AMA Superbike Championship Barber Motorsports Park Birmingham, Alabama April 23 Practice Times: 1. Ben Spies (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:25.507 2. Mat Mladin (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:25.893 3. Jake Zemke (Hon CBR1000RR) 1:26.353 4. Tommy Hayden (Kaw ZX-10R) 1:26.484 5. Roger Hayden (Kaw ZX-10R) 1:26.490 6. Aaron Yates (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:26.598 7. Neil Hodgson (Duc 999F06) 1:26.653 8. Ben Bostrom (Duc 999F06) 1:26.720 9. Miguel Duhamel (Hon CBR1000RR) 1:26.602 10. Steve Rapp (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:27.627 11. John Haner (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:27.890 12. Jason Pridmore (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:27.952 13. Larry Pegram (Hon CBR1000RR) 1:28.460 14. Matt Lynn (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:28.786 15. Jason Curtis (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:29.279 16. Clint McBain (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:29.438 17. Jordan Szoke (Kaw ZX-10R) 1:29.640 18. Francis Martin (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:30.131 19. Eric Wood (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:30.193 20. Kevin Lacombe (Yam YZF-R1) 1:30.223 21. Brian Stokes (Yam YZF-R1) 1:30.740 22. James Stroud (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:30.894 23. Brad Hendry (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:30.961 24. Akira Tamitsuji (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:31.105 25. Michael Sanchez (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:31.202

1. Roger Hayden (Kaw ZX-6RR) 1:28.013 2. Jamie Hacking (Yam YZF-R6) 1:28.022 3. Ben Spies (Suz GSX-R600) 1:28.536 4. Geoff May (Suz GSX-R600) 1:29.011 5. Ben Attard (Kaw ZX-6RR) 1:29.074 6. Damon Buckmaster (Kaw ZX-6RR 1:29.657 7. Pascal Picotte (Yam YZF-R6) 1:29.796 8. Danny Eslick (Suz GSX-R600) 1:30.143 9. Opie Caylor (Suz GSX-R600) 1:30.471 10. Michael Barnes (Suz GSX-R600) 1:30.697 11. Tony Meiring (Suz GSX-R600) 1:30.718 12. Ryan Elleby (Hon CBR600RR) 1:30.792 13. Alastair Seeley (Yam YZF-R6) 1:30.812 14. Blake Young (Suz GSX-R600) 1:31.064 15. Matt Furtek (Suz GSX-R600) 1:31.119 16. Kevin Lacombe (Yam YZF-R6) 1:31.478 17. Clint McBain (Suz GSX-R600) 1:31.495 18. Jeff Tigert (Hon CBR600RR) 1:31.557 19. Nicky Moore (Yam YZF-R6) 1:31.690 20. Shea Fouchek (Suz GSX-R600) 1:31.751

Two-time Canadian Superbike and Sport Bike Champion Pascal Picotte was taken to a local hospital for X-rays following a violent crash during AMA Superbike practice Sunday morning at Barber Motorsports Park. According to witnesses, Picotte was driving out of turn two and toward the turn three crest on his Picotte Performance Yamaha YZF-R6 when he lost rear traction and his bike began bucking wildly. Somewhere along the line, Picotte was thrown from the machine and tumbled to a stop on the track. As a result, the session was red flagged. Picotte, according to his crew, was taken to the hospital for X-rays on his knee and back. Picotte was participating in the AMA race weekend at Barber in preparation for his 2006 Parts Canada Superbike and Sport Bike campaigns. Privateer racer Nathan Hester also crashed his Yamaha YZF-R6 violently, during Saturday’s AMA Formula Xtreme race at Barber. According to AMA Pro Racing Superbike Media Manager, Hester was taken to a local hospital where he was diagnosed with a broken shoulder. More details will be posted as they become available. Update: Picotte suffered a fractured vertebra or vertebrae in his crash Sunday morning but no damage to his spinal cord or paralysis, according to his friend and manager Alan Labrosse.

FIM Superbike World Championship Valencia, Spain April 23 Race Two Results: 1. Troy BAYLISS (Duc 999F06), 23 laps, 37:06.508 2. Troy CORSER (Suz GSX-R1000), -0.790 second 3. Lorenzo LANZI (Duc 999F06), -15.133 seconds 4. Norick ABE (Yam YZF-R1), -16.004 seconds 5. Noriyuki HAGA (Yam YZF-R1), -16.929 seconds 6. Fonsi NIETO (Kaw ZX-10R), -17.056 seconds 7. Chris WALKER (Kaw ZX-10R), -19.967 seconds 8. Regis LACONI (Kaw ZX-10R), -21.395 seconds 9. Andrew PITT (Yam YZF-R1), -21.801 seconds 10. Michel FABRIZIO (Hon CBR1000RR), -32.166 seconds 11. James TOSELAND (Hon CBR1000RR), -32.259 seconds 12. Shinichi NAKATOMI (Yam YZF-R1), -32.355 seconds 13. Fabien FORET (Suz GSX-R1000), -32.648 seconds 14. Alex BARROS (Hon CBR1000RR), -33.875 seconds 15. Steve MARTIN (Foggy Petronas FP1), -38.052 seconds 16. Roberto ROLFO (Duc 999F05), -40.284 seconds 17. Marco BORCIANI (Duc 999F05), -44.877 seconds 18. Max NEUKIRCHNER (Duc 999RS), -49.267 seconds 19. Jose David DE GEA (Hon CBR1000RR), -51.754 seconds 20. Giovanni BUSSEI (Hon CBR1000RR), -56.747 seconds 21. Franco BATTAINI (Kaw ZX-10R), -61.652 seconds 22. Nicola BRIGNOLA (Duc 999RS), -71.288 seconds 23. Gianluca NANNELLI (Hon CBR1000RR), -72.297 seconds 24. J. MONGE (Yam YZF-R1), -83.967 seconds 25. Craig JONES (Foggy Petronas FP1), -85.553 seconds 26. Vittorio IANNUZZO (Suz GSX-R1000), -2 laps, mechanical 27. Ruben XAUS (Duc 999F05), -15 laps, DNF, crash 28. Yukio KAGAYAMA (Suz GSX-R1000), -16 laps, DNF, crash 29. Ivan CLEMENTI (Duc 999RS), -17 laps, DNF, crash 30. Sergio FUERTES (Suz GSX-R1000), -17 laps, DNF, crash 31. Lorenzo ALFONSI (Yam YZF-R1), -19 laps, DNF, mechanical More, from a press release issued by Winston Ten Kate Honda: TOSELAND STILL THIRD AFTER VALENCIA WEEKEND James Toseland (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR) battled hard around the twisty 4.005km Valencia circuit but could not replicate his pace in the opening two rounds of the season and finished only ninth and 11th. He remains third overall in the championship chase. Toseland’s team-mate for the weekend, Giovanni Bussei (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR) experienced similar difficulties in finding a set-up that worked in either race and ended his Valencia weekend 18th and 20th. Karl Muggeridge, the second regular team rider, will be back at Monza, a race that all in the Winston ten Kate Team expect to be a much more fruitful affair than Valencia proved to be. In the first race Toseland gave his all, despite obvious problems exiting corners, to finish ninth, just ahead of factory Yamaha runner Andrew Pitt. Toseland was nonetheless top Honda rider on show, with his team-mate Giovanni Bussei finishing 18th. The race was won by Troy Bayliss, from Troy Corser, with Lorenzo Lanzi third. In the second 23-lap race the top three were a mirror image of race one, but Toseland found even more difficulty in pushing forward, and fought out a rearguard action at the head of a group of four riders. Ronald Ten Kate Team Manager “To say that it wasn’t a good weekend would be quite an understatement. We have been running behind all weekend here, and just couldn’t get the bike to handle, and especially grip, well around here. We knew it was going to be difficult when we came here but we never expected it to be this difficult. It’s purely in the nature of the track – so twisty – and for some reason we cannot get the bike set-up well. Luckily for us, we now go to a track of a completely different nature Monza which has long straights and fast corners. I prefer to look forward than to speak too much about the happenings here over the weekend. We will come back very, very strong.” James Toseland Winston Ten Kate Honda Rider (Race 1: 9th position Race 2: 11th position Championship Position: 3rd with 86 points) “When we have the bike on its side for a long time, and then just tap on the power, the tyre can’t find any grip. It just wheel spins and wheel spins unless you pick it up. When the bike is on full lean round here you cannot do anything about it but sit on it and spin it. It’s very frustrating. We got some points and we’re still third in the championship but we were miles behind the leaders and that’s not good enough. We’ll have a think about it and see what we come away with for Monza.” Giovanni Bussei Winston Ten Kate Honda Rider (Race 1: 18th Race 2: 20th Championship Position: No Points Scored) “Not so happy. I came here to be better. I understand that it is difficult but it was hard to find everything and be competitive. I was hoping to faster in the second race, but I think I still have too much weight on the front tyre. So at the beginning the rear grip was good, it was pushing a lot, and I nearly crashed many times. From half way it became better with less fuel in the tank helping as well. At the end I was doing the sort of lap times I expected.” More, from a press release issued by Team Klaffi Honda: Hard work for Alex! The Brazilian started from 16th position in the grid. But things became even worse in the first heat. Alex didn’t do a good start and was only on position 27 when he came back from the first lap. But Alex never gives up. He started an immense fight. It was nearly unbelievable how he coped with his task. Already in the second lap he passed Alfonsi and Clementi. And on he went pursuing the riders in front of him. Alex passed Iannuzzo, Rolfo, Bussei. From lap 21 on he was already 11th. Now he had his sights on Toseland and Pitt. But during the last three laps he couldn’t come close enough to them. So Alex finished 11th in the first race. At 15.3o pm Alex started for the second race and this time too he had some bad luck. After the start he was on 23rd position and again he had to fight. From lap 12 Alex was riding on 12th position. But then Foret and Nakatomi seized a chance. They repassed Alex and the Brazilian rider of the Klaffi Honda Team finished 14th in the second heat. In both races Bayliss was the winner in front of Corser and Lanzi. The fourth round of World’s Superbike Championship will take place at Monza on 05-07 May. The next chance for Alex to attack. Alex Barros: “It is needless to say that I’m disappointed. But sometimes things like that happen in racing. Now I have to go one, let this bad experience behind me and concentrate on the upcoming race.” More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse: BRILLIANT BAYLISS TAKES A BRACE OF WINS FOR DUCATI XEROX TEAM AT VALENCIA DOUBLE PODIUM FOR LANZI Valencia (Spain), Sunday 23 April: Troy Bayliss notched up the 24th and 25th victories of his World Superbike career with a double win at the Valencia circuit as the Ducati Xerox rider and his fellow Australian Troy Corser (Suzuki) put on a spectacular display of racing today. The Spanish Round saw two similar races and identical podiums with Bayliss’s young Italian team-mate Lorenzo Lanzi grabbing third place on both occasions for his first podiums of the year. “Everything went really well in both races” declared Troy. “We thought about changing the tyre for race 2 but we didn’t and it was the right decision to stick with the hard tyre. I didn’t think Corser was going to be as quick as he was in that second race, I thought it would be the same as the first but he went really well. I know that the limit of my tyre on the rear is exactly 35.7 or 35.8, but it stays good for the whole race and when I saw him pulling away it was disheartening. I just kept my eye on the board and did every lap like a qualifying lap, just hoping he was going to run into the same sort of problems as the first one and he did. Then once I got there it took me a long while to put it together and get past him. A big thanks to the Ducati Xerox squad, Shell Advance and all our other sponsors, with who I want to share the joy for this double win today!” “Two fantastic podiums today!” declared Lorenzo. “I am pleased for Ducati Xerox and for me obviously because this podium in race 2 is worth the win at Lausitzring. It wasn’t a victory for but it was just as hard-fought. I pushed hard from the first to the last lap, never gave in, and to keep up with Abe I had to struggle because he had a superior pace at the mid-race distance. Then I caught Haga and managed to pass both of them, Haga on the penultimate lap and Abe on the last lap. It was incredible! Troy and I were the only ones to lap in 37.0 in the last few laps, so the choice of tyre was the right one to keep up the same pace until the very end. It is a perfect result for me in view of Monza in two weeks time!” More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing Information: VALENCIA PROVIDES A TOUGH TEST FOR HONDA’S SUPERBIKE RIDERS James Toseland (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR) left the Valencia race weekend in third position in the championship after a challenging pair of races saw him finish ninth and 11th at the Circuito Ricardo Tormo. The 4.005km circuit, and its changeable nature, prevented any of the top Honda entrants from getting on podium terms. Toseland finished race two one place behind rookie SBK entrant Michel Fabrizio (DFX Honda CBR1000RR), but his points scores in Spain leave him third in the championship itself, with 86 points. Troy Bayliss beat Troy Corser to win both Valencia races. Alex Barros (Klaffi Honda CBR1000RR) endured two bad starts and some set-up problems and ended his weekend with only 11th and 14th places to his credit. Michel Fabrizio scored points with 13th place in race one, while the stand in rider for the Winston ten Kate Honda team Giovanni Bussei finished 18th and 20th. Gianluca Nannelli failed to finish the first event of the afternoon due to a technical problem, and was 23rd in race two. Toseland knew that Valencia would be a tough challenge for him and his fellow Honda riders, consoling himself with the knowledge that better results should be eminently possible at the next race, at Monza, on May 7. “When we have the bike on its side for a long time, and then just tap on the power, the tyre can’t find any grip,” said Toseland. “It just wheelspins and wheelspins unless you pick it up. When the bike is on full lean round here you cannot do anything about it but sit on it and spin it. It’s very frustrating. We got some points and we’re third in the championship, but we were miles behind the leaders and that’s not good enough. We’ll have a think about it and see what we come away with for Monza.” Fabrizio had a better race two than race one and put it down to chassis changes between the 23-lap events. “In race one there was too much wear on the front,” said Fabrizio, “and a lot of chattering. So we made some changes in set-up. In race two I could set better laps and could race with the others. I managed to pass James on the very last lap, on the very last corner.” Barros, who was on the podium twice after the previous races in Australia, was naturally disappointed not to be able to challenge once more. “I just had a bad start in race one and that stopped me finishing any higher,” said Barros, who endured a similar fate in race two, compounded by less grip from the front than expected. “For sure I am disappointed but sometimes things happen like this. This is racing. Now I have to go on and leave this experience behind me. The bad starts really did not help me at all.” Bussei, in his comeback ride as a replacement for Karl Muggeridge, could not find a good set-up, and like Fabrizio and Nanneli, did not qualify for Superpole. “Not so happy,” said Bussei after race two. “I came here to be better. I understand that it is difficult but it was hard to find everything and be competitive. I was hoping to faster in the second race, but I think I still have too much weight on the front tyre. So at the beginning the rear grip was good, it was pushing a lot, and I nearly crashed many times. From half way it became better with less fuel in the tank helping as well. At the end I was doing the sort of lap times I expected.” Nannelli’s weekend was not what he had hoped for, after misadventures in each race, but he has more chances to rack up points scores while team regular Pierfrancesco Chili recovers from his Misano testing injuries. “I think something broke in the steering in race one and that was that,” said Nannelli. “In race two I got involved in a crash between two other riders, got run off the track and I had to restart the race in last place. That made it very difficult for me, but I made some places up.” The next WSS and SBK rounds take place at Monza, on 5 7 May.

Repsol Lubricants AMA Superstock Championship Barber Motorsports Park Birmingham, Alabama April 23 Provisional Practice Times: 1. Jamie Hacking (Yam YZF-R1 LE) 1:26.719 2. Jason DiSalvo (Yam YZF-R1 LE) 1:27.032 3. Aaron Yates (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:27.089 4. Eric Bostrom (Yam YZF-R1 LE) 1:27.216 5. Jake Holden (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:27.425 6. Geoff May (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:27.533 7. Jason Pridmore (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:27.785 8. Steve Rapp (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:27.822 9. Josh Hayes (Hon CBR600RR) 1:27.972 10. Damon Buckmaster (Kaw ZX-10R) 1:28.278 11. Aaron Gobert (Hon CBR1000RR) 1:28.296 12. Chris Ulrich (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:28.453 13. John Haner (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:28.528 14. Matt Lynn (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:28.645 15. Cory West (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:28.755 16. Ben Attard (Kaw ZX-10R) 1:28.820 17. Marty Craggill (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:28.922 18. Tom Kipp (Kaw ZX-10R) 1:29.074 19. Robertino Pietri (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:29.820 20. Akira Tamitsuji (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:30.570 21. Michael Sanchez (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:30.945 22. Brad Hendry (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:30.947 23. Bryan West (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:31.218 24. Randall Kienast (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:31.326 25. Barry Teasdale Suz GSX-R1000) 1:32.054 26. Dan Wilson (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:33.116 27. Fernando Amantini (Kaw ZX-10R) 1:33.297 28. C.R. Gittere (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:34.254 29. Reno Karimian (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:34.718 30. Brad Puetz (Suz GSX-R1000) 1:37.001 31. Robert McLendon (Suz GSX-R1000) 2:05.927

FIM Superbike World Championship Valencia, Spain April 23 Race One Results: 1. Troy BAYLISS (Duc 999F06), 23 laps, 37:04.634 2. Troy CORSER (Suz GSX-R1000), -2.765 seconds 3. Lorenzo LANZI (Duc 999F06), -14.225 seconds 4. Norick ABE (Yam YZF-R1), -17.126 seconds 5. Noriyuki HAGA (Yam YZF-R1), -18.225 seconds 6. Yukio KAGAYAMA (Suz GSX-R1000), -18.495 seconds 7. Ruben XAUS (Duc 999F05), -22.693 seconds 8. Regis LACONI (Kaw ZX-10R), -24.233 seconds 9. James TOSELAND (Hon CBR1000RR), -28.799 seconds 10. Andrew PITT (Yam YZF-R1), -28.946 seconds 11. Alex BARROS (Hon CBR1000RR), -34.558 seconds 12. Shinichi NAKATOMI (Yam YZF-R1), -37.151 seconds 13. Michel FABRIZIO (Hon CBR1000RR), -43.368 seconds 14. Jose David DE GEA (Hon CBR1000RR), -45.753 seconds 15. Fabien FORET (Suz GSX-R1000), -46.586 seconds 16. Vittorio IANNUZZO (Suz GSX-R1000), -49.648 seconds 17. Marco BORCIANI (Duc 999F05), -58.220 seconds 18. Giovanni BUSSEI (Hon CBR1000RR), -60.656 seconds 19. Franco BATTAINI (Kaw ZX-10R), -70.607 seconds 20. Norino BRIGNOLA (Duc 999RS), -71.443 seconds 21. Sergio FUERTES (Suz GSX-R1000), -71.752 seconds 22. Craig JONES (Foggy Petronas FP1), -75.123 seconds 23. Chris WALKER (Kaw ZX-10R), -100.231 seconds 24. Josep MONGE (Yam YZF-R1), -3 laps, pitted 25. Fonsi NIETO (Kaw ZX-10R), -6 laps, DNF, mechanical 26. Lorenzo ALFONSI (Yam YZF-R1), -7 laps, DNF, crash 27. Gianluca NANNELLI (Hon CBR1000RR), -9 laps, DNF, mechanical 28. Steve MARTIN (Foggy Petronas FP1), -10 laps, DNF, mechanical 29. Roberto ROLFO (Duc 999F05), -10 laps, DNF, mechanical 30. Ivan CLEMENTI (Duc 999RS), -13 laps, DNF, crash 31. Max NEUKIRCHNER (Duc 999RS), -13 laps, DNF, mechanical More, from a press release issued by Team Klaffi Honda: Hard work for Alex! The Brazilian started from 16th position in the grid. But things became even worse. Alex didn’t do a good start and was only on position 27 when he came back from the first lap. But Alex never gives up. He started an immense fight. It was nearly unbelievable how he coped with his task. Already in the second lap he passed Alfonsi and Clementi. And on he went pursuing the riders in front of him. Alex passed Iannuzzo, Rolfo, Bussei. From lap 21 on he was already 11th. Now he had his sights on Toseland and Pitt. But during the last three laps he couldn’t come close enough to them. So Alex finished 11th. Winner of the race was Bayliss in front of Corser and Lanzi. Alex Barros: “In the second heat today I have another chance. I’ll try my best to achieve a better result.” More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki: Suzuki’s World Superbike Champion Troy Corser raced his Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra GSX-R1000 to two second places at today’s third-round World Superbike Championship race in Valencia, Spain. He led Troy Bayliss (Ducati) for the best part of the two 23-lappers but had to give way to his fellow countryman in the closing stages both times. But team mate Yukio Kagayama had a weekend to forget: After his concussion yesterday and badly bruised right hand, he was far from fit but battled hard in the opening race for a well-deserved sixth place. The second race was following a similar pattern until he lost the front going into the first hairpin and crashed out. Fortunately he didn’t do any further damage to his right hand but hurt his right leg in the process. Alstare Engineering Corona Extra rider Fabien Foret scored his first points of the season with a 15th in race one and a 13th in race two. Troy Corser – Race 1: 2nd, Race 2: 2nd: “I’m happy, but also frustrated today. Happy because I took two seconds and also because I know I couldn’t have ridden any harder than I did. I tried my best, but I couldn’t overtake Troy Bayliss after he had passed me in both races. That was kind of frustrating, but I could see his bike was working the tyres less than mine and in the end the difference between us was marginal. “In race one I got a pretty good start and managed to pull out a bit of a gap, but in the later part of the race he caught me up when my tyres started to go. When he passed me I tried to get back at him, but he could run a bit faster than me and I just couldn’t do it. “It was much of the same in the second race: I built up a pretty good lead but I got a false neutral going into the first hairpin and was lucky not to crash. That was enough for Troy to close the gap. I had to adjust the clutch slip during the race and although it was only a tiny problem, that and tyre wear prevented me from catching and passing him.” Yukio Kagayama – Race 1: 6th, Race 2: DNF: “The weekend was not so good for me and maybe it’s better that I forget it. The crash yesterday meant that my right hand was not strong and, because Valencia is a very physical circuit, I couldn’t brake as hard as normal. Also it made changing direction much more difficult. “In the first race, I had a good fight with a group of riders and I enjoyed this battle. I could only use one finger to brake, so I could not go in as deep and hard as normal. If I hadn’t had the problem, I think I could’ve caught Haga and Abe ahead. In the second race I crashed at the hairpin, but I am not exactly sure why. I went into the turn, braked as usual and suddenly I was down without any warning. I was using a medium front tyre in race two – compared to a hard front in race one – so maybe that was part of the problem.” Fabien Foret – Race 1: 15th, Race 2: 13th: “All in all, I’m pretty happy with the weekend because it has been a good experience – my first ever Superpole yesterday and then scoring some points today. In the first race, I made a good start and the first five or six laps were not so bad. But, I think the tyre choice was wrong and that together with a small suspension problem didn’t allow me to lap as fast as I had expected. “My start in race two was ok and I was in a good group Toseland and Barros – and I enjoyed the battle and was happy because my lap times were consistent. This race weekend I feel I have made another step forward and gained a lot of experience. My next step is to qualify better and improve my finishing positions.” More, from a press release issued by Foggy Petronas Racing: Scant reward for FPR at Valencia Foggy PETRONAS Racing finished the third round of the Superbike World Championship at Valencia, Spain, with scant reward for their continued efforts. After the joy of qualifying on the front row, Steve Martin again had to battle hard for the team’s only point of the weekend when he finished 15th in the second race. Team-mate Craig Jones was able to gain encouragement from two race finishes, in which he showed further promise for the remainder of the season. Both race wins went to championship leader Troy Bayliss, who tracked his compatriot Troy Corser before pulling away in the final stages. The day began in disappointing fashion for FPR as Steve was forced to pull in during the first race, after experiencing deteriorating grip from the rear. In race two he was closing in on Alex Barros in 14th during the final stages. Craig completed the first race in 22nd, despite suffering an oil leak in the opening laps, and was challenging Giovanni Bussei, standing in for the injured Karl Muggeridge, on the Winston Ten Kate Honda for 20th in race two when he ran off into the gravel at the end of the start-finish straight. Craig said: “I had a good second race and felt that I made a lot of progress. I was doing consistent lap times throughout the race after a good start, when I got my elbows out for the first couple of corners to make up some places. When Bussei passed me I thought he would pull away but I found that little bit extra that I have been looking for and he was holding me up eventually. But, whether it was down to me or the bike, I experienced two or three false neutrals going into turn one and, when I couldn’t get it back into gear, I ran off into the gravel. I didn’t get the best of starts in the first race as I was beaten up in the first corner when Barros sat up, forcing me to sit up too. But then I managed to get past a few before, after about five laps, I had oil on my boots from a leak and my feet kept slipping off the pegs. If I had had a better feeling and better stopping power at the front I could have finished higher. Monza is a new track for me but I am looking forward to learning it and hopefully we can make more progress.” Steve said: “The bike is a million times better than at this time last year but we still need to find more horsepower in order to be race competitive throughout the year. I made an excellent start to the second race but, once again, was chewed up going into the first corner. You cannot afford to give away anything in such a competitive championship or you are going to go backwards, no matter how well the bike is handling. And although I didn’t finish the first race, I did feel as though we were racing until, on lap 12, I lost the rear a couple of times. I felt I had to come in to check there wasn’t a major problem, which there wasn’t, so maybe I was a little over-cautious. Once again, though, the effort of everyone involved has been faultless.” More, from a press release issued by Yamaha Racing: Yamaha’s world superbike riders overcame a lack of traction to bring home a good haul of points at round three of the series in Valencia today. Norick Abe was the leading Yamaha rider, ending the day with a pair of fourth places and only narrowly missing out on a podium finish in his second outing. The Japanese star was in superb form all weekend after his Yamaha Motor France squad brought along a new specification engine for the race. The team, which uses and is responsible for development of Yamaha’s YEC kit parts, worked hard after below par performances in Qatar and Phillip Island. In both races Abe made good starts and worked hard to battle with fellow Yamaha rider Noriyuki Haga. In the afternoon’s second race the two-time 500cc Grand Prix winner looked like coming home third for what would have been his first ever superbike podium, only to be passed by Lorenzo Lanzi (Ducati) on the final lap. Despite a little disappointment at missing out on third, Abe was delighted with the performance of his R1 and at being back running with the leaders. Yamaha Motor Italia riders Haga and Andrew Pitt had a tough day struggling with set-up problems. For Haga, the two races were virtually carbon copies of each other, holding third for much of the race but succumbing to Lanzi and Abe in the final few laps. The Japanese rider suffered electrical problems in both outings, affecting his machine’s quick shift system and the power delivery of the engine. Despite the first race problems, Haga was able to bring his R1 home in fifth place. Set-up changes and the replacement of various electrical components brought hope of a better result in race two and, after a good start, Haga was challenging eventual winner Troy Bayliss (Ducati) in the battle for second. Unfortunately for Haga the problem reemerged and his lap times dropped off, drawing him into the clutches of Abe and Lanzi. Despite his disappointment at not battling for the podium, Haga had the consolation of moving up two places in the championship, leaving Valencia in fourth place. Pitt also had two similar races, unable to fix the front end grip problems he faced all weekend. The Australian came home tenth in the first race following a bad start and finished ninth in race two, at the back of a three-way battle for seventh with Kawasaki riders Chris Walker and Regis Laconi. Yamaha Motor France’s improved fortunes allowed Shinichi Nakatomi to show his true colours. The Japanese newcomer grabbed two 12th places in a wonderful display of aggressive riding on his R1. After a somewhat lonely race one, the second outing saw Nakatomi was involved in an intense four-way battle for tenth that included no less than multiple Grand Prix winner Alex Barros (Honda) and former superbike world champion James Toseland (Honda). In the end Nakatomi finished just a tenth of a second behind Toseland, but claimed Barros as a scalp. Both Valencia races were won by Bayliss, with defending world champion Troy Corser (Suzuki) second both times. In the championship, Bayliss extends his lead to 22 points over second placed Corser with Toseland third and Haga fourth. Pitt slips back one place to sixth, with Abe’s 26 points taking him up to eighth place overall. The next round takes place at Yamaha Motor Italia’s local Monza circuit in two weeks’ time. Norick Abe (Yamaha Motor France) “Two good results today, so I am very happy with that. In the second race compared to the first I had a better feeling but in the beginning the top two were gone and in a different world. I caught up with Lanzi then tried so hard to catch Haga. When I passed him I tried to make a gap but by that stage the tyres were spinning a lot. I think the Ducati has good traction in that condition, because Lanzi was very fast at the end. So I am a little disappointed to miss the podium but the whole day was a big improvement over the first rounds, so I am very happy.” Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia) “After qualifying we knew that this was going to be a tough race but the problems we had today made it impossible to fight for the podium. In the first race the traction was not so good but I thought I could take third until the engine lost power. For the second race the feeling with the bike was better but the problem came back and there was nothing I could do when Abe and Lanzi came past.” Andrew Pitt (Yamaha Motor Italia) “In the first race we also tried something different on the start and it didn’t work, which gave me a lot of work to do. We made some improvements to the bike after qualifying and between the races but I was still struggling for front end grip. The bike was actually quite good for the first ten laps but when it went off I couldn’t push as hard as I wanted to. I was able to run with guys like Toseland and Laconi but the confidence in the front end wasn’t there and I couldn’t make a pass.” Shinichi Nakatomi (Yamaha Motor France) “I’m pleased to have two good races and score some championship points. The main difference this weekend was that the team has made the bike a lot better than at the first two races, so I could go fast and have some good battles in the second race. We had three days of testing here as well so that also makes a difference.” Martial Garcia (Team Manager – Yamaha Motor France) “We found the correct settings today and adapted well to the tyres. We made tests all winter with the old tyres but are now racing with the new ones, which are much better but they do increase chattering and sometimes that means we are lost in the set-up. In the Misano test we recovered confidence and we can see the results now.” Massimo Meregalli (Team Coordinator – Yamaha Motor Italia) “It has been a difficult weekend for us. Noriyuki’s bike developed an electrical problem which caused some problems with the engine power. We replaced the sensors between the races but it did not fix the problem. Andrew had problems with front end grip but rode well to get some good points. To be honest, we know that Valencia is not one of our best circuits but we are an ambitious team with a goal of winning the championship so even though we came here knowing it would be difficult we are never satisfied with fifth places. On the positive side, Noriyuki has moved up the championship table to fourth and when you consider that he was seventh in the championship this time last year we are clearly going in the right direction.”

FIM Supersport World Championship Valencia, Spain April 22 Race Results: 1. Sebastien CHARPENTIER (Hon CBR600RR), 23 laps, 38:12.713 2. Kevin CURTAIN (Yam YZF-R6), -6.537 seconds 3. Katsuaki FUJIWARA (Hon CBR600RR), -9.454 seconds 4. Broc PARKES (Yam YZF-R6), -11.750 seconds 5. Robbin HARMS (Hon CBR600RR), -17.007 seconds 6. Yoann TIBERIO (Hon CBR600RR), -19.548 seconds 7. Javier FORES (Yam YZF-R6), -22.400 seconds 8. Massimo ROCCOLI (Yam YZF-R6), -22.513 seconds 9. Gianluca VIZZIELLO (Yam YZF-R6), -24.708 seconds 10. Barry VENEMAN (Suz GSX-R600), -25.317 seconds 11. Josh BROOKES (Duc 749R), -27.194 seconds 12. William DE ANGELIS (Hon CBR600RR), -31.740 seconds 13. Tatu LAUSLEHTO (Hon CBR600RR), -37.082 seconds 14. Sebastien LE GRELLE (Hon CBR600RR), -41.951 seconds 15. Tom TUNSTALL (Hon CBR600RR), -42.816 seconds 16. Greg LEBLANC (Hon CBR600RR), -48.139 seconds 17. Maxime BERGER (Kaw ZX-6RR), -48.715 seconds 18. Alessio ALDROVANDI (Hon CBR600RR), -55.319 seconds 19. Alessio VELINI (Yam YZF-R6), -55.964 seconds 20. Miguel PRAIA (Hon CBR600RR), -59.054 seconds 21. Chris PERIS (Yam YZF-R6), -66.039 seconds 25. Mauro SANCHINI (Yam YZF-R6), -7 laps, DNF, mechanical 26. David FORNER GARCIA (Yam YZF-R6), -10 laps, DNF, mechanical 27. Andrea BERTA (Yam YZF-R6), -11 laps, DNF, mechanical 28. Kenny NOYES (Yam YZF-R6), -12 laps, DNF, crash (twice) 29. Kai Borre ANDERSEN (Suz GSX-R600), -14 laps, DNF, mechanical 30. Johan STIGEFELT (Hon CBR600RR), -16 laps, DNF, crash 31. Christian ZAISER (Duc 749R), -19 laps, DNF, crash 32. Kenan SOFUOGLU (Hon CBR600RR), -20 laps, DNF, crash 33. Sebastien CHAMBON (Kaw ZX-6RR), -20 laps, DNF, mechanical More, from a press release issued by Winston Ten Kate Honda: PERFECT CHARPENTIER TAKES WIN NUMBER THREE Sebastien Charpentier (Winston Ten Kate Honda) scored his third race win of the 2006 season after 23-laps of the Valencia racetrack, adding another race victory to his perfect score of three pole positions earned in qualifying. His win extends his championship lead to 15 points over second place Valencia rider, Kevin Curtain, with Charpentier now on a perfect 75 points. Charpentier’s young team-mate, Kenan Sofuoglu (Winston Ten Kate Honda) fell on the fourth lap of the race, losing a points’ scoring opportunity after his fall. He now lies 11th in the championship table, with 16 points. The race was held in dry and warm conditions, a great relief to all after the day had dawned wet and overcast. Charpentier made use of the dry track to set a new lap record, 1’38.664, on his second time around the 4.005km circuit. Ronald Ten Kate – Team manager “It was a very good race from Sebastien once again, he pulled a little gap almost immediately and then kept control of the race. It was not easy in the hot conditions and the track had a lot less grip than during qualifying, as we can see the big gap in the lap times. But still Sebastien managed to make a perfect weekend. He was on pole with a new best lap and he also won the race with a new lap record. You can’t get any better than that. So thanks to him for providing such a consistent weekend again. I felt sorry for Kenan because he proved that he was on the pace again but lost the front early in the race; just bad luck really. It is another part of the learning curve his is on. It’s never easy to move up from a lower class to where we are, and I am quite sure he will pick up his racing again at Monza, demonstrate how fast he is there, and provide a good result for us.” Sébastien Charpentier Winston Ten Kate Honda Rider (1st Championship Position: 1st with 75 points) “The race went just perfect, just like I had planned. I tried to gain as much of an advantage as I could, as quickly as I could, so I could control the race without risking too much at the end. The bike was perfect; the tyres were perfect until the very last lap. I knew after the test we had some advantage here, so I felt strong straight away. I am looking forward for Monza. I want to thanks Pirelli and the team, as usually all the support came in the best way possible.” Kenan Sofuoglu Winston Ten Kate Honda Rider (DNF Championship Position: 11th with 16 points) “I don’t have too much to say. It seems like everything was going well but I guess I pushed too much on that lap and I crashed. In the second corner I lost control of the front and found myself on the ground. I was trying to stay with Fujiwara but I should have controlled my pace at the beginning and then tried to push towards the end.” More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing Information: CHARPENTIER ONCE MORE MR PERFECT FOR HONDA Sebastien Charpentier (Winston ten Kate Honda) used all the pace he had demonstrated in taking his third straight pole position of the 2006 season to take his third straight WSS race win. He led the entire 23-lap Valencia race in masterful fashion, breaking the lap record on the second lap. His new best of 1’38.664 was set on a dry track, but one which was not in perfect condition after overnight and morning rains had fallen. Charpentier is still the clear championship leader, sitting on 75 points to second place man Kevin Curtain’s 60. In the first three races of the 2006 season, Curtain has finished second to Charpentier on each occasion. Katsuaki Fujiwara (Team Megabike Honda CBR600RR) joined Charpentier on the Valencia podium having scored third despite the pain in his recently injured left wrist. He battled over second place with Curtain for some time but had to ease off after ten laps or so, thanks to the pain from his injury. Fujiwara’s team-mate Yoann Tiberio (Team Megabike Honda CBR600RR) settled for a seventh place finish at the end of a tough race for the WSS rookie, but he only gave up on his battle with fellow Honda rider Robbin Harms (Stiggy Motorsports CBR600RR) when his tyres lost optimum grip. Kenan Sofuoglu (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR) was in contention for a top five finish when he fell on lap four, losing the front on the entrance to turn two. For Charpentier, Valencia was another flawless weekend, one of a few in his championship defence so far. “The race went just perfect, just like I had planned,” said the Frenchman. “I tried to gain as much of an advantage as I could, as quickly as I could, so I could control the race without risking too much at the end. The bike was perfect; the tyres were perfect until the very last lap. I knew after the test we had some advantage here, so I felt strong straight away.” Fujiwara’s third place delivers him his first points score of the year, and he is in tenth place overall, on 16 points. “I had a good feeling with the bike today,” explained Fujiwara, who had qualified third fastest. “But, after ten laps, I had a lot of pain from my injured wrist and so I decided to exercise control and not take a risk. After two races with no points I took important points here.” Tiberio’s race was conducted at a high pace at the beginning, but tailed off towards the end as tyre wear played its part. Nonetheless, the French rookie is now ranked fifth overall, with 22 points. “I had a good start and I pushed hard for 18 laps,” affirmed Tiberio, “but after that the rear and front tyres started to slide and as I am not experienced with the tyres in Supersport I closed the gas a little so I would not crash. I don’t like the Valencia track much, but today I had a good finish, so I can think of the other races now.” After his fall and no score Sofuoglu sits 11th in the standings, still on the 16 points he earned for third place in the opening round at Qatar. “I don’t have too much to say,” stated the young Turkish rider. “It seems like everything was going well but I guess I pushed too much on that lap and I crashed. In the second corner I lost control of the front and found myself on the ground. I was trying to stay with Fujiwara but I should have controlled my pace at the beginning and then tried to push towards the end.” More, from a press release issued by Yamaha Racing: Yamaha scored its 100th podium finish in the Supersport World Championship with a second place for Yamaha Motor Germany’s Kevin Curtain in Valencia today. Curtain’s podium makes Yamaha the first manufacturer to reach that milestone in a class in which it has consistently been strong. Massimo Meregalli’s win at Misano in 1997 was the manufacturer’s first podium finish in the class and since then Yamaha has gone on to win three manufacturer and a rider’s world title with Yamaha Motor Germany’s Jörg Teuchert in 2000. Australian rider Curtain made a poor start in today’s race, ending the first lap in fourth place but fighting his way through to second at the flag. After moving into second on lap four Curtain had something of a lonely race, six seconds behind race winner Sebastien Charpentier (Honda) but three ahead of third placed Katsuaki Fujiwara (Honda). In a good day for Yamaha Motor Germany, Broc Parkes came home fourth in what is only the third race for the latest model YZF-R6. With showers throughout the weekend limiting the amount of dry practice time both Yamaha’s Australian riders failed to find a perfect set-up for what turned out to be a dry race. Having worked hard to move through the pack, Curtain found his rear tyre was unable to provide the grip needed to close down Charpentier and was forced to settle for what was his third second place of the season. Parkes meanwhile had a problem of brake fluid leaking onto his footpegs after the top of the rear brake cylinder was displaced by the rider’s boot. Despite not affecting the performance of his machine, Parkes understandably rode cautiously as he was unaware of the source of the fluid. Yamaha’s third-generation YZF-R6 was well represented in the race, with six machines in the top ten and several young riders catching the eye. Nineteen-year-old wild-card Jordi Torres equaled his fine qualifying position with fifth in the race, while fellow Spaniard Xavi Fores, 20, ran second in the early laps but faded to eighth at the flag. Yamaha Team Italia riders Massimo Roccoli and Gianluca Vizziello finished just behind Fores, ending the day ninth and tenth respectively. The race was led from lights to flag by world champion Charpentier to extend his lead over Curtain to 15 points in the championship. Parkes moves up to fourth in the points with three of the 13 races completed with Fores and Roccoli sharing fifth place alongside Yoann Tiberio (Honda). Kevin Curtain (Yamaha Motor Germany) “I didn’t get the best of starts and by the time I made it through to second Sebastien had got away. I tried hard to catch him but I’d worked my rear tyre too hard and didn’t have enough grip. I’m happy enough with the result though. Our bike is still developing and we lost a lot of set-up time here due to the rain. Fair play to Sebastien though, he was the best rider today and deserved to win. Hopefully we’ll have a new specification engine at Monza, if not then by Silverstone, and Pirelli will be supplying a new front tyre which we have tested and works much better with our bike.” Broc Parkes (Yamaha Motor Germany) “I suppose I got some points today but I’m not that happy. I realised in the middle of the race that there was some fluid leaking onto the bike and I thought it was maybe oil from the rear shock. It turned out it was the cap that had come off the rear brake master cylinder, but it was always in the back of my mind that something could maybe go on the tyre, so I had to hold back a bit.” Jordi Torres (Speed Moto) “I was very nervous at the start of the race and in the first corner a lot of riders passed me. I regained my concentration and started to pass a few other riders. At the end of the race my tyre was pretty much finished but I tried to control the situation I was in and scored fifth place. I am very pleased about that because this is my first race in this championship, which is run at a very high level.” Massimo Roccoli (Yamaha Team Italia) “I rode quite nervously in the opening laps but by lap five I had settled down and was able to make up some positions. With about five laps to go the bike seemed to be straining a bit and although I was still able to have a good battle with Fores I could not quite pass him. We definitely improved our set-up from yesterday and I am quite happy with the result, although I know we must still work harder.” Gianluca Vizziello (Yamaha Team Italia) “I was having a good race in front of Massimo until close to the end, when I lost some grip at the front. I had a lot of front end slides and twice saved a crash on my knee. Massimo was able to pass on one of these moments and when I looked behind and saw no-one close I backed off and took a safe finish.” More, from a press release issued by Tom Tunstall Racing: Hard Charging Tunstall Secures Points in Valencia Race Tom Tunstall achieved his goal of securing more championship points in the third round of the World Supersport Championship in Valencia with a brilliant riding display that saw him go from 24th place on the grid to 15th place in the race. Onboard the Hardinge – Ice Valley Motorsport Honda CBR600RR, Tom was unfazed by the level of competition in the highly regarded championship and fought lap after lap to secure his second point-scoring finish in three attempts. With ever changing weather conditions typifying the Valencia race weekend, Tom and the team worked flat out to gain the optimum set-up for the Hardinge – Ice Valley Motorsport Honda CBR600RR. The key to Tom’s success was down to a brilliant start followed up by a committed first lap that immediately saw him gain a handful of positions and move him in to a point scoring finish. From there, Tom set an impressive pace and fought hard with Norwegian rider Kai Anderson and American Kenny Noyes, but whilst Noyes crashed out, Tom kept his composure before becoming embroiled in a tough battle with Sebastian Le Grelle for the last of the championship points. “I made an absolutely mega start and gained a load of places into the first corner. Because of my position on the grid I was on the inside line going in and as a result I didn’t get the best drive to turn two and actually lost a couple of places. In the opening laps the bike felt great and I was able to do some really good times, but after about five laps my tyres started to wear and I was unable to push as hard because the rear was starting to slide too much.” explained Tom “I had some tough battles with Anderson and Noyes, but when I lost the side grip from the rear tyre it was difficult to stay with them because as soon as I touched the throttle the rear started to slide. With about 12 laps to go Le Grelle came past, he clearly had more grip than me on the exit of the corners but I was definitely faster going in to and through the turns, but I just couldn’t find a way past.” he said. “All in all I’m happy with the weekend. We came here for points and that’s what we got and I feel that as a team we’ve learned a lot, which is important. There are still some areas in which we can improve, but for a new team, we’re working well. Now I’ll be aiming to continue the momentum next time out at Monza.” he continued. The World Supersport Championship now heads to the ultra fast and spectacular Monza circuit in Northern Italy where Tom and the Hardinge – Ice Valley Motorsport team will be aiming to build on their strong opening results and secure more championship points.

Lockhart Phillips USA AMA Formula Xtreme Championship Barber Motorsports Park Birmingham, Alabama April 22 Provisional Race Results: 1. Jason DiSalvo (Yam YZF-R6) 17 laps 2. Josh Hayes (Hon CBR600RR) -6.707 seconds 3. Kurtis Roberts (Suz GSX-R600) -11.681 seconds 4. Aaron Gobert (Hon CBR600RR) -13.836 seconds 5. Danny Eslick (Suz GSX-R600) -21.698 seconds 6. Eric Wood (Hon CBR600RR) -36.154 seconds 7. Ryan Andrews (Hon CBR600RR) -36.209 seconds 8. Brian Stokes (Yam YZF-R6) -37.218 seconds 9. Blake Young (Suz GSX-R600) -43.214 seconds 10. Ryan Elleby (Hon CBR600RR) -43.922 seconds 11. Nicky Moore (Yam YZF-R6) -49.987 seconds 12. Taylor Knapp (Suz GSX-R600) -50.249 seconds 13. Ty Howard (Hon CBR600RR) -50.760 seconds 14. Chris “Opie” Caylor (Suz GSX-R600) -50.955 seconds 15. Tony Meiring (Suz GSX-R600) -60.579 seconds 16. Keith Marshall (Suz GSX-R600), -64.427 seconds 17. Tyler McDonald (Yam YZF-R6), -71.515 seconds 18. Armando Ferrer (Kaw ZX-6RR), -85.532 seconds 19. James Kerker (Hon CBR600RR), -85.806 seconds 20. Victor Chirinos (Kaw ZX-6RR), -86.392 seconds 21. Marco Martinez (Yam YZF-R6), -91.042 seconds 22. Eric Bostrom (Yam YZF-R6), -1 lap, mechanical 23. Kenny Carlota (Suz GSX-R600), -1 lap, -51.078 seconds 24. Garrett Carter (Yam YZF-R6), -1 lap, -72.371 seconds 25. Jeremiah Johnson (Suz GSX-R600), -2 laps, crash 26. Alastair Seeley (Yam YZF-R6), -3 laps 27. Nate Hester (Yam YZF-R6), -3 laps, -29.228 seconds, DNF, crash 28. Mike Hale (Buell XB9R), -4 laps, mechanical 29. Trey Yonce (Yam YZF-R6), -14 laps 30. Johnny Rock Page (Yam YZF-R6), 0 laps, DNF Provisional Series Point Standings 1. DiSalvo, 67 points 2. Hayes, 64 points 3. Gobert, 52 points 4. Wood, 48 points 5. Young, 44 points 6. Elleby, 41 points 7. Stokes, 38 points 8. Jake Zemke (Hon CBR600RR), 37 points 9. Bostrom, 36 points 10. Meiring, 35 points 11. Roberts, 29 points 12. Miguel Duhamel (Hon CBR600RR), 27 points 13. Eslick, 26 points 14. TIE, Caylor/Chirinos, 25 points More, from a press release issued by Team M4 EMGO Suzuki: ROBERTS ON PODIUM, MAY ON FRONT ROW AT BIRMINGHAM Kurtis Roberts picked up a podium result in his Team M4 EMGO Suzuki debut on Saturday at Barber Motorsports Park. The two-time Formula Xtreme champion quickly diced his way up into third in the 17-lap FX final and held the position to the checkered flag. Despite Roberts’ relative unfamiliarity with the team’s GSX-R600-based FX racer and the Pirelli tires, a stellar effort all around allowed the combination to jell quickly enough to run up front this weekend. Roberts said, “I’ve never doubted how fast I can ride a motorcycle, you just need to have the right people behind you to be able to show it. With all the inclement weather it was hard for us to make improvements prior to the race and know they would be good. We were fighting having less track time than the others but that’s what we had to do. The team was awesome. My hats off to all the guys on the team and at Pirelli. It worked out. Sure, we could have gotten two places higher, but I think we would have needed a few more tests together if we were going to run a pace quick enough to win this weekend. It was a good beginning.” Geoff May put in an impressive day’s work himself, earning front-row grid positions for Sunday’s Superstock and Supersport contests. The Georgian set the fourth fastest time aboard his GSX-R1000 in the Superstock qualifying session, registering a quick time of 1:27.104. He then went out and turned a 1:28.732 aboard his Supersport-spec GSX-R600 to claim the outside spot on the front row for that class as well. Teammate Michael Barnes wasn’t far behind. Even though he was put on a Supersport bike this weekend in order to provide him with as an opportunity to get back into the flow while recovering from his Daytona knee injury, Barnes has already proven to be a contender in the class. “The knee is doing real well,” said Barnes who posted a best time of 1:29.391. “Right now I’m icing it after I get done riding, but it’s not really bothering me on the bike at all and I’m just kind of getting back into the groove of things. I haven’t been on the bike since Daytona so it was six weeks of just riding the stationary bicycle and doing rehab and getting the knee strong.” “Riding the Supersport bike is working out well,” he continued. “It’s allowing me to get back into it without as much pressure — just concentrating on one bike instead of two. I wouldn’t have wanted to let the team down if I wasn’t ready and they wanted to have all their bases covered, so it was probably the best thing to do for the team.” Shea Fouchek made strides on Saturday, cutting more than a second off his Friday best. The Texan racing in a learning season qualified on the fifth row for Sunday’s 17-lap Supersport race, setting the 19 th fastest time at 1:29.391. Team M4 EMGO Suzuki will look to add to their trophy collection in Sunday afternoon’s 60k Supersport and Superstock finals.

AMA Superbike Championship Barber Motorsports Park Birmingham, Alabama April 21 Race Results: 1. Ben Spies (Suz GSX-R1000), 28 laps 2. Mat Mladin (Suz GSX-R1000), -10.723 seconds 3. Jake Zemke (Hon CBR1000RR), -16.366 seconds 4. Miguel Duhamel (Hon CBR1000RR), -27.630 seconds 5. Tommy Hayden (Kaw ZX-10R), -27.965 seconds 6. Neil Hodgson, Dun 999R), -30.428 seconds 7. Aaron Yates (Suz GSX-R1000), -44.866 seconds, crash 8. John Haner, (Suz GSX-R1000), -44.992 seconds 9. Ben Bostrom, (Duc 999R), -46.158 seconds 10. Jason Pridmore, (Suz GSX-R1000), -67.277 seconds 11. Steve Rapp, (Suz GSX-R1000), -76.879 seconds 12. Larry Pegram, (Hon CBR1000RR) -79.329 seconds 13. Pascal Picotte, (Yam YZF-R1), -82.794 seconds 14. Roger Hayden, (Kaw ZX-10R), -1 lap, crash 15. Clint McBain, (Suz GSX-R1000), -1 lap, -1.781 seconds 16. Cory West, (Suz GSX-R1000), -1 lap, -6.892 seconds 17. Jason Curtis, (Suz GSX-R1000), -1 lap, -10.923 seconds 18. Eric Wood, (Suz GSX-R1000), -1 lap, -26.454 seconds 19. Akira Tamitsuji, (Suz GSX-R1000), -1 lap, -33.531 seconds 20. Kevin Lacombe, (Yam ZZF-R1), -1 lap, -33.567 seconds 21. Brian Stokes, (Yam YZF-R1), -1 lap, -49.000 seconds 22. Taylor Knapp, (Suz GSX-R1000), -1 lap, -51.743 seconds 23. Andi Notman, (Suz GSX-R1000), -1 lap, -51.776 seconds 24. Brad Hendry, (Suz GSX-R1000), -1 lap, -62.777 seconds 25. Scott Carpenter, (Suz GSX-R1000), -1 lap, -63.189 seconds 26. Michael Sanchez, (Suz GSX-R1000), -1 lap, -63.570 seconds 27. Dominic Jones, (Suz GSX-R1000), -1 lap, -75.606 seconds 28. James Stroud, (Suz GSX-R1000), -2 laps 29. Jordan Szoke, (Kaw ZX-10R), -3 laps 30. Jake Holden, (Suz GSX-R1000), -5 laps 31. Francis Martin, (Suz GSX-R1000), -6 laps 32. James Kerker, (Hon CBR1000RR), -10 laps 33. Mike Sullivan (Yam YZF-R1), -21 laps Provisional AMA Superbike Championship Point Standings (after 2 of 19 races): 1. TIE, Mladin/Spies, 70 points 3. Duhamel, 56 points 4. TIE, Zemke/Hodgson/Tommy Hayden, 52 points 7. Yates, 49 points 8. Ben Bostrom, 46 points 9. Pridmore, 43 points 10. West, 34 points 11. Wood, 33 points 12. TIE, Pegram/Tamitsuji, 29 points 14. Roger Hayden, 26 points 15. TIE, Haner/Stokes, 23 points More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki: Team Yoshimura Suzuki’s Ben Spies and Mat Mladin raced their GSX-R1000s to a one-two victory at today’s Barber AMA Superbike Championship second round in Alabama. Spies – who now ties for the series lead with Mladin – led the field and set the pace until Mladin moved ahead on the fifth lap and stayed out front until the 16th lap when he was held up by a lapped rider, allowing Spies to take the lead back. After posting a race-fastest time of 1:25.568 on the second of 28 laps, Spies pulled ahead until a mistake on the fifth lap allowed Mladin to catch up. But in the closing stages, the six-time AMA Champion was forced off the track by a lapped rider: He kept the machine upright but lost valuable time, eventually finishing 10 seconds behind. Said Spies: “This is an actual win. I know he ran off the track, but I ran with him the whole race.” Mladin said: “It was pretty hairy when I went off in the grass. It reminded me of my motocross days 20 years ago…” Third Yoshimura team rider Aaron Yates finished in eighth position as Jordan Suzuki’s Jason Pridmore rounded out the top 10. Spies and Mladin go head-to-head again tomorrow (Sunday) for the second race of the double-header. Barber 1st Superbike Event: 1. Ben Spies (Suzuki) 2. Mat Mladin (Suzuki) 3. Jake Zemke (Honda) 4. Miguel Duhamel (Honda) 5. Tommy Hayden (Kawasaki) 6. Neil Hodgson (Ducati) 7. Aaron Yates (Suzuki) 8. John Haner (Suzuki) 9. Ben Bostrom (Ducati) 10. Jason Pridmore (Suzuki) More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse: HODGSON AND BOSTROM BATTLE THROUGH CHALLENGING DAY IN BIRMINGHAM Leeds (Alabama): Neil Hodgson and Ben Bostrom had a difficult day on the Parts Unlimited Ducati 999s in Birmingham on Saturday. Hodgson finished sixth in the 28-lap race, gaining several positions after a poor start. Ben Bostrom was ninth as he continued to feel ill in what has been a challenging weekend for the former series champion. Hodgson ran in a group of three riders that fought for fourth place in the race won by Ben Spies. Although he was not happy with his result, Neil did gain valuable championship points and is now tied for fourth in the standings. “We made up some spots, but that was the limit. I’m disappointed and we’re going to try some things for tomorrow. Unfortunately, with the bike we had today with me riding on this track, those lap times were about as fast as we could go. I got a bad start and lost some positions at the beginning. We were well off the pace it took to win the race. We expect to do much better than that. We’ll never give up, though. Tomorrow, we’ll make some changes to the bike and look to find some time.” Ben Bostrom was ninth in the first race in a weekend that has seen him nauseous. “I felt really bad again today and it made it hard to race for 28 laps. It’s no excuse for where we finished, though because I wanted to do better and fire up the fans in the Ducati Corner that were cheering us on. We raced with some guys out there and I would have liked to beaten them to the line. (Aaron) Yates looked a bit like me out there, struggling. Tomorrow, we’ll add more transfer to the rear and hope to do better.” Tomorrow’s 28-lap race begins at 3 PM local time.