Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

World Superbike Race One
Laguna Seca Raceway, 28 laps
1. Pierfrancesco Chili, Ducati
2. Neil Hodgson, Ducati, -3.068 seconds
3. James Toseland, Ducati, -6.072
4. Mat Mladin, Suzuki, -12.322
5. Chris Walker, Ducati, -21.605
6. Aaron Yates, Suzuki, -21.891
7. Giovanni Bussei, Ducati, -27.068
8. Troy Corser, Petronas, -49.287
9. Mauro Sanchini, Kawasaki, -49.679
10. Marco Borciani, Ducati, -50.261
11. Juan Borja, Ducati, -67.878
12. Walter Tortoroglio, Honda, -1 lap
13. L. Pedersoli, Ducati, -1 lap
14. Gregorio Lavilla, Suzuki, -6 laps, DNF, crash
15. Regis Laconi, Ducati, -12 laps, DNF, crash
16. Ruben Xaus, Ducati, -17 laps, DNF, crash
17. Steve Martin, Ducati, -17 laps, DNF, crash
18. L. Pedercini, Ducati, -17 laps, DNF, crash
19. David Garcia, Ducati, -24 laps, DNF, mechanical
20. Jiri Mrkyvka, Ducati, -24 laps, DNF, mechanical
21. James Hayden, Petronas, -27 laps, DNF, crash
22. Ivan Clementi, Kawasaki, -27 laps, DNF, crash
23. Eric Bostrom, Kawasaki, DNS, crash



Lap Leaders
Laconi, laps 1-3
Mladin, laps 4-8
Xaus, laps 9-11
Mladin, lap 12
Laconi, laps 13-16
Chili, laps 17-28


Note: American Suzuki Racing PR rep Wendy Black announced that Mat Mladin would not participate in the second World Superbike race at Laguna Seca.


More, from a press release issued by Yoshimura Suzuki:

It is with great disappointment that Team Yoshimura Suzuki announces that current AMA Superbike Championship points leader Mat Mladin is unable to compete in the second leg of today’s SBK Superbike World Championship race.

According to the team, Mladin is feeling a little under the weather and knows he can’t give 100 percent during the race. In the best interest of overall rider safety, the team feels it’s better for Mladin to sit out this race.

“After this weekend, I’m just out of gas,” said Mladin. “It’s just been too big of a weekend. About halfway through the first race, I realized that I couldn’t keep up the pace. I’ve just put in too many laps at too high of a level. With all of the crashes and with what happened to Eric Bostrom, I just don’t want to go out and try to be a hero. I’d rather play it smart.”


More, from a press release issued by HM Plant Ducati:

Podium finish for Toseland at Laguna Seca

James Toseland finished third in an action-packed first race at the eighth round of the Superbike World Championship at Laguna Seca behind fellow Ducati riders Frankie Chili and Neil Hodgson. The 22-year-old Sheffield star rode a calculated race on his HM Plant Ducati to collect a deserved podium finish with his team-mate Chris Walker taking fifth position after 28 laps around the undulating Californian track.

There was a dramatic start to the race with a multi-bike pile-up going into turn two. The carnage led to a restart, which worked out well for Toseland – he had stalled his bike on the warm-up lap and missed the start. So, with both HM Plant Ducatis on the grid after a 30-minute delay, Toseland and Walker got off the line safely and completed the first lap in sixth and eighth positions respectively.

It was a closely fought race with seven riders disputing the lead in the early stages. Toseland maintained station towards the front of the field for the entire race, but Walker was unable to maintain this pace. So, as Toseland made steady progress up to his seventh podium finish of the year, Walker maintained station until the chequered flag.

“I was very lucky after stalling the bike before the first start,” said Toseland. “Once the race got underway, the bike was going well and I was able to make good progress throughout. I was very pleased with the set-up after all the hard work we had put into qualifying. It was a great race and I am delighted to be on the podium for the first time at Laguna Seca.

“Once I saw that I was up to fourth and closing on Mladin, I had to bide my time. It was difficult to overtake him because my front tyre had started to push. Fortunately, he had a big slide at turn four and I was able to get underneath him at the next corner. After that I knew that I was faster and pulled away.”

Walker rode sensibly throughout to bring the HM Plant Ducati home in fifth and take 11 invaluable points towards his championship challenge. “I was glad that they showed the red flags after the crash because I got held up quite badly,” said the Nottingham rider. “Fortunately, the restart went OK but I wasn’t able to hold on to the leading group. It was a lonely race, but I was able to keep my concentration and held off Aaron Yates’ challenge in the closing stages.”


More, from a press release issued by Foggy Petronas Racing:

Corser eighth for Foggy PETRONAS Racing in USA

Troy Corser finished a creditable eighth place for Foggy PETRONAS Racing in the first race of round eight of the World Superbike championship at Laguna Seca, USA.

The Australian capitalised on an action-packed race, with only 13 riders finishing out of an original field of 23, to hold off the challenge Mauro Sanchini and Marco Borciani and clinch his third consecutive top ten finish on the FP1 – the Malaysian superbike.

But team-mate James Haydon suffered more misfortune when, on the second lap after an excellent start, a split water pipe caused him to crash at the final turn, bring Ivan Clementi down in turn.

Troy, who started the warm-up lap from the pit-lane after being involved in the first lap mayhem involving race winner Frankie Chili, Eric Bostrom and Neil Hodgson, said: “The tyres were pretty consistent but I was losing the back end going into corners so it took me a few laps to change my lines and try to use different parts of the tyre. I also tried to get around the problem by picking the bike up before accelerating out of corners. The temperature was also going up and down, which seemed to be affecting the engine, so it took me a while to get used to that as well. If you take out the two wild cards Mat Mladin and Aaron Yates, it was a sixth place which is not too bad.”

James said: “I could see fluid spraying onto the screen and the next thing I knew I was down. There was nothing I could do about it – the bike was covered in water. I am just thankful that it happened at the final turn, the slowest on the circuit.”


More, from a press release issued by Mat Mladin Motorsports:

FATIGUE KEEPS MLADIN OFF WORLD SUPERBIKE PODIUM

Monterey, California, USA (Sunday, 13 July) – The high intensity of four days of riding and competing at the highest levels took a physical toll on Australia’s Mat Mladin as he was forced to ease his pace in the opening leg of the Laguna Seca round of the Superbike World Championship, finishing just off the winners podium in fourth place.

Mladin had been the star of the meeting leading into today’s two 28-lap races, having already set pole position and taken a race win the day before in the American AMA Superbike Championship race aboard his Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000, before claiming pole position for the SWC races yesterday afternoon.

Exhausted after completing the opening race, Mladin and his team agreed that it was in the interest of his safety and fitness that he should withdraw from the second SWC race.

“Half way through the first race I just had nothing left in the tank,” said Mladin afterwards. “There was just too much on for us with having to be out there for so many practice and qualifying sessions as well as the 28-lap races, it just took so much out of me. For us the whole weekend revolved around winning the AMA race yesterday and that’s what we did, it was the first time that I’ve won at Laguna so it was great. It put us back on top of the points table and even though we were running strong in the SWC races, the AMA is the one we are after.”

“Even to back up for Superpole after the AMA race was tough,” added Mladin. “Today I felt good for the first ten or fifteen laps, but then I just basically ran out of gas myself. It was very draining. I was that fatigued after the race and then when I heard about Eric’s (Bostrom) injuries I basically said that that was enough. We had a talk about it and made the decision. As much I wanted to have done well in those races, the workload just caught up with me. I train 3 to 4 hours a day at present and feel that I’m in the best condition that I’ve ever been in, but that goes to show you how physical it is out there under those conditions.”

“It was still a good weekend for us though. We got to see where the World Superbike guys are at and how the guys in the AMA compare to them so I guess it shows that the AMA is a world class championship if so many of us are near the front of SWC qualifying and in the race.”

“Also to do well at Laguna was a real buzz. The crowd was fantastic. I could hear them cheering after the AMA race and they were even louder when I took Superpole. It was a great feeling that’s for sure and I’d like to thank them for their support.”

He led the opening SWC race for a total of six laps as a number of riders fell out of contention in the hectic pace of the opening laps which saw the track temperature soaring above 50*C. The opening race was forced to undergo a restart after four riders fell heavily on the entry to the fast Turn One on the opening lap. Those who fell included World Superbike points leader Neil Hodgson (Fila Ducati), Pierfrancesco Chili (PSG-1 Ducati), Australian Troy Corser (Foggy Petronas) and American wild card riders Eric Bostrom (Team Kawasaki) and Mladin’s teammate Aaron Yates, who appears to have been the initial rider to fall.

In an amazing twist, Chili went on to score his sixteenth career SWC victory, finishing ahead of Hodgson and fellow Englishman James Toseland (HM
Plant Ducati). Victory in race two went to Spaniard Ruben Xaus (Fila Ducati) ahead of teammate Hodgson, with Chris Walker (HM Plant Ducati) third. Hodgson continues to lead the championship with a total of 355 points, with Xaus second on 233.

Mladin’s attention is now focussed on the upcoming double-header round of the American AMA Superbike Championship scheduled for the Mid-Ohio Sports Car complex on the weekend of July 26 & 27.

After taking victory in yesterday’s AMA race, Mladin heads to Ohio holding a six-point advantage over Eric Bostrom, with six races remaining.