FIM Superbike World Championship Monza, Italy May 6 Superpole Results: 1. Troy CORSER (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:46.058 2. Troy BAYLISS (Duc 999F06) 1:46.360 3. Alex BARROS (Hon CBR1000RR) 1:46.511 4. Regis LACONI (Kaw ZX-10R) 1:46.597 5. Chris WALKER (Kaw ZX-10R) 1:46.978 6. Andrew PITT (Yam YZF-R1) 1:47.015 7. Karl MUGGERIDGE (Hon CBR1000RR) 1:47.082 8. James TOSELAND (Hon CBR1000RR) 1:47.133 9. Yukio KAGAYAMA (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:47.156 10. Noriyuki HAGA (Yam YZF-R1) 1:47.627 11. Roberto ROLFO (Duc 999F05) 1:47.975 12. Fabien FORET (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:48.009 13. Lorenzo LANZI (Duc 999F06) 1:48.170 14. Fonsi NIETO (Kaw ZX-10R) 1:48.240 15. Michel FABRIZIO (Hon CBR1000RR) 1:48.969 16. Ruben Xaus (Duc 999F05) no time From a press release issued by FGSport Group: Superpole Monza, Saturday May 6th 2006 CORSER THE SUPERPOLE CONQUEROR FOR THE SECOND TIME IN 2006 CORSER AND BAYLISS BATTLE IT OUT After his number one rival Troy Bayliss (Ducati Xerox) looked to have done enough to take Superpole, 2005 World Champion Troy Corser (Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) showed his desire to start the two 18-lap Monza Superbike races on Sunday in number one spot, taking his second Superpole win of the year with a 1’46.058 lap. His time was the best of the weekend so far, the best in the history of Superbike qualifying at this circuit, and over half a second from his previous fastest in regulation qualifying earlier in the day. It was his 36th career Superpole triumph, extending his all-time record of Superpole wins. Bayliss set a personal best qualifying time of 1’46.360 in Superpole for second place on the grid. BARROS AND LACONI COMPETE ROW ONE Four different manufacturers will be represented on the front of the grid, after Alex Barros (Klaffi Honda) promoted himself to third and Regis Laconi blasted his big Kawasaki PSG-1 Corse machine to scoop the fourth fastest time. It was Kawasaki’s best Superpole result of the year thus far. Barros, who last raced at Monza in the mid eighties on an 80cc GP machine, was only deposed from the top of the time sheets by the incredible pace of the battling Aussie duo of Corser and Bayliss, and now starts his fourth SBK meeting from the front row, for the first time in his SBK career. WALKER RUNNING WELL TO LEAD SECOND ROW Regis Laconi’s team-mate starts fifth on the grid for the PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse team, after a personal Monza best pushed him from 11th in regulation. It was Walker’s best Superpole qualifying run of the 2006 season. The top Yamaha rider on show proved to be Andrew Pitt (Yamaha Motor Italia) who scored sixth best time, for a second row start behind Walker. After a recent serious back injury Karl Muggeridge (Winston Ten Kate Honda) made an impressive comeback and scored seventh in Superpole, one place up on his team-mate James Toseland. KAGAYAMA SURVIVES SCARE TO HEAD UP ROW THREE Corser’s ebullient team-mate Yukio Kagayama secured ninth best time, having survived a scare under braking into the first chicane on his Superpole lap. As he hit the brakes his machine’s rear end tipped up violently, and the rear end snapped round in dramatic fashion. Kagayama’s great escape was no consolation to a disappointed Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia) who had an unexpectedly lowly tenth place in Superpole, after a top four ride in regulation qualifying. Having just squeezed into Superpole in 16th place, Roberto Rolfo (Ducati SC Caracchi) sprang forward to 11th, moving up a row and setting himself up as favourite for best Ducati privateer finisher in the races. The last place on the third row was earned by private Suzuki rider Fabien Foret (Alstare Engineering Suzuki), who also hopped up one row. SUPERPOLE DRAMA PUTS XAUS LAST IN SUPERPOLE Lorenzo Lanzi (Ducati Xerox) headed up row four, with Fonsi Nieto (PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse) and Michel Fabrizio (DFX Treme Honda) for immediate company. Ruben Xaus (Sterilgarda Berik Ducati) had his chances of a strong Superpole performance ruined when his bike encountered a technical problem under braking after the first split, and he had to retire, dropping to an automatic 16th out of 16. FRANTIC COMPETITION SEES TOP RIDERS MISSING SUPERPOLE CUT Riders of proven ability, like Sebastien Gimbert (Yamaha Motor France Ipone) and Max Neukirchner (Pedercini Ducati) experienced problems that dropped them from the top 16 qualifiers for Superpole. Gianluca Nannelli (DFX Treme Honda) was a lowly 22nd, but a serious doubt for the race itself is Norick Abe (Yamaha Motor France Ipone) who suffered a high-speed fall on Friday. Cleared by medical checks but still not feeling fit to ride, Abe missed out Saturday’s timed and untimed practice sessions, and will make a decision about racing on Sunday during morning warm-up. The Petronas triples of Steve Martin and Craig Jones were, as expected, simply outgunned down Monza’s straights, with Martin 23rd and Jones 30th fastest in qualifying. WORLD SUPERSPORT CHAMPIONSHIP Sebastien Charpentier (Winston Ten Kate Honda) once more dismantled the previous track best in the Supersport class, setting a hugely impressive lap of 1’50.580, even faster than the 1’50.7 he believed was possible after his Friday provisional pole. It was Charpentier’s fourth straight pole of the year, as he goes for win number three. It now makes him equal best qualifier in Supersport history, having joined Karl Muggeridge on a total of 15. Second fastest rider at Monza was local hotshot Gianluca Vizziello (Yamaha Team Italia) even if he was over a second behind the lead. Megabike Honda rider Katsuaki Fujiwara was third at his team’s home race, while Charpentier’s closest championship challenger, Kevin Curtain (Yamaha Motor Germany), claimed the last place on the front row with his fourth best time. Vizziello’s team-mate Massimo Roccoli scored a top five finish, ahead of Stiggy Motorsports rider Robbin Harms. The first rider to qualify thanks to his Friday best was Kenan Sofuoglu (Winston ten Kate Honda) in seventh. A massive 35 riders qualified for the WSS race at Monza. SUPERSTOCK 1000 FIM CUP Alessandro Polita (Celani Suzuki) scored pole at his local circuit of Monza, with a best time off 1’51.454. PMS Corse Kawasaki rider Alex Martinez upheld Spanish honour in second position, with Luca Scassa (EVR Corse Ormeni MV Agusta) besting the other main MV threat of Ayrton Badovini (Biassono Unionbike MV Agusta). EUROPEAN 600 SUPERSTOCK CHAMPIONSHIP Xavier Simeon (Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) won the second race of the 600 Superstock season, taking his points total to 50 after his first round victory in Spain. A last lap battle with Simeon and Niccolo Canepa (Ducati Xerox Junior team) saw Canepa end up on the gravel, giving second place to the hard charging Davide Guigliano (Lightspeed Kawasaki) and third to Alessandro Colatosti (PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse). From a press release issued by Ducati Corse: Bayliss (Ducati Xerox) Takes Second Place Grid Slot In Monza Wsbk Superpole Monza (Italy), Saturday 6 May: Troy Bayliss will line up on the grid for tomorrow’s two World Superbike races at the Autodromo di Monza in second place after a thrilling Superpole battle with his arch-rival Troy Corser (Suzuki), who took the pole. Team-mate Lorenzo Lanzi was unable to make much headway both in qualifying and the one-lap dash and will start the Italian Round from the fourth row of the grid. “In general I’m pretty satisfied because everything’s going quite well” declared Troy. “I’m happy with the performance on the race tyre but all weekend we’ve just been struggling with the bike which is a little bit unstable at high speed. We’ll try some minor change in the morning warm-up but I can deal with the problem. Apart from that the bike is working well and I put a good Superpole lap together. My lap looked a bit hairy but it would be nice if I could relax a bit more on the straight instead of having to work so hard. We’re reasonably happy, but we just want a good day tomorrow with some good weather and I’m sure we’ll see some great racing at the front.” “It wasn’t a good day” commented Lorenzo. “Quite simply we were unable to get the right set-up on the bike and then I was unable to get the best out of the qualifying tyre. I also made a couple of errors during my Superpole lap and here I am, forced to start from the fourth row of the grid instead of the second. Let’s hope for the best tomorrow, it’ll be tough to recover from so far back, if you don’t latch on to the leading group, you can forget about getting back up with the frontrunners”. From a press release issued by Team Klaffi Honda: Alex Barros Starts From Front Row The Parabolica this immense turn at the circuit of Monza is legendary. The whole track is a challenge for the rider. Here he may show his real performance and the power of his bike. And Alex Barros did it! In the second qualifying today he already improved his lap time. With a 1’47.218 he finished 6th after a small mistake in the last lap. Only some hours later Alex demonstrated how fast he really is. He did a 1’46.866 lap time in the free practice and was on third position. In the Superpole Alex was brilliant again! 1’46.511! This was the third fastest lap time in the competition. Only Corser and Bayliss were faster than the Brazilian rider of Team Klaffi Honda. Tomorrow Alex Barros starts from the third position in the front row. From a press release issued by Beowulf Racing: Beowulf’S Henderson Is Nobody’s Fuel At Monza! 2006 FIM Superstock 1000 Cup, Rd 2 Monza, Italy Qualifying session 2, Sat 6th May A day of rapid progress was brought to an abrupt end for Beowulf Racing’s Nick Henderson (Suzuki) at Monza today when his bike ran out of petrol towards the end of the final qualifying period for tomorrow’s second-round race in the 2006 FIM Superstock 1000 Cup. Confusion over the amount of time remaining after the session was red-flagged at the midway point led to the machine being run slightly too lean and robbed Henderson of two vital remaining laps. Despite this, the Australian ace has knocked over three seconds from his Friday qualifying time and will line up for tomorrow’s race in 21st position on the grid. After the damp and dismal conditions the riders the riders had to endure yesterday, the famous Italian sunshine finally arrived today. With it came a change of luck for Henderson. Completing 10 laps in the morning free practice session, Nick shaved 1.7 seconds from his time yesterday with a best lap of 1:55.527. Although still in 27th place on the scoresheet, Nick took heart from the fact that he had hauled the Beowulf Suzuki up to being the third fastest bike on the track, clocked at 182.4mph through the speed trap. Things were beginning to look promising for the British team, based at Shepton Mallet in Somerset. True to form, Nick beat his Friday time with his first flying lap of the afternoon qualifying period. Making steady progress, the session was temporarily halted to allow the track to be cleared of the crashed machines of Luca Scassa (MV Augusta) and Matej Smrz (Honda). Both riders were reported to be without serious injury. Expecting the stoppage time to be deducted from the remainder of the session, and knowing that Henderson could still make further headway up the grid, the team elected not to refuel his machine. It was only when the session recommenced that they saw it would be run for the full time allowed. Frantically signaling Henderson to pit again and refuel, the Australian made the choice to stay out and make the best he could from his final few laps. Yesterday Nick had mentioned that he wanted to be two seconds faster today. His final full lap of 1:54.062 was over three seconds quicker than his Friday time and propelled him into 21st on the grid. Retiring at the Variante Interna chicane with 3 minutes still to be run, Henderson had also upped the pace of his machine. The Beowulf Suzuki was now the fourth quickest bike on the track, timed at a top speed of 187mph. At the end of the 30 minutes it was Italian Allessandro Polita (Suzuki) who headed the field with a time of 1:51.454. Afterwards, both Henderson and Beowulf Team Manager Andy Stone were relaxed about their predicament. “I don’t think those last couple of laps Nick missed would have made a lot of difference, to be honest” Stone said later. “The main thing is we can battle for a points-scoring position tomorrow and I’m very happy to be in that position.” Henderson continued: “We learnt a lot in that last session and can make alterations to the bike overnight which will make it faster tomorrow even without me riding it harder, which I obviously will be. That said, I won’t be happy until I’m finishing inside the top ten.” Sunday’s race will be run over 11 laps of the historic Italian 3.6-mile circuit. With Beowulf Racing now in the thick of the action, and Henderson in determined mood, it promises to be an explosive affair. To learn more about Nick Henderson and Beowulf Racing visit ~www.beowulf-racing.com~ From a press release issued by Winston Ten Kate Honda: Muggeridge And Toseland Earn Second Row Monza Starts Karl Muggeridge (Winston Ten Kate Honda) proved that his is back to his best with a fine ride in Superpole, promoting himself to the second row with the seventh best time in the session, putting himself just one place ahead of his team-mate James Toseland (Winston Ten Kate Honda). Muggeridge was forced to miss the previous Valencia round as he recovered from spinal injuries, but has bounced back in fine style at one of his favourite circuits. Toseland was fifth fastest after regulation qualifying, with Muggeridge then ninth, before Superpole altered their fortunes somewhat. Toseland could not improve on his best previous time, unlike the majority of the other top riders, including Muggeridge. Pole position was taken by Troy Corser, from Troy Bayliss. Each rider faces two tough 18-lap races on Sunday, but each has good race form at this circuit, and the Honda CBR1000RR delivers an enviable performance package in race conditions at the 5.793km Monza circuit. Ronald Ten Kate – Team Manager “To be honest, I was hoping, almost expecting, to be on the front row with at least one of the riders. But we will have to make do with second row starts from both of our riders. We also know it will be slipstreaming all along through the races; even in practice we have seen it. James and Karl have been up there in terms of race times all weekend, so I would say we are in a good position for sure. It is going to be exciting from start to finish. Karl did a really good job, he is just being confidence step by step, not doing crazy things and not pushing too hard. So the atmosphere in the garage once again is very good.” Karl Muggeridge Winston Ten Kate Honda Rider (7th 1’47.082) “To go seventh after what had happened with my accident was not too bad. The second row start is OK, and so far our weekend has gone pretty much OK. My health is good, and my body is not giving me any problems so I’m quite confident for tomorrow. I like the track and I think our bike will suit it.” James Toseland Winston Ten Kate Honda Rider (8th 1’47.133) “I’m not too happy because yesterday we had the bike much better and even this morning it was good. But in the free practice this afternoon we tried some new settings and modifications and I didn’t improve my time. I think that affected my Superpole lap and I didn’t use my qualifying tyre in the best way. So we will change the settings back tomorrow and I believe we can get good results.” More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki: Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra rider Troy Corser lived up to his ‘Mr Superpole” reputation with a stunning performance at the end of the 16-rider Superpole shoot-out in today’s World Superbike qualifying at Monza in Italy. Series leader Troy Bayliss (Ducati) had stormed his way round the 5.793 kilometre course and looked a certainty to claim pole position. But after a cautious start, Corser stormed back into contention with a faster second split. The third split was pure magic, with his drive through and out of the Parabolica virtually perfect that put him three-tenths-of-a-second ahead of his rival. Third quickest was Alex Barros (Honda) with Regis Laconi (Kawasaki) fourth – making it four different manufacturers on the front row of the grid. Corser’s team mate Yukio Kagayama struggled with a very painful right hand and then made a small mistake at the first chicane on his Superpole lap. It was enough to relegate him to the ninth fastest time and a third row grid place. Joining him on row three is Team Alstare Engineering Corona Extra Fabien Foret after posting his best qualifying result of the season so far. Troy Corser – 1st, 1:46.058: “After taking things pretty steadily yesterday because of the weather, it was good to be able to push harder today. The bike worked pretty well and the guys gave me a great package to use on my Superpole lap. In the free practice before Superpole we tried a new qualifying tyre and decided to use it for Superpole. I was a bit cautious on the brakes going into the first chicane, but when I felt that the tyre was going to stick ok, I started to go for it. “The second split was good and the third was perfect. For that I have to thank the whole team. Races at Monza are never easy because it’s so difficult to get a gap on the field and I think there’s going to be a lot of tactics going on. My aim is to stay in the front group, see how it goes, and then make my move when I think the time is right.” Yukio Kagayama – 9th, 1:47.156: “My right hand is a problem. I put on some strapping and that helped a lot, but after one lap or so I started to lose feeling in the hand so I don’t think it’s going to be possible to race with it strapped up. Although there are many fast corners here, there are also some chicanes and that’s where I find it hard getting the bike to change direction quickly enough. “I made a small mistake at the first chicane on my Superpole lap and the back end came off the ground. That lost me a lot of time and I could only finish ninth today. I need two very good starts tomorrow and my hand to last the distance without any big problems. It’s not going to be an easy day!” Fabien Foret – 12th, 1: 48.009: “On the positive side I managed to qualify for Superpole ok and that was good considering the problems I had in practice: things mainly to do with the rear shock. We solved the problem in the afternoon untimed practice and I felt more comfortable straight away. But I don’t think I was aggressive enough on my Superpole lap and so ended 12th. It’s going to be two long, hard races tomorrow and I need good starts if I am to have any chance of good results.”

FIM Supersport World Championship Monza, Italy May 6 Final Qualifying Results: 1. Sebastien CHARPENTIER (Honda CBR600RR) 1:50.580 2. Gianluca VIZZIELLO (Yam YZF-R6) 1:51.753 3. Katsuaki FUJIWARA (Hon CBR600RR) 1:51.829 4. Kevin CURTAIN (Yam YZF-R6) 1:51.878 5. Massimo ROCCOLI (Yam YZF-R6) 1:52.006 6. Robin HARMS (Hon CBR600RR) 1:52.082 7. Yoann TIBERIO (Hon CBR600RR) 1:52.466 8. Sebastien LE GRELLE (Hon CBR600RR) 1:52.525 9. Johan STIGEFELT (Hon CBR600RR) 1:52.530 10. Kenan SOFUOGLU (Hon CBR600RR) 1:52.645 11. Broc PARKES (Yam YZF-R6) 1:52.687 12. Sebastien CHAMBON (Kaw ZX-6RR) 1:52.762 13. Barry VENEMAN (Suz GSX-R600) 1:52.877 14. Christian ZAISER (Duc 749R) 1:52.915 15. Stefano CRUCIANI (Hon CBR600RR) 1:52.922 16. Kai Borre ANDERSEN (Suz GSX-R600) 1:52.949 17. Tatu LAUSLEHTO (Hon CBR600RR) 1:53.120 18. Javier FORES (Yam YZF-R6) 1:53.235 19. Stuart EASTON (Duc 749R) 1:53.444 20. Vesa KALLIO (Yam YZF-R6) 1:53.612 27. Chris PERIS (Yam YZF-R6) 1:54.250

FIM Superbike World Championship Monza, Italy May 6 Qualifying Results (before Superpole): 1. Troy CORSER (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:46.564 2. Troy BAYLISS (Duc 999F06) 1:46.984 3. Andrew PITT (Yam YZF-R1) 1:46.985 4. Noriyuki HAGA (Yam YZF-R1) 1:47.007 5. James TOSELAND (Hon CBR1000RR) 1:47.094 6. Yukio KAGAYAMA (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:47.199 7. Alex BARROS (Hon CBR1000RR) 1:47.218 8. Regis LACONI (Kaw ZX-10R) 1:47.352 9. Karl MUGGERIDGE (Hon CBR1000RR) 1:47.414 10. Ruben XAUS (Duc 999F05) 1:47.852 11. Chris WALKER (Kaw ZX-10R) 1:47.866 12. Fonsi NIETO (Kaw ZX-10R) 1:47.869 13. Michel FABRIZIO (Hon CBR1000RR) 1:47.927 14. Fabien FORET (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:47.935 15. Lorenzo LANZI (Duc 999F06) 1:47.937 16. Roberto ROLFO (Duc 999F05) 1:47.959 17. Marco BORCIANI (Duc 999F05) 1:48.122 18. Sebastien GIMBERT (Yam YZF-R1) 1:48.208 19. Max NEUKIRCHNER (Duc 999RS) 1:48.310 20. Shinichi NAKATOMI (Yam YZF-R1) 1:48.414

Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra rider Xavier Simeon won a hard-fought European Superstock 600 race at Monza today to make it two wins out of two in the Championship. The race was red-flagged after a multiple pile-up on the opening lap in which the young Belgian was a faller. He was struck from behind and crashed – along with three others – at the first chicane, but remounted and rejoined the race in last place. Fortunately though, the red flag meant that the race was restarted all over again. Simeon was then involved in a tremendous fight with Nicola Canepa (Ducati) which lasted until the last lap: The pair had swapped places throughout the nine-lapper, but Canepa lost the front end going into the Ascari and crashed out, leaving the GSX-R600 rider to cruise to victory. Xavier Simeon – 1st: “In the first start, I didn’t know what had happened. I was hit from behind and crashed. I had to lift my bike off another rider and then I got back on and set off after the rest of the field. Fortunately for me, the race was red-flagged and I had another chance to start the race properly. I had a great battle with Canepa and we kept on overtaking each other many times. “On the last lap, I was behind him and deciding where and when to make my move when he suddenly crashed in front of me. After that, all I had to do was to keep my bike upright and take my second victory in the series. It was a perfect start for me and all my team who have done such a good job.” Superstock 600 Results: 1 Xavier Simeon (B-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra), 2 Giugliano (I-Kawasaki), 3 Colatosti (I-Kawasaki), 4 Lamarra (I-Yamaha), 5 Costantini (I-Honda), 6 Colucci (I-Ducati). Championship Points: 1 Xavier Simeon 50, 2 Giugliano 30, 3 Canepa 20, 4 Savary 18, 5 Colatosti 16, 6 Barragan 16.

SONOMA, Calif. (IMMEDIATE RELEASE) “” Legendary riders Miguel Duhamel and Rich Oliver will be formally enshrined into the Infineon Raceway Wall of Fame during a ceremony in the Winner’s Circle on Saturday of the Kawasaki AMA Superbike Showdown weekend, May 19-21.The weekend is presented by Supercuts. This will mark the first two AMA riders to be enshrined into the raceway’s Wall of Fame, which was recently constructed and is situated in the paddock directly behind the main grandstand at start/finish. Duhamel and Oliver will join NASCAR drivers Rusty Wallace and Mark Martin and NHRA Pro Stock racer Warren Johnson in the Wall of Fame, which will be accessible to the public. Race fans are invited to the ceremony, which is scheduled for 12:15 p.m. in the Winner’s Circle and will be hosted by Steve Page, president and general manager of Infineon Raceway. In addition to being enshrined, Oliver, a five-time AMA 250 Grand Prix national champion, will also be part of the track announcing team over the weekend, and his artwork will be on display during a weekend-long art show. The art show is free to the public and will be located in the Infineon Technologies Business Center, adjacent to the Winner’s Circle in the paddock. “It’s going to be a great weekend for me,” said Oliver, a resident of Auberry (Fresno), who rode for Yamaha primarily during his career. “I’ve always considered Sonoma one of my home tracks and to go back there for this honor is going to be great. It’s also going to be neat to share this with the fans during the open ceremony.” Oliver dominated the 250 Grand Prix class in Sonoma, taking the checkered flag four consecutive years (1994-97). He is the only AMA rider in history to win a feature race four consecutive years at Infineon Raceway. Moreover, he won the Grand Prix title a fifth time in Sonoma in 2003 before eventually retiring from AMA competition. Duhamel (Honda), meanwhile, has built the most prolific career of any AMA rider at Infineon Raceway with nine victories, including five in Superbike, three in Supersport and one in Formula Xtreme. Duhamel has won both Superbike and Supersport in the same weekend a record three times (1993, 95, 98), and he won Superbike and Formula Xtreme on the same weekend in 2004. Both Duhamel and Oliver will be presented with granite plaques etched with each rider’s likeness during the ceremony, and the plaques will be placed into the Wall of Fame. WHAT: Kawasaki AMA Superbike Showdown, presented by Supercuts WHERE: Infineon Raceway, Highways 37 & 121, Sonoma, CA 95476 WHEN: May 19-21. COURSE: 12 turns, 2.22 miles. 2005 WINNERS: Mat Mladin (Superbike, both main events, Suzuki); Tommy Hayden (Supersport, Kawasaki); Jake Zemke (Formula Xtreme, Honda); Aaron Yates (Superstock, Suzuki). SUPERBIKE SCHEDULE: Friday “” Superbike practice, 9:40-10:40 a.m.; Superbike qualifying, 2-3:30 p.m. Saturday “” Superbike qualifying, 9:50-11 a.m.; Kawasaki AMA Superbike Showdown main event #1, 3:50 p.m. (28 laps); Sunday “” Superbike practice, 10:20-10:50 a.m.; Kawasaki AMA Superbike Showdown main event #2, 3 p.m. (28 laps). TICKETS: $10-$65, 12-and-under free, parking is free. 800-870-RACE, www.infineonraceway.com or www.ticketmaster.com. Gates open at 7 a.m. each day.

The wildcard riders who will race in the Polini Grand Prix of China, scheduled at the Shanghai International circuit on May 14th, are the following: 250cc 59 Ho Chi Feng (CHN-Aprilia) China Zongshen Team 60 Wang Zhu (CHN-Benelli) Benelli QJ Team of China 61 Li Zheng Peng (CHN-Benelli) Benelli QJ Team of China 62 Huang Shi Zhao (CHN-Yamaha) Yamaha Tianjian Racing Team 63 Xiao Jin (CHN-Yamaha) Yamaha Tianjian Racing Team 125cc 86 Chow Ho Wan (CHN-Aprilia) China Zongshen Team

FIM Superbike World Championship Monza, Italy May 5 Provisional Qualifying Results: 1. Noriyuki HAGA (Yam YZF-R1) 1:47.007 2. Troy BAYLISS (Duc 999F06) 1:47.043 3. Troy CORSER (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:47.591 4. James TOSELAND (Hon CBR1000RR) 1:47.751 5. Regis LACONI (Kaw ZX-10R) 1:47.763 6. Alex BARROS (Hon CBR1000RR) 1:47.769 7. Andrew PITT (Yam YZF-R1) 1:47.793 8. Ruben XAUS (Duc 999F05) 1:47.852 9. Michel FABRIZIO (Hon CBR1000RR) 1:48.070 10. Roberto ROLFO (Duc 999F05) 1:48.334 11. Chris WALKER (Kaw ZX-10R) 1:48.530 12. Lorenzo LANZI (Duc 999F06) 1:48.575 13. Max NEUKIRCHNER (Duc 999RS) 1:48.712 14. Yukio KAGAYAMA (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:48.828 15. Sebastien GIMBERT (Yam YZF-R1) 1:48.871 16. Ivan CLEMENTI (Duc 999RS) 1:49.226 17. Lorenzo ALFONSI (Duc 999RS) 1:49.357 18. Nicole BRIGNOLA (Duc 999RS) 1:49.475 19. Norick ABE (Yam YZF-R1) 1:49.497 20. Fonsi NIETO (Kaw ZX-10R) 1:49.578 More, from a press release issued by FGSport: MONZA 4th ROUND MAY 5th, 6th and 7th First Qualifying Practice Haga Fastest After Challenging First Day At Monza LIGHT RAIN AFFECTS AFTERNOON QUALIFYING SESSION With just the merest drizzle of rain appearing at the Ascari chicane section of the 5.793km Monza circuit, shortly after the start of the first timed session, the hour long Friday qualifying for the World Superbike riders proved to be a difficult affair. It was headed up by the impressively fast Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia), with a 1’47.007 faster than the previous lap record on race tyres, but only 0.028 from the absolute track best, despite the increasingly damp sections at Ascari and the Parabolica. Closest to Haga was championship leader Troy Bayliss (Ducati Xerox), only 0.036 seconds from the rapid Japanese rider. CORSER THIRD QUICKEST WITH TOSELAND ON HIS TAIL Troy Corser (Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) was the closest rider to the Haga/Bayliss battle, with the 2005 champion third fastest, just over half a second from Haga’s best. The provisional front row was completed by James Toseland (Winston Ten Kate Honda), riding with a small degree of caution, as the track was damp enough to hold back a full attack. The top five was completed by PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse’s Regis Laconi, pushing hard on the big Kawasaki and making it five different machines in the top five positions. ALEX BARROS IMPROVES TO GO TOP SIX Alex Barros (Klaffi Honda) used his Honda power to record the sixth best lap of the opening day’s qualifying session, finishing only 0.006 seconds from Laconi’s fifth place Kawasaki. An incredibly tight provisional second row was completed by Haga’s team-mate Andrew Pitt and the privateer Sterilgarda Berik Ducati of Spanish star Ruben Xaus. The latter’s 999 was the fastest bike through the speed trap, at a whopping 310kmph. ROOKIES TO THE FORE, EVEN IN TRICKY CONDITIONS Michel Fabrizio (DFX Treme Honda) and Roberto Rolfo (Ducati SC Caracchi 999) are both first year SBK riders, but each local man showed a good grasp of Monza’s early challenges to finish inside the top ten. Two more experienced riders followed them home, with Chris Walker (PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse) and Lorenzo Lanzi (Ducati Xerox) completing the top 12 places, and the third provisional row. NEUKIRCHNER IN PROVISIONAL SUPERPOLE PLACE Should day two dawn wet for the final qualifying session, then today’s times will count towards Superpole qualification. In those circumstances German youngster Max Neukirchner (Pedercini Ducati) will have already qualified for Superpole, as will the rest of the provisional fourth row, Yukio Kagayama (Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra), Sebastien Gimbert (Yamaha Motor France Ipone) and Team Pedercini rider, Ivan Clementi. ABE CONCUSSED AND NANNELLI INJURED Yamaha Motor France Ipone rider Norick Abe, who had two impressive races at Valencia, fell exiting the Ascari chicane and suffered a heavy concussion during his tumble. He is currently in the Monza medical centre, undergoing observation. Gianluca Nannelli, Pierfrancesco Chili’s temporary replacement in the DFX Treme Honda team also fell at Ascari and suffered a light concession, plus an injured hand. WORLD SUPERSPORT CHAMPIONSHIP Sebastien Charpentier (Winston Ten Kate Honda) left the first day of qualifying at Monza with a new track best, in what is becoming perennially impressive fashion. In both unofficial practice and timed qualifying Charpentier bettered the previous best, finally running out with a 1’51.061, shortly before the rains started after the end of the 45-minute session. Megabike Honda rider Katsuaki Fujiwara was second fastest and the only other rider within the 1’51 bracket, with his personal best of 1’51.844. Yamaha Motor Germany rider Kevin Curtain scored third quickest effort of the timed session, followed by Winston Ten Kate Honda second rider Kenan Sofuoglu. Another young Supersport sensation, Yoann Tiberio (Megabike Honda) scored fifth best time, ahead of local Yamaha rider, Gianluca Vizziello, on his Yamaha Team Italia R6. With one more session to count towards overall qualification, but with pessimistic weather predictions being made for the rest of the weekend, Friday’s times may be the ones which determine the shape of the final grid. SUPERSTOCK 1000 FIM CUP Claudio Corti (Yamaha Team Italia) headed off the opening qualifying challenge of Valencia race winner Alessandro Polita (Celani Suzuki) at Monza, running to a best time of 1’52.431. Ilario Dionisi (Team Trasimeno Yamaha) was third fastest, well down on the leading duo. Local rider, albeit with a season long remit in the PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse team, Denis Sacchetti, was fourth fastest. The top 11 riders were all Italian, proving his important local knowledge is for the big bike riders at Monza. EUROPEAN 600 SUPERSTOCK CHAMPIONSHIP Andrea Antonelli (Junior Team Italia Honda) took provisional pole in the 600cc Supersport class, ahead of proven Superstock entity in 2006, Xavier Simeon (Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra). Lightspeed Kawasaki rider Davide Guigliano posted the third fastest time, in a field of 35 entrants. More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki: Corser On Front Row At Monza Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra’s Troy Corser put his GSX-R1000 into provisional third place for Sunday’s fourth-round World Superbike Championship round at Monza in Italy. Although the rain didn’t fall heavily in this afternoon’s timed qualifying session, it was enough to make the track slippery in places and make the riders exercise caution. The morning untimed session had taken place in the dry, but the heavy cloud cover threatened rain later in the day. When timed qualifying began, all the riders tried to get out on the track and put in a fast time before the light drizzle turned to rain and the first 10 minutes saw heavy traffic. Most of the fast times were set in this period, with reigning champion Corser posting a lap of 1:47.591 – the third quickest. Corser’s team mate Yukio Kagayama’s right hand was giving him problems in the three Monza chicanes and that, together with the rain in the afternoon, was enough to prevent him from pushing hard. He finished with the 14th fastest time as Fabien had a disappointing day and could only manage 26th best time of the day. Troy Corser – 3rd, 1:47.591: “The conditions this afternoon were pretty tricky and a lot depended on how brave you wanted to be on a damp track! We changed the set-up from the morning and the lap times came pretty comfortably in the afternoon, but there was no point risking anything and crashing, so I just took it fairly steadily. When the afternoon qualifying began we all had the same idea – to get out quickly and put in a fast lap. This track is the kind of place where you need to find another fast rider so that you can pull each other along, but throughout the session I couldn’t find anybody to do that with me. ” Yukio Kagayama – 14th, 1:48.828: “I don’t have much to say really because I didn’t push hard at all today. My right hand is still sore from the crash in Valencia and it was difficult for me to change direction in the chicanes. The slightly wet conditions made it hard for all of us and I didn’t want another crash so I rode steadily.” Fabien Foret – 26th, 1:50.711: “I am very disappointed with myself today and I just couldn’t relax on the bike in the afternoon when it was wet some of the time. The problem was that it wasn’t wet all the time, but it was difficult to know how hard to push and where. I would like to forget about today and start afresh tomorrow when I hope it will be dry. Friday Qualifying: 1 Haga (J-Yamaha) 1:47.007, 2 Bayliss (Aus-Ducati) 1:47.043, 3 Troy Corser (Aus-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) 1:47.591, 4 Toseland (GB-Honda) 1:47.751, 5 Laconi (F-Kawasaki) 1:47.763, 6 Barros (Bra-Honda) 1:47.769, 7 Pitt (Aus-Yamaha) 1:47.793, 8 Xaus (E-Ducati) 1:47.852, 9 Fabrizio (I-Honda) 1:48.070, 10 Rolfo (I-Ducati) 1.48.334. 14 Yukio Kagayama (J-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra)N 1:48.828. 26 Fabien Foret (F-Alstare Engineering Corona Extra) 1:50.711. More, from a press release issued by Ducati Xerox Team: Bayliss Second Quickest For Ducati Xerox Team In Opening WSBK Session At Monza Monza (Italy), Friday 5 May: Troy Bayliss set the second quickest time for the Ducati Xerox Team in the opening World Superbike qualifying session at the Autodromo di Monza. The 37 year-old Australian, who knocked four-tenths of a second off his own circuit lap record, set way back in 2002, was just a fraction behind provisional poleman Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha). “I haven’t been to Monza for four years but the first exit hit the memory button and I remembered the place pretty well. Also the bike felt pretty good straightaway” declared Troy. “After the first session I was a couple of tenths under my old lap record from 2002 so it was nice to go faster than that. This afternoon we tried a few things but the track wasn’t in great condition because there was a bit of rain, but I did a race simulation and was really fast. I had Nori sitting on me the whole way which made me go a little faster because he was in the slipstream but honestly I expect a few more people to do that pace if they are with me as well. It’s only Friday anyway so we’ll see what tomorrow brings”. Team-mate Lorenzo Lanzi, who was riding a World Superbike machine for the first time at the high-speed Monza circuit, was relatively satisfied with his twelfth-quickest time but confident there was more to come as he gains more experience with the track. “It’s the first time for me on this track with a Superbike, so I spent much of the day on a learning curve” commented Lorenzo. “It wasn’t easy because this is a very fast track and you have to have a keen eye. In the afternoon I was improving but then it started to rain. I stayed out and in the last quarter of an hour I was the only rider to lap at a quick pace, together with Corser. I didn’t improve much but all the others had done their times in the first ten minutes when I didn’t have the right choice of tyres on. All things considered I’m quite satisfied. I did a lot of laps despite the light rain and I’m in Superpole which is always a good thing. Tomorrow let’s hope it doesn’t rain, but if it does, it’ll rain for everyone”. TIMES: 1. Haga (Yamaha) 1m47.007s; 2. Bayliss (Ducati Xerox) 1m47.043s; 3. Corser (Suzuki) 1m47.591s; 4. Toseland (Honda) 1m47.751s; 5. Laconi (Kawasaki) 1m47.763s; 6. Barros (Honda) 1m47.769s; 7. Pitt (Yamaha) 1m47.793s; 8. Xaus (Ducati) 1m47.852s; “¦ 12. Lanzi (Ducati Xerox) 1m48.575s. TV COVERAGE. Eurosport (Pan European): Sunday 7 May, 1400 Race 1 (as live); 2300 Race 2 (delayed). La7 (Italy): Sunday 7 May, 1615 Races 1 & 2 (as live). More, from a press release issued by Winston Ten Kate Honda: Toseland On Provisional Front Row At Monza James Toseland (Winston Ten Kate Honda) and Karl Muggeridge (Winston Ten Kate Honda) found light smatterings of rain to be the main problem in the opening session of qualifying action at Monza, when a smattering of light rain first fell at the Ascari chicane, to be followed by spits on other parts of the track. The difficult conditions claimed a few riders as the speeds increased, but Toseland still managed to set a best of 1’47.751, less then a second from the existing fastest lap, and good enough for an overall fourth best ranking. He is now guaranteed a Superpole start if the final timed session on Saturday morning proves to be fully wet. Muggeridge, making his return to competitive action after a recent back injury, qualified 22nd fastest, finding that the changeable conditions of the opening qualifying session at the fastest circuit of the year detrimental to his good early pace in the dry untimed morning session. Weather forecasts for the rest of the Monza weekend indicate further rains are a high possibility over race weekend. Ronald Ten Kate – Team Manager “That was a difficult situation due to the conditions on the track. It was hard to do the first qualifying like that. James did very well to get into the top four, and this morning, when it was fully dry Karl was going really well. He was even mixing it with the top ten guys. In the afternoon those conditions didn’t help him get his confidence back. But the performance he showed this morning was very good. Let’s hope it will be dry tomorrow, at least for one of the session, to get things worked out for his set-up and get him even further up the field.” James Toseland Winston Ten Kate Honda Rider (4th position 1’47.751) “A pretty good qualifying session but I just had to be careful with the rain. There wasn’t enough to wet the track but just enough to make you think about it. Fourth on the grid is pretty good but the weather outlook for the weekend doesn’t look so good. We have good dry settings, just a couple of little things on the bikes, and the package is very strong here, so all things are pretty good. Around here is not so bad in the wet, quite a lot of grip.” Karl Muggeridge Winston Ten Kate Honda Rider (22nd position 1’49.764) “Not the way I wanted to finish the day. It started OK but with some spots of rain out there I just didn’t feel comfortable on the bike. I tried and tried and then I missed the gap when the track was driest. I should have gone quicker then. At this point I just have to see what tomorrow brings. The forecast is rain, which won’t help!” More, from a press release issued by Team Klaffi Honda: After Not Riding At Monza For Years Barros Finishes 6th In Qualifying For Alex Barros it is nearly a new race track, because his last ride at Monza is years ago. But no problem for Alex. Already in the free practice session this morning he did a 1’48.168 lap time and finished 8th. In the first qualifying in the afternoon only 8 riders are faster than 1’48. Alex achieves position 6 with a 1’47.769 lap time. Alex Barros: “The weather was a little bit tricky today. It didn’t look so promising. Everybody expected some rain and so all the riders tried to do some fast laps already in the beginning of the qualifying session. When there were first rain drops some of the corners became immediately slippery. Additional to this the surface of the track is also not so rough. Position 6 today is quite okay and don’t forget I’m a newcomer on the track. I did some mistakes but I like this ultra fast track very much. We have a very high potential and if it will be dry tomorrow the chances are really good.” Team Manager Klaus Klaffenböck: “The first day at Monza was promising. The engine of the Klaffi Honda Fireblade works very well and Alex achieved an impressive top speed today. The conditions for the weekend are perfect. Only the weather is something you can not calculate. May be it becomes a real roulette on Sunday.” More, from a press release issued by Beowulf Racing: Damp Start For Beowulf’s Henderson At Monza 2006 FIM Superstock 1000 Cup, Rd 2 Monza, Italy Qualifying session 1, Fri 5th May At the end of a damp and dismal opening qualifying session (weather-wise), Beowulf Racing’s Nick Henderson lies in 27th place for Sunday’s second round of the 2006 FIM Superstock 1000 Cup at the Italian circuit of Monza. Despite several off-track excursions, the Australian admits to liking the historic track but his progress has been hindered not only by the weather but braking and suspension problems as well. Italian Claudio Corti (Yamaha) currently tops the time sheets although Henderson is confident about closing the gap tomorrow if the weather will co-operate just a little more! After the first round of the series at Valencia a fortnight ago, Henderson commented he was looking forward to the high-speed turns of the 3.6-mile Italian track. During this morning’s free practice session, Nick had no trouble blasting the Beowulf Suzuki to a top speed of 176mph, but problems with his brakes meant that he overshot several chicanes. A further heart-stopping moment occurred when another rider braked suddenly in front of Henderson, forcing him to travel the length of the back straight on the grass although he was able to keep his machine upright and rejoin the session. At the end of the practice, Nick lay in 31st place with a time of 1:57.956. Henderson also has to contend with the fact that eight riders from the series were here at a national Italian Superbike round last weekend, gaining valuable additional track time. With the rain just beginning to spit down lightly as the gate opened for this afternoon’s first timed qualifying session, Nick decided to circulate the track very much on his own rather than with a pack of other riders and risk being involved in a multi-bike pile-up. The weather kept changing during the 45-minute session, sometimes being clear, sometimes spitting and towards the end raining lightly. This led to several periods of inactivity as riders pitted and waited for conditions to improve and the session ended with not a single rider on the track. Although Henderson appeared to be one of the most stable riders on the circuit, he later revealed he had been fighting against a rear suspension problem. Despite this, he recorded a best lap time of 1:57.220 to bag 27th place on the timesheet out of a field of 37 riders. Claudio Corti, who won the Superstock 600 race at Monza last year, tops the list with a time of 1:52.431. “I’m more at home here than at Valencia, that’s for sure” said Henderson afterwards. “The Suzuki can handle the fast corners really well, but you have to brake so heavily for the chicanes. The trick to a fast lap seems to be to do a bit of slipstreaming and I’ll need to work on that tomorrow. Realistically, I think I can drop two seconds in tomorrow’s sessions which still doesn’t take me where I want to be but should be good enough for the front four rows to start Sunday’s race, and we’ll take things from there.” Saturday will consist of a further free practice session and a second timed qualifying period, lasting 30 and 25 minutes respectively. Sunday’s race will be an 11-lap affair which, weather permitting, should serve up the usual frantic battle this Italian circuit is famed for. To learn more about Nick Henderson and Beowulf Racing visit www.beowulf-racing .com From another a press release issued by Team Suzuki: Pirovano Sets GSX-R Cup Pace Wild Card entry Fabrizio Pirovano proved that he is still the ‘Master of Monza’ in the opening qualifying session for the Suzuki GSX-R European Cup at Monza. Pirovano, who retired from top-level competition a few years ago, used his considerable circuit knowledge to post the day’s fastest lap. But he didn’t have it all his own way throughout the 45-minute qualifying session, because he was pushed hard by Belgian Xavier Simeon – winner of the opening round in Valencia. Qualifying took place on a damp track and the conditions were far from ideal for the regular Suzuki Cup riders – many of whom had never ridden at Monza before. Pirovano has won in the wet at Monza – in his World Superbike and Supersport days – but Simeon certainly did enough to give him a real fright until the last few minutes of the session. Third quickest today is Italian Simone Castellani ahead of Frenchman Anthony Delhalle and Spaniard Augustin Perez. German Phillip Hafeneger rounded out the top six. Fabrizio Pirovano – 1st, 2:04.991: “I just couldn’t resist the opportunity to race here again and have been looking forward to it since the start of the season. Monza is a very special place for me because it is my home circuit and also because of all the successes I have had here. It can be quite a hard track in the wet and you have to know where you are going in order to put in a fast lap. That’s where my circuit knowledge came in. “But the young kid – Simeon – was a real threat this afternoon. He made me go faster and faster and it was only in the closing stages that I was able to pull out a bit of a gap. As a ‘Wild Card’ I know I will not score any points if I win the race on Sunday, but I would still love to win it because Monza is my track.” Friday GSX-R Cup Qualifying: 1 Pirovano 2:04.991, 2 Simeon 2:05.528, 3 Castellani 2:07.085, 4 Delhalle 2:09.189, 5 Perez 2:11.253, 6 Hafeneger 2:11.769.