Superbike World Championship Round 11 EuroSpeedway / Lausitz (Germany) Team YZF Yamaha Two times points for Nakatomi Shinichi Nakatomi finished 11th and 15th at Lausitz, earning useful points in both races. It proves the positive evolution of the performances. So everything looks promising for the next round at Vallelunga and Magny-Cours that will be the end of the season. In the first race, Nakatomi was 15th at the end of lap 1. He later progressed to finish in 11th position. It was a great day for Yamaha as Haga won the race and Corser finished third. An other Yamaha rider won another race, with Broc Parkes finishing first in the Supersport race. In the second race, Shinichi did about the same race, but less riders retired and he finished in 15th position. Haga was brilliant again and he ended up second so it was a really great day for Yamaha. Shinichi Nakatomi: “I am happy to finish both races in the points. The practice sessions were not easy because of the bad weather. Finally during the races I had a good feeling.” Team-manager Martial Garcia: “With this 11th position in race 1, we could see the progress made on the bike. We had for instance the third top speed. Then we were not so lucky in race 2, but I am satisfied because race after race the rider and the bike are performing better and better.” Race 1: 1-Haga (Yamaha), 2-Biaggi (Suzuki), 3-Corser (Yamaha), 4-Bayliss (Ducati), 5-Rolfo (Honda), 11-Nakatomi (Yamaha) Race 2: 1- Bayliss (Ducati), 2- Haga (Yamaha), 3- Biaggi (Suzuki), 4-Toseland (Honda), 5- Corser (Yamaha), 15- Nakatomi (Yamaha) World Championship standings: 1- Toseland (Honda) 375 points, 2- Haga (Yamaha) 334, 3- Biaggi (Suzuki) 322, 4- Bayliss (Ducati) 296, 5- Corser (Yamaha) 254, 15- Nakatomi (Yamaha) 47 More, from a press release issued by Scuderia SC Caracchi: LIGHT SATISFACTION IN GERMANY FOR TEAM SC (Eurospeedway 2007, September 9) The Eurospeedway’s track conditions were not the best today, with the asphalt still very slippery in several points, with the addition of a broken engine during the Superstock 1000 morning’s race that let some oil in the penultimate corner. Cloudy sky, but no rain, and that has been enough to grab some valuable result after the difficulties in the past days, during the practice sessions. In Supersport Gianluca Nannelli showed once more his indomitable character and the guts he has. Together with his crew during the morning’s warm up has been used a new set up that Gianluca felt good. At the start Nannelli finished the first lap in 20th position, starting a very fast catching up. Lap by lap the gas tank became more empty and lighter, and the front handling became more and more better. In the final laps “Nanna” recorded lap times like the top of the race, finishing in 11th position and scoring five points, precious for the championship standing. “I’m quite happy, not for the final position, but for the big work we made on the bike after the warm up.” did comment his week end Gianluca “With the team we made a completely new set up for the 749. We found a solution for he front, that during the practice had a bad chattering that forced me to close the throttle, and finally I hade the set I like. It has not easy to catch the group and when I arrive behind them it has been very difficult to overtake, as well at the end I passed one guy lap by lap. That was an important test for my fit too and I think that I had a positive answer, as well during a side-up I had a strong pain and for a couple of laps I must ride slower. I’m confident to be ready for Vallelunga, I want to fight at my best in front of my fans. I have to thank all the team that, with Franco Farnè, gave me once more a bike with a fantastic top speed.” Also Jakub Smrz finished into the points race-1 in Superbike after a brilliant race, while in race -2, after a slow start, he did chase in vain for all the race the top 15, without reach his goal. “Unfortunately we hadn’t the possibility to work with method during the practice days.” said Jakub Smrz at the end of the race “Today the track was dry, but stil a bit slippery, the biggest problem is that the grip is not constan along the track and some trajectory is rather dangerous. In gara-1 I made a good race, recovering several postions, on the contrary in race-2 the start in the back rows has been quite chaotic and I must remain in the group. When I had just Nakatomi in front of me I saw him very close, but I’ve never been able to grab him. It’s a pity, to finish both the legs into the points it would be a good stimulus for all the team.” More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse: Sunday Sep 9 2007 Raceday BAYLISS (DUCATI XEROX) BOUNCES BACK FROM RACE 1 DEFEAT TO TAKE THRILLING VICTORY AGAINST HAGA IN SECOND RACE Lausitz (Germany), Sunday 9 September : Troy Bayliss (Ducati Xerox) bounced back from his race 1 defeat to take a thrilling victory from Yamaha’s Noriyuki Haga in the German Round of the World Superbike Championship at the EuroSpeedway. In the first 24-lap encounter Troy made all the running until half-distance, but tyre problems meant that he was passed by Haga and then by Max Biaggi (Suzuki) and Troy Corser (Yamaha) four laps from the end, finishing fourth. The second race was showing a similar pattern to the first as Haga again passed Troy on lap 14 to take the lead, but this time the team had fitted a harder front tyre to his 999, which certainly contributed to the result, and Troy was then able to re-pass his Japanese rival on lap 20 to take the chequered flag for his fortieth Superbike win. “These wins are hard to get but when you do take one they are very enjoyable, so I’m very happy with that second race today” declared Troy. “I’ve been racing against Nori since year 2000 and we’ve had some great battles over the past, they’ve all been very memorable. Sometimes he takes the win or I do but I love having a dice with Nori. Honestly there wasn’t much difference between the bikes in the two races, sometimes you have a problem and it goes like that. We weren’t happy with the first race and you could tell the difference in the second race because the bike was better to ride. It did look like the same was going to happen as I opened out a lead of 2 and a half seconds, and I did wonder that but it didn’t and I could push the whole race. I did make one mistake and that allowed Nori to come past. I was on the limit trying to gap Nori and it wasn’t easy. It was nice to have my electronics engineer Alessandra on the podium with me, she does all the stuff with the computer and she did a great job as always!”. Lorenzo Lanzi scored a couple of disappointing results at a circuit where he won in 2005, with the only really positive moment being when he overtook Toseland for eighth on the final lap of the first race. “Every time I come and race here, it seems that my performance gets worse instead of better and I am unable to explain why. For me it seems that it’s a bit of a lottery every time I have to chose the tyres” commented Lorenzo. “The first five laps went well, then the tyres began to create problems for me. After that I had to keep a ridiculous pace, much slower than what I was expecting to do, and the results were not at all satisfactory: eighth place in race 1 and twelfth in race 2, fighting to the end. I don’t know what to say, behind I had the same tyre as Troy, up front a slightly less hard one, but I was unable to stay amongst the front-runners”. RACE 1: 1. Haga (Yamaha); 2. Biaggi (Suzuki); 3. Corser (Yamaha); 4. Bayliss (Ducati Xerox); 5. Rolfo (Honda); 6. Laconi (Kawasaki); 7. Nieto (Kawasaki); 8. Lanzi (Ducati Xerox). RACE 2: 1. Bayliss; 2. Haga; 3. Biaggi; 4. Toseland (Honda); 5. Corser; 6. Xaus (Ducati); 7. Rolfo; 8. Nieto; …12. Lanzi. POINTS (after 11 of 13 rounds): Riders – 1. Toseland 375; 2. Haga 334; 3. Biaggi 322; 4. Bayliss 296; 5. Corser 254; 6. Xaus 177; 7. Lanzi 173; 8. Rolfo 166; etc. Manufacturers – 1. Honda 393; 2. Yamaha 388; 3. Ducati 363; 4. Suzuki 341; 5. Kawasaki 148; 6. MV Agusta 1. More, from a press release issued by HANNspree Ten Kate Honda: World Superbike Championship Round 11: Eurospeedway Lausitz, Germany Sunday 9 September 2007 Race report Toseland maintains lead at Lausitz HANNspree Ten Kate Honda’s James Tosleand maintained his series lead after a challenging day of racing at the Eurospeedway Lausitz in Germany today. The British rider now holds a 41-point advantage over nearest rival Noriyuki Haga following two tough races at the 4.265km circuit. Team-mate Roberto Rolfo performed well to hold onto his eighth place in the standings. Race one bought mixed fortunes for the HANNspree Ten Kate Honda riders. Rolfo got off to a good start from his third row position and was able to fight his way through the ranks to cross the finish line in an impressive fifth place. Toseland started from seventh on the grid, but a problem with the rear tyre on his CBR1000RR prevented the British rider from improving his position. He put up a strong fight to eventually finish in ninth place and pick up seven valuable points. Race two brought a better result for Toseland after a swift start saw him claim fourth place in the leading pack. Despite a persistent attack from Troy Corser for the majority of the 24-lap race, Toseland maintained station and collected thirteen points to keep his status as the current series leader. Rolfo made an unfortunate mistake on the first corner that meant he was unable to catch up with the frontrunners. However, another consistent performance saw him finish seventh to add eight points to his standings tally. Ronald ten Kate, Team Manager: “The problems we had in race one sum it all today for James. He was on tyres that we had already tested in warm-up this morning, but all of a sudden he had no grip at all in the race. For the second race, the only thing we could change on the bike was to put in a new tyre with the same specification. We couldn’t change anything on the bike itself because James wasn’t able to give us any feedback other than the problem with the rear tyre. We’ve lost quite a few points, which is disappointing, but it is not a big disaster because we still have a healthy 41-point lead with two more rounds to go. For sure, we hope to pick it up again in Vallelunga. “Roby had two strong races after the disappointment of his Superpole. He started in tenth so he moved up quite during both races. His lap times were pretty consistent so we are happy with that.” James Toseland: “It’s been one of the most difficult weekends of the year, especially coming off the back of Brands Hatch. The fact that it has rained for most of the weekend hasn’t helped us at all. The bike is quite sensitive here and we needed dry track time to get a good set-up. In race one I had a problem with the rear tyre – I had no grip from it at all – but I used exactly the same tyre for race two and it didn’t present a problem. The fact that I didn’t have the information from race one to take into race two meant that I could only run at race one pace and that was only good enough for fourth. Anyway, I have lost some of my lead, but I still have the lead so I just have to fight at Vallelunga to regain my advantage.” Roberto Rolfo: “It was not an easy day today. In race one was the better race for me. The rear tyre was sliding a lot – the behaviour of the tyre was a lot different in the race compared to warm-up. I could still compete well and I finished in fifth. In race two, I had a more difficult start after making a mistake on the first corner and I couldn’t catch up with the guys in the front. What it is disappointing is that in the second part of the race I am always faster and I have a very good rhythm. It has been a good day for points, but I want to get on the podium so hopefully I can do this in Vallelunga.” More, from a press release issued by Pirelli: ROUND 11 LAUSITZ 9th SEPTEMBER 2007 RACE REVIEW 9th September 2007, Lausitz (Germany) A surprising first row, on a tricky racetrack made more difficult due to the weather conditions. Riders on Saturday found a challenging situation, because of a racetrack that offered poor grip. Lausitzring is a circuit which seldom offers good grip in any conditions, but this time was worse than usual because of the rubber left on the racetrack by previous car races. Superbike had to deal with a wet Superpole, and Nieto and Laconi, the two official Kawasaki riders, were the first to enter the racetrack and took the 1st and 2nd positions, exploiting the first few seconds of dry tarmac. With them on the first row were Bayliss and Corser, on Ducati and Yamaha respectively. Race 1: AIR HUMIDITY 55% AIR TEMPERATURE 17°C TRACK CONDITION Dry TRACK TEMPERATURE 24°C The tyre choice for this race was hard for riders, as they had only one dry session of testing on Friday and they could make only 10 laps in this morning warm up, which was of course held in cooler conditions than the afternoon. Riders decided to take a risk in the race and decided to fit the softest rear tyre all of them that is preferring the high performance on offer to a safer solution – represented by the other two DIABLO SUPERBIKE products in this race range. The one who could best exploit this tyre was Haga, able to reduce the gap to Bayliss who had to slow his final pace, and ‘Nori’ won by 11 seconds. Another great performance was offered by his team mate Corser, third behind Biaggi and able to stay strong in the second half thanks to great laptimes. The softest “A” solution was chosen for the rear, but also for the front – by a few riders like Toseland and Bayliss. Biaggi’s offered a great show of resistance to Corser’s pressure, with the Italian rider able to set a 1’40.513 on the last lap, proving the great performance of these tyres on a bike with a good setup, like all the podium bikes. Race Standings Rider Bike Team Race time 1 Haga Yamaha YZF R1 Yamaha Motor Italia WSB 40’02.923 2 Biaggi Suzuki GSXR1000K7 Alstare Suzuki +11.007 3 Corser Yamaha YZF R1 Yamaha Motor Italia WSB +11.628 4 Bayliss Ducati 999 F07 Ducati Xerox +22.156 5 Rolfo Honda CBR1000RR Hannspree Ten Kate Honda +26.082 Race2: AIR HUMIDITY 50% AIR TEMPERATURE 20°C TRACK CONDITION Dry TRACK TEMPERATURE 29°C A great race for the SBK riders, in better weather conditions than Race 1 and with the knowledge it would be good q. Bayliss once again started ahead of the group at the green light, and when Haga caught up to Corser before half race distance it looked like a re-run of a race one DVD. After the leading two combatants, Biaggi was comfortably third, while Toseland was struggling to maintain his position, ahead of Corser. The race went faster than Race 1 (13 seconds faster, which means an average 0.5 seconds faster lap time) even if riders didn’t change their tyre choice a lot, confirming the softest tyre for the rear. Bayliss moved from a soft (“A”) to a hard (“D”) front tyre, while Haga confirmed his “C” front and “A” rear. The result was a great display, with Haga and Bayliss passing each other and the crowd shouting them on to the flag. On the podium Bayliss led Haga and Biaggi, with Toseland 4th. Four different bikes in the first four positions, confirming the high quality of Pirelli slick tyres. They are able to allow every bike great performance for the riders. With two rounds and four races to go, Toseland is leading the Championship by 41 points from Haga (with 100 points still to be assigned) and he is also 53 up on Biaggi. The next race will be the Italian round at Vallelunga, where the top riders tested in June this year. Race Standings Rider Bike Team Race time 1 Bayliss Ducati 999 F07 Ducati Xerox 39’49.291 2 Haga Yamaha YZF R1 Yamaha Motor Italia WSB +1.353 3 Biaggi Suzuki GSXR1000K7 Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra +13.001 4 Toseland Honda CBR1000RR Hannspree Ten Kate Honda +16.641 5 Corser Yamaha YZF R1 Yamaha Motor Italia WSB +15.210 Championship Standings Rider Bike Team Points 1 Toseland Honda CBR1000RR Hannspree Ten Kate Honda 375 2 Haga Yamaha YZF R1 Yamaha Motor Italia WSB 334 3 Biaggi Suzuki GSXR1000K7 Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra 322 4 Bayliss Ducati 999 F07 Ducati Xerox 296 5 Corser Yamaha YZF R1 Yamaha Motor Italia WSB 254 6 Xaus Ducati 999 F06 Ducati Sterilgarda 177 7 Lanzi Ducati 999F 07 Ducati Xerox 173 8 Rolfo Honda CBR1000RR Hannspree Ten Kate Honda 166 9 Neukirchner Suzuki GSXR1000K6 Suzuki Germany 130 10 Kagayama Suzuki GSXR1000K7 Alstare Suzuki 116 AIR HUMIDITY 56% AIR TEMPERATURE 18°C TRACK CONDITION Dry TRACK TEMPERATURE 28°C A good race at Lausitz, despite the difficulty for the riders to chose the tyres and the bike setup to fight in a dry race. A strange weekend because of the weather conditions, which made the riders face the 23-lap contest with no certainty. At the start Charpentier, Parkes and Sofuoglu took the lead, but as always in Supersport, positions change until the last lap, offering an entertaining show. The big fight took place between Sofuoglu and Parkes for the race win. The Turkish Honda rider had to give it up to Parkes and his Yamaha, but even if he already has the championship title, Sofuoglu has shown he doesn’t like second place, and will try again to win in Vallelunga. Third place came for French rider Matthieu Lagrive, on his best result. Race Standings Rider Bike Team Race time 1 Parkes Yamaha YZF-R6 Yamaha World SSP Racing 39’25,235 2 Sofuoglu Honda CBR600 RR Hannspree Ten Kate +1.987 3 Lagrive Yamaha YZF-R6 Intermoto Czech +23.435 4 Jones Honda CBR600 RR Revè Ekerold Honda Racing +27.912 5 Hill Yamaha YZF-R6 Yamaha World SSP Racing +29.090 Championship Standings Rider Bike Team Points 1 Sofuoglu Honda CBR600 RR Hannspree Ten Kate 226 2 Foret Kawasaki ZX 6R GilMotorsport 126 3 Parkes Yamaha YZF-R6 Yamaha World SSP Racing 100 4 Fujiwara Honda CBR600 RR Team Althea Megabike 87 5 Roccoli Yamaha YZF-R6 Yamaha Lorenzini by Leoni 84 6 Harms Honda CBR600 RR Stiggy Motorsport 83 7 Veneman Suzuki GSX-R600 Pioneer Hoegee Suzuki 70 8 West Yamaha YZF-R6 Yamaha World SSP Racing 66 9 Jones Honda CBR600 RR Revè Ekerold Honda Racing 58 10 Nannelli Ducati 749R Team Caracchi Ducati SC 49 AIR HUMIDITY 74% AIR TEMPERATURE 15°C TRACK CONDITION Dry TRACK TEMPERATURE 16° C On a dry track, after wet practice, it was not easy to find the right riding attitude, but the Superstock 1000 riders proved to be really talented, and made a great job with their high perfomance Pirelli DIABLO SUPERCORSA SC2 rubber. Van Keymeulen tried to run away in the first laps, but Corti succeeded in overtaking him. The two were closely followed by Canepa, Aitchison, Simeon, and after them, local rider Tode. Superstock 1000 always offers a great show, with many overtakes and heavy braking at every corner, and the German round didn’t disappoint. The fight went on for the whole race, with a final order decided only in the last corners. Van Keymeulen finished ahead of Canepa, Corti and Aitchison. Race Standings: Rider Bike Team Race Time 1 Van Keymeulen Yamaha YZF R1 TTSL-MGM Racing 24’20.075 2 Canepa Ducati 1098 S Ducati Xerox Jr Team +0.194 3 Corti Yamaha YZF R1 Yamaha Team Italia +0.527 4 Aitchison Suzuki GSXR 1000 Celani Suzuki Italia +0.556 5 Simeon Suzuki GSXR 1000 Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra +2.410 Championship Standings: Rider Bike Team Points 1 Baiocco Yamaha YZF R1 Umbria Bike 136 2 Simeon Suzuki GSXR 1000 Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra 127 3 Canepa Ducati 1098 Ducati Xerox Jr Team 125 4 Aitchison Suzuki GSXR 1000 Celani Suzuki Italia 121 5 Corti Yamaha YZF R1 Yamaha Team Italia 112 AIR HUMIDITY 87% AIR TEMPERATURE 16°C TRACK CONDITION Wet TRACK TEMPERATURE 18° A difficult race once again, and for the youngest riders in the championship. The Superstock 600 race was run on a completely wet racetrack, and a highly slippery one as well. Riders had to go in a very careful and conservative way; nevertheless there were many crashes. Lonbois on his Suzuki literally dominated the race, with only Black able to ride in similar times and end with a 5.5″ margin. Behind them there was a huge gap: Jezek completed the podium with 45″ gap, very unusual for this class. Rain tyres have been this weekend’s ever-present choices, in really difficult conditions for riders and for Pirelli. Race Standings: Rider Bike Team Race Time 1 Lonbois Suzuki GSX-600R MTM Racing 23’35.097 2 Black Yamaha YZF R6 Capaul Black Racing +5.506 3 Jezek Kawasaki ZX-6RR Gold Fren Team Erinac +45.007 4 Hellyer Kawasaki ZX-6RR Lightspeed-Kawasaki +46.247 5 Gines Yamaha YZF R6 Peko Racing Team +58.007 Championship Standings: Rider Bike Team Points 1 Berger Yamaha YZF R6 Team Trasimeno 163 2 Magnoni Yamaha YZF R6 Bevilacqua Corse 131 3 Antonelli Honda CBR600RR Team Italia Megabike AX 122 4 Black Yamaha YZF R6 Capaul Black Racing 95 5 Colucci Ducati 749R Ducati Xerox Junior Team 83 More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing: World Supersport and Superbike Championships 2007 Round 11 ,Eurospeedway Lausitz German Round 7-9 September 2007 Temperature: Air: 18°C Ground: 28°C Conditions: Dry Spectator Attendance: 49,500 (claimed all weekend). SOFUOGLU SECOND AFTER CLOSE LAUSITZ RACE RESULT New World Supersport Champion Kenan Sofuoglu (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR) had a close fight with eventual winner Broc Parkes all through the 23-lap Supersport race, finishing second by 1.987 seconds. Second again in qualifying, Sofuoglu provided great entertainment for the German crowd on a day that dawned blissfully dry, after a wet final qualifying session on Saturday. Sofuoglu also scored a new lap record, on lap six, with a time of 1’41.946s. Sofuoglu’s 20 points from Lausitz ensure that Honda has now taken the Manufacturers’ Championship, now having an advantage of 51 points over the next closest manufacturer, with two races to go. Sofuoglu now leads the championship he has already won by a margin of 100 points, from Lausitz non-finisher Fabien Foret, as Parkes moved into third place, on 87 points. Sebastien Charpentier (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR) looked set for a podium but reduced rear tyre traction from five laps into the race dropped him from the lead at one stage to an eventual ninth. He was particularly disappointed, as he had qualified on pole for the second successive meeting. Katsuaki Fujiwara (Althea Honda Team CBR600RR) retired from the race on lap ten, and his teammate Lorenzo Alfonsi (Althea Honda Team CBR600RR) fell on lap 20. Winning at Lausitz was high on Sofuoglu’s list of priorities, despite his recent championship success. “For me it was really important to win this race because I won here last year and also because I am the champion now, I feel that I should prove myself by winning,” said Kenan. “Broc Parkes was really strong today and I know that his bike is good around here. I fought with him for the entire 23-laps and it was not easy, but there is only so much you can do without losing the grip in the rear and in the front. He managed to get past me and by the final lap I knew there was nothing more I could do to catch him. Anyway, I put in 100% here so I know that at Vallelunga and Magny-Cours I will put in 130% – because I really want to win those races!” Charpentier was desolate at his misfortune, and he is now 12th overall, on 44 points. “After a few laps, about five, my rear grip just started to go and from then until the end I was fighting all the way,” said Charpentier. “I have a new gearbox spec coming for Vallelunga because I feel right now that I am always between gears in the slower corners, so I hope that can let me get full confidence and make the most of what is a very good bike.” Fujiwara had some bad luck on race day, when a crash he experienced on Saturday, in wet conditions, broke two small bones in is left ankle. He gallantly attempted to race, as he had qualified in fourth place on the grid, but after dropping out of the points his team signalled him into the box to retire. He lost third place in the championship due to his DNF, and is now fourth. “The problem was that my injury was to my left ankle,” said Fujiwara. “That made gear changing very difficult. The team decided to bring me in to the pit box when I was no longer in the points. I also had a injury to my right leg, just from the impact of the crash, so it was an uncomfortable race for me.” Alfonsi, who had qualified 22nd, was up to 12th at one point, but after a near collision with another rider he lost the back end as he tried to keep the power on, while running just off the ideal line. He is now 11th overall, with 45 points. “It was a pity because after losing the final day of qualifying because of rain I was making real progress in the race,” said Alfonsi. “I almost touched with Gianluca Nannelli and that meant I was off line. I tried very hard to recover but the rear end just came around on me.” World Superbike Round 11 of 13 TOSELAND LOSES SOME GROUND DESPITE STRONG TEAM EFFORT James Toseland (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR) battled as hard at Eurospeedway Lausitz as he ever has to win races in the 2007 series, but was rewarded with only a ninth and fourth place finish, and a reduced championship lead to boot. Despite losing ground to both his main championship rivals, he still leaves Germany with a healthy 41-point championship lead. Noriyuki Haga won the first race and Troy Bayliss the second. In the championship Toseland now has 375 points, Haga 334, Max Biaggi 322 and Bayliss 296. In the Manufacturers’ Championship, Honda has a five-point advantage, with four races and two rounds still to go. In the first race, second row qualifier Toseland was in trouble from the start, with a mystery lack of rear traction throughout, leading to a reduction of forward push that caused him to drop from the leading bunch to ninth. He was passed on the very last lap by Lorenzo Lanzi; finding himself unable to do anything about it. Top Honda finisher in race one was thus Roberto Rolfo (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR) in fifth, with next best rider being Karl Muggeridge (Alto Evolution Honda CBR1000RR) who took tenth place. Rookie rider in his first SBK race, Yoann Tiberio (Alto Evolution Honda CBR1000RR) scored one point for finishing 15th. Michel Fabrizio (DFX Corse Honda CBR1000RR) crashed and had to pull out of race one while in a top position, while his teammate Luca Morelli (DFX Corse Honda CBR1000RR) also failed to finish. In race two, Toseland was in the leading group at the start once more but although not able to compete for the podium places, he fended off the close attentions of Troy Corser to secure fourth place, and more valuable points to take into the final rounds. Rolfo was seventh in race two, Muggeridge again tenth, with a tiring Fabrizio 13th, and Tiberio 18th. A second technical issue, on lap eight of the second race, forced Morelli out. For Toseland the story of his day was clear – sheer bad luck. The fact that he had to swap to his second bike to eradicate the mere possibility there was a problem with his first machine was not an ideal way to finish a race weekend as important as this one. “A tough day at the office today,” said the championship leader. “I have worked so hard to get the advantage I took away from Brands Hatch that to be riding round in ninth in race one does not do me or this team justice. The second race was just normal by comparison, but because things were so bad with traction in the first race we had to swap to my spare bike because we didn’t know what was happening with the lack of grip in race one. We set the second bike the same as the first one was in race two – and it was two or more seconds a lap quicker. But the bikes were the same, so it was nothing mechanical in race one. If I had a third and a fourth today, which was more than possible, then I would have left here without too much of an indentation in my championship lead. It could have been worse, but after a double win at Brands Hatch I shouldn’t have been worrying about my lead being cut here.” Rolfo, now eighth in the title chase, was happy to be as high up as he was in race one, but not so happy with the result of race two. “In some points we improved in race two but we elected to put a lot of fuel in and we lost the best part of the race,” said Roby. “Later on I was fast and it went better. I feel a lot happier going fast on the bike than before but we still have to work, because I want to stay with the front riders. The start is where we need to concentrate, because the middle to the end is not a problem at the moment.” Fabrizio was unfortunate to fall in race one, and it was his fourth crash in a weekend blighted with rain on day two. In race two, many factors took their toll on him, and he finished a depleted 13th. In the series overall he is 12th, on 112 points. “In race one the bike was good, the tyre too, and I was making real progress from the start,” said Fabrizio. “But – I think – Corser put his knee slider on the earth around the inside of a corner and some dirt went onto the track. As soon as I reached it I lost the front. It was my fourth crash and I hurt my face and neck a bit this time. The bike was not OK, so I was finished in that race. In race two, after a few laps, the tyre was worn on my repaired bike and my body was very tired and painful after the crashes. With all that, I just hung on there to finish as best I could.” Muggeridge was back on strong form after a recent test session in Italy and despite the day which was effectively lost to rain on Saturday, and a 14th place in Superpole, he was happy to be back in the main mix again. He is 15th in the overall championship after Lausitz. “My quickshifter broke in race one,” said Muggeridge. “So I had arm pump working the throttle so hard during gear changes. I improved my race time by 11 seconds in race two; just what I thought I had lost in race one. Two top tens is not too bad. We really have a race bike now, and this is the first race where I got a top ten and none of the other riders fell off, so I am happy with that.” Tiberio’s first taste of Superbike action was relatively sweet, and he will be back for more in Italy in two weeks. “I rode with no real knowledge about a Superbike race until today but it was OK in the races,” said the former WSS race winner. “There were so many things to think about but it was interesting. And very hard! But I enjoyed the bike and I have made a good progression through the weekend. Next race should be exciting.” Morelli was disappointed with is first Lausitz weekend, as he was forced out of the contest on two occasions. “I am not happy at all,” said Morelli, “because my bike just stopped twice, at almost the same point in each race. So now I look to Vallelunga, where I hope for better luck.” The next stop for the WSS and WSB series is a new venue, Vallelunga, on September 30th, with Magny-Cours in France forming the final round of the championship, on November 7. Results SUPERSPORT: RACE : (Laps 23 = 98,095 Km) Pos /Rider /Nat. /Team / Time /Gap 1 / B. PARKES / AUS / Yamaha World SSP Racing / 39’25.235 / 2 / K. SOFUOGLU / TUR / Hannspree Ten Kate Honda / 39’27.222 / 1.987 3 / M.LAGRIVE / FRA / Intermoto Czech / 39’48.670 / 23.435 4 / C. JONES / GBR / Revè Ekerold Honda Racing / 39’53.147 / 27.912 5 / T. HILL / GBR / Yamaha World SSP Racing / 39’54.325 / 29.09 6 / D. CHECA / ESP / Yamaha – GMT 94 / 39’54.521 / 29.286 7 / M.ROCCOLI / ITA / Yamaha Lorenzini by Leoni / 39’54.534 / 29.299 8 / J. LASCORZ / ESP / Glaner Motocard.com / 39’57.349 / 32.114 9 / S. CHARPENTIER / FRA / Hannspree Ten Kate Honda / 40’04.445 / 39.21 10 / B. VENEMAN / NED / Pioneer Hoegee Suzuki Racing / 40’06.461 / 41.226 11 / G.NANNELLI / ITA / Team Caracchi Ducati SC / 40’06.755 / 41.52 12 / S. GIMBERT / FRA / Yamaha – GMT 94 / 40’07.474 / 42.239 13 / G.VIZZIELLO / ITA / RG Team / 40’09.036 / 43.801 14 / S. SANNA / ITA / Racing Team Parkalgar / 40’18.284 / 53.049 15 / S. NEBEL / GER / Lightspeed Kawasaki Supp. / 40’22.142 / 56.907 Fastest Lap 6° Kenan Sofuoglu 1’41.946 150,609 Km/h Lap record: 2006 K.Sofuoglu 1’42.090 150,400 Km/h Best Lap: 2006 K.Curtain 1’41.006 152,010 Km/h Riders Championship Standings: 1 SOFUOGLU 226, 2 FORET 126, 3 PARKES 100, 4 FUJIWARA 87, 5 ROCCOLI 84, 6 HARMS 83, 7 VENEMAN 70, 8 WEST 66, 9 JONES 58, 10 NANNELLI 49, 11 ALFONSI 45, 12 CHARPENTIER 44, 13 PITT 40, 14 CHECA 39, 15 RIBA 37. SUPERBIKE Race 1 : (Laps 24 = 102,360 Km) Pos / Rider / Nat. / Team / Time / Gap 1 / N.HAGA / JPN / Yamaha Motor Italia / 40’02.923 / 2 / M.BIAGGI / ITA / Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra / 40’13.930 / 11.007 3 / T. CORSER / AUS / Yamaha Motor Italia / 40’14.551 / 11.628 4 / T. BAYLISS / AUS / Ducati Xerox Team / 40’25.079 / 22.156 5 / R. ROLFO / ITA / Hannspree Ten Kate Honda / 40’29.005 / 26.082 6 / R. LACONI / FRA / Kawasaki PSG-1 Corse / 40’29.304 / 26.381 7 / F. NIETO / ESP / Kawasaki PSG-1 Corse / 40’39.793 / 36.87 8 / L. LANZI / ITA / Ducati Xerox Team / 40’46.388 / 43.465 9 / J. TOSELAND / GBR / Hannspree Ten Kate Honda / 40’47.181 / 44.258 10 / K. MUGGERIDGE / AUS / Alto Evolution Honda / 40’48.156 / 45.233 11 / S. NAKATOMI / JPN / Yamaha YZF / 40’55.476 / 52.553 12 / R. XAUS / ESP / Team Sterilgarda / 41’04.882 / 1’01.959 13 / J. SMRZ / CZE / Team Caracchi Ducati SC / 41’20.912 / 1’17.989 14 / S. MARTIN / AUS / Celani Team Suzuki Italia / 41’22.147 / 1’19.224 15 / Y. TIBERIO / FRA / Alto Evolution Honda / 41’39.550 / 1’36.627 Fastest Lap 9° Noriyuki Haga 1’39.033 155,039 Km/h Race 2: (Laps 24 = 102,360 Km) 1 / T. BAYLISS / AUS / Ducati Xerox Team / 39’49.291 / 2 / N.HAGA / JPN / Yamaha Motor Italia / 39’50.644 / 1.353 3 / M.BIAGGI / ITA / Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra / 40’02.292 / 13.001 4 / J. TOSELAND / GBR / Hannspree Ten Kate Honda / 40’03.932 / 14.641 5 / T. CORSER / AUS / Yamaha Motor Italia / 40’04.501 / 15.21 6 / R. XAUS / ESP / Team Sterilgarda / 40’15.121 / 25.83 7 / R. ROLFO / ITA / Hannspree Ten Kate Honda / 40’19.043 / 29.752 8 / F. NIETO / ESP / Kawasaki PSG-1 Corse / 40’19.238 / 29.947 9 / M.NEUKIRCHNER / GER / Suzuki Germany / 40’19.843 / 30.552 10 / K. MUGGERIDGE / AUS / Alto Evolution Honda / 40’23.106 / 33.815 11 / R. LACONI / FRA / Kawasaki PSG-1 Corse / 40’28.614 / 39.323 12 / L. LANZI / ITA / Ducati Xerox Team / 40’31.883 / 42.592 13 / M.FABRIZIO / ITA / D.F.X. Corse / 40’40.046 / 50.755 14 / S. MARTIN / AUS / Celani Team Suzuki Italia / 40’42.889 / 53.598 15 / S. NAKATOMI / JPN / Yamaha YZF / 40’45.575 / 56.284 Fastest Lap 7° Noriyuki Haga 1’38.622 155,685 Km/h Lap record: 2006 T.Bayliss 1’38.635 155,660 Km/h Best Lap: 2006 T.Bayliss 1’37.623 157,280 Km/h Riders Championship Standings: 1 TOSELAND 362, 2 HAGA 314, 3 BIAGGI 306, 4 BAYLISS 271, 5 CORSER 243, 6 LANZI 169, 7 XAUS 167, 8 ROLFO 157, 9 NEUKIRCHNER 123, 10 KAGAYAMA 116, 11 FABRIZIO 109, 12 LACONI 108, 13 NIETO 74, 14 SMRZ 61, 15 NAKATOMI 46. More, from another press release issued by HANNspree Ten Kate Honda: World Supersport Championship Round 11: Eurospeedway Lausitz, Germany Sunday 9 September 2007 Race report Tenth podium of the year for Sofuoglu Round 11 of the 2007 World Supersport Championship concluded at Lausitz today with yet another podium finish for HANNspree Ten Kate Honda’s Kenan Sofuoglu. The Turkish rider added a further 20 points to his standings tally, which sees Honda secure the Manufacturers’ Championship with two rounds remaining. Sofuoglu started today’s 23-lap race determined to claim the victory – despite already claiming the series title at Brands Hatch. He got off to great start and entered into a fierce battle for the top spot with Broc Parkes. The pair swapped places numerous times in an exhilarating display of inch-perfect riding that had the 49,500 spectators on the edge of their seats. In the end, it was Parkes that won the fight after passing Sofuoglu for the final time on lap 21. The HANNspree Ten Kate Honda rider made an official complaint to the series organiser, believing that Parkes had overtaken while the yellow flag was out. However, a lack of evidence meant that the victory remained with Parkes. Team-mate Sébastien Charpentier’s bad luck continued once again as he struggled with grip on the tyres of his CBR600RR. After a very strong start, the Frenchman was unable to maintain station and eventually finished the race in ninth place. However the result sees him collect seven all-important points to climb to twelfth in the overall standings. Ronald ten Kate, Team Manager: “It was a very exciting Supersport race today with a nice battle between Broc Parkes and Kenan. Towards the end there was a situation with a yellow flag being waved at the same time as Broc took the lead. However, there is no proof of this on the race footage so congratulations have to go to Broc for the win. I am disappointed for Kenan because he wanted this win so badly, so for sure he has something prove in Vallelunga. “For Sébastien, the first part of the race was looking good, but the grip went in his tyres and he could not maintain his position. He dropped back quite a bit, but we will try to improve n this at the next round. What we do have to celebrate today is the manufacturers’ title for Honda. We are now 51 points clear, which means nobody else can catch up. We’d like to thank Honda for the all-new CBR600RR, which has not only won the riders’ titles but now also the Manufacturers’ Championship.” Kenan Sofuoglu: “For me it was really important to win this race because I won here last year and also because I am the champion now so I feel that I should prove myself by winning. Broc Parkes was really strong today and I know that his bike is good around here. I fought with him for the entire 23-laps and it was not easy, but there is only so much you can do without losing the grip in the rear and in the front. He managed to get passed me and by the final lap I knew there was nothing more I could do to catch him. Anyway, I put in 100% here so I know that at Vallelunga and Magny Cours I will put in 130% because I really want to win those races!” Sébastien Charpentier: “Once again, I am disappointed. It was difficult for me today because I was ready before the race and I was on pole position but immediately the grip on the tyre began to go and I couldn’t push as hard as I wanted to. All the team are working really hard and I just hope that we can improve for Vallelunga and Magny Cours.” More, from a press release issued by Yamaha Racing: Yamaha on Every Step of the Podium The weather was kind to the World Superbike Championship today as the rain disappeared and the sun came out while Haga and Corser took three podiums between them; one on each step of the podium. Haga took the win in race one and rounded it up with a second place in race two, while Corser finished third in the first race and fifth in the second. Race one started well for Haga as he went from eighth to second in the first few laps. Undeterred by the gap that Bayliss had created between first and second, Haga just put his head down and reduced the margin lap by lap until the two riders were tyre to tyre on lap 14. Haga made his move on the next lap with a traditional Haga-style close pass and then just kept going. He finished the race a clear 11 seconds ahead of the rest of the field; his fourth win of the season. Corser got off to a poor start in race one, almost high-siding in the second corner, and he slid back to ninth before turning the power back on and making way up through the field again. By lap eight he had made his way to fourth position and was hunting down Biaggi 6.2 seconds ahead in third. By lap 18 the gap had reduced to nothing and Corser tried valiantly to pass Biaggi In the end he had to settle for third as his tyres wore off. The second race of the day got off to a mixed start with Corser dropping to sixth and Haga climbing to fifth. Haga wasted no time in passing through the field to once again chase down lead-man Bayliss. Corser meanwhile was challenging Xaus for fifth; a challenge he won going into the first turn. He then focused on finding a way past Toseland for fourth place; a battle which was to last the rest of the race with the riders in the order in which they had begun. By lap nine Haga and Bayliss were dicing with each other and, on lap 14, a mistake by Bayliss gave Haga the chance he was looking for and he grabbed it to take the race lead. But, four laps from the end Bayliss managed to get past Haga, who was forced to settle for second. Team Yamaha YZF rider Shinichi Nakatomi had a good day’s racing taking 11th in race one and 15th in race two. Race one was the highlight of the day for the young Japanese rider and he takes six points away with him. Today’s results have boosted Haga’s second place standing; he is now only 41 points behind first with two rounds still to go. Noriyuki Haga (1st and 2nd – Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team) “I feel happy with my result in both races today. The first race was the perfect result; even though my tyre started to wear off I was able to take the win. I made a minor suspension change for race two but then didn’t get as good a start as I wanted because of a small mistake. This meant I had to use more rear tyre during the race to chase and challenge Bayliss. Towards the end the tyre started sliding and I just couldn’t keep up the pace with Troy. Today has reduced the margin on my championship challenge; it has given me more potential to win and I’m now feeling more focused than ever and I’m going to push right to the end for the title. I’d like to thank the team and Ãhlins for all their efforts in getting the bike working right this weekend.” Troy Corser (3rd and 5th – Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team) “The first race was pretty good, although I didn’t get off the line very well and had to then work hard to get back up the front. The bike was handling very well but I just couldn’t get past Max for second place. We made quite a few changes to the bike for the second race and made some handling alterations. It made an improvement and I was all over Toseland in the corners. Overall I’m a bit disappointed with my results because I was expecting better. The chassis was really well this weekend and I’m confident for the next race at Vallelunga.” Massimo Meregalli (Team Coordinator, Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team) “If you’d told me yesterday that we’d have three podium positions 24 hours later I wouldn’t have believed it. To win 25 points over Toseland isn’t easy and what we did today was great. We’ll approach the next two races with a lot of a fighting spirit in light of this. Nori was superb. Troy got a good podium in the first race following a good series of overtakes. Thanks to the team, especially for yesterday because they worked very hard and today we saw the results.” Shinichi Nakatomi (11th and 15th – Team Yamaha YZF) “I’m very happy with both results this weekend but mostly I’m happy about the first race result. The bike feels good and we are improving every race. I’m looking forward to seeing our results at Vallelunga now.” Martial Garcia (Team Manager, Team Yamaha YZF) “The 11th position in the first race shows that there has been progress made with the bike. We had the third highest top speed in race one. We weren’t as lucky in race two but I’m happy because I can see our improvement in bike and rider every race.” Race 1 – 24 Laps Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Noriyuki Haga, Yamaha, JPN, 40’2.923 2, Max Biaggi, Suzuki, ITA, 0’11.007 3, Troy Corser, Yamaha, AUS, 0’11.628 4, Troy Bayliss, Ducati, AUS, 0’22.156 5, Roberto Rolfo, Honda, ITA, 0’26.082 6, Regis Laconi, Kawasaki, FRA, 0’26.381 7, Fonsi Nieto, Kawasaki, ESP, 0’36.870 8, Lorenzo Lanzi, Ducati, ITA, 0’43.465 9, James Toseland, Honda, GBR, 0’44.258 10, Karl Muggeridge, Honda, AUS, 0’45.233 11, Shinichi Nakatomi, Yamaha, JPN, 0’52.553 12, Ruben Xaus, Ducati, ESP, 1’1.959 13, Jakub Smrz, Ducati, CZE, 1’17.989 14, Steve Martin, Yamaha, AUS, 1’19.224 15, Yoann Tiberio, Honda, FRA, 1’36.627 Race 2 – 24 Laps Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Troy Bayliss, Ducati, AUS, 39’49.291 2, Noriyuki Haga, Yamaha, JPN, 0’1.353 3, Max Biaggi, Suzuki, ITA, 0’13.001 4, James Toseland, Honda, GBR, 0’14.641 5, Troy Corser, Yamaha, AUS, 0’15.210 6, Ruben Xaus, Ducati, ESP, 0’25.830 7, Roberto Rolfo, Honda, ITA, 0’29.752 8, Fonsi Nieto, Kawasaki, ESP, 0’29.947 9, Max Neukirchner, Suzuki, GER, 0’30.552 10, Karl Muggeridge, Honda, AUS, 0’33.815 11, Regis Laconi, Kawasaki, FRA, 0’39.323 12, Lorenzo Lanzi, Ducati, ITA, 0’42.592 13, Michel Fabrizio, Honda, ITA, 0’50.755 14, Steve Martin, Yamaha, AUS, 0’53.598 15, Shinichi Nakatomi, Yamaha, JPN, 0’56.284 Best Lap Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time Noriyuki Haga, Yamaha, JPN, 1’39.033 Rider Standings 09/09/2007 Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Points 1, James Toseland, Honda, GBR, 375 2, Noriyuki Haga, Yamaha, JPN, 334 3, Max Biaggi, Suzuki, ITA, 322 4, Troy Bayliss, Ducati, AUS, 296 5, Troy Corser, Yamaha, AUS, 254 6, Ruben Xaus, Ducati, ESP, 177 7, Lorenzo Lanzi, Ducati, ITA, 173 8, Roberto Rolfo, Honda, ITA, 166 9, Max Neukirchner, Suzuki, GER, 130 10, Yukio Kagayama, Suzuki, JPN, 116 11, Regis Laconi, Kawasaki, FRA, 113 12, Michel Fabrizio, Honda, ITA, 112 13, Fonsi Nieto, Kawasaki, ESP, 82 14, Jakub Smrz, Ducati, CZE, 61 15, Shinichi Nakatomi, Yamaha, JPN, 47 Manufacturer Standings 09/09/2007 Pos., Manufacturer, Points 1, Honda, 393 2, Yamaha, 388 3, Ducati, 363 4, Suzuki, 341 5, Kawasaki, 148 6, MV Agusta, 1 Yamaha Takes the Supersport Win Broc Parkes tasted victory today for the second consecutive round when he fended off Sofuoglu to take the chequered flag at the EuroSpeedway circuit in Germany. Team mate Tommy Hill put in a sterling performance to finish fifth. Parkes got a good start and moved up to second straight away behind Sofuoglu. The pair broke away from the rest of the field and the challenge for the race win was on. Parkes and Sofuoglu diced for the lead passing each other virtually every lap until Parkes made a pass on lap 21 that the other rider couldn’t respond to. This fight for first took the two riders so far ahead of the field that Parkes ended up 23 seconds ahead of third placed man Lagrive when he crossed the line for the final time. This is Parkes’ second win of the season and puts him in third place in championship. After the race there was a query raised about whether Broc had made the final pass on Sofuoglu under a waved yellow flag, but it was not upheld. Tommy Hill showed grit and determination today to finish fifth after a poor start saw him drop back from 7th to 12th on the first lap. Undeterred the British Supersport rider put his head down and picked off riders as he passed his way through the field to seventh place by lap 13. At this point he threw himself into the battle for fifth position with fellow Yamaha riders Roccoli and Checa, which he subsequently won. Hill is to ride for the Yamaha World Supersport Team for the remaining two rounds of the season. Roccoli took seventh in the three-way battle with Checa and Hill and moves up to fifth place in the championship standings. It was a weekend of ups and downs for the Yamaha Team Italia rider which saw him struggle with set-up issues and only manage 17th qualifying place. But the young Italian took it in his stride and put in a good ride today, climbing up through the field alongside Hill to take seventh. Team GMT-94 rider David Checa also had a good ride today, featuring in the mid-field for much of the race and taking sixth position between Hill and Roccoli. Broc Parkes (1st – Yamaha World Supersport Team) “It’s grins all round! It was an awesome race today between Sofuoglu and me. I knew I couldn’t break him from in front so I decided to let him past and watch him for a while. In the end I just got my head down and decided to have another go at breaking him, and it worked. The bike was great today; the chassis has been working well and everything just came together on the day. I’m now just 26 points behind Foret, who is in second. I’m now thinking that if I can keep up this momentum I can catch him and take second in the championship this year.” Tommy Hill (5th – Yamaha World Supersport Team) “I’m very disappointed about my start today. I’m not sure if it was a clutch issue or just me getting it wrong. It was quite on/off yesterday and today but it was fine at Brands so we’re going to have a look at it before the next round. Once the start was done I just had to get my head down and get on with it. I’m pleased to have finished fifth but I’d wanted to catch Jones for fourth. I couldn’t though because all my rear grip had gone by that point. I’m looking forward to Vallelunga as it should be dry, which always makes learning a track easier. This weekend was tough as I didn’t get a completely dry session in which to get a set-up and I had no knowledge of the track. It’s good to have the opportunity to ride with the team in this championship for the rest of the season.” Massimo Roccoli (7th – Yamaha Team Italia) “Starting on the fifth row is not easy! My seventh position is no small miracle. Maybe I could have tried harder at the end but my tyres were finished. My Yamaha was very fast and I’d like to thank my team for this weekend.” Race 1 – 23 Laps Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Broc Parkes, Yamaha, AUS, 39’25.235 2, Kenan Sofuoglu, Honda, TUR, 0’1.987 3, Matthieu Lagrive, Honda, FRA, 0’23.435 4, Craig Jones, Honda, GBR, 0’27.912 5, Tommy Hill, Yamaha, GBR, 0’29.090 6, David Checa, Yamaha, ESP, 0’29.286 7, Massimo Roccoli, Yamaha, ITA, 0’29.299 8, Joan Lascorz, Honda, ESP, 0’32.114 9, Sebastien Charpentier, Honda, FRA, 0’39.210 10, Barry Veneman, Suzuki, NED, 0’41.226 11, Gianluca Nannelli, Ducati, ITA, 0’41.520 12, Sebastien Gimbert, Yamaha, FRA, 0’42.239 13, Gianluca Vizziello, Yamaha, ITA, 0’43.801 14, Simone Sanna, Honda, ITA, 0’53.049 15, Stefan Nebel, Kawasaki, GER, 0’56.907 Best Lap Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time Kenan Sofuoglu, Honda, TUR, 1’41.946 Rider Standings 09/09/2007 Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Points 1, Kenan Sofuoglu, Honda, TUR, 226 2, Fabien Foret, Kawasaki, FRA, 126 3, Broc Parkes, Yamaha, AUS, 100 4, Katsuaki Fujiwara, Honda, JPN, 87 5, Massimo Roccoli, Yamaha, ITA, 84 6, Robbin Harms, Honda, DNK, 83 7, Barry Veneman, Suzuki, NED, 70 8, Anthony West, Yamaha, AUS, 66 9, Craig Jones, Honda, GBR, 58 10, Gianluca Nannelli, Ducati, ITA, 49 11, Lorenzo Alfonsi, Honda, ITA, 45 12, Sebastien Charpentier, Honda, FRA, 44 13, Andrew Pitt, Honda, AUS, 40 14, David Checa, Yamaha, ESP, 39 15, Pere Riba, Kawasaki, ESP, 37 20, Sebastien Gimbert, Yamaha, FRA, 29 23, Kevin Curtain, Yamaha, AUS, 25 Manufacturer Standings 09/09/2007 Pos., Manufacturer, Points 1, Honda, 246 2, Yamaha, 195 3, Kawasaki, 138 4, Suzuki, 77 5, Ducati, 49 Yamaha 1st and 3rd in German Superstock Round Yamaha took first and third today at Lausitz as Didier Van Keymeulen took his first win of the season with Claudio Corti coming in third. The first race of the day was blessed with dry and sunny weather following a washout two days of qualifying. The rain hadn’t stopped Van Keymeulen or Corti from running in the top thee in every session throughout the weekend though, with Corti qualifying in second overall and Van Keymeulen in third despite crashing during Saturday’s free practice session. Both riders got a good start and Corti took the lead with Van Keymeulen just behind in second. They battled for the duration of the race for the lead, swapping places every few laps, with Canepa riding shotgun in third. The challenge for the win went right down to the final lap, when a late braking mistake by Corti lost him the win as well as well second place, which went to Canepa. Today’s result is Corti’s tenth podium of the season. Corti’s team mate Michele Pirro had less success this weekend, having struggled to qualify on the front row during the weekend. He started from ninth and got a good start to take fourth. It was during a four-way battle with Tode, Aitchison and Dionisi that he had a gear lever problem and went down to 11th place, before eventually retiring on lap 11. Championship leader Matteo Baiocco also struggled this weekend with the weather and set-up problems. He qualified in 15th but managed to claim eighth finishing position and eight valuable points to stay ahead in the championship. He now leads by nine points going in to the 12th round, which is at Vallelunga in three weeks. Didier Van Keymeulen (1st – TTSL-MGM Racing) “I’m very happy today after everything that has happened this weekend – my crash yesterday and the weather. When I crashed I hurt my middle finger on my clutch hand but it hasn’t been too sore today. From the start of the race I knew I needed to get to the front and I’m very happy to have won only three months after my bad accident at Silverstone. The doctors said it would take three months to recover from a broken pelvis and I feel that I can focus on the future now rather than the past. I’d like to thank the team for all their hard work this weekend.” Claudio Corti (3rd – Yamaha Team Italia) “I tried to keep up the same pace as Van Keymeulen but in the end my tyre wasn’t up to it. I also had problems with my set-up in the second section of the circuit and wasn’t fast enough there. Third place though is good and important for my championship challenge.” Matteo Baiocco (8th – Team Umbria Bike) “During practice I was in deep trouble but during the race my bike improved a lot. The championship standings are not so different to before this weekend and now we only have two races left. The next round is at Vallelunga and I have won the Italian national championship there before so I am confident I can do it again.” Michele Pirro (DNF – Yamaha Team Italia) “In the first part of the race I was very close to Simeon but later on I had a problem with my gear shift and my race was over. My target for today was to finish in the top five but now I’m just focusing on the future and Vallelunga.” Race 1 – 14 Laps Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Didier Van Keymeulen, Yamaha, BEL, 24’20.075 2, Nicolo Canepa, Ducati, ITA, 0’0.194 3, Claudio Corti, Yamaha, ITA, 0’0.527 4, Mark Aitchison, Suzuki, AUS, 0’0.556 5, Xavier Simeon, Suzuki, BEL, 0’2.410 6, Arne Tode, Honda, GER, 0’6.044 7, Ayrton Badovini, MV Agusta, ITA, 0’9.485 8, Matteo Baiocco, Yamaha, ITA, 0’9.658 9, Ilario Dionisi, Suzuki, ITA, 0’11.106 10, Dario Giuseppetti, Yamaha, GER, 0’13.846 11, Rene Mahr, Yamaha, GER, 0’19.819 12, Sheridan Morais, Ducati, RSA, 0’20.115 13, Matej Smrz, Honda, CZE, 0’20.442 14, Danilo Dell’omo, MV Agusta, ITA, 0’27.882 15, Marko Rohtlaan, Honda, EST, 0’28.010 Best Lap Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time Mark Aitchison, Suzuki, AUS, 1’43.076 Rider Standings 09/09/2007 Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Points 1, Matteo Baiocco, Yamaha, ITA, 136 2, Xavier Simeon, Suzuki, BEL, 127 3, Nicolo Canepa, Ducati, ITA, 125 4, Mark Aitchison, Suzuki, AUS, 121 5, Claudio Corti, Yamaha, ITA, 112 6, Ilario Dionisi, Suzuki, ITA, 93 7, Didier Van Keymeulen, Yamaha, BEL, 78 8, Michele Pirro, Yamaha, ITA, 77 9, Brendan Roberts, Ducati, AUS, 52 10, Rene Mahr, Yamaha, GER, 48 11, Matej Smrz, Honda, CZE, 47 12, Sheridan Morais, Ducati, RSA, 37 13, Arne Tode, Honda, GER, 34 14, Ayrton Badovini, MV Agusta, ITA, 26 15, Cederic Tangre, Yamaha, FRA, 23 Manufacturer Standings 09/09/2007 Pos., Manufacturer, Points 1, Yamaha, 187 2, Suzuki, 169 3, Ducati, 150 4, Honda, 70 5, MV Agusta, 52 6, Kawasaki, 4 More, from a press release issued by Suzuki Racing: Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra rider Max Biaggi took podiums in both 24-lap World Superbike races at the Eurospeedway Lausitz today with second and third places. Yukio Kagayama was unable to take part due to a hand injury sustained yesterday: His wrist was badly swollen this morning so he went to the Clinica Mobile this morning for a check-up. X-rays of his right wrist revealed that he had a fracture of his fifth metacarpal and so was unable to race. Troy Bayliss (Ducati) and Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha) led the charge in the first race, but later on Haga took advantage of his opponent’s tyre problems and pulled away finishing the clear winner 11 seconds ahead of Biaggi. Bayliss and Haga once again charged off into the distance at the start of race two but this time Bayliss was in no mood to surrender: He took the chequered flag just over a second ahead of Haga with Biaggi third and series leader James Toseland (Honda) fourth. Max Biaggi – Race 1: 2nd, Race 2: 3rd: “It is always good to be on the podium though I’m a little disappointed that I didn’t finish higher up in race two. It was a much faster race and the two guys in front kept up a better pace and I could not catch them. After two days of weather that was not so good, it was a relief that it didn’t rain today. Our set-up for the dry wasn’t so bad but maybe it wasn’t quite as good as Bayliss or Haga today. I had a few little problems with the bike missing gears a couple of times and so I modified my riding to get round the problem. Both my starts today were not so bad but once the I lost touch with the leader in race one and the two of them in race two, it was too late.” WSB Results: Race 1: 1 Haga (J-Yamaha), 2 Max Biaggi (I-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra), 3 Corser (Aus-Yamaha), 4 Bayliss (Aus-Ducati), 5 Rolfo (I-Honda), 6 Laconi (F-Kawasaki), 7 Nieto (E-Kawasaki), 8 Lanzi (I-Ducati), 9 Toseland (GB-Honda), 10 Muggeridge (Aus-Honda). Race 2: 1 Bayliss, 2 Haga, 3 Max Biaggi (I-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra), 4 Toseland, 5 Corser, 6 Xaus (E-Ducati), 7 Rolfo. 8 Nieto, 9 Neukirchner (D-Suzuki), 10 Muggeridge. Championship Points: 1 Toseland 375, 2 Haga 334, 3 Max Biaggi (I-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) 322, 4 Bayliss 296, 5 Corser 254, 6 Xaus 177, 7 Lanzi 173, 8 Rolfo 166, 9 Neukirchner 130. 10 Yukio Kagayama (J-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) 116. SUPERSTOCK 1000: Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra rider Xavier Simeon spent the whole 14-lap Superstock 1000 FIM Cup race in agony but defied the pain to take fifth place. The problem with his left ankle once again flared up and after a couple of laps he was struggling to maintain his place and concentration to finish less than two-and-a-half seconds behind the race winner Didier Van Keymeulen (Yamaha). Xavier Simeon – 5th: “That was a very hard and difficult race. After a short time my ankle really started hurting and it was hard to keep concentration. On the straights I had to take my left leg right off the footpeg, just so that I could change gear. Yesterday the conditions were wet and we weren’t going so fast and we all had to ride much more smoothly so it was not such a big problem, but today was dry and we were riding much harder and faster and that meant that I had to work my leg a lot more. It hurt a lot but I was determined to keep going as best I could. In the end, I don’t think that fifth place is so bad, especially considering that I was not so far off from the leaders.” Superstock 1000 Results: 1 Van Keymeulen (B-Yamaha), 2 Canepa (I-Ducati), 3 Corti (I-Yamaha), 4 Aitchison (Aus-Suzuki), 5 Xavi Simeon (B-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra), 6 Tode (D-Honda). Championship Points: 1 Baiocco 136, 2 Xavi Simeon (B-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) 127, 3 Canepa 125, 4 Aitchison 121, 5 Corti 112, 6 Dionisi 93.
