FIM Supersport World Championship
Chang International Circuit, Thailand
March 11, 2016
Free Practice Two Results (all on Pirelli tires):
1. Rathapong Wilairot, Thailand (Hon CBR600RR), 1:39.435
2. Kenan Sofuoglu, Turkey (Kaw ZX-6R), 1:39.565
3. Jules Cluzel, France (MV F3 675), 1:39.642
4. Gino Rea, UK (MV F3 675), 1:39.692
5. Randy Krummenacher, Switzerland (Kaw ZX-6R), 1:39.726
6. Kyle Smith, UK (Hon CBR600RR), 1:39.737
7. Nico Terol, Spain (MV F3 675), 1:39.760
8. Alex Baldolini, Italy (MV F3 675), 1:39.865
9. PJ Jacobsen, USA (Hon CBR600RR), 1:39.973
10. Luke Stapleford, UK (Hon CBR600RR), 1:39.978
More, from a press release issued by Dorna WSBK Press Office:
WorldSSP: Wildcard Wilairot fastest on Friday
Local rider Ratthapong Wilairot tops combined times on the way to Tissot-Superpole session
Wildcard Wilairot fastest on Friday
Wildcard Thai rider Ratthapong Wilairot locked out the top of the timesheets on Friday in Buriram to outpace reigning Champion Kenan Sofuoglu and rival Jules Cluzel.
In FP1, Championship leader Randy Krummenacher was the only rider to pass through the 1’40 barrier, while local fans were delighted to see wildcard rider Ratthapong Wilairot (A.P. Honda Racing Thailand) inside the top three and ahead of PJ Jacobsen (Honda World Supersport Team).
Krummenacher’s teammate and reigning World Champion Kenan Sofuoglu started quietly in 13th position, before the Turkish rider took the top spot back for much of the afternoon as he improved to a 1’39.565. Thai wildcard entry Ratthapong Wilairot, who scored a top 5 last year in Buriram and whose brother Ratthapark won the WorldSSP race on home soil last year, then improved his lap time in the dying minutes to go fastest overall with a 1’39.435.
MV Agusta’s Jules Cluzel improved on a challenging FP1 to go third fastest on combined times, with the Frenchman hoping for a good points haul in Thailand after a difficult race in Australia. He begins the Motul Thai Round in the same position as Sofuoglu, with both rival riders yet to score despite both having shown great pace.
The top ten from Friday’s times go through to the Tissot-Superpole 2 session to fight for the top grid spots on Saturday ahead of the WorldSSP race on Sunday, with lights out for the second race of the year at 14:20 local time (7:20am GMT).
More, from a press release issued by Honda World Supersport Team:
Challenging opening day in Thailand for Jacobsen and the Honda WorldSSP Team
Round 2 – Thailand
Chang International Circuit, Thailand
PJ Jacobsen and the Honda WorldSSP team gained a spot in tomorrow’s WorldSSP Superpole 2 at the Chang International Circuit in Thailand, as the 22-year-old American finished ninth in the combined times of today’s two free practice sessions. The day started really well for Jacobsen, who after the first hour of action was in third place aboard his Honda CBR600RR #2, despite far-from-ideal track conditions.
In free practice two, last year’s World Supersport runner-up and his crew encountered a slightly more difficult time in finding the right set-up for the bike to adapt to the change in conditions. Nevertheless, Jacobsen was able to improve his lap-time by half a second by clocking in 1’39.973 on his penultimate attempt in what was an ultra-close afternoon session. Today’s timesheets were topped by local rider Ratthapong Wilairot aboard the Ten Kate Racing-supported Honda CBR600RR fielded by Team AP Honda.
The team is analysing the data in order to be ready for tomorrow’s on-track action, which starts at 11:15 local time (GMT+7) with free practice number three.
Patrick Jacobsen 2
9th / 1’39.973
The second session didn’t go as planned, unfortunately. We tried some changes to the bike that did not work as we’d have hoped. We ended up the opposite way in a couple of areas but that’s part of racing. The bike felt pretty good in the morning and we now know that all it needs are some small changes especially with regards to engine braking. If we can manage to do that tomorrow, I’m confident we will be able to battle for the front row.
Pieter Breddels
Technical Manager
In the morning, lap-times came quite easily despite the dirt found on the track. We left the bike almost untouched and we managed to end up third. In the afternoon we tried some different settings at the front that for some reason did not give us the improvement we were looking for. We have some work to do on the bike but it’s clear that we can be much quicker than this.