Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By Glenn LeSanto

Sanna goes pole in Misano Supersport

Simone Sanna took a popular pole position in front of a delighted Italian crowd in the final qualifying session ahead of tomorrow’s World Supersport championship race.

Sanna took pole late in the session, forcing Chris Vermeulen to fit another qualifier to respond. Vermeulen was on course, going through the first two splits ahead of Sanna’s time. But when the runaway leader of the championship arrived at the final chicane he found several riders on the racing line but not on racing speed, apparently awaiting a tow from a faster rider. The obstruction may have cost Vermeulen pole.

Ten Kate Honda team manager, Ronald ten Kate had plenty to say about the incident;

“We seem to have riders in this championship who aren’t sufficiently confident in their own abilities to lap alone,” he said. “Instead they hang around, often blocking the racing line, waiting for a faster rider to give them a tow. When Chris came to the final chicane he was lapping under Sanna’s time and on his way to pole position. Instead of pole he found several riders just rolling around, not at racing speed but on the racing line. He had to dive underneath another rider to get through the turn. It’s just not acceptable behaviour from professional racers.”

The pair are joined on the front row by Sanna’s Belgarda Yamaha team mate Jurgen van den Goorbergh and Suzuki Alstare pilot Katsuaki Fujiwara.

World Supersport championship
Round seven, San Marino, June 20 – 21 – 22
Final qualifying practice, fastest laps:

1. Simone Sanna, Yamaha, 1:36.846
2. Chris Vermeulen, Honda, 1:36.996
3. Jurgen van den Goorbergh, Yamaha, 1:37.005
4. Fabien Foret, Kawasaki, 1:37.022
5. Katsuaki Fujiwara, Suzuki, 1:37.065
6. Alessi Corradi, Yamaha, 1:37.069
7. Broc Parkes, Honda, 1:37.359
8. Stephane Chambon, Suzuki, 1:37.526
9. Christian Kellner, Yamaha, 1:37.644
10. Karl Muggeridge, Honda, 1:37.848


More, from a press release issued by Honda:

HONDA’S VERMEULEN SECOND AS SANNA SCOOPS POLE

Honda CBR600RR rider Chris Vermeulen will start from second place on the grid after narrowly missing out on pole position to Simone Sanna during Saturday¹s frantic final qualifying session for Sunday’s seventh round of the World Supersport championship at Misano, San Marino.

Championship leader Vermeulen reported: “I was heading for pole position on my very last lap but there was a couple of riders wobbling through the last chicane and I lost too much time trying to avoid them.”

The Ten Kate Honda rider continued: “Starting anywhere on the front row of the grid is OK and we’ve got a really good race set-up with the RR. Pirelli have come up with some good race tyres for Misano which is never that easy to do–it’s a tricky circuit and a strange surface.”

Jurgen van den Goorbergh–Vermeulen’s nearest challenger in the championship chase–will start from third while defending world champion Fabien Foret is fourth to complete the front row of the grid.

Suzuki’s Katsuaki Fujiwara took the fifth best time as no fewer than 23 riders bettered the existing lap record in the sweltering heat at the Adriatic coastal venue.

Alessio Corradi bounced back from a crash eight minutes into the session to take sixth place on the grid while promising Australian Broc Parkes was seventh on his BKM Honda, Parkes commented: “That’s not bad considering I’m still learning how to qualify ­ I’m hopeless at it! But I’m really happy with the rear race tyre so I may be on for a good finish tomorrow.”

Stephane Chambon completes the second, in eighth place, with Christian Kellner ninth and Ten Kate Honda¹s Karl Muggeridge 10th.

“I’ve struggled all weekend, a bit like last week at Silverstone but we sorted that on Saturday night and I finished third so let’s hope we can do the same here,” said Muggeridge.

Klaffi Honda’s Robert Ulm picked himself up from a crash at the end of the Misano straight to take 14th place on the grid, the Austrian rider commented: “I took my spare machine out after the crash and went quicker so I probably got away with it and I feel confident for the race ­ Misano is a circuit I like.”

Ulm will be joined on the fourth row by Van Zon Honda¹s Werner Daemen and BKM Honda¹s Christophe Cogan. Daemen took 15th place and said: “I should have been in the top 10 but two Italian riders got in my way at the chicane and I had to close the throttle before I knew which way they were going. I feel OK for the race but it will be a tough one ­ especially in this heat.”

Cogan, in 16th, commented: “I’ve paid the price for not being organised with tyre selection yesterday but I qualified in 13th place in Valencia and finished fourth so I know it is possible.”

A frustrated Sebastien Charpentier took 17th place on his Klaffi Honda, the Frenchman admitted: “I’ve not been doing my job this weekend, I have to work harder. I just need to try and find a good rear race tyre in the morning and then I’ll be ready.”

Van Zon Honda’s Iain MacPherson was disappointed with his 19th place, the Scottish ace reported: “I got held up badly on my fast lap by two riders messing about in the chicane. I feel in much better shape than yesterday and the race set-up is good but starting from the fifth row is a bit of a nightmare.”


More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki News Service:

FUJI JUST MISSES POLE
It was a hot and difficult day for Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra at Misano, which culminated in a dramatic end to the final timed qualifying session. During the last ten minutes the lead changed hands several times and Team Alstare Suzuki rider was in contention for a front row grid place. Then, with just a couple of minutes remaining, Simone Sanna (Yamaha) put in an unexpected flyer of a lap and took pole position. Sanna’s lap of 1:6.846 was enough to bump Fujiwara down the order to fifth place and a spot on the second row of the grid. Second is series leader Chris Vermeulen (Honda), ahead of van den Goorbergh (Yamaha) and reigning champion Fabien Foret (Kawasaki). Fujiwara’s team mate struggled with suspension problems in the today’s timed session and ended up eight quickest and will line up at the other end of the second row line to his team mate.

KATSUAKI FUJIWARA ­ 5TH, 1:37.065
I am very disappointed not to be on the front row of the grid and now I know I must make a very good start tomorrow. But the lap times are very close, so it’s not all that bad. In the morning warm-up we’ll try a little change to the gearbox and see if we can improve third gear. I’m still not completely sure about which tyres to use, because I’m sure it’s going to be very hot again tomorrow and that will affect tyre wear. I hope I can conserve my tyres in the early part of the race and then push hard later on, but whatever happens, I really want a podium place.

STEPHANE CHAMBON ­ 8TH, 1:37.526
I could be happier. I had some (suspension) problems this afternoon in middle of the corners and I couldn’t get a really good drive out. The race is going to be very hard, long and hot, so tyre choice is going to be critical. I’ll talk with or Dunlop technicians and we’ll try and come up with the right package for the race. I’m disappointed not to be on the front row, but I promise I will be better in the race tomorrow.


More, from a press release issued by Belgarda Yamaha:

SIMONE ON POLE! JURGEN THIRD
Team Yamaha Belgarda riders Simone Sanna and Jurgen van den Goorbergh had a superb final qualifying at Misano today, ending with the Italian taking pole position.

The last ten minutes of final were dramatic, with the lead changing several times, but with less then three minutes remaining Simone Sanna suddenly found something extra and blasted his way to the top of the leaderboard.

Sanna’s time of 1:36.846 was nearly two tenths of a second quicker then his nearest rival and was so late in the session that nobody else had time to respond. Sanna’s team mate Jurgen van den Goorbergh also had a tremendous final session, finishing third quickest after shaving nearly half a second off his previous best time. Both Simone and Jurgen are also happy with the set-ups and are looking forward to tomorrow’s 23-lapper and will be chasing Yamaha Belgarda’s first win of the year.

SIMONE SANNA ­ 1ST, 1:36.846
I know I left it late ­ but better late then never! Having tested here before helped me and the team and I like this track a lot, so I was comfortable from the start. I’m very happy with my YZF-R6 and now I’m looking forward to the race tomorrow. It feels like a good result has been a long time coming for me, but it has been hard for me to adjust to this type of bike after riding a 125 GP bike. I’m very happy to be on pole, but what really matters tomorrow is for me to get a good start and finish on the podium. It’s important for me and the team and for all my fans who have come here to support me.

JURGEN VD GOORBERGH ­ 3rd, 1:37.005
I’m happy to be on the front row for the race and I’m happy because I think we found a good bike set-up. I also know which tyres to use, so I’m ready to race. Pole would’ve been nice, but a front row place is all I needed and that’s what I’ve got. We tested here and that has helped us a little and this weekend has gone pretty well so far. I think a podium is possible for sure and a win would be great.