Updated Post: Laconi, Toseland, Vermeulen, Haslam On World Superbike Front Row

Updated Post: Laconi, Toseland, Vermeulen, Haslam On World Superbike Front Row

© 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Categories:

Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

World Superbike Superpole Results:

1. Regis Laconi, Ducati 999F04, 1:35.935
2. James Toseland, Ducati 999F04, 1:36.973
3. Chris Vermeulen, Honda CBR1000RR, 1:36.977
4. Leon Haslam, Ducati 999RS, 1:36.980
5. Steve Martin, Ducati 999RS, 1:37.050
6. Noriyuki Haga, Ducati 999RS, 1:37.074
7. Garry McCoy, Ducati 999RS, 1:37.278
8. Marco Borciani, Ducati 999RS, 1:37.295
9. Sergio Fuertes, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:37.428
10. Chris Walker, Foggy Petronas FP1, 1:37.480
11. Lucio Pedercini, Ducati 998RS, 1:37.601
12. Troy Corser, Foggy Petronas FP1, 1:37.667
13. Pierfrancesco Chili, Ducati 999RS, 1:37.825
14. Gianluca Nannelli, Ducati 998RS, 1:38.272
15. Mauro Sanchini, Kawasaki ZX-10R, 1:38.781
16. Piergiorgio Bontempi, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:39.496


More, from a press release issued by Xerox Ducati Nortel Networks – Scuderia Caracchi

McCOY WILL START FROM THE SECOND ROW TOMORROW AT VALENCIA

(Valencia 2004, February 28)

Tomorrow, in his debut race in Superbike arena, Garry McCoy will start from the second row at Valencia, for the Spanish round of 2004 World Superbike. The Australian rider of Scuderia Xerox Ducati Nortel Networks, after recording the sixth fastest in the qualifying sessions, clinched the seventh fastest in Superpole, good for the starting grid. McCoy confirmed to be satisfied at the end of the day:

“This morning has been the first time I rode the second bike which it felt different, because the clutch wasn’t working properly and we weren’t able to fix it. I rode this bike for a while expecting to ride my number one bike, which I did or the last ten minutes on the qualifying session, and I felt the bike had not enough power from the bottom, so it made me go back to the spare bike.

The Superpole was very new for me. It’s something else I have to get used to but my impression overall about today’s Superpole is that it was very cold and risky to get out there and push 110% as you would do in a usual hot lap. I have to add that my clutch wasn’t working very good so I decided not to push too much on the first split of the 4 km circuit and save it for the last bit to get a better time.

Tomorrow is going to be another day for me. I never did two races in one day, but I guess I just have to go out there and do my best as a rookie. I can’t really say what my expectations are because I just like to live day by day and get worried about what happens at the time. Anyway I will try to get out there and fight like one more of this guys.”

Marco Mozzone, McCoy’s chief mechanic, is satisfied of today’s result:

“I’m very happy about Garry’s result. I know everything is very new to Garry specially the Superpole, but I think he did a very good job today. Overall I think we are in the same position as Garry because we need know each other better that we do, but everything will come with the time. Garry is very relaxed, I’ve never worked with a rider like this which makes me feel really good and not stressed.”

Miguel Praia too, despite the pains for the fracture at his left foot, clinched the qualification for the race at his debut in world championship.

“Today I changed completely my approach to the track.” – said Miguel at the end of practices – “I must focus myself to understand the bike, the tyres, everything at all, because it’s everything pretty new for me. Today there was also a terrible wind on the track. So I preferred not to look only for a fast laptime, I do prefer to ride half second slower, but without any risk and be able to go on my learning.”


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

Foggy PETRONAS Racing riders Chris Walker and Troy Corser will start tomorrow’s first races of the 2004 World Superbike championship at Valencia, Spain, from the third row of the grid after using race tyres throughout the second day’s qualifying sessions.

Having performed better on Pirelli race rubber than the qualifying tyre constructions available, the decision was made to use race tyres for the one-lap Superpole shoot-out for qualifying positions. Chris set his best time of the day of 1:37.480 and improved his qualifying position during Superpole to start in 10th on the grid. Troy qualified in 12th with a Superpole lap of 1:37.667, with Regis Laconi setting the pace at 1:35.935.

Chris said: “That’s one of the few times I have improved my position in Superpole and it was my best lap of the day so I was pretty pleased with that. The bike was working well and I did that lap on race tyres, whereas a lot of other riders were on qualifiers. With just one tyre working for us we did have to try a few things out and one of the things we attempted was to add some more weight to the back of the bike in order to give us more corner entry grip. But that resulted in loss of stability so I ended up putting the settings back to yesterday morning when I did my best lap of the weekend. It is going to be hard to pass people but if I can get dragged along down the straight and stay as wide as possible then there is no reason why I can’t have a good race. I just need a Stalker start tomorrow and we’ll be in the zone!”

The strong winds of yesterday returned to the Ricardo Tormo circuit, but a change in direction had an adverse effect on times throughout the day. Troy said: “Today the wind was blowing across the circuit and affecting us around the whole track. It was trying to blow you off the track at every corner. The bike is handling okay but we are still trying to make up as much time as possible through the corners. Starting from the third row is obviously a problem, as there are already ten bikes in front of us. I did my fastest laps of the day straight out of the gate this morning and feel as though I can stay in the mid-37s for the race.”

Afternoon free practice: 1 Laconi (Ducati Fila) 1:36.157; 2 Toseland (Ducati Fila) 1:36.997; 3 Haga (Renegade Ducati) 1:37.113; 4 Haslam (Renegade Ducati) 1:37.210; 5 Fuertes (MIR Racing) 1:37.632; 6 Borciani (DFX) 1:37.707; 7 Vermeulen (Ten Kate) 1:37.765; 8 Walker (Foggy PETRONAS Racing) 1:37.839; 9 Corser (Foggy PETRONAS Racing) 1:37.893; 10 Chili (PSG-1) 1:38.008

Superpole: 1 Laconi 1:35.935; 2 Toseland +1.038; 3 Vermeulen +1.042; 4 Haslam +1.045; 5 Martin +1.115; 6 Haga +1.139; 7 McCoy +1.343; 8 Borciani +1.360; 9 Fuertes +1.493; 10 Walker +1.545; 11 Pedercini +1.666; 12 Corser +1.732; 13 Chili +1.890; 14 Nannelli +2.337; 15 Sanchini +2.846; 16 Bontempi +3.561


More, from a press release issued by Ten Kate Honda:


Vermeulen Takes Spectacular Front Row Start at First Attempt

Having started well on the opening day of Superbike qualifying the combination of Superbike rookie Chris Vermeulen and the all-new Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR finished an epic third in Superpole, earning a third place start on the grid for Valencia’s 23-lap Superbike race.

His time of 1:36.977 was Chris’s best of the weekend, the young Aussie Supersport Champion revelling in his first ever Superpole outing. He could have gone even faster but was held back by the high winds, which have been a constant aspect of the first race of the 2004 season.

The competition at Valencia was keen, with the fastest rider proving to be the Ducati Fila competitor Regis Laconi. Second best was his team-mate James Toseland and the last front row qualifier will be Briton Leon Haslam.

“I am really pleased with that result, especially as it wasn’t a perfect lap,” said Vermeulen. “The wind was so high I had to hold back a little bit for safety. I had to finish the lap for the time to count. I’m happy with the set-up for the race and it’s perfect to start from the front row.”

Team Manager Ronald Ten Kate could hardly find the words to express his pleasure at such a positive result for a bike and rider combination new to the Superbike class. “I think I am really almost speechless,” he smiled. “We hoped for a result like that this weekend but we didn’t really expect it. The technicians have been working really hard to get the bike ready and as good as it can be and we want to get the same sort of result in the race now as well.” ENDS

World Superbike Championship
Round One – Valencia
27 – 29 February
Superpole Qualifying


1. R. Laconi, FRA, Ducati 999 F04, 1:35.935
2. J. Toseland, GBR, Ducati 999 F04, 1:36.973
3. C. Vermeulen, AUS, Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR, 1:36.977
4. L. Haslam, GBR, Ducati 999 RS, 1:36.980
5. S. Martin, AUS, Ducati 999RS, 1:37.050
6. N. Haga, JPN, Ducati 999RS, 1:37.074
7. G. MCCoy, AUS, Ducati 999RS, 1:37.278
8. M. Borciani, ITA, Ducati 999 RS, 1:37.295
9. S. Fuertes, ITA, Suzuki GSX 1000R, 1:37.428
10. C. Walker, GBR, Petronas FP1, 1:37.480


More, from a press release issued by Troy Corser’s publicist:

DISAPPOINTMENT FOR TROY

A small problem cost Troy dearly in the 16-rider Superspole shoot-out and relegated him to place on the fourth row of the grid in tomorrow’s opening round of the championship at the Ricardo Tormo circuit, Valencia.

Throughout the weekend Troy and the team were continuing their understanding of their Pirelli tyres and trying to find a good set-up for the bike. At the moment, Troy can get good grip from the tyre, but at the expense of chattering. Or by choosing a different tyre he can get rid of the chatter, but then loses grip. So, at the moment, any solution will have to be a compromise – and that is understandably a bit frustrating for the former World Superbike Champion. In Superpole today, Troy went out on a bike, with an engine that was new and had only done a lap or two and going into turn one on his ‘hot lap’ the clutch didn’t work in the same way as the bike he had been riding before. The half a second or so that he lost then and there was enough to destroy any chance of a good time and he finished twelfth quickest instead.

Factory Ducati rider Regis Laconi took pole position today with a lap of 1:35.935, with his team mate James Toseland second. The surprise of the day was Chris Vermeulen third quickest on the new 2004 Honda CBR1000RR, ahead of Leon Haslam (Ducati).

TROY – 12th, 1:37.667

Well I guess you could say that Superpole was a bit frustrating and disappointing. I had to conserve the new engine, so that’s why I only did a couple of laps on it. But of course, a couple of laps isn’t really enough to feel what’s going on properly and when I went into turn one, the clutch on it felt different to my other bike and it was enough to cause me to lose a bit of time. That half second or so pushed me way down the order, because without that problem I feel I could’ve been on the second row for sure. At the moment we’re having to make a compromise between grip and chatter. If we go for good grip the bike chatters, if we get rid of the chatter by using a different tyre, we find that tyre doesn’t give as good grip! It’s just a bit frustrating for us at the moment, because I guess we feel that the twins have had more tyre development done then we have had. I hope the situation is going to improve soon, but Pirelli have a lot of work to do and not a lot of time in which to do it. Tomorrow I definitely need a pair of good starts if I am to have any chance of a good result – but I’ll be going for it for sure.

Wish me luck!



More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse:

DUCATI FILA TAKE 1-2 IN VALENCIA SUPERPOLE

Valencia (Spain), 28 February 2004: First race of the year for the Ducati Fila team and first pole position for Regis Laconi at Valencia in the opening round of the 2004 World Superbike Championship. After dominating the two qualifying sessions with his Ducati 999 Factory ’04, the 28 year-old Frenchman then amazed the entire field with a lap of 1:35.935, a full second ahead of the rest of his rivals. Second place for his 23-year-old team-mate James Toseland with a time of 1:36.973, ahead of Chris Vermeulen (Honda) and Leon Haslam (Renegade Ducati 999).

“Like yesterday the conditions were very difficult, the track was still cold and the wind changed direction all the time, but I am really pleased with my second ever Superbike pole position” declared Regis. “I wanted to get down into the 1:35s and I did, but only just!. Everything is going well, we did a good job with my team this weekend and I am very happy. The tyre I chose for my long-run wasn’t entirely satisfactory, but then we tried another tyre that I liked and so I feel confident for the races tomorrow.”

James Toseland declared: “Everything is OK, despite my crash in the last minute of the free practice session just before Superpole. It’s not easy going from a crash to a quick lap in one go however. We found a good base set-up for the race, I set my quickest time on my race tyre, so I’m sure we’ll be able to give it a go tomorrow. For the moment there’s a second gap between me and Regis, but I am sure that tomorrow there won’t be!. Regis is riding really well, he’s got more experience than me, but I’m getting there, I probably just need a bit more time to get up to his level but I’m sure I’ll be there pretty soon.”

TIMES: 1. Laconi (Ducati Fila) 1:35.935; 2. Toseland (Ducati Fila) 1:36.973; 3. Vermeulen (Honda) 1:36.977; 4. Haslam (Renegade Ducati) 1:36.980; 5. Martin (DFX Ducati) 1:37.050 ; 6. Haga (Renegade Ducati) 1:37.074 ; 7. McCoy (NCR Ducati) 1:37.278; 8. Borciani (DFX Ducati), etc.


ROW 4 START FOR LANZI (DUCATI BREIL) ON SUPERSPORT DEBUT

Valencia (Spain), 28 February 2004: Lorenzo Lanzi will start tomorrow’s opening round of the World Supersport Championship at Valencia from the fourth row of the grid after qualifying in sixteenth position with the Ducati 749R.

Ducati’s latest Supersport creation, which sports the colours of new title sponsor Breil, is making its international debut at Valencia, while Lanzi is also taking part in his first-ever World Supersport race.

“I hoped to improve a bit in the second qualifying and get into the top 10, but unfortunately I couldn’t do it” declared Lanzi. “Today we made a few changes to try and get the settings more to my liking for the race, but we are still in a development phase and three quarters of an hour is just not enough to find the best solution. I have to say I’m pleased with the engine, which is really powerful and our bike is one of the quickest overall. Tomorrow I think I can have a good race, if the tyres give me a hand, because I’ve got a good feeling with the 749, even though we still have to do a lot more work to make it more competitive.”

TIMES: 1. Muggeridge (Honda) 1:37.765; 2. Parkes (Honda) 1:37.910; 3. Foret (Yamaha) 1:38.314; 4. Charpentier (Honda) 1:38.383; 5. Curtain (Yamaha) 1:38.427 ; 6. Van der Goorbergh (Yamaha) 1:38.522; 7. Fujiwara (Suzuki) 1:38.676; 8. Kellner (Yamaha) 1:38.752 … 16. Lanzi (Ducati Breil) 1:39.694.


More, from a press release issued by FGSport:

World Superbike Championship 2004
Round One – Valencia – 27-29 February

Saturday 28 February

High Winds Can’t Halt Laconi’s Charge

Regis Laconi (Ducati Fila 999F04) proved his off-season and regulation qualifying prowess with an outstanding Superpole lap of 1:35.935, outdoing his own best previous effort in the high winds. Last away from the 16-rider Superpole session, Laconi was peerless, going over a second faster than his closest challenger, James Toseland, his own Ducati Fila team-mate.

The young Englishman rode hard to overcome the set-up problems he had encountered in qualifying, but his performance was arguably overshadowed by that of a class rookie Chris Vermeulen (Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR). Both rider and machine are new to the specialist discipline of Superpole – and the SBK championship itself – making Vermeulen’s third place time an even more remarkable feat.

In a good day for the British riders, Leon Haslam confounded many more experienced SBK pilots to finish fourth fastest, and earn himself a start on the front row on his Renegade Ducati. It was a fruitful Superpole all round for the new-to-SBK Renegade team, as Noriyuki Haga secured a sixth place on the grid, one place behind DFX Ducati rider Steve Martin.

Garry McCoy (Xerox Ducati NCR 999RS) went seventh fastest, the diminutive rider struggling particularly in the high winds, as he rode his first ever Superpole lap. He showed enough is Superpole, and enough improvement over the weekend in general, to be taken as a serious raceday threat.

Marco Borciani (DFX Ducati) continued his rich seam of form to take eighth place while the local interest was fuelled by the quick early time put in by Sergio Fuertes, who will start the race from the third row, after lapping ninth fastest. Chris Walker’s tenth place made him the quickest of the Foggy Petronas riders, his team-mate Troy Corser only finishing his day in 12th place.

Eleventh place rider Lucio Pedercini, on his 998 Ducati, was one of the few riders not on a 2004 private Duke, but Pierfrancesco Chili (PSG-1 Ducati) elected to use his older machine to go 13th fastest, a disappointing result for the experienced rider. If Chili finishes the two races on the weekend, he will tie with Carl Fogarty for numbers of race wins. He currently has 217 finishes, Fogarty has 219 – but the record holder remains Aaron Slight, with 229.


Muggeridge The Supersport Master
In the Supersport World Championship, Karl Muggeridge was the pre-eminent rider in his peer group, almost beating the track lap record with his best time of 1:37.765. In second place his new team-mate Broc Parkes continued his weekend in fine form, making it a Ten Kate 1-2. New boy in the Yamaha Italia team, Fabien Foret, secured a fine third place after a typically effusive ride. Sebastien Charpentier (Klaffi Honda CBR600RR) was fourth fastest, the best Suzuki proving to be that of Katsuaki Fujiwara in seventh. Breil Ducati rider Lorenzo Lanzi was the fastest of the twin cylinder combatants, 16th.

The 23-lap races in Superbike and Supersport take place tomorrow Valencia.



Latest Posts

MotoAmerica: Scholtz Confirmed With Former Squid Hunter Racing Team

Squid Hunter Racing Transforms Into Strack Racing With Yamaha...

WorldSBK: Championship Resumes This Coming Weekend At Catalunya

Destination Barcelona: WorldSBK gears up for its 450th Round What...

Ducati Wins In Motocross Racing Debut

Historic debut of the Ducati Desmo450 MX in the...

MotoGP: Ducati Signs Aldeguer For 2025 And Beyond

Ducati Corse Announces Two-Season MotoGP Agreement with Fermín Aldeguer The...

American Shedden Racing In CIV PreMoto3 Italian National Championship

American Shedden Racing in Italy’s CIV Italian Speed Championship...