eni FIM Superbike World Championship

Assen, Netherlands

April 27, 2014

Race Two Results (all on Pirelli tires, wet conditions):

1. Jonathan REA, UK (Honda CBR1000RR), 10 laps, 19:09.464

2. Alex LOWES, UK (Suzuki GSX-R1000), -2.222 seconds

3. Davide GIUGLIANO, Italy (Ducati 1199 Panigale R), -4.955

4. Tom SYKES, UK (Kawasaki ZX-10R), -13.089

5. Leon HASLAM, UK (Honda CBR1000RR), -13.639

6. Marco MELANDRI, Italy (Aprilia RSV4 Factory), -18.041

7. Loris BAZ, France (Kawasaki ZX-10R), -21.837

8. Chaz DAVIES, UK (Ducati 1199 Panigale R), -26.919

9. Sylvain GUINTOLI, France (Aprilia RSV4 Factory), -32.766

10. Niccolo CANEPA, Italy (Ducati 1199 Panigale R), EVO, -37.965

11. Kervin BOS, Netherlands (Honda CBR1000RR), EVO, -44.141

12. Luca SCASSA, Italy (Kawasaki ZX-10R), EVO, -83.769

13. Sheridan MORAIS, South Africa (Kawasaki ZX-10R), EVO, -105.062

14. Michel FABRIZIO, Italy (Kawasaki ZX-10R), EVO, -1 lap

15. David SALOM, Spain (Kawasaki ZX-10R), EVO, -1 lap

16. Imre TOTH, Hungary (BMW S1000RR), -1 lap

17. Eugene LAVERTY, Ireland (Suzuki GSX-R1000), -3 laps, DNF, crash

18. Claudio CORTI, Italy (MV Agusta F4 RR), -4 laps, DNF, crash

19. Leon CAMIER, UK (BMW S1000RR), EVO, -4 laps, DNF, crash

20. A. ANDREOZZI, Italy (Kawasaki ZX-10R), EVO, -6 laps, DNF, crash

21. Toni ELIAS, Spain (Aprilia RSV4 Factory), -8 laps, DNF, crash

22. Fabien FORET, France (Kawasaki ZX-10R), EVO, -8 laps, DNF, retired

23. Jeremy GUARNONI, France (Kawasaki ZX-10R), EVO, -10 laps, DNF

Subjects to Homologation

Christian IDDON, UK (Bimota BB3), EVO, -72.574

Ayrton BADOVINI, Italy (Bimota BB3), EVO, -10 laps, crash

World Championship Point Standings (after 6 of 26 races):

1. Sykes, 108 points

2. Guintoli, 96

3. Baz, 93

4. Rea, 89

5. Melandri, 69

6. Giugliano, 59

7. Davies, 47

8. Laverty, 46

9. Haslam, 44

10. Lowes, 36

11. Elias, 34

12. Canepa, 28

13. Salom, 27

14. TIE, Scassa/Camier, 11

16. Morais, 10

17. Foret, 9

18. Glenn Allerton, 6

19. TIE, Bos/Corti/Guarnoni, 5

22. Fabrizio, 2

More, from a press release issued by Dorna WSBK Press Office:

Jonathan Rea takes race 2 win in tricky conditions

Assen (the Netherlands), Sunday 27 April 2014 – After a lengthy delay because of heavy rain and with conditions visibly better, compared to the situation that forced the Race Direction to red flag the initial race, the riders started a new Race 2 over a race distance of 10 laps. Eventually it was race one podium finisher Jonathan Rea (Pata Honda World Superbike Team) that emerged victorious ahead of Alex Lowes (Voltcom Crescent Suzuki) and Davide Giugliano (Ducati Racing Team) who completed the podium in tricky conditions.

Rea achieved the 12th WSBK race win of his career, the fifth one at the Assen TT Circuit, whilst Lowes scored his maiden podium finish in the series and Giugliano the first top 3 placement of his new adventure as factory Ducati rider.

Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team), Leon Haslam (Pata Honda World Superbike) and Marco Melandri (Aprilia Racing Team) rounded out the top 6.

Sylvain Guintoli crashed at the chicane on lap 2 but was fortunate enough to be able to remount to salvage 9th at the flag, behind pole sitter Loris Baz (Kawasaki Racing Team), seventh, and Chaz Davies (Ducati Superbike Team), eighth.

In the EVO class, Niccolo Canepa (Althea Racing Ducati) came home in 10th having the honour of being the first EVO classified rider in the race.

Results: 1. Rea (Honda) 10 Laps/45.420 km in 19’09.464 average 142.251 kph; 2. Lowes (Suzuki) 2.222; 3. Giugliano (Ducati) 4.955; 4. Sykes (Kawasaki) 13.089; 5. Haslam (Honda) 13.639; 6. Melandri (Aprilia) 18.041; 7. Baz (Kawasaki) 21.837; 8. Davies (Ducati) 26.919; 9. Guintoli (Aprilia) 32.766; 10. Canepa (Ducati) 37.965; 11. Bos (Honda) 44.141; 12. Scassa (Kawasaki) 1’23.769; 13. Morais (Kawasaki) 1’45.062; 14. Fabrizio (Kawasaki) 1 Lap; 15. Salom (Kawasaki) 1 Lap; 16. Toth (BMW) 1 Lap; RT. Laverty (Suzuki); RT. Corti (MV Agusta); RT. Camier (BMW); RT. Andreozzi (Kawasaki); RT. Elias (Aprilia); RT. Foret (Kawasaki); RT. Guarnoni (Kawasaki); SH. Iddon (Bimota) 1’12.574; SH. Badovini (Bimota).

Standings (Round 3 of 13): 1. Sykes 108; 2. Guintoli 96; 3. Baz 93; 4. Rea 89; 5. Melandri 69; 6. Giugliano 59; 7. Davies 47; 8. Laverty 46; 9. Haslam44; 10. Lowes 36; 11. Elias 34; 12. Canepa 28; 13. Salom 27; 14. Scassa 11; 15. Camier 11; 16. Morais 10; 17. Foret 9; 18. Allerton 6; 19. Bos 5;20. Corti 5; 21. Guarnoni 5; 22. Fabrizio 2. Manufacturers: 1. Kawasaki 114; 2. Aprilia 106; 3. Honda 89; 4. Suzuki 76; 5. Ducati 73; 6. BMW 17; 7. MV Agusta 5.

World Supersport

Michael van der Mark (Pata Honda World Supersport Team) has won his first World Supersport race after an enthralling early fight with pole-sitter Florian Marino (Kawasaki Intermoto Ponyexpres). The Dutch rider had the packed grandstands on their feet as lap by lap he edged away claiming victory by over 9 seconds with the added bonus of a new lap record. Early leader and former champion (read more)

Results: 1. Vd Mark (Honda) 18 Laps/81.756 km in 29’47.030 average 164.699 kph; 2. Marino (Kawasaki) 9.494; 3. Cluzel (MV Agusta) 14.988; 4. Coghlan(Yamaha) 17.131; 5. Zanetti (Honda) 17.430; 6. Rolfo (Kawasaki) 20.266; 7. Tamburini (Kawasaki) 20.662; 8. De Rosa (Honda) 21.370; 9. Jacobsen(Kawasaki) 23.557; 10. Wahr (Yamaha) 25.908; 11. Bussolotti (Honda) 26.051; 12. Leonov (MV Agusta) 27.815; 13. Wilairot (Honda) 30.450; 14. Russo(Honda) 39.705; 15. Menghi (Yamaha) 50.214; etc.

Standings (Round 3 of 12): 1. Marino 49; 2. Vd Mark 45; 3. Coghlan 44; 4. Cluzel 41; 5. De Rosa 34; 6. Tamburini 29; 7. Sofuoglu 25; 8. Zanetti 24; 9. Rolfo 19; 10. Wahr 16; 11. Gamarino 13; 12. Leonov 12; 13. Russo 10; 14. Gowland 9; 15. Jacobsen 9; 16. Menghi 9; 17. Wilairot 9; 18. Bussolotti 7; 19. Kennedy 5; 20. Coveña 4; 21. Schmitter 3; 22. Calero 3; 23. Rogers 1. Manufacturers: 1. Honda 61; 2. Kawasaki 58; 3. MV Agusta 49; 4. Yamaha 44; 5. Triumph 9.

More, from a press release issued by Althea Racing:

Canepa first in both the Evo races and the general standings after today’s action at Assen

The third round of the Superpole world championship took place today at the TT Van Drenthe track in Assen, The Netherlands. After a great performance by Niccolò Canepa in both qualifying and Superpole yesterday, the Althea Racing rider lined up on today’s grid in seventh place, first of the riders on row three. There were cloudy skies and a damp track, due to rain overnight, for race one, in which Canepa made a very good start, managing to get into a group of Superbike riders. At mid-race, Niccolò was lapping ninth, before being passed by Lowes, a Superbike rider. During the seventeenth lap, race direction waved the red flag due to oil on track (resulting from an engine fail for May – team Hero EBR). As more than two thirds of the race had run, the race result was taken from the classification at the end of the sixteenth lap. Canepa therefore closed in final tenth position and, at the end of a perfectly managed race, he took first place among the Evo riders. The start of the second race was delayed due to rain that came on during the sighting lap, and all riders returned to the garage to change to rain tyres. After a second sighting lap, the number of laps was reduced to 15 and the race could finally begin. But rain put a spanner in the works once again and at the end of lap three race leader Guintoli raised his hand to indicate the increasingly difficult conditions and race direction suspended the race with a red flag. After more than an hour’s wait in the garage, the riders went back out to start over once again, in what was now a ten-lap race.

Canepa, who had never ridden the 1199 Panigale in the wet before today, made a strong start and was able to finish a difficult race, characterised by many crashed on the slippery tarmac, in final tenth place. Tenth place once again meant that the Italian rider closed in first position in the Evo category and moves into first position in the Evo category’s general standings. A great result for Canepa and the entire Althea Racing team.

The next World Superbike event for the Althea Racing team is scheduled for the weekend of 9-11 May at the Italian circuit of Imola.

Niccolò Canepa: “I’m really pleased with how today went, a very difficult day of course but we were able to finish first among the Evo riders in both races, meaning that we move into first position in the classification. In race one I battled with Superbike riders, but we had already demonstrated that we could be fast in the dry during the practice sessions. The second race was really hard though, because I’d never ridden the bike in the wet before and I had to be very careful. I found a good rhythm, tried not to commit errors, and brought home another win in the Evo category. A huge thank-you to my technicians for all their hard work.”

Genesio Bevilacqua : “Two positive races. Niccolò finished first among the Evo riders in both races and has moved into the lead in the Evo standings. We are able to share and optimise our energies and finally our hard work is bearing fruit. We’ve reached a good level of competitiveness and here we have achieved that which we had just missed out on at Aragon. We’re building experience that we can use in the next races, so we look confidently ahead to the next rounds.” 

More, from a press release issued by Aprilia:

APRILIA WINS AT ASSEN

SYLVAIN GUINTOLI COMES CLOSE TO A SENSATIONAL DOUBLE WIN: AFTER VICTORY IN RACE 1 AND RACE 2 SUSPENDED WHILE HE WAS DOMINATING A FALL DEPRIVES HIM OF ANOTHER WIN AFTER THE RESTART OF THE SECOND RACE.

AFTER CRASHING OUT THE FRENCH RIDER GOT BACK IN THE SADDLE AND ASTONISHED FANS WITH A SPECTACULAR COMEBACK.

TWO SIXTH PLACE FINISHES FOR MARCO MELANDRI.

Assen, 27 April 2013 – Just one error in the first part of Race 2 deprived Aprilia rider Sylvain Guintoli of a sensational double win that seemed already to be within reach after winning the first race.

But the Dutch round brought the Aprilia team back into the limelight of the championship with the RSV4 proving to be worthy of its title as reigning Manufacturer World Champion.

In Race 1 the French rider started well to move out in front of the rest when the red lights went off and set an impossible pace for the rest of his rivals. Then in the second half of the race he defended his position in the lead with flying laps as Tom Sykes made a comeback.

Sylvain carried out his duties as forerunner magnificently on a partially damp track with slick tyres, a terrible situation which did not compromise the race. As demonstrated by the record breaking lap set by his Aprilia (1’36.440) in the third lap. The race was called 4 laps from the end when the red flag came out due to a blown engine.

Race 2 started off looking promising with Sylvain out front and clearly faster than all his rivals. The heavy rain forced the race marshals to suspend the race, restarting it later with distance shortened to 10 laps. On a treacherous track, and despite a less than perfect start, Sylvain managed to get front runner Rea in his sights within a few turns. On the last chicane the poor grip cause him to crash. In any case, able to get going again in 18th place, Guintoli resumed his pace and finished the race in ninth place after a spectacular comeback.

Sylvain Guintoli: “It’s a real shame about Race 2. Despite a less than perfect start I was making up ground without any difficulty. The slide in the second lap had nothing to do with any specific mistake. On a track that wet it simply doesn’t take much at all. In spite of the blow to my back and damage to the footpeg and handlebar, I lapped fast and that really makes me angry because it’s clear that I could have won Race 2 as well. In Race 1, on the other hand, I took some risks in the first few laps to try and increase the gap – a dangerous strategy but one that worked in the end. Before the race was called I was keeping an eye on Tom Sykes’ comeback, trying to manage my advantage. I have to thank the entire team and the guys here at Aprilia Racing because they did a great job today. Even with the low temperatures my RSV4 was really working well. It just goes to show that everyone’s efforts paid off.”

Marco Melandri had a little more difficulty, finishing sixth in both races. The rider from Ravenna showed grit and determination in Race 2 until a “long” run in a turn knocked him out of the battle for a podium finish.

More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse:

Giugliano and the Ducati Superbike Team score first podium of the season today at Assen

Assen (The Netherlands), Sunday 27 April 2014 – at the end of a day conditioned by bad weather, Ducati Superbike rider Davide Giugliano scored his first podium of the season in race 2 at Assen today, while Chaz Davies concluded the day’s races in seventh and eighth position.

Race 1 – in a first race that took place in dry conditions despite threatening clouds, Chaz got away very well from twelfth on the grid and was up into seventh through the first corners. He lost a couple of positions through the opening stages before pushing to move into sixth position by lap eight. The British rider battled with Melandri, managing to pass him only for the Italian to get back past him once again. Unfortunately the red flag was waved on lap 17, after another rider suffered a technical fail, and the race was brought to a premature end. Chaz therefore closed in final seventh position.

Lining up in sixth position on the grid, Giugliano got away well and held that position through the first corners. Unfortunately a small mistake caused him to go wide, where he slipped on a wet point of the track and crashed. His race unfortunately ended there.

Race 2 – the race, reduced to 15 laps having been declared ‘wet’, got started in heavy rain but was stopped on lap three when Guintoli, leading at the time, raised his hand. After a delay of an hour, the race got underway once more, reduced now to only ten laps. Davide was fifth through the initial laps, behind Lowes and Melandri while Davies was in seventh, behind Baz. Giugliano pushed to catch and pass first Lowes and then Melandri, moving into third position on lap seven. Davide managed the final part of the race perfectly and crossed the line in third position, scoring the first podium of the season for the Ducati Superbike team! Davies, separated by several seconds from both those riders immediately ahead of him and those behind, concluded in final eighth place.

At the conclusion of this third championship round, Giugliano lies sixth in the general standings, with 59 points, while Davies is seventh with 47 points. Ducati places fifth in the manufacturer’s classification with 73 points.

Quotes after the races:

Davide Giugliano (Ducati Superbike Team #34) – DNF, 3rd

“A very difficult race day. I could have done really well in the dry, we’d been fast all weekend but unfortunately the crash in race 1 conditioned things somewhat, also physically-speaking. Then the rain conditioned race two. It was difficult to maintain concentration after all that had happened and after the delay but in the end it all worked out well. We needed a podium, it was important for the team, for the sponsors, for the fans – it’s good for morale. Now we head to Imola, one of my favourite tracks, where I think we can do well.”

Chaz Davies (Ducati Superbike Team #7) – 7th, 8th

“It’s not been an easy weekend, we had a few chattering issues at the front of the bike throughout the entire weekend. In race 1 we used the soft tyre, which behaved well despite the low temperatures but by the final stages I’d lost some traction. Rain then conditioned race 2, though it didn’t feel too bad, it was more a case of confidence. It’s the first race I’ve completed with this bike in the wet and I need more time to understand the limit.”

Ernesto Marinelli – Ducati Superbike Project Director

“This first podium is very important because it is the culmination of the great effort and hard work that the guys in Ducati Corse are putting in around the clock. Davide made a very balanced second race, in difficult conditions, while also pushing hard. It was a pity that the small mistake in race 1 cost him dear. The Team has worked hard and has been able to be competitive also here at Assen, a sign that the direction we are taking is the right one. The first podium of 2014 has finally arrived and we must continue to work even harder to improve further.”

More, from a press release issued by Pata Honda Superbike Team:

Rea extends Assen podium record with fifth win

Jonathan Rea took a commanding win on his Pata Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade SP in the second of today’s two third-round World Superbike races at Assen in the Netherlands. It was his fifth win at the 4.542km circuit, his 12th career SBK victory, and a superb follow-up to his third place finish in race one this morning.

Rea’s podium finishes in today’s races extend his record of scoring at least one rostrum finish each season at Assen since 2010, giving him a total of eight in ten races over five years.

Today’s first outing was dry, despite forecast rain, and British rider Rea, 27, settled into a rhythm, but did not have quite enough pace to match eventual winner, Sylvain Guintoli, with Tom Sykes finishing second. The race ended five laps early when oil was dropped on the circuit, Rea’s Pata Honda team-mate Leon Haslam, 30, taking eighth place at the flag.

The rain eventually arrived for race two but not before the race was declared ‘dry’ and started under threatening skies. The first attempt was delayed after the end of the warm-up lap when the rain finally fell in earnest. While some riders lined up on the grid, others, including Haslam, entered the pits to switch from slick tyres to full wets.

The second attempt to start the race was stopped after just three laps when the rain became torrential and red flags were waved. A long wait followed for track conditions to improve, with a shortened 10-lap race finally starting two hours behind schedule.

Rea took the lead on the opening lap and kept his rivals at arms length, eventually crossing the line two seconds ahead of fellow British rider Alex Lowes, with Davide Guigliano finishing third.

Jonathan Rea – third first

It’s been a really good weekend because we’ve been on the podium twice. To be honest, our dry pace was OK in race one but Sylvain [Guintoli] made such a fast start to the race, I struggled to go with him. When Tom [Sykes] went past I made a big mistake but, after that, my pace until the end was quite similar to theirs. For race two we were quite excited to see if we could go with them in the dry but during the break it rained quite heavily. After some delays, we got going for a 10-lap race and to win that was really special. It’s a wet race win around Assen but I kept having flash-backs to Magny-Cours in 2012 when I had a 10-second lead and crashed. For the last laps I just tried to be as smart as I could, and they were long laps, because I had a bit of a gap. I just want to thank all the team. This win’s for all those guys who have worked tirelessly throughout the winter and since the start of the season to make the CBR as strong as possible. It’s great to be able to give them back some good vibes to roll with into the next part of the season.

Leon Haslam – eighth fifth

Race one was a bit frustrating really because I felt we could have been easily fifth from where we were. The pace wasn’t that mega but we had a lot of issues again this weekend. It wasn’t right in race one but I think fifth was still possible. The flag put an early end to it anyway. I was confident that, for the dry, we’d made the right move for race two but it was wet. In the first part I was already up to fifth when they stopped it but, in part two, I got caught behind Chaz [Davies] and it took me a few laps to get by him. When I passed him, everyone had gone, but I was able to be one of the fastest guys on track in the last three laps. I managed to get past Baz and Melandri and was closing the gap to Tom [Sykes] but then ran out of time. We hadn’t really done any wet testing, so it was positive that we weren’t too far away. The pace was pretty good but starting from where we were on the grid didn’t help either.

Pieter Breddels – technical co-ordinator

Race one was dry and we were, of course, very happy with Jonathan’s podium, although Leon had one or two other issues. In the wet conditions, and after flags, and delays, we finally went for 10 laps. Jonathan went to the front, built a gap and kept control. It was a really smart, clever race so I’m very happy for him and the whole team. Leon got held up a bit but once he got going he was doing similar lap times to Jonathan. It was a difficult weekend so it’s good to finish this way and we can go to Imola with more confidence.

More, from a press release issued by Voltcom Crescent Suzki:

Debut podium for Lowes at a rain soaked Assen

Voltcom Crescent Suzuki racer Alex Lowes proved his championship winning pedigree today by securing his first eni FIM Superbike World Championship podium with second place in the afternoon’s rain hit race two at the Assen TT Circuit in the Netherlands.

Lowes, starting from ninth on the grid, battled hard on his Yoshimura-powered GSX-R to challenge the front runners, claiming second place on his fourth lap, and setting the first of his three fastest laps of the race. The British rider seemed unperturbed by the afternoon’s two restarts due to the forecasted heavy rain as he continued to hunt down eventual winner Honda’s Jonathan Rea. Closing the gap to the front, the Englishman set two further stunning laps, securing the Pirelli Fastest Lap award with a 1’52.975 on his penultimate revolution, to claim his debut podium on only his third weekend on the world stage.

Lowes had previously mastered his best result of the championship so far with a ninth place finish in the morning’s race one. Battling with a number of riders the rookie set his personal fastest time on the 12th lap before the race was prematurely ended on a red flag at lap 17, seeing Aprilia’s Sylvain Guintoli victorious.

Suffering from the misfortunes of the previous day’s Superpole, Eugene Laverty had a race weekend to forget despite the promising form shown in the opening two days aboard his Suzuki GSX-R1000. With two difficult starts he rode hard to regain places, recording the highest speed of the weekend of 291.7km/h during race one, but ultimately succumbed to the conditions, crashing out of both races.

A tumultuous day, the morning’s race was run in a cool and dry 15°C but the afternoon soon gave way to torrential rain, resulting in an hour long delay, before the final restart and ten lap race got underway two hours later than scheduled.

Voltcom Crescent Suzuki now returns to its UK headquarters with a raft of information and confidence ahead of the fourth round of the championship’s visit to Imola in Italy in a fortnight’s time.

Alex Lowes:

“It’s fantastic, it was a great race for me and it’s really good for the team for me to finally get on the podium! It was a wet race, so it’s never as nice as getting on the podium in the dry but I’m very happy and hopefully this can kick start our season after the injuries. It’s been a really difficult start to the year for me, and now I’ve got some good points on the board and a podium, I’m looking forward to hopefully improving both myself and the bike, and seeing if we can be a bit closer to the front in the dry!”

Eugene Laverty:

“We had a bad start in the first race but we had a strong pace; it was a clear 11 points so I’m really angry that I threw those away. The second race I just had a terrible feeling with the bike, after we went off the line I just had absolutely no rear grip and it was a crash waiting to happen! With three laps to go I thought ‘I’ve stayed on this far’ and then suddenly I did a 180 and I was in the air. A terrible day, two non-finishes is a big disaster. This was a track where I felt we could be strong, Friday and Saturday we were, so to leave with no points is a big disappointment.”

Paul Denning – Team Manager:

“The obvious highlight of a tricky race day here at Assen was Alex’s superb ride to second this afternoon. The team made some very positive changes for the wet conditions after the stoppage and allowed Alex to ride to his full potential. To come from tenth on the first lap to nearly being in a winning position at the end and to secure the fastest lap of the race against this level of competition was a stunning effort and should give Alex renewed confidence as we go to Imola.

Today has been very cruel to Eugene’s championship aspirations, especially after such a positive performance from him and the bike during Friday and Saturday, and a genuine feeling by rider and team that it was a race that we could challenge to win. Things really went wrong in Superpole when the rain interrupted things for both riders but for Eugene the grid position, combined with very poor starts, added a lot of pressure and we can just be thankful that he is completely fit, as obviously with two accidents it can always be much worse.”

More, from a press release issued by Team HERO EBR:

Team Hero EBR To Miss Assen Race 2

A dry race one looked like giving Team Hero EBR a top twenty finish but a double retirement caused by a yet unknown technical problem for both Aaron Yates and Geoff May has resulted in the team opting to miss race two this afternoon.

Giulio Bardi – Team Manager: “With the double technical failure we will not participate in race two later today. We need to fully understand and rectify the problem so that we can continue to move forward as we have been at Imola in a fortnight. Geoff and Aaron made more positive steps this weekend and to have the problems in the race is frustrating as we were fighting with other riders when it mattered. The team are all still motivated and we just have to move on to the next race.”