Butler Machinery’s Robert Jensen won in Sportbike, Bryan Bemisderfer claimed the victory in Thunderbike and Tim Bemisderfer (Bryan’s brother) took first place in Superbike at round five of the eight-round ASRA Championship series on a rainy Sunday at Virginia International Raceway, near Danville, Virginia. Tim Bemisderfer won first on his Dunlop-shod Shenandoah Honda CBR600RR in Superbike, while Arclight Suzuki’s Jeff Wood, the Superbike Championship leader, came back from a big moment early in the wet race to finish second. Absolutecycleperformance.com’s Ryan Patterson was third on a Pirelli-fitted Yamaha YZF-R6. Harley-Davidson/Buell of Frederick’s Bryan Bemisderfer slid off track during the even-wetter Thunderbike final but still came back to pass Veatch Motorsports Buell’s Dave Estok on the last lap to take his first win of the 2006 season and extend his Championship points advantage. Riding in what he described as the most dangerous rain conditions he had ever raced in, Estok finished second, well ahead of Suzuki SV650-mounted Arnold Hastings. Championship contenders Nate Kern and Dan Bilansky both crashed out early in the eight-lap Thunderbike final. Jensen passed Wood on the front straightaway to take the lead on the second lap of the premier event, Sportbike. Seconds later, Wood crashed at well over 100 mph when he hit a puddle — before the braking zone — at the end of the front straightaway. Wood was uninjured in the fall, and Jensen built up a three-second lead. Tim Bemisderfer got a bad start but was able to reel Jensen back in through the middle of the race. Jensen then upped his pace and pulled away to a sizeable margin of victory on his Michelin-tired Suzuki GSX-R600. Tim Bemisderfer took second, while Martinmoto.com’s Michael Himmelsbach finished a distant third on his Triumph Daytona 675. The day started dry, but rain intensified during the day and led to standing water and rivers on the racetrack. No riders were seriously injured Sunday. ASRA Championship Series Virginia International Raceway Alton, Virginia June 25 Race Results: Superbike: 1. Tim Bemisderfer (Hon CBR600RR), 12 laps 2. Jeff Wood (Suz GSX-R600) 3. Ryan Patterson (Yam YZF-R6) 4. Donny Kelley (Suz GSX-R600) 5. Gustavo Laya (Kaw ZX-6RR), -1 lap 6. Tyler McDonald (Yam YZF-R6), -1 lap 7. Michael Himmelsbach (Tri Daytona 675), -1 lap 8. Shane Narbonne (Suz GSX-R600), -1 lap 9. Jamie Hall (Kaw ZX-6R), -4 laps 10. Rick Beggs (Kaw ZX-6RR), -10 laps, DNF, retired Thunderbike: 1. Bryan Bemisderfer (Buell XB-9R), 8 laps 2. Dave Estok (Buell XB-9R) 3. Arnold Hastings (Suz SV650) 4. Walt Sipp (Buell XB-9R) 5. Sam Rozynski (Buell XB-12R) 6. James Delk, Jr. (Buell XB-12R) 7. Anthony Caligiuri (Buell XB-12R) 8. Jason Owens (Yam FZR400), -1 lap 9. William Thomas (Duc 748), -1 lap 10. Sean Marston (Suz SV650), -4 laps 11. Dan Bilansky (Buell XB-9R), -6 laps, DNF, crash 12. Nate Kern (BMW R1200S), -7 laps, DNF, crash 13. Gary Bunner (Duc 748), -7 laps, DNF Sportbike: 1. Robert Jensen (Suz GSX-R600), 12 laps 2. Tim Bemisderfer (Hon CBR600RR) 3. Michael Himmelsbach (Tri Daytona 675) 4. Donny Kelley (Suz GSX-R600) 5. Gustavo Laya (Kaw ZX-6RR), -1 lap 6. Gregory Ludt (Yam YZF-R6), -1 lap 7. Tyler McDonald (Yam YZF-R6), -1 lap 8. Shane Narbonne (Suz GSX-R600), -1 lap 9. Jamie Hall (Kaw ZX-6R), -4 laps 10. Jeff Wood (Suz GSX-R600), -11 laps, DNF, crash

MEL DINESEN 1913-2006 Daytona-winning tuner/sponsor passed away June 4th By Don Emde I wanted to pass on the sad news that Mel Dinesen, the tuner and sponsor of my 1972 Daytona 200-winning Yamaha, died June 4, 2006 in Oxnard, California at the age of 93 of natural causes. He served in both the Navy and Merchant Marines before and during World War II, and you could see his military discipline in his style of work. He was very methodical and always following a set procedure in just about every task. His methods were perfect for someone that enjoyed working on engines and other technical tasks. Mel was a dealer in Bakersfield, California from 1950 to 1980, selling Indian, AJS, Matchless, Royal Enfield, Parilla, Hodaka, and Yamaha motorcycles. He first made headlines as a race tuner when 16-year old Eddie Mulder won the famed Big Bear Grand Prix on one of his Royal Enfields in the early-1960s. Dinesen went on to sponsor numerous riders from central and southern California in dirt track racing before turning to road racing with Ron Pierce, a young Bakersfield rider. Ron won numerous club and National level events on Mel’s Yamahas, which earned Pierce a spot on the Yamaha factory team. That opened the door for me to start racing for Mel about a year later. 1969 was my first year on Dinesen’s machines and it didn’t take very long for things to really click for us. That summer I won the AMA Novice National race at Indianapolis, Indiana on his Yamaha TD1-C. More notable, however, was winning the overall AFM #1 plate, as well as the 250cc and 350cc class championships. We beat out many of the top riders that year such as Ron Grant, Art Baumann, Ron Pierce, Jody Nicholas, Steve McLaughlin and others in an era where many of the factory riders at that time would ride the club races in Southern and Northern California in between the AMA Nationals. And I was still ranked as a Novice in the AMA series. In 1970, Mel and I made news again when I won the 100-mile 250cc event at Talladega, Alabama, beating out Gary Nixon and Cal Rayborn. That event was the first ever race in the United States to be won by a 250cc motorcycle at an average speed of over 100 miles an hour. Nixon rode a factory Yamaha in that race with Rayborn aboard a similar fast machine built by Don Vesco. My Mel Dinesen Yamaha was equal to, if not faster, that their bikes that day, which impressed everyone in the sport. In 1972, history was made when I won the Daytona 200 on Mel’s 350cc Yamaha. It was the first time that a two-stroke won the 200, as well as a first for Yamaha. It was also the smallest engine size to ever win the event. All this was achieved on a motorcycle privately entered and tuned by a motorcycle dealer, something that would be considered unheard of today. Thinking back, certainly one of the luckiest days of my life came in late-1968 when Mel called to offer me the chance to race for him. I only had one year of road racing experience under my belt at the time, so I’m not sure what he saw in me, but hooking up with him put me on the path to achieve what I did in racing. By the time we got to Daytona in 1972, I was fully confident that I could win that race on Mel’s machine. I believed that the 350cc Yamaha was the best bike to be on that year, and there was nobody any better at making them go the distance than Mel Dinesen. He never over-looked any details and had a knack for anticipating potential problems, which allowed him to fix things before they were broken. Mel worked so hard through the years, I was really happy that I was able to score that win for him at Daytona in 1972. It’s almost unimaginable today to think of a motorcycle dealer building a bike and beating all the factories in the Daytona 200. But that’s what Mel did in 1972 and I hope no one ever forgets that. Godspeed Mel. Thanks for all you did, and for the confidence you had in me.

FIM Supersport World Championship Misano, San Marino, Italy June 25 Race Results: 1. Massimo ROCCOLI (Yam YZF-R6), 23 laps, 37:55.059 2. Simone SANNA (Hon CBR600RR), -0.242 seconds 3. Broc PARKES (Yam YZF-R6), -4.936 seconds 4. David CHECA (Yam YZF-R6), -6.492 seconds 5. Robbin HARMS (Hon CBR600RR), -9.805 seconds 6. Kevin CURTAIN (Yam YZF-R6), -10.147 seconds 7. Gianluca VIZZIELLO (Yam YZF-R6), -13.168 seconds 8. Johan STIGEFELT (Hon CBR600RR), -14.740 seconds 9. Javier FORES (Yam YZF-R6), -19.665 seconds 10. Maxime BERGER (Kaw ZX-6RR), -19.835 seconds 11. William DE ANGELIS (Hon CBR600RR), -24.121 seconds 12. Matthieu LAGRIVE (Hon CBR600RR), -24.221 seconds 13. Arie VOS (Hon CBR600RR), -25.557 seconds 14. Mauro SANCHINI (Yam YZF-R6), -26.474 seconds 15. Barry VENEMAN (Suz GSX-R600), -27.740 seconds 16. Bernat MARTINEZ (Yam YZF-R6), -39.390 seconds 17. Gregory LEBLANC (Hon CBR600RR), -41.744 seconds 18. Alessio CORRADI (Yam YZF-R6), -48.806 seconds 19. Tatu LAUSLEHTO (Hon CBR600RR), -49.145 seconds 20. Sabastian LE GRELLE (Hon CBR600RR), -55.007 seconds 21. Tom TUNSTALL (Hon CBR600RR), -55.424 seconds 22. Christian ZAISER (Duc 749R), -9 Laps, DNF, crash 23. David FORNER (Yam YZF-R6), -11 Laps, DNF, crash 24. Vladimir IVANOV (Yam YZF-R6), -12 Laps, DNF, mechanical 25. Julien ENJOLRAS (Yam YZF-R6), -12 Laps, DNF, crash 26. Alessandro ANTONELLO (Kaw ZX-6RR), -13 Laps, DNF, crash 27. Luka NEDOG (Duc 749), -13 Laps, DNF, crash 28. Andrea BERTA (Yam YZF-R6), -14 Laps, DNF, mechanical 29. Alessio VELINI (Yam YZF-R6), -15 Laps, DNF, mechanical 30. Yoann TIBERIO (Hon CBR600RR), -18 Laps, DNF, crash 31. Sebastiano ZERBO (Yam YZF-R6), -15 Laps, DNF, mechanical 32. Miguel PRAIA (Hon CBR600RR), -22 Laps, DNF, crash 33. Stephane CHAMBON (Kaw ZX-6RR), DNS, mechanical More, from a press release issued by Honda Motor Sports: SANNA SCORES SECOND FOR HONDA AT HIS HOME CIRCUIT Stand in rider Simone Sanna (Megabike Honda CBR600RR) rode to within 0.242 seconds of the win at Misano, after 23-laps of tough competition in hot conditions. He led across the line after the first lap, and was always in contention, but could not quite get close enough to eventual winner Massimo Roccoli to pass before the finish line, after a signalling mix up. Sanna was drafted in to replace the injured Katsuaki Fujiwara (Megabike Honda CBR600RR) and had qualified second, before replicating that performance in race conditions. Kenan Sofuoglu (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR), starting from ninth, was up to fourth for a time but slipped back to finish eighth, with his stand-in team-mate Arie Vos (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR) 14th, scoring two points. Once more Robbin Harms (Stiggy Motorsports Honda CBR600RR) rode effectively, to finish fifth, with his team-mate Johan Stigefelt (Stiggy Motorsports Honda CBR600RR) ninth. Monza race winner Yoann Tiberio (Megabike Honda CBR600RR) fell on lap six, after passing Sofuoglu up the inside at the Tramonto corner. Sanna, now 14th in the championship thanks to the 20 points he scored today, knew he would be in with a good chance of a strong points score after qualifying. “I’m really happy because I made a wonderful race in my return to the World Supersport Championship,” said a plainly delighted Sanna. ” At the end I believed I could attack Roccoli but a mistake with the pit board, which said two laps to go and not one, stopped me from trying. Despite this I’m satisfied, this is a big return for me and I want to thank all the guys in the team, Honda, and all the sponsors.” Sofuoglu recovered from a pre-race bout of nerves to score eighth, and had a rider not fallen in front of him, losing him two places, his initial forward progress may have been maintained. He is now ninth overall, on 35 points. “I started very well but it was I was really tired after five laps, but if I had condition today for sure I would have had a podium,” said Sofuoglu. “Until the seventh lap I was as fast as the guys ahead of me, but after that lap I had to slow down. I was very nervous before the race and that made me tense on the bike. I just have to learn to relax more and if I can do that, then no problem.” Vos approached the Misano round with a long trail of recent races behind him, and that, as well as his 23rd place qualifying position, told against him. “There was a lot of work to do because of the start position but I kept my place at the start and pushed hard in the first laps,” said Vos. “I tried to find a good rhythm, and stay focused for a long race. It think I pushed to the maximum today and if I had been offered 14th place before the weekend I would have said 14th place was not so good. But after the weekend, 14th place is not so bad. Before this weekend I have had seven consecutive races, so I was not so fit, because I had no breaks. The preparations were not so good, but I am very pleased to have been asked to ride for the team, and thanks to them.” Tiberio was well placed for another strong top five finish until his fall when he attempted to pass another rider. “I had a not so good start but I took the other guys early in the race,” said Tiberio. “I felt I could make a fantastic race and I was OK with the physical side of things. When I passed Sofuoglu I arrived into the corner too fast, I lost grip from the front tyre, and I went down. I’m very sorry for this mistake, because I know that this was a good race to take points for the championship.” World Superbike Round 6 of 12 TOSELAND AND BARROS TAKE ONE SECOND PLACE APIECE First James Toseland (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR) and then Alex Barros (Klaffi Honda CBR1000RR) scaled the podium at an overheated Misano, after a dramatic and often unpredictable race day in Italy. The 25-lap races were won by Troy Bayliss (Ducati) and Andrew Pitt (Yamaha), with Bayliss leaving Misano with an extended championship lead, after a crash-inspired double DNF for former closest challenger, Troy Corser (Suzuki). Race One started in the best possible way for Superpole winner Toseland, running to the front early in the opening lap and leading for the first 10 of 25 laps. He was to keep second when Troy Bayliss passed to take the win. Barros looked set for a potential podium at one stage, but was forced to slow towards the end of the race, taking fourth and a welcome 13 points. Karl Muggeridge (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR) scored 11th and a still not 100% fit Pierfrancesco Chili (DFX Treme Honda CBR1000RR), 20th out of 22 finishers. His DFX Treme Honda team-mates, Gianluca Nannelli and Michel Fabrizio, failed to finish in the points, with Fabrizio crashing. Race two was a dramatic event for Toseland, who could have scored his second win of the year, but for running off track after a rear wheel slide around the awesomely fast Curvone section, while chasing down Pitt. Scrabbling to get back onto the track as soon as possible, after a high-speed rodeo ride through the gravel, his machine developed a vibration from then on, and he slowed to finish eighth. Alex Barros was in dazzling form on his Klaffi Honda in race two, despite a slow start in the second race. Only 12th on lap one, he recovered composure and pace to take second, and was aided somewhat after first Corser, then championship leader and race one winner Bayliss fell, with Corser retiring and Bayliss finishing only 12th. Fabrizio scored an excellent sixth in the second outing, with Muggeridge once more boxed in and only finishing 14th. Pierfrancesco Chili had to retire from race two. Nannelli crashed out of the second running. Toseland now sits on 157 points, three from second place man Noriyuki Haga, and 97 from championship leader, Bayliss. Barros is fifth, on 146. Barros, the top Honda scorer on the day, had a minor problem with a major affect in race one, but made up for it with a great ride to second in race two. “Haga could only pass me because the bike had a small, sporadic problem on one corner in race one,” said Barros. “Race two was great; I enjoyed it very much and the team really set the stage for the podium today. The choice of tyres, and especially the front tyre was crucial for the race.” Toseland had the memory of a fine race one almost wiped out by the disappointment of race two, but knew that he had given everything to the cause. “I was slowly catching the leader Andrew Pitt going round the hairpin and I was going to line him up to pass down the back straight,” stated Toseland. “As I accelerated out of the hairpin, into third, then fourth, the track kinks left and the rear just came round – and didn’t stop. So I ran off into the gravel. After that the bike started to vibrate, like the tyre had moved on the rim, so the left-handers were very difficult. I am disappointed for the team and myself, because that was a possible race win. Pitt was riding very well, but if I didn’t run on we could have been second in the championship, not just third. I gave it my all this weekend, got pole position, second place in race one, and I am just going to try like this until the end.” Muggeridge paid the price for a difficult qualifying session, when he got caught out with the wrong settings for his new qualifying tyres. In the race, this determined the shape and size of his afternoon endeavours. “Off the start, coming around for the first lap, I was already something like ten seconds down, and just got boxed everywhere, every time,” said Muggeridge. “Then you have to ride with the crazies at that point. They just try and ram up the inside every time. It was very hard and I had to use up my tyre to try and avoid them, so in the end I had no tyre left. We have a test for three days soon and that will be very important for us.” Pierfrancesco Chili was disappointed to not finish but the reality of his weak physical condition, after a recent pelvic and shoulder injury, caught up with his determination to show well in front of his home fans. “I was very tired after race one,” stated Chili. “I had to try and adjust the bike for race two. I only managed a few laps and I was so physically drained I had to pull in. It’s very disappointing but I could do no more.” Michel Fabrizio had two opposite experiences at Misano, one sour, the other sweet. He now sits 16th overall, on 47 points. “I lost the front at the Curva del Rio, but it was a Michel Fabrizio problem, not a bike problem,” admitted Fabrizio. “In race two I was very happy with the set-up and the result and it was fun to race with Toseland and Lanzi.” Nannelli failed to score in either race, pulling out of race one and falling in the second. “After a few laps I realised that the suspension set up was not right, so I had to stop,” said Nannelli. “In race two I crashed when I lost the front and that was that.” The seventh round of the WSS and SBK championships take place at Brno, on July 23. Results SUPERSPORT: RACE : (Laps 23 = 93,380 Km) Pos /Rider /Nat. /Team / Time /Gap 1 / M.ROCCOLI / ITA / Yamaha Team Italia / 37’55.059 / 2 / S. SANNA / ITA / Megabike Honda Team / 37’55.301 / 0.242 3 / B. PARKES / AUS / Yamaha Motor Germany / 37’59.995 / 4.936 4 / D. CHECA / ESP / Yamaha – GMT 94 / 38’01.551 / 6.492 5 / R.HARMS / DEN / Stiggy Motorsports / 38’04.864 / 9.805 6 / K. CURTAIN / AUS / Yamaha Motor Germany / 38’05.206 / 10.147 7 / G.VIZZIELLO / ITA / Yamaha Team Italia / 38’08.227 / 13.168 8 / K. SOFUOGLU / TUR / Winston Ten Kate Honda / 38’09.799 / 14.74 9 / J. STIGEFELT / SWE / Dark Dog Stiggy Motorsports / 38’11.166 / 16.107 10 / J. FORES / ESP / SLM Racing / 38’14.724 / 19.665 11 / M.BERGER / FRA / Gil Motor Sport / 38’14.894 / 19.835 12 / W.DE ANGELIS / RSM / Intermoto Czech Klaffi / 38’19.180 / 24.121 13 / M.LAGRIVE / FRA / Intermoto Czech Klaffi / 38’19.280 / 24.221 14 / A. VOS / NED / Winston Ten Kate Honda / 38’20.616 / 25.557 15 / M.SANCHINI / ITA / Bikersdays Yamaha Moto / 38’21.533 / 26.474 Fastest Lap 2° Broc Parkes 1’37.628 149,711 Km/h Lap Record: K.Fujiwara 1’37.924 149,260Km/h 2003 Riders Championship Standings: 1 CHARPENTIER 116, 2 CURTAIN 86, 3 PARKES 74, 4 HARMS 74, 5 ROCCOLI 71, 6 TIBERIO 50, 7 FORES 45, 8 STIGEFELT 42, 9 SOFUOGLU 35, 10 VIZZIELLO 26, 11 FUJIWARA 22, 12 CHECA 21, 13 BROOKES 21, 14 SANNA 20, 15 ZAISER 15. SUPERBIKE Race 1: (Laps 25 = 101,500 Km) Pos /Rider /Nat. /Team / Time /Gap 1 / T. BAYLISS / AUS / Ducati Xerox / 40’06.480 / 2 / J. TOSELAND / GBR / Winston Ten Kate Honda / 40’13.423 / 6.943 3 / Y. KAGAYAMA / JPN / Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra / 40’16.621 / 10.141 4 / A. BARROS / BRA / Klaffi Honda / 40’21.497 / 15.017 5 / N.HAGA / JPN / Yamaha Motor Italia WSB / 40’21.856 / 15.376 6 / R. LACONI / FRA / PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse / 40’23.243 / 16.763 7 / L. LANZI / ITA / Ducati Xerox / 40’30.337 / 23.857 8 / F. NIETO / ESP / PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse 2 / 40’40.647 / 34.167 9 / R. XAUS / ESP / Sterilgarda – Berik / 40’41.734 / 35.254 10 / N. ABE / JPN / Yamaha Motor France-Ipone / 40’41.815 / 35.335 11 / K. MUGGERIDGE / AUS / Winston Ten Kate Honda / 40’45.903 / 39.423 12 / S. GIMBERT / FRA / Yamaha Motor France-Ipone / 40’46.089 / 39.609 13 / F. FORET / FRA / Alstare Eng. Corona Extra / 40’46.235 / 39.755 14 / V. IANNUZZO / ITA / Celani Team Suzuki Italia / 40’50.545 / 44.065 15 / R. ROLFO / ITA / Ducati SC – Caracchi / 40’54.975 / 48.495 Fastest Lap 4° Troy Bayliss 1’35.185 153,554 Km/h Race 2: (Laps 25 = 101,500 Km) 1 / A. PITT / AUS / Yamaha Motor Italia WSB / 40’18.671 / 2 / A. BARROS / BRA / Klaffi Honda / 40’21.388 / 2.717 3 / N.HAGA / JPN / Yamaha Motor Italia WSB / 40’25.230 / 6.559 4 / C.WALKER / GBR / PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse / 40’25.771 / 7.1 5 / Y. KAGAYAMA / JPN / Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra / 40’25.947 / 7.276 6 / M.FABRIZIO / ITA / D.F.X. Treme / 40’32.587 / 13.916 7 / L. LANZI / ITA / Ducati Xerox / 40’32.819 / 14.148 8 / J. TOSELAND / GBR / Winston Ten Kate Honda / 40’33.736 / 15.065 9 / R. XAUS / ESP / Sterilgarda – Berik / 40’34.105 / 15.434 10 / F. FORET / FRA / Alstare Eng. Corona Extra / 40’39.250 / 20.579 11 / F. NIETO / ESP / PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse 2 / 40’40.111 / 21.44 12 / T. BAYLISS / AUS / Ducati Xerox / 40’42.088 / 23.417 13 / N. ABE / JPN / Yamaha Motor France-Ipone / 40’44.273 / 25.602 14 / K. MUGGERIDGE / AUS / Winston Ten Kate Honda / 40’44.759 / 26.088 15 / R. ROLFO / ITA / Ducati SC – Caracchi / 40’45.383 / 26.712 Fastest Lap 2° Andrew Pitt 1’35.123 153,654 Km/h Record Lap Troy Bayliss 1’34.913 153,990Km/h 2002 Riders Championship Standings: 1 BAYLISS 254, 2 HAGA 160, 3 TOSELAND 157, 4 CORSER 149, 5 BARROS 146, 6 PITT 128, 7 LANZI 80, 8 XAUS 70, 9 WALKER 64, 10 NIETO 61, 11 ABE 60, 12 KAGAYAMA 56, 13 LACONI 52, 14 MUGGERIDGE 52, 15 ROLFO 48.

Superbike World Championship Misano Adriatico Race 2 1. Andrew Pitt (Yam YZF-R1), 40:18.671 2. Alex Barros (Hon CBR1000RR), 40:21.388 3. Noriyuki Haga (Yam YF-R1), 40:25.230 4. Chris Walker (Kaw ZX-10R), 40:25.771 5. Yukio Kageyama (Suz GSX-R1000), 40:25.771 6. Michel Fabrizio (Hon CBR1000RR), 40:32.587 7. Lorsenzo Lanzi (Duc 999F05), 40:32.587 8. James Tosland (Hon CBR1000RR), 40:33.736 9. Ruben Xaus (Duc 999F05), 40:34.105 10. Fabien Foret (Suz GSX-R1000), 40:39.250 11. Fonsi Nieto (Kaw ZX-10R), 40:40.111 12. Troy Bayliss (Duc 999F06), 40:42.088 13. Norike Abe (Yam YZF-R1), 40:44.759 14. Karl Muggeridge (Hon CBR1000RR), 40:44.759 15. Roberto Rolfo (Duc 999F05), 40:45.383 16. Vittorio Iannuzzo (Suz GSX-R1000), 40:52.227 17. Steve Martin (Petronas 40:53.437 18. Shinichi Naktomi (Yam YZF-R1), 40:56.077 19. Regis Laconi (Kaw ZX-10R), 40:58.817 20. Ivan Clementi (Duc 999RS), 41:06.012 21. Craig Jones (Petronas FP1), 41:18.213 22. Marco Borciani (Duc 999F05), 15 laps 23. Norine Brignola (Duc 999RS), 13 laps 24. Gianluce Nannelli (Hon CBR1000RR), 12 laps 25. Lorenzo Alfonsi (Duc 999RS), 11 laps 26. Josh Brookes (Kaw ZX-10R), 10 laps 27. Pierfrancesco Chili (Hon CBR1000RR), 9 laps 28. Troy Corser (Suz GSX-R1000), 7 laps 29. Sebastien Gimbert (Yam YZF-R1), 4 laps More, from a press release issued by Ten Kate Honda: TOSELAND ON THE PODIUM AND THE GRAVEL AFTER DRAMATIC MISANO RACES James Toseland (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR) added to his Misano Superpole win with a second place finish in the first 25-lap race of the afternoon, before misfortune struck on lap 18 of race two, and he ran onto the gravel while attempting to take the lead. Karl Muggeridge (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR) had two tough races, starting from way down the field in the high temperatures experienced on raceday. In the first race Toseland led in the early laps, and despite being passed by eventual winner Bayliss, he held off the challenge of Corser, until Corser fell. A fine ride on an overheated track surface gave James his sixth podium finish of the year. Muggeridge was less fortunate in race one finishing 11th but fighting hard throughout, from a lowly 20th place start position. In race two Toseland ran on during one of the fastest sections of the track, and skilfully rejoined the race, despite dropping from second place to sixth. He would eventually finish eighth, after experiencing a problem with his tyres after running through the gravel. Muggeridge again had to contend with a packed midfield, but made progress from his start placing to finish 14th. Ronald Ten Kate Team Manager “In race one James did very, very well, but we are all obviously a bit disappointed for race two, because we saw James riding well again for most of the race. He looked like he was going to battle for the win until he ran off the track. Luckily he didn’t crash it, because at that point of the circuit it is very fast. He managed to hold on and get it back on track. He brought it back in with some points, but I think that we could all see that a win would be possible. With the way James has been riding, with the way the bike has been behaving around here, we have to be happy, but we are just a little bit less happy with the final result of race two. On Karl’s side we have had quite a bad weekend, we did not get the bike to work well and we didn’t have grip at all. Luckily we go testing so we can get him back on track here.” James Toseland Winston Ten Kate Honda Rider (Race 1: 2nd position Race 2: 8th position Championship Position: 3rd with 157 points) “I was slowly catching the leader Andrew Pitt and going round the hairpin and I was going to line him up to pass down the back straight. As I accelerated out of the hairpin, into third, then fourth, the track kinks left and the rear just came round and didn’t stop. So I went off into the gravel. After that the bike started to vibrate, like the tyre had moved on the rim, so the left-handers were very difficult. I am disappointed for the team and myself, because there was a possible race win. Pitt was riding very well, but if I didn’t run on we could have been second in the championship, not just third. I gave it my all this weekend, got pole position, second place in race one, and I am just going to try like this until the end.” Karl Muggeridge Winston Ten Kate Honda Rider (Race 1: 11th Race 2: 14th Championship Position: 14th with 52 points) “Off the start coming around for the first lap I was already something like ten seconds down, and just got boxed everywhere, every time, and then you have to ride with the crazies at that point. So they just try and ram up the inside every time. It was very hard and I had to use up my tyre to try and avoid them, so in the end I had no tyre left. We have a test at Lausitz now for three days and that will be very important for us.” CHAMPIONSHIP STANDING: 1. Bayliss – Ducati – 254 points 2. Haga – Yamaha – 160 points 3. Toseland – Winston Ten Kate Honda – 157 points 4. Corser – Suzuki – 149 points 5. Barros – Honda – 146 points 14. Muggeridge – Winston Ten Kate Honda – 52 points More, from a press release issued by FGSport: 2006 SBK CORONA EXTRA SUPERBIKE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP® MISANO 6th ROUND 23rd, 24th and 25th JUNE 2006 RACE REPORT Misano, Sunday 25th June 2006 BAYLISS AND PITT SHARE MISANO WINS AFTER DRAMATIC AFTERNOON BAYLISS THE UNTOUCHABLE THEN PITT THE IMPERIOUS Troy Bayliss (Ducati Xerox) rode to his eighth straight win of the 2006 season, before falling in race two, during an exceptionally dramatic race; deservedly won by Yamaha Motor Italia rider Andrew Pitt. With James Toseland (Winston Ten Kate Honda) second but Troy Corser (Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) suffering a fall and retirement in the opener, Bayliss extended his championship lead significantly at that point. Corser was to also fall while leading race two, and drop from second in the table to fourth. Bayliss scored only four points for 12th in race two but still commands a handsome lead. Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia) is now second, with Bayliss on 254, Haga 160, James Toseland (Winston Ten Kate Honda) 157 and Corser an unchanged 149. RACE ONE The first of two 25-lap races was held in temperatures of 28°C, and was taken in eventually convincing style by Bayliss, running clear of early leader and eventual second place man Toseland on lap 11. The winning margin was almost seven seconds. Toseland’s shadow, Corser, fell out of contention on lap 16, losing the front once more. Yukio Kagayama’s strong third place on his Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra machine was his first podium finish of the 2006 season. RACE TWO The second race saw all three of the previous race winners in 2006 so far, Corser, Bayliss and Toseland, either crash or run off the track while in podium positions. None could do much about the race long pace of Pitt, who scored his first ever World Superbike win in fine front-running style. Alex Barros (Klaffi Honda) was the best Honda rider in race two, second, despite an atrocious start, in contrast to his slick start in race one. Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia) had to give his all to beat Chris Walker (PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse) to the final podium slot after a classic man-to-man battle in the latter stages. Corser fell again, on lap eight, while leading Pitt. HOT COMPETITION AROUND THE MISANO MELTING POT With air temperatures into the low thirties and 25 lap races to complete all the riders knew that Misano would be a challenge, but this time round the formbook was consumed by fire. Barros scored fourth in race one, ahead of Haga and 2005 double race winner Regis Laconi (PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse) one of a few riders who used a smaller width race tyre. Lorenzo Lanzi (Ducati Xerox) went seventh, with the top ten rounded out by Fonsi Nieto (PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse), Ducati privateer Ruben Xaus (Sterilgarda Berik Ducati) and Norick Abe (Yamaha Motor France Ipone) who recovered well from a disastrous qualifying. In the second race, littered with incident for the top riders, Kagayama scored fifth, with race one retiree Michel Fabrizio (DFX Treme Honda) sixth, one up on Lanzi, Toseland’s excursion off track left him eighth, with Xaus ninth and Alstare Engineering Suzuki rider Fabien Foret, a former Misano Supersport race winner, tenth. SUPERSPORT WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP Sebastien Charpentier (Winston Ten Kate Honda) saw his lead diminished a little after he was forced to miss the Misano race, but in the reigning champion’s absence the remaining Supersport riders served up a sizzling competition, with the top prize finally awarded to WSS rookie Massimo Roccoli (Yamaha Team Italia). He won by only 0.2 seconds from Simone Sanna (Megabike Honda) who was standing-in for the injured Katsuaki Fujiwara (Megabike Honda). Broc Parkes (Yamaha Motor Germany) took a new Supersport lap record (1’37.628), and third place on the podium, promoting himself to overall third in the championship chase. Second in the table, but only sixth today, Kevin Curtain (Yamaha Motor Germany) fought off pre-race illness and and far-from ideal machine set-up to take sixth place. In the championship, Charpentier is on an unchanged 116, Curtain is on 86, with Parkes on 74, tied with Robbin Harms (Stiggy Motorsports Honda), who was fifth at Misano. SUPERSTOCK 1000 FIM CUP Alessandro Polita (Celani Suzuki) extended his lead in the 1000cc Superstock division by scoring his third win of the year, taking his total points to 95. His win, over Ayrton Badovini (Biassono Unionbike MV Agusta) and Luca Scassa (EVR Corse Ormeni Racing) was another masterful display of riding, and he took a new lap record to boot, 1’37.526, on lap two. Badovini now sits on 68 points, with Scassa on 51. British-based Australian, Brendan Roberts, was fourth on his HP Racing Suzuki. More, from a press release issued by Ducati Xerox: BAYLISS EXTENDS UNBEATEN RUN TO EIGHT FOR DUCATI XEROX BEFORE TAKING A TUMBLE IN RACE 2 AT MISANO ADRIATICO – TWO SEVENTHS FOR LANZI Misano Adriatico (Italy), Sunday 25 June: Troy Bayliss extended his unbeaten run to eight at Misano Adriatico as the first race saw the Ducati Xerox Team rider take a superb win from seventh on the grid. With clinical efficiency Bayliss picked off the six riders ahead of him on the track one by one to take the lead on lap 11 and power to the 25 points. The second race of the day could have produced a similar result until Bayliss slid onto the grass on lap 17 while challenging for second place and then remounted to finish twelfth as Andrew Pitt (Yamaha) headed for his maiden WSBK win. With championship contender Troy Corser (Suzuki) crashing out twice, Bayliss now has a 94 point lead over Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha) as the World Superbike Championship enters the second half of the season. “We are all very happy with the result but a dampener has been put on things because the Team’s warehouse guy Lorenzo Ghiselli lost his life in a road accident on Friday night so I’d like to dedicate this win to “Lollo” who will be sadly missed by everybody” declared Troy after race 1. “To be honest I really wanted to win the second race and after a mixed start it took me a long while to get into the rhythm. Then finally when I caught the guys the bike just didn’t feel as good as in the first race at the front and I stepped over the edge a bit. Maybe I should have settled for third, but I’m a racer and I wanted to keep the winning streak going. Now it’s broken but we increased our points lead from 76 to 94 so I’m happy for everyone and now we move on”. Lorenzo Lanzi had a difficult race 1 to finish seventh after starting from eighth on the grid. The result was the same in race two, seventh place, but the Italian’s performance was much improved as he put in a surge on the final lap to pass Toseland. “It was a great battle with James, but I really wanted to finish ahead of Fabrizio as I was constantly quicker than him” commented Lorenzo. “The last few laps I was one of the fastest guys out there but I got bogged down a bit because the bike wasn’t quite right in certain parts of the track. I really have to get better starts because I know I can stay up there with the guys in front as I proved last year. But I’ve got a great team around me; hopefully we can improve as quickly as possible because I want to get back to winning again”. “Pity, Troy was going very well and the crash happened when he wasn’t pushing that hard” declared Ducati Corse Director General Filippo Preziosi. “With his race 1 win he demonstrated to be the best rider out there and for this we are very proud of him and what he is doing in the championship. Lorenzo also contributed to the good result because he managed to pass Toseland on the last lap and take points away from a tough rival so a big thanks to him as well”. RACE 1: 1. Bayliss (Ducati Xerox); 2. Toseland (Honda); 3. Kagayama (Suzuki); 4. Barros (Honda); 5. Haga (Yamaha); 6. Laconi (Kawasaki); 7. Lanzi (Ducati Xerox); etc. RACE 2: 1. Pitt (Yamaha); 2. Barros; 3. Haga; 4. Walker (Kawasaki); 5. Kagayama; 6. Fabrizio (Honda); 7. Lanzi; etc. POINTS: Riders – 1. Bayliss 254; 2. Haga 160; 3. Toseland 157; 4. Corser 149; 5. Barros 146; 6. Pitt 128; 7. Lanzi 80; etc. Manufacturers – 1. Ducati 260; 2. Honda 196; 3. Yamaha 189; 4. Suzuki 188; 5. Kawasaki 98; 6. Petronas 4. More, from a press release issued by Klaffi Honda: BRAVO, BRAVISSIMO ALEX! Starting position 11 in the third row no optimal conditions for the race and a great job for Alex Barros and his Klaffi Honda Fireblade! Team Klaffi Honda’s Brazilian rider came back from first lap on position 11th and immediately started his impressive fight. Alex fired up and passed Lanzi and Laconi. From lap 16 on he was 5th hunting Haga in front of him. And Alex came closer and closer to the Yamaha of the Japanese. Only two laps later Alex took him. Alex was 4th now and already had his sights on Kagayama and a podium. But then Alex lost a little bit speed. Haga used this opportunity and passed him in lap 21. But Alex didn’t give up. He was heading for position 4. In the lap before the last Alex attacked again and was 4th to cross the finishing line. – Winner was Bayliss in front of Toseland and Kagayama. Alex Barros: “Haga could only pass me because I had a little problem with the bike. When I opened the throttle it didn’t response as it normally has to do. It was not immediate and even but a little bit sporadic. So I had no choice. Haga passed me and I needed 2 laps to change my style. Then I catched him again. Now we have to check what the reason for this problem has been.” Superbike Race II: After a fourth place in the first race today things turned even better for Alex in the second heat! The riders had another 25 laps to go in the great heat of the Italian summer. Just after the start it was Corser to take the leading position in front of Pitt and Toseland. Alex was 12th before he passed Martin and Xaus in one lap. Now he was 10th and soon he overtook Xaus. Corser crashed and Alex was riding on 8th position. In the following battle for 6th Alex was winner against Kagayama. Bayliss and Toseland had a lot of bad luck. Both were on the gravel, entered the race again but lost there positions in the leading group. And Alex took his chance! The Brazilian approached closer and closer to Walker and Haga and passed both riders at a single blow. A great applause from the 61.000 spectators around the race track for Grande Alex! Andrew Pitt was still leading but in the six remaining laps Alex could cut on the gap. After a thrilling race Pitt took the win with gap of 2.717 to Alex Barros. More, from a press release issued by Scuderia SC Caracchi: UNLUCKY DAY TODAY AT MISANO FOR SCUDERIA SC CARACCHI Not a lucky race day today at Misano for Scuderia SC Caracchi. During gara-1 the bike of Roberto Rolfo had jolt on the starting line and the Italian rider has been penalized for jumping start, this penalty consists that the rider is requested to ride trough the pit lane during the race respecting the speed limit, and then rejoin the start. Despite that Roby achieved a 15th place, the same position that he recorded in race-2. “Race-1 has been a good rece, despite the starting trouble when I’ve lost the clutch.” related Roberto Rolfo “After the ride trough penalty I had a good pace and recover to 15th place, with a point for the world championship. I must say that has been a positive race, because I roda always with a pace that could allowed me to stay just behind the leaders. On the contrary during race-2 everything was wrong, since the start because I remained in the group and at the first passage I was 4,5 seconds behind as well at the second I lost 3 seconds more. The bike was difficult to manage at the beginning, then improved but passing the Curvone Muggeridge went out in the grass and shot hardly some gravel on me. I suffered a hard pain that forced me to slow down, then passed, but I had anymore the concentration and the pace to recover positions. That’s a pity because I would get a good result on this home race and on the contrary I leave Misano with just a couple of points for the standing:” Luka Nedog had a good start, during the early laps earned several positions, but after eleventh laps he rejoined the pits because the bike became difficult to manage. “We decided to start with a tyre with a good grip and in which I was more confident.” said Luka Nedog “But with such hot track this tyre deteriorated quickly and the bike started to slide too much, so I preferred to stop. It’s a pity because in the early laps I was riding well, recording the same lap time as during the quallifying and I recovered some position too.” Stuart Easton decided to renounce to start for Friday’s crash consequences. “At the moment I had any pain.” said Stuart Easton “But last night I had a har pain at the right hip that didn’t allow me to slip so, agree with the team, I preferred renounce to start.” More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki: KAGAYAMA TAKES MISANO PODIUM Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra rider Yukio Kagayama had his best day of the World Superbike Championship year so far, grabbing a podium in the first race at today’s Misano sixth round and finishing fifth in race two. His third place in race one was by far his best result of the season and, but for tyre problems in race two, another podium would’ve been on the cards. In contrast, reigning Superbike World Champion Troy Corser had a day to forget: A crash in both races left him without any points to show and he has now slipped to fourth place in the championship. Troy Bayliss (Ducati) won the first race after storming though the field from his seventh place on the grid with James Toseland (Honda) second and Kagayama third. Corser led race two for the first seven laps and was looking comfortable until he ran wide avoiding cement dust in the final chicane and lost the front end. He tried to remount but saw that there was gravel and stones in the bike and it would’ve been pointless to carry on. Andrew Pitt (Yamaha) took the chequered flag – his maiden Superbike World Championship win – with Alex Barros (Honda) second and Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha) third. Team Alstare Engineering rider Fabien Foret recorded his best results of the season, with a 13th in the first race and a 10th in the second. Yukio Kagayama – Race 1: 3rd, Race 2: 5th: “I’m happy to be on the podium again because it has been such a long time – maybe six months! This season has been unlucky for me so I’m hoping that this is the start of a change of luck. I think I could’ve got another podium in the second race if it wasn’t for a tyre problem. I used the same bike and the same tyres but the feeling of the bike was not the same as the first race and I could not push as hard. The bike was sliding and wheel-spinning a lot more and so my lap times were not as good. Generally speaking, we have had a bit of a grip problem all season and I suppose that the very high temperatures here today did not help us at all. It was difficult to ride the bike today so I am happy to get a podium and a fifth.” Troy Corser – Race 1: DNF, Race 2: DNF: “I am very frustrated and disappointed today. The problems we had would’ve been solved if I had been able to take part in the recent Brno tests. Missing that test has hurt us a lot. In the first race the bike just jumped out of gear going in Querca corner and I was spat off the bike. I was pretty comfortable leading the second race but after about five laps the bike started jumping out of a gear a bit again and that made me a bit nervous in the turns. At the final chicane there was a lot of cement dust – put down from an earlier crash – and it was right on my line. In order to avoid it, I had to change my line and run a bit wide and, on one lap, I must’ve run a bit too wide and when I tried to make the turn again, the tyre ran out of grip and down I went. And that was the end of disastrous day!” Fabien Foret – Race 1: 13th, Race 2: 10th: “I’m happy today because I made some good results at last. It is always difficult getting good results when you start so low down the grid, so to get a 10th in the second race is particularly pleasing to me. Of course, if I had qualified better, I would’ve had a better chance of finishing even higher up then I did. In race one I had a little fuel problem – the bike stuttered a bit when it was leant over. In race two, I was very happy with the front end feeling and I enjoyed that race a lot. There were a lot of slides and wheelspin and Misano was not so easy today, but I’m happy.” Race 1: Bayliss (AUS-Ducati); 2 Toseland (GBR-Honda); 3 Yukio Kagayama (JPN-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra); 4 Barros (BRA- Honda); 5 Haga (JPN-Yamaha); 6 Laconi (FRA-Kawasaki); 7 Lanzi (ITA-Ducati); 8 Nieto (ESP-Kawasaki); 9 Xaus (ESP-Ducati); 10 Abe (JPN-Yamaha), 13 Fabien Foret (FRA-Alstare Engineering Corona Extra). Troy Corser (AUS-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) DNF. Race 2: 1 Pitt (AUS-Yamaha); 2 Barros (BRA-Honda); 3 Haga (JPN-Yamaha); 4 Walker (GBR-Kawasaki); 5 Yukio Kagayama (JPN-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra); 6 Fabrizio (ITA-Honda); 7 Lanzi (ITA-Ducati); 8 Toseland (GBR-Honda); 9 Xaus (ESP-Ducati); 10 Fabien Foret (FRA-Alstare Engineering Corona Extra). Troy Corser (AUS-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) DNF. World Championship Points: 1 Bayliss 254; 2 Haga 160; 3 Toseland 157; 4 Corser (AUS- Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) 149; 5 Barros 146; 6 Pitt 128; 7 Lanzi 80; 8 Xaus 70; 9 Walker 64; 10 Nieto 61. 12 Kagayama (JPN-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) 56; 17 Foret (FRA-Alstare Engineering Corona Extra) 19. More, from a press release issued by Pirelli: ROUND 6 MISANO ADRIATICO, ITALY RACE REVIEW Misano Adriatico (Italy) Sun and intense heat were the main factors for the riders to deal with at the second Italian round of the season. Misano remains an important and well loved weekend for everyone involved in SBK racing, in every class. There was much excitement in the paddock and the usual level of enthusiasm you find at any Italian race meeting. A special weekend, above all because Pirelli has introduced, in the Supersport category, the Diablo Supercorsa, a new tyre range which was immediately appreciated by all the riders. Toseland was fastest in Superpole, the competition which determines pole position in Superbike. The English rider used his rear Pirelli qualifying tyre to perfection, to make a 1’33.833, ahead of Troy Corser and Andrew Pitt. Completing the front row was Steve Martin on the Petronas. It was a front row which confirmed one thing: Pirelli tyres, designed in conjunction with development input from all the manufacturers who participate in the championship, perform well on any motorcycle. Thus, on the front row, we had Honda, Suzuki, Yamaha and Petronas machinery. A little lower than usual on the grid was Troy Bayliss, seventh, but with a very good race set-up already worked out. Race1: At the green light, Toseland took an immediate lead, from Haga and Corser. With each passing lap Troy Bayliss got closer to the front of the field, and thanks to the hot weather the pace was fast at the start. In an incredibile development, Troy Corser fell and the race would be between Bayliss and Toseland. There were different choices for the combatants; the 200mm rear, in the “A” (soft) compound seemed best, but Bayliss opted for a harder compound on the rear, with Toseland running a softer compound. Bayliss fianlly passed Toseland for the victory; Kagayama was the winner of a podium duel with first Haga and then Barros, taking his first podium of the year. Notwithstanding his choice of a softer rear tyre, Toseland did not suffer any great ill-effects in the hot temperatures, proving that either a soft or a hard tyre was ready to take on the challenge of Misano. This race offered up extremes of temperature, but the race offered up many interesting developments.: Troy Bayliss started from seventh, and like many of his competitors he set a fast pace, taking the fastest lap of the race on the fourth lap, only two tenths slower than the previous lap record, set on prototype tyres in 2002. Three different manufacturers were present on the podium: Ducati, Honda and Suzuki. Whether for two-cylinders or four-cylinders: the technical solutions, the tyres developed in conjunction with the development teams, made for another race meeting where all the riders and machines put on a sensational display, resulting in races which were enjoyed by the spectators. Race2: In race two the track surface reached 50°, and with 25 laps of the track facing the riders, it required great stamina from them all. The pilots had to suffer in the sun, but also the machines, the riders and the sun-bleached spectators, (61,000 over the whole hot and sunny weekend). The race delivered a multitude of interesting developments, lots of thrills – and many mistakes. The pilots had already proved the worth of their tyres in race one, using a new 200 section “big tyre” on the rear, and most of the top riders went for “A” soft front. It was not for everyone and the two Ducati Xerox riders chose a (C), and Alex Barros the (B). Corser, desperate to rescue his day after a no score in race one, set off into the lead but seven laps into the race he fell and had to retire from race two as well. Pitt was now in command, followed by Toseland and Bayliss. The three riders delivered a fantastic spectacle, but first Troy (on the 17th lap) and then James (on the 18th) made errors and found themselves off the track. Both re-entered the race, but lost several positions, and Pitt was left in command of an even bigger lead. Yamaha thus had its first win of the year and had two riders, Pitt and Haga on the podium. Haga finished behind Barros, who rode his Honda to an impressive second after a slow start. Bayliss finished 12th, interrupting his winning streak, but still managing to increase his championship lead.

Fasttrack Roadracing School and Racing Series founder Bob Stanley died June 23 from complications of a stroke, according to a posting by his son Todd on www.localriders.com. More details will be posted when they become available.

FIM Superbike World Championship Misano, San Marino, Italy June 25 Race One Results: 1. Troy BAYLISS (Duc 999F06), 25 laps, 40:06.480 2. James TOSELAND (Hon CBR1000RR), -6.943 seconds 3. Yukio KAGAYAMA (Suz GSX-R1000), -10.141 seconds 4. Alex BARROS (Hon CBR1000RR), -15.017 seconds 5. Noriyuki HAGA (Yam YZF-R1), -15.376 seconds 6. Regis LACONI (Kaw ZX-10R), -16.763 seconds 7. Lorenzo LANZI (Duc 999F06), -23.857 seconds 8. Fonsi NIETO (Kaw ZX-10R), -34.167 seconds 9. Ruben XAUS (Duc 999F05), -35.254 seconds 10. Norick ABE (Yam YZF-R1), -35.335 seconds 11. Karl MUGGERIDGE (Hon CBR1000RR), -39.423 seconds 12. Sebastien GIMBERT (Yam YZF-R1), -39.609 seconds 13. Fabien FORET (Suz GSX-R1000), -39.755 seconds 14. Vittorio IANNUZZO (Suz GSX-R1000), -44.065 seconds 15. Roberto ROLFO (Duc 999F05), -48.495 seconds, ride-through penalty for jumped start 16. Andrew PITT (Yam YZF-R1), -48.587 seconds, crash 17. Ivan CLEMENTI (Duc 999RS), -50.158 seconds 18. Josh BROOKES (Kaw ZX-10R), -52.883 seconds 19. Norine BRIGNOLA (Duc 999RS), -60.319 seconds 20. Pierfrancesco CHILI (Hon CBR1000RR), -73.185 seconds 21. Craig JONES (Foggy Petronas FP1), -75.929 seconds 22. Lorenzo ALFONSI (Duc 999RS), -76.972 seconds 23. Gianluca NANNELLI (Hon CBR1000RR), -8 laps, DNF, mechanial 24. Steve MARTIN (Foggy Petronas FP1), -9 laps, DNF, mechanical 25. Troy CORSER (Suz GSX-R1000), -10 laps, DNF, crash 26. Chris WALKER (Kaw ZX-10R), -13 laps, DNF, crash 27. Marco BORCIANI (Duc 999F05), -13 laps, DNF, mechanical 28. Michel FABRIZIO (Hon CBR1000RR), -18 laps, DNF, crash 29. Shinichi NAKATOMI (Yam YZF-R1), -23 laps, DNF, crash

HONDA’S DOUBLE CENTURY MAKES HISTORY It’s appropriate that Honda has scored its 200th premier class Grand Prix race win during an era when anything in the 200 range is particularly in vogue. The latest all-conquering Honda MotoGP machine, the 990cc RC211V Vee-five, is well into 200bhp territory, and easily capable of reaching a terminal tarmac velocity of over 200mph should the need ever arise. To the uninitiated Honda’s own unique senior class ‘double-ton’ reached at Assen, Holland by American Nicky Hayden riding for the Repsol Honda factory team, may seem to have been a long time in the making. If, however, you consider that Honda only entered the premier class for the first time in 1966, and from the end of 1967 season until 1982 Honda’s early 500cc GP winning ways were curtailed, a different and even more impressive context is placed on the latest Honda racing landmark. 200 wins, in less than effectively – 27 years. Suguru Kanazawa, President and Director of Honda Racing Corporation said: “I would like to thank Nicky for today’s victory, Honda’s 200th World Grand Prix win in the “Premier” class. This is an historic day for Honda – we entered the first race on May 22 1966 in West Germany and won the debut race. The circuit may be different but this is the 40th anniversary for us racing in the highest class of racing so we especially happy to achieve this victory now. We would also like to extend our gratitude to all of the riders, teams and our partners in those 40 years who have all contributed to reaching this landmark. We will continue to challenge the technological barriers to achieve world titles and we look forward to many years of participation in the future.” Honda is, indeed, as quick with the statistics as it is with the machinery, and is the first manufacturer to reach the unique total of 200 MotoGP wins. The next nearest challenger is over 50 wins shy of the magic double ton, at the present time. The first two years of full factory Honda involvement in 500cc Grands Prix only came to pass after winning every imaginable honour in the smaller 50, 125, 250 and 350cc categories. Rhodesian Jim Redman, a proven champion in the middleweight categories for Honda, was chosen as the man to take on the biggest of all racing worlds. A daunting task, it may have seemed, but he still won the four-cylinder RC181 its first ever 500 GP, at Hockenheim, West Germany (by some 26 seconds, no less) on May 22 1966. The Redman/RC181 pairing also triumphed at the next race at Assen, before a heavy crash at the fearsome Spa-Francorchamps circuit ended his season prematurely. Redman was immediately replaced by the ever-rising brilliance of former 500 champion Mike Hailwood for the remainder of ’66, but despite winning three of the seven available races, he did not win the championship itself. The combined efforts of Redman and Hailwood, and the remarkable air-cooled in-line-four cylinder RC181 did, however, deliver the 500cc Constructors’ Championship to Honda at the first time of asking. In the following year, Hailwood tied with Agostini on points, but on count-back, Hailwood and Honda lost out on their much-desired crowns. Nonetheless, another five race wins accrued towards the current 200. After some brave experimentation with the oval-pistoned NR500 four-stroke project (which was, however, to prove prescient in terms of future MotoGP racing formulae) the first ever two-stroke Honda 500 GP machine was such an instant success in 1982 that Honda did not take long to get on the winning trail once more. Conventional wisdom says that the more cylinders the better, and even Honda’s early four-stoke racers adhered to that edict with an array of immaculately conceived fours and sixes. Never ones to tarry too long on the safe side of the leading edge, however, Honda realised that a manoeuvrable, light and relatively torquey three-cylinder two-stroke would be more than a match for everyone else’s fours, over a season at least. Enter the water-cooled NS500. In its debut race in the top class, Freddie Spencer scored third in Buenos Aires, took pole in race three at Jarama, and took his and the NS500’s first GP win at Spa Francorchamps, round 7. Spurred on by this success, Takazumi Katayama notched up a win at Anderstorp, Sweden, as Spencer added another at the San Marino GP held at Mugello, Italy. In 1983 Honda and boy wonder Spencer fulfilled their own inevitable prophecies and won the biggest crown of all, the Riders’ World Championship. Honda added a Manufacturers’ crown to their first from 1966. Spencer had scored a super-six race wins to beat Kenny Roberts and Yamaha, in one of the best man-to-man fights in all of GP history. As 1984 was ushered in the Manufacturers’ title was retained, but in a whole new era for Honda’s expansive engineering vision, race wins came as a result of two machines; the latest NS500 triple and the radical four-cylinder NSR500 vee-four, with Spencer and eventual second place man Randy Mamola swapping race wins, and outings on either triple of four. Eight race wins overall (five for Freddie and three for Randy) even if he Riders’ title was lost, but not for long. In 1985 Spencer took his second and Honda’s second World Championship (scooping the small matter of the 250 crown along the way) easing to seven wins (on a heavily revised NSR) to Mamola’s one (on an NS). The very next new kid on the block, Wayne Gardner, scored three wins in 1986, before taking the riders title for Rothmans Honda in 1987, winning another seven. Four more in 1988 for Gardner, very much in Rothmans Honda colours still, were not enough to keep the title. With former Freddie guru Erv Kanemoto at the pit garage helm for new-signing Eddie Lawson – long a thorn in Honda’s side the championship was his for the taking, as he battled his way to four race wins, the Riders’ title and, with Gardner and Pierfrancesco Chili’s singles, the Manufacturers’ crown came back again. A barren spell for titles in the early nineties was not without wins for Honda riders, as Gardner scored two in 1990 and one in 1992. There was another Aussie making a name for himself though, and it was to be the name ever in Honda’s premier class colours, Mick Doohan, who would score a career total of 54 race victories on the all-conquering NSR500. Honda had frequently supplied top private, importer or satellite teams with good equipment in the early two-stroke era, but when Alex Criville scored a race win at Assen for the Fortuna Honda squad, Honda’s lease policy for factory equipment really proved its worth and it has been doing so ever since. A largely barren 1993, with only one win each for Mick Doohan and Daryl Beattie. Long-time sponsor Rothmans made a strategic switch to F1 in 1994 while Mick Doohan went on to take an incredible nine wins riding in Honda colours. He would take the title for five years straight, as Honda retained the manufacturer’s award with equal regularity. From 1994 to his enforced retirement after injury during 1999, Mick was the man to beat and frequently the only people who could were his fellow Honda riders, in full factory and lease teams. Alberto Puig (Fortuna Honda) joined a growing band of Spanish race victors, in 1995. In 1996 Mick scored eight wins, Criville two, with Italian ace Luca Cadalora also taking two for Kanemoto. Carlos Checa also scored his maiden win, for the Fortuna Honda squad. In the ’97 season Tady Okada was a third Repsol Honda rider, and earned two wins to Criville’s single, but again Doohan was the powerhouse, with Mick taking 12 of Honda’s 15 race victories. In the last year of his MotoGP domination, Mick raced to eight wins, Criville two and Tady Okada took a single. Checa scored another (this time for Movistar) and the abilities of the ever-improving NSR even allowed one Max Biaggi, riding for Kanemoto on a Marlboro Honda, to win his debut MotoGP race, Suzuka. After the exit of Doohan the floodplains of opportunity were filled by new champion Criville, winning six 1999 events to Okada’s three, and the Manufacturers’ crown once more went to Honda. The New Millennium may have come a little too early for the rising sun and moon of Valentino Rossi to win in his debut 500 year, but Honda’s lease scheme proved its value yet again, as factory rider and reigning champion Criville scored only a single win, but Alex Barros (Emerson Honda) and Rossi (Nastro Azzuro Honda) waded in with two apiece, as Loris Capirossi (Barros’ team-mate) took one other. The beginning of the end of the two-stroke era, with its last full grid of 2-strokes in 2001, provided a glorious exit for the NSR500, and a glorious entry for Rossi into the list of champions. Eleven wins later (plus another NSR triumph for West Honda satellite rider Barros) and Honda were Manufacturers’ champions again. With racing technology coming full circle back to four-strokes, and making a leap from 500cc to 990cc in 2002, Honda and Valentino Rossi won their respective titles. The RC211V five-cylinder 990cc four-stroke had a winning debut at Suzuka in the Hands of Rossi (now in factory Repsol colours). Eight wins on, plus a single for Repsol rider Tohru Ukawa and two for West Honda’s Barros, and the new four-stroke golden age was proving to be Honda-shaped. In 2003 Rossi stormed the ramparts with his RC211V once more, taking nine wins, but he was far from alone in challenging for top honours. Sete Gibernau scored second overall, and ripped four wins from Rossi’s grasp, on his Telefonica machine in the Gresini squad. Max Biaggi’s Camel machine took full points in the UK and at Motegi, ensuring that the Manufacturers’ crown stayed with Honda. Although Rossi’s move to Yamaha in 2004 gave him the first of two consecutive Riders’ Championships, that first year’s Manufacturers’ crown stayed with Honda, thanks to Gibernau’s four wins, two for Camel rider Makoto Tamada and one for his team-mate, Biaggi. Tamada was only the first of a solid wall of riding talent Honda was to draw on for the 2005 season, as RC211V wins went to three different Honda riders, in a field featuring seven RCs. Barros gave the Camel Honda team a victory in Portugal but the new Honda kids were coming, and they had teeth and claws. Official Repsol factory Honda squad rider Nicky Hayden took a popular win at the US GP and the season was ended in stunning fashion by Marco Melandri (Telefonica/Gresini) with two race wins. Honda’s continued policy to provide lease machines to high quality teams continues to this day, and in 2006, the story has been one of youth stepping up to the challenge. Melandri, now with Fortuna sponsorship on his HRC lease machine, has taken two wins, the latter the precursor to Honda’s 200th. Without the stunning season start of rookie Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda) Melandri would only have scored win 198 at Le Mans, not the 199 that set up today’s celebration of a unique achievement. On the five-year-old RC211V, youth is having its day, and with new 800cc machines on their way in 2007, yet another alloy and carbon fibre Honda rookie will be unveiled, to carry on the march towards 300 MotoGP wins. Highlights from Hondas 500cc MotoGP History 1966: Honda make debut in 500cc World Championship. RC181 in-line four-cylinder air-cooled four-stroke. Jim Redman races RC181 to debut victory at West German Grand Prix Hockenheim. Mike Hailwood wins Senior TT. Honda wins Manufacturers Championship. 1967: Mike Hailwood wins Senior TT. 1982: Honda returns to 500cc World Championship. NS500 V three-cylinder water-cooled two-stroke. Freddie Spencer races NS500 to third place in debut race at Argentine Grand Prix, Buenos Aires Spencer and NS500 win Belgian Grand Prix Francorchamps. 1983: Freddie Spencer 500cc World Champion NS500 Honda the Manufacturers World Championship 1984: Honda introduce NSR500 V four-cylinder water-cooled two-stroke with radical fuel tank under engine design. 1985: Freddie Spencer 500cc World Champion NSR500 Honda the Manufacturers World Championship 1987: Wayne Gardner 500cc World Champion on NSR500. 1989: Eddie Lawson 500cc World Champion on NSR500. 1992: Honda regains 500cc Manufacturers World Championship. 1994: Michael Doohan and Honda NSR500 score first of five-consecutive rider and Manufacturers World Championships. 1999: Alex Criville and Honda NSR500win rider and Manufacturers World Championships. 2001: Valentino Rossi and Honda NSR500 win final 500cc World Championship titles. 2002: Honda introduce RC211V five-cylinder liquid-cooled 990cc four-stroke grand prix machine. Valentino Rossi and RC211V win rider and Manufacturer World Championships. 2003: Valentino Rossi and RC211V win rider and Manufacturer World Championships. 2004: Honda wins Manufacturers World Championship RC211V 2006: Honda and Nicky Hayden record 200th 500cc-MotoGP victory. Winning Honda riders: 54 – Mick Doohan 33 – Valentino Rossi 20 – Freddie Spencer 18 – Wayne Gardner 15 – Alex Criville 8 – Sete Gibernau, Mike Hailwood 6 – Alex Barros 5 – Max Biaggi 4 – Eddie Lawson, Randy Mamola, Marco Melandri, Tady Okada 2 – Luca Cadalora, Carlos Checa, Jim Redman, Makoto Tamada, Nicky Hayden. 1 – Daryl Beattie, Loris Capirossi, Pier-Francesco Chili, Takazumi Katayama, Dani Pedrosa, Alberto Puig, Tohru Ukawa.