtain (Yamaha Motor Germany). The icing on a two-part anniversary cake was piped on by Curtain’s team-mate Broc Parkes, who took an aggregate second in the two-parter, initially halted after ten laps when the rains slowly appeared. In third place Fabien Foret (Team Italia Megabike Honda) beat Katsuaki Fujiwara (Winston Ten Kate Honda) and his own team-mate Michel Fabrizio for the final podium spot. Sebastien Charpentier (Winston Ten Kate Honda) fell in the opening leg, but having won the title last weekend at Assen, his crash only injured his pride, not his championship prospects. In the championship standings, the battle for second has hotted up, with Curtain overtaking Fujiwara,147 to 140, while the battle for a top three finish is now firmly joined by Foret, on 126. SUPERSTOCK 1000 FIM CUP An off track excursion while leading the 14 lap Superstock race cost Kenan Sofuoglu (Yamaha Motor Germany) the win at the EuroSpeedway. Despite crossing the line first, he was penalised 20 seconds for a near collision with his team-mate Didier Vankeymeulen, as he rejoined the tarmac at high speed. Sofuoglu thus was classified sixth, behind Vankeymeulen, Luca Scassa (Ormeni Yamaha), Ricardo Chiarello (Alstare Suzuki), Alessio Polita (Celani Suzuki) fourth and Craig Coxhell (EMS Suzuki) fifth. In the championship Sofuoglu now leads Vankeymeulen by only ten points. SUPERSTOCK 600 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP Maxime Berger (MBE Honda) inherited the win at Lausitzring after long term leaders Yoann Tiberio (Junior Team Megabike) and Claudio Corti (Trasimeno Yamaha) collided at the penultimate corner, with Tiberio recovering to finish second, Xavier Simeon (Alstare Suzuki) third. Corti leads the championship chase, with 168 points More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse: LANZI COMPLETES DREAM WEEKEND FOR DUCATI XEROX TEAM WITH SENSATIONAL WIN IN RACE 2 Lausitz (Germany), Sunday 11 September: Lorenzo Lanzi completed a sensational weekend for the Ducati Xerox Team as he stormed to the win in race 2 after being penalized with a ride-through in the first race. The 23-year-old Italian rider, making his debut for the factory team in place of the injured Régis Laconi, might even had a double win today, but was given the penalty for a mistake on the opening lap. Poleman Lanzi missed a gear as the field went into Turn 1 just after the start and had to pass through the circuit banking, specially created by the organisers as the run-off area. The Italian rider re-joined the race in third position, thus not infringing any sporting regulation, but failed to negotiate the slow-down chicane in the run-off, judging it to be impossibly tight. For the penalty Lanzi had to go through the pit-lane at regulation 60 km/h speed limit and he re-joined the race at the required point, but this time in eleventh place. As Chris Vermeulen took the win, Lanzi eventually finished eighth. “Vermeulen went a bit wide and as I was trying to take the turn I missed a gear and selected first instead of second, got the bike a bit crossed and went straight on” explained Lanzi. “But I did what the regulations say for this track – I came back into the race in third place. The chicane should be made suitable for bikes, and it was impossible to get through due to its tight layout. I was also given the drive-through quite late after five or six laps, I wasn’t expecting it any more. I’m disappointed because my race pace was capable of taking me to the win”. Lanzi then made amends in the second race after a spectacular battle throughout the 24 laps, first with Haga (Yamaha) and then with a fast-closing Vermeulen (Honda) towards the end. Lanzi becomes the first Italian rider to win on a Ducati factory machine since Pierfrancesco Chili at Assen in 1998. “A dream race and a dream weekend” added Lorenzo. “I clearly tried to go at maximum pace throughout the race but also to have a race pace sufficient not to make any mistakes and keep the others behind. I saved my tyres until four laps from the end and then I pushed as hard as possible in the final laps to keep Vermeulen behind me. We showed in race 2 that we could win, and that we could even have won race 1 as well. I am so happy, it’s been a fantastic weekend. It’s the dream of every Italian rider to win a race on a Ducati and this weekend I was able to express all of my potential”. James Toseland started fourth and finished fourth in race 1 after taking several laps to get past Pitt (Yamaha) following a bad start. He was running well in the same position in race 2 when he lost the front and slipped down out of the top 10. “It was a difficult weekend, the second race was disappointing because I was catching them and then I lost the front at the first turn. I wasn’t doing anything particularly wrong and it was a pity because I felt I could have got closer to the guys at the front. We had a decent set-up but it wasn’t perfect and were unable to improve as much as we should have. We would have been racing at the front if I had stayed on but that’s racing. Congratulations for Lorenzo, it’s a dream come true. I feel sure we could have both been on the podium and it was certainly possible in that second race.” RACE 1: 1. Vermeulen (Honda); 2. Haga (Yamaha) ; 3. Corser (Suzuki; 4. Toseland (Ducati Xerox); 5. Kagayama (Suzuki); 6. Pitt (Yamaha); etc. RACE 2 : 1. Lanzi (Ducati Xerox) ; 2. Vermeulen (Honda) ; 3. Haga (Yamaha) ; 4. Kagayama (Suzuki) ; 5. Muggeridge (Honda) ; 6. Pitt (Yamaha) … 11. Toseland (Ducati Xerox). POINTS (after 10 of 12 rounds) : Riders – 1. Corser 389; 2. Vermeulen 329; 3. Haga 239; 4. Toseland 215; 5. Laconi 214; 6. Kagayama 211. Manufacturers – 1. Suzuki 408; 2. Honda 345; 3. Ducati 331; 4. Yamaha 280; 5. Kawasaki 153; 6. Petronas 37. More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing: World Supersport and Superbike Championships 2005 Round 10, EuroSpeedway Lausitz ­ Germany Spectator attendance: 48,500 (weekend) Race Results 11 SEPTEMBER 2005 FORET TAKES THIRD AT RAIN AFFECTED EUROSPEEDWAY LAUSITZ The arrival of the fully expected rains midway through the World Supersport race at EuroSpeedway Lausitz made for an aggregate race result, making recent Assen race winner Fabien Foret (Team Italia Megabike Honda CBR600RR) third overall, despite winning the second heat. The result of the first leg was called at ten laps, then after a 15 minute wet track acclimatisation session ­ albeit held on a largely dry track surface ­ a 13 lap ‘wet’ race was called. Recently crowned 2005 World Champion and Lausitz pole winner Sebastien Charpentier (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR) was an early faller in the first part, while chasing eventual 1-2 duo Kevin Curtain and Broc Parkes (both Yamaha). Such has been the recent performance of the CBR600RR in World Supersport trim that the last non-Honda victory in the class was at Silverstone in 2004. Katsuaki Fujiwara (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR) battled through both parts of the race to secure fourth place, one ahead of Michel Fabrizio (Team Italia Megabike Honda CBR600RR). WSS rookie Tatu Lauslehto (Klaffi Honda CBR600RR) went ninth overall, keeping up his 100% points scoring record and promoting him to ninth overall. Foret showed his battling qualities throughout, improving from fourth in the first heat to overall third, and scoring 16 valuable championship points. “At the first start I launched not so well and the other guys were too far from me,” said Foret. “I knew that I could run a good race and at the second start I was in front of the other bikes. Today my bike was the top Honda on show again, so thanks to the team for that. I have taken five podiums from the beginning of the season and in Imola and Magny Cours I’ll try to take other two podiums. Perhaps I can win another one.” Fujiwara’s off podium finish was the opposite of what he needed in the championship chase, losing overall second to Curtain, but only after a complicated two part race. “We made some changes between the two parts of the race because it was clear that the rain wouldn’t keep falling,” said Kats. “The balance of the bike was definitely better and the changes seemed to work in the second part. Unfortunately, I was too far back after the first part of the race and I made a small mistake at the end of the start-finish straight, which dropped me back from the leaders. I’ll fight hard in Imola to get second place back in the championship, for my mechanics and the whole team.” Fabrizio was no fan of Lausitz, but still finished with good points. “At the end I just saved the race weekend,” said Fabrizio. “Today I wasn’t able to run with them. The bike has gone very fast but I don’t like this track too much. It’s a pity because at the end of the practice I hoped that I could earn a podium and instead I have to return home with this fifth position. But to enter in the top five is a good result.” Lauslehto found himself in a battling group once again in the midfield, and worked long and well for his ninth place finish “Once again a hard fight,” said the Finn. “I had to work very hard to keep some riders behind me, to keep the door closed and still go fast, but it was worth it to finish in the points, and inside the top ten.” For Charpentier, his crash was a rude surprise, as was the change in emphasis of the opposition, especially after snatching pole from Curtain with his very last qualifying lap. It was Charpentier’s ninth pole of an amazing 2005 season. “It feels very strange, I have to admit,” said the new World Champion. “I don’t really understand what happened in the crash ­ it was exactly the same as the crash in qualifying yesterday and on exactly the same corner. I was feeling OK, although Curtain and Parkes were fast, which surprised me. We still have two more races, though, the last one in my own country; I am still hungry for wins and I will be riding as well as I can at Imola and at Magny-Cours.” Charpentier’s unchanged total of 210 made him champion at Assen but Curtain now moves to second on 147, with Fujiwara third, on 140. Foret is fourth on 126, with Fabrizio fifth and Lauslehto ninth. World Superbike Round 10 of 12 VERMEULEN WINS IN GERMANY AND REDUCES CHAMPIONSHIP GAP In the first EuroSpeedway Lausitz race Chris Vermeulen (Winston Ten Kate Honda) led for almost the entire 20 laps, of what was supposed to be a 24 lap race, taking a close but eventually unchallenged win over Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha). The first spots of rain soon brought out a red flag and Chris was declared the winner for the third time in a row, after his recent Assen double. Championship leader Corser was third in the opener. In seventh place, Max Neukirchner was the next Honda rider home, with Ben Bostrom running out to the last spot in the top ten. Both Karl Muggeridge and Pierfrancesco Chili retired, Muggeridge after an earlier crash. In race two, which went for the full 24 laps, a poor start for Vermeulen contributed to second rather than another double win, but he nonetheless walked out of Lausitz with a victory and a second place, and a reduced margin to make up to championship leader Corser. He fell in race two, remounting to finish 13th. Vermeulen is now 60 points behind, with 100 up for grabs should he win the remaining four races of the season. In the second race, Lorenzo Lanzi (Ducati) won his first ever SBK race, with Haga third. In race two Muggeridge had a solid fifth, despite an imperfect set up for the reappearing dry and sunny conditions, while Neukirchner was again seventh. Chili scored his only points of the day for tenth, with Ben Bostrom fighting tech issues to take the last point on offer, in 15th. Vermeulen was relaxed about his first race win, and with a better start, he could have made a late challenge for his second win of the weekend. “We tested here in July and that’s maybe given us an advantage over the others,” said Chris of his race one win. “That said, conditions in the last few laps of race one were pretty dicey, so It was a good thing that they stopped the race. We did all our practice here in 35 °C track temperatures and now it’s at least 10 degrees cooler, so tyre choice was always a bit of a concern. In race two I got off OK but then it bogged down a bit. I pulled the clutch back in but then the bike’s front end came up and I ended up about eighth. It was a big job passing everyone, especially at this track. By the time I had to chase Lanzi down he had a big lead and my tyres were pretty shot.” Neukirchner was the other most effective Honda rider on display at Assen, and was glad to rack up two good points scores, after some recent bad luck. He sits 13th in the championship. “It was an OK raceday,” said Neukirchner, surrounded by his countrymen. “We had many fans and family with us here so there was a lot of pressure. To take seventh two times was good for me and I made a lot of points. That I am happy with; a nice way to head to Imola.” Karl Muggeridge was unhappy with his raceday luck, feeling that he could have had better results in different circumstances. He is currently 11th. “In race one I got baulked by Kagayama and had to readjust the bike, then we had to retire,” said Muggeridge from pitlane. “I could have done with the experience of the whole first race to get the set-up a little bit. I just rode my butt off in race two and that was all I could do. I wanted a pit stop so that I could adjust the setting on the bike!” Chili’s machine had a technical problem which put him out of race one, then a switch to his spare bike proved difficult in the second, putting him 9th in the championship battle. “Things were good on Friday but today was not good,” said a puzzled Chili. “In the first there was a problem with the bike and we had to change the engine for the second race. It was a completely different spec, with a different gearbox and the chassis settings didn’t work. It was too high at the front and every time I went wide in the corners. It was very strange.” Improved physical condition for Ben Bostrom, who nonetheless carried a back injury into Lausitz, proved to no help in the races, which he finished tenth and 15th. He sits 15th overall. “I expected to have a good weekend, hoping to finish in fifth and had a terrible weekend. The first race, when the tyre went bad, it really went south. In the second race when I went to the startline we had pretty much no clutch. So I had to ride the race with no clutch, which was quite upsetting. We changed the clutch between races as normal too. I almost jump started because of it and when the tyre went, it really went.” Both Supersport and Superbike classes head to Imola for the penultimate round of the championship, on October 2. Results SUPERSPORT: RACE : (Laps 23 = 98,095 Km Pos /Rider /Nat. /Team / Time /Gap 1 / CURTAIN / AUS / Yamaha Motor Germany / 39’39.394 / 2 / PARKES / AUS / Yamaha Motor Germany / 39’41.972 / 2.578 3 / FORET / FRA / Team Megabike / 39’51.427 / 12.033 4 / FUJIWARA / JPN / Winston Ten Kate Honda / 39’57.678 / 18.284 5 / FABRIZIO / ITA / Italia Megabike / 40’05.390 / 25.996 6 / CHAMBON / FRA / Gil Motor Sport / 40’05.410 / 26.016 7 / CORRADI / ITA / Ducati Selmat / 40’08.544 / 29.150 8 / STIGEFELT / SWE / Stiggy Motorsports / 40’11.720 / 32.326 9 / LAUSLEHTO / FIN / Klaffi Honda / 40’14.030 / 34.636 10 / DAEMEN / BEL / Van Zon Honda / 40’15.351 / 35.957 11 / TODE / GER / Van Zon Honda / 40’15.773 / 36.379 12 / ANDERSEN / NOR / Kawasaki DocShop Racing / 40’18.570 / 39.176 13 / HARMS / DEN / Stiggy Motorsports / 40’25.872 / 46.478 14 / FORES / ESP / Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra / 40’32.763 / 53.369 15 / JANSEN / NED / Suzuki Nederland / 40’49.646 / 1’10.252 Fastest Lap 5° Kevin Curtain 1’42.438 149,886 Km/h Lap Record: Kevin Curtain 1’42.438 149,890 Km/h 2005 Riders Championship Standings: 1 Charpentier 210, 2 Curtain 147, 3 Fujiwara 140, 4 Foret 126, 5 Fabrizio 109, 6 Parkes 89, 7 Chambon 86, 8 Fores 60, 9 Nannelli 56, 10 Lauslehto 56, 11 Stigefelt 40, 12 Harms 34, 13 Corradi 34, 14 Veneman 33, 15 Jones 18. SUPERBIKE Race 1: (Laps 20 = 85,300 Km) Pos /Rider /Nat. /Team / Time /Gap 1 / VERMEULEN / AUS / Winston Ten Kate Honda / 33’36.341 / 2 / HAGA / JPN / Yamaha Motor Italia WSB / 33’36.610 / 0.269 3 / CORSER / AUS / Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra / 33’38.640 / 2.299 4 / TOSELAND / GBR / Ducati Xerox / 33’43.399 / 7.058 5 / KAGAYAMA / JPN / Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra / 33’49.049 / 12.708 6 / PITT / AUS / Yamaha Motor Italia WSB / 33’50.394 / 14.053 7 / NEUKIRCHNER / GER / Klaffi Honda / 33’52.957 / 16.616 8 / LANZI / ITA / Ducati Xerox / 33’55.364 / 19.023 9 / ABE / JPN / Yamaha Motor France-Ipone / 34’00.992 / 24.651 10 / BOSTROM / USA / Renegade Koji / 34’10.695 / 34.354 11 / MCCOY / AUS / Foggy Petronas Racing / 34’20.726 / 44.385 12 / BUSSEI / ITA / Kawasaki Bertocchi / 34’21.361 / 45.020 13 / CARDOSO / ESP / D.F.X. Treme / 34’28.152 / 51.811 14 / BRIGNOLA / ITA / Ducati SC Caracchi / 34’28.284 / 51.943 15 / CRUCIANI / ITA / PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse / 34’40.452 / 1’04.111 Fastest Lap 7° Noriyuki Haga 1’39.828 153,805 Km/h Race 2 : (Laps 24 = 102,360 Km) Pos /Rider /Nat. /Team / Time / 1 / LANZI / ITA / Ducati Xerox / 40’20.947 / 2 / VERMEULEN / AUS / Winston Ten Kate Honda / 40’21.787 / 0.840 3 / HAGA / JPN / Yamaha Motor Italia WSB / 40’25.545 / 4.598 4 / KAGAYAMA / JPN / Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra / 40’26.238 / 5.291 5 / MUGGERIDGE / AUS / Winston Ten Kate Honda / 40’37.183 / 16.236 6 / PITT / AUS / Yamaha Motor Italia WSB / 40’39.309 / 18.362 7 / NEUKIRCHNER / GER / Klaffi Honda / 40’47.307 / 26.360 8 / ABE / JPN / Yamaha Motor France-Ipone / 40’47.400 / 26.453 9 / MARTIN / AUS / Foggy Petronas Racing / 40’48.023 / 27.076 10 / CHILI / ITA / Klaffi Honda / 40’58.250 / 37.303 11 / TOSELAND / GBR / Ducati Xerox / 41’01.944 / 40.997 12 / BUSSEI / ITA / Kawasaki Bertocchi / 41’05.256 / 44.309 13 / CORSER / AUS / Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra / 41’05.432 / 44.485 14 / GIMBERT / FRA / Yamaha Motor France-Ipone / 41’09.406 / 48.459 15 / BOSTROM / USA / Renegade Koji / 41’14.211 / 53.264 Fastest Lap 7° Noriyuki Haga 1’39.790 153,863 Km/h Lap Record: Ruben Xaus 1’39.679 154,030Km/h 2002 Riders Championship Standings: 1 CORSER 389, 2 VERMEULEN 329, 3 HAGA 239, 4 TOSELAND 215, 5 LACONI 214, 6 KAGAYAMA 211, 7 PITT 137, 8 WALKER 130, 9 CHILI 125, 10 LANZI 118, 11 MUGGERIDGE 111, 12 ABE 110, 13 NEUKIRCHNER 98, 14 BUSSEI 56, 15 BOSTROM 46. More, from a press release issued by Suzuki Racing: CORSER FIGHTS BACK AFTER CRASH Team Suzuki Press Office – September 11, 2005. World Superbike Championship leader Troy Corser heroically charged from the back of the pack to score points after crashing from the lead of today’s second World Superbike race at Lausitzring in Germany. The Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra rider had earlier finished on the podium in the opening 24-lapper, which was red-flagged due to rain four laps from the end. He then led the second race until the second lap when he crashed in turn one. He remounted, fired the bike up and carried on, dead last by a considerable margin. But he put his head down and managed to pick off 15 riders before finishing in 13th place. Team mate Yukio Kagayama scored fifth and fourth places and closed the points gap to fifth in the championship. Troy Corser: “I was happy to take third spot in the first race after the problems with chattering during the race. We had changed our rear tyre on the start line and were running the same as Chris and Nori, but the tyre affected the set-up and along came the chatter. I also ran in a bit hot going into turn one early on and then had to get my rhythm settled again. That little mistake allowed Chris and Nori to pull out a small gap and it was impossible to catch them again, so I settled for third and a podium. “I really believed another podium or a win was on the cards for race two because I had been enjoying the bike again this weekend. At Assen, we had some problems which were never fully resolved, but here at Lausitz I just felt more comfortable. “The crash in race two came as a big surprise as I felt I had not done anything different at that turn before. I lost the front and rear together and went down without warning. I cradled the bike as I went down and then picked it up again as soon as I could. The bike fired up first time but the gear lever was a bit bent so I spent some time finding a gear. I couldn’t use the clutch – the lever was bent upwards – and one of the bars was crooked. All in all, it handled pretty well really. I know I could’ve pulled in when I crashed but I just wanted to get back on the track and try and grab some points – and that’s what I did.” Yukio Kagayama: “I am much happier today with my fourth and fifth because I feel that I am getting back into it after a few average races. The results today have given me my confidence back and now I can think about the next two races very positively. My real problem today has been trying to find a good rhythm right from the start of the races. In both races it took me about four or five laps and by then the leaders had gone! If I can get that sorted out, I feel I can be in the leading group instead of chasing them from a distance. I have got four races left and I am determined to get more podiums and maybe some more race wins!” World Superbike Results: Race 1: 1 Vermeulen (Aus-Honda), 2 Haga (J-Yamaha), 3 Troy Corser (Aus-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra), 4 Toseland (GB-Ducati), 5 Yukio Kagayama (J-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra), 6 Pitt (Aus-Yamaha), 7 Neukirchner (D-Honda), 8 Lanzi (I-Ducati), 9 Abe (J-Yamaha), 10 Bostrom (USA-Honda), Race 2: 1 Lanzi, Vermeulen, 3 Haga, 4 Yukio Kagayama (J-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra), 5 Muggeridge (Aus-Honda), 6 Pitt, 7 Neukirchner, 8 Abe, 9 Martin (Aus-Petronas), 10 Chili (I-Honda). 13 Troy Corser (Aus-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra). Championship Points: 1 Troy Corser 389, 2 Vermeulen 329, 3 Haga 239, 4 Toseland 215, 5 Laconi 214, 6 Yukio Kagayama 211, 7 Pitt 137, 8 Walker 130, 9 Chili 125, 10 Lanzi 118. WORLD SUPERSPORT: Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra rider Javi Fores finished 14thin the 10th round of the Supersport World Championship at the Eurospeedway Lausitzring today and was disappointed with the result. The race was a two-part affair after it was red-flagged due to rain when 11 laps had been completed. The riders were given a short ‘wet practice’ but inevitably no further rain fell and the second part of the race took place in dry conditions. Newly crowned champion Sebastien Charpentier (Honda) had crashed early on in the first race, so could not take in the following 13-lapper. The grid for part two was formed from the finishing order after 10 laps and once again it was the Yamaha duo of Kevin Curtain and Broc Parkes who led the charge. Towards the end, Fabien Foret (Honda) stormed to the front and crossed the line first, but when the times of the two races were aggregated, Curtain was the winner with Parkes second and Foret third. Fores finished the first leg 14th and the second leg 13th. Javi Fores – 14th: “This was a bad weekend and I am not so sorry to leave this place. I didn’t make a bad start, but I felt I was pushing right to the limit all the time. Many times I felt that the front was tucking under and it was also not possible to open the gas hard exiting the turns. I used my spare bike in the second race but encountered the same problems. My tyres were finished well before the end of the 13-lap race and it was hard just to keep going at times. I hope for better things at Imola in the next round.” Aggregate Supersport Results: 1 Curtain (Aus-Yamaha), 2 Parkes (Aus-Yamaha), 3 Foret (F-Honda), 4 Fujiwara (J-Honda), 5 Fabrizio (I-Honda), 6 Chambon (F-Honda), 7 Corradi (I-Ducati), 8 Stigefelt (S-Honda), 9 Lauslehto (SF-Honda), 10 Daemen (B-Honda). 14 Javi Fores (E-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra). Championship Points: 1 Charpentier 210, 2 Curtain 147, 3 Fujiwara 140, 4 Foret 126, 5 Fabrizio 109, 6 Parkes 89, 7 Chambon 86, 8 Javi Fores (Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) 60. SUPERSTOCK 1000: Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra rider Riccardo Chiarello battled through the pain barrier at the Eurospeedway Lausitzring today and was rewarded with a place on the podium. Series leader Kenan Sofuoglu (Yamaha) had led the race until the last lap when he made a mistake and ran straight on across the grass instead of through the chicane before the back straight. By the time he recovered he had dropped to sixth place and his place at the front had been taken by team mate Didier Vankeymeulen. Second was Luca Scassa (Yamaha) with Chiarello third. Riccardo Chiarello – 3rd: “I am very happy to take a podium today and, although I was a bit lucky, I felt that I deserved it for all the effort I had put in. I was still in pain with my arm and shoulder today, but it wasn’t as bad as yesterday. Today the track conditions were very different than before and although I felt I had less grip; my bike seemed to work better. I had a little problem exiting the turns and getting the bike to change direction and also a problem with my face mask. Just before the start of the race I removed my mask because the weather seemed to be good. But in the race, my visor fogged up and I had to lift it a little so that I could see where I was going. But I carried on ok and in the end, luck was on my side.” Superstock 1000 Results: 1 Vankeymeulen (B-Yamaha), 2 Scassa (I-Yamaha), 3 Riccardo Chiarello (I-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra), 4 Polita (I-Suzuki), 5 Coxhell (Aus-Suzuki), 6 Sofuoglu (Tur-Yamaha). Championship Points: 1 Sofuoglu 137, 2 Vankeymeulen 127, 3 Coxhell 109, 4 Roccoli 103, 5 Polita 90, 6 Riccardo Chiarello 82. MORALES TAKES GSX-R CUP SERIES LEAD. Spaniard Carmelo Morales won the fourth round of the Suzuki GSX-R European Cup at the Eurospeedway Lausitzring today and now leads the series by five points. Previous series leader Hudson Kennaugh got the holeshot and led the 24-rider field off the line and into turn one, chased by Dominic Lammert, Morales, David Salom, Xavi Simeon and Ismael Ortega. On lap three, Morales took over the lead and from then on in, although he was under pressure for the rest of the nine laps, he was never headed taking the chequered flag by less then a tenth of a second ahead of his fellow countryman Salom. Third was Lammert, some four and a half seconds adrift with Kennaugh fourth, Ortega fifth and Weymann sixth. Said Morales: I am very, very happy for this victory but also because now I am leading the series! The Suzuki worked perfectly this weekend, the tyres were perfect and it has just been a perfect weekend for me. I made a good start and was fourth off the line I think and then I took my time to find my rhythm. The only problem I had was with a bit of front end bumping, but it wasn’t too bad. At the end, I found it hard to see the finish line because this place has so much concrete. But I did see the chequered flag and that made me very happy.” Salom said: “I was third at the end of the first lap but I made a little mistake afterwards and went straight on. Fortunately it wasn’t a problem and I didn’t lose any places. But then I put my head down and got back into the action. At one stage I was catching Carmelo, but in the end he was just about strong enough to hold me off. I have had great fun here. My bike and tyres worked perfectly and I am very happy with the result.” Suzuki GSX-R Cup Results: 1 Carmelo Morales (Spain), 2 David Salom (Spain), 3 Dominic Lammert (Germany), 4 Hudson Kennaugh (South Africa), 5 Ismael Ortega (Spain), 6 Max Weymann (Germany), 7 David Fouloi (France), 8 Thomas Metro (France), 9 Oliver Skatch (Germany), 10 Ron Van Steenbergen (Holland), 11 Mike Edwards (GB), 12 Danilo Dell’Omo (Italy), 13 Rene Mahr (Austria), 14 Joshua Noel Forster (Australia), 15 Xavier Simeon (Belgium). 17 Houston. DNF Barber. Championship Points (after 4 rounds): 1 Morales 83, 2 Kennaugh 78, 3 Salom 74, 4 Fouloi 41, 5 Ortega 36, 6 Lammert 36, 7 Forster 30, 8 Edwards 27, 9 Simeon 26, 10 Skatch 24. 14 Barber 13. 17 Houston 4. Full series information and photographs can be found on: www.gsxrcup.com.