Superbike World Championship Round 2 Phillip Island, Australia March 5, 2006 Race Two Results: 1. Troy BAYLISS, Ducati 999F06, 22 laps, 34:33.803 2. James TOSELAND, Honda CBR1000RR, -5.528 seconds 3. Alex BARROS, Honda CBR1000RR, -14.312 seconds 4. Noriyuki HAGA, Yamaha YZF-R1, -16.208 seconds 5. Andrew PITT, Yamaha YZF-R1, -17.656 seconds 6. Yukio KAGAYAMA, Suzuki GSX-R1000, -20.832 seconds 7. Roberto ROLFO, Ducati 999F05, -21.130 seconds 8. Ruben XAUS, Ducati 999F05, -25.224 seconds 9. Fonsi NIETO, Kawasaki ZX-10R, -25.638 seconds 10. Chris WALKER, Kawasaki ZX-10R, -26.007 seconds 11. Michel FABRIZIO, Honda CBR1000RR, -32.867 seconds 12. Norick ABE, Yamaha YZF-R1, -33.171 seconds 13. Max NEUKIRCHNER, Ducati 999RS, -33.211 seconds 14. Pierfrancesco CHILI, Honda CBR1000RR, -34.314 seconds 15. Steve MARTIN, Foggy Petronas FP1, -34.467 seconds 16. Regis LACONI, Kawasaki ZX-10R, -35.549 seconds 17. Ivan CLEMENTI, Ducati 999RS, -35.976 seconds 18. Fabien FORET, Suzuki GSX-R1000, -49.037 seconds 19. Shinichi NAKATOMI, Yamaha YZF-R1, -49.120 seconds 20. Sebastien GIMBERT, Yamaha YZF-R1, -49.214 seconds 21. Craig JONES, Foggy Petronas FP1, -80.378 seconds 22. Franco BATTAINI, Kawasaki ZX-10R, -82.805 seconds 23. Karl MUGGERIDGE, Honda CBR1000RR, -13 laps, DNF, crash 24. Lorenzo LANZI, Ducati 999F06, -13 laps, DNF, crash 25. Marco BORCIANI, Ducati 999F05, -13 laps, DNF, mechanical 26. Vittorio IANNUZZO, Suzuki GSX-R1000, -16 laps, DNF, mechanical 27. Lucio PEDERCINI, Ducati 999RS, -18 laps, DNF, mechanical 28. Troy CORSER, Suzuki GSX-R1000, -19 laps, DNF, crash Superbike World Championship Point Standings (after 4 of 26 races): 1. Bayliss, 75 points 2. Toseland, 74 points 3. Corser, 63 points 4. Barros, 55 points 5. Pitt, 45 points 6. Haga, 42 points 7. Rolfo, 32 points 8. Fabrizio, 25 points 9. Xaus, 24 points 10. Nieto, 19 points More, from a press release issued by Team Klaffi Honda: Alex did it again! “I enjoyed it! It is fine to have two races one after another. It is tough but I’m in a good shape and it is great fun!” In the second heat Alex Barros finished third. So the Brazilian rider of Team Klaffi Honda was twice on the podium today. Only the start was not so perfect. Alex dropped back to 7th position and immediately started to fight. He passed Muggeridge and was riding on position 6. Everything seemed to be okay but then it was Troy Corser who had a tremendous crash. The two Yamaha riders Haga and Pitt could draw aside. Alex had no chance. He touched Corser with one of his foot-rests and ripped Troy’s leather. Alex just avoided to crash himself. This action took a lot of time but then the Brazilian was on his way again. He took Pitt and then he pushed Haga to the limits. Alex passed the Yamaha rider in a breath taking way. Now he was on 3rd position. Alex finished 3rd. Winner was Bayliss in front of Toseland. Alex Barros: “Things become better and better. Only when Troy Corser crashed I lost a little bit of concentration. I was afraid that I injured him. But I in this moment I could not avoid to touch him. I’m happy that Troy had good luck and that he is okay. – I had some good fights, especially with Haga. I really enjoyed it! And it was a pleasure to work with the Klaffi Team. Thanks to the fantastic crew!” Team Manager Klaus Klaffenböck: “Alex did a great job today and I’m sure you’ll see a lot more of him this year!” More, from a press release issued by Winston Ten Kate Honda: TOSELAND SCORES TWO PODIUMS AFTER RED HOT AUSTRALIAN RACES James Toseland (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR) followed up his great start to the season in Qatar with a hard fought double podium finish, scoring third in race one and second in race two, to end raceday only one point from the championship lead. For his team-mate Karl Muggeridge (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR) it was a less happy day, being forced to pull out of race one due to concerns over tyre wear and machine handling, then being taken out by another riders’ crashing machine in the second outing. Muggeridge now finds himself 15th in the title chase, with an unchanged 11 points. In the first race Toseland secured a fine third place finish, after early leader Troy Bayliss had used up his tyres in he desperate escape from a chasing pack, sliding down the order to finish sixth. Toseland held his nerve throughout, finishing seven seconds from the winner Troy Corser (Suzuki) and close second place man Alex Barros (Honda). In the second race Toseland stuck to the lead for the majority of the race but eventual race winner Troy Bayliss passed him on the 16th lap, leaving Toseland a clear second place finisher, five seconds adrift, but nine seconds up on Barros. Ronald Ten Kate Team Manager “We had some problems in the first race in preserving tyres, so we changed the settings a little but for the second race. It helped quite a lot. We could run a little longer on the pace, which is what James wanted. It was good to see him in front of Bayliss for so long, as Troy had been the fastest rider all weekend long here. Towards the end Bayliss managed to put a couple of quick laps in, and James could not follow. But in any case we are very happy to take two podiums away from here, and be just one point behind the lead. That’s a good way to come home again. For Karl I feel really sorry, because the problem James had in the first leg was even worse with Karl, so we also had to make adjustments to Karl’s bike. It was running a lot, lot better in race two, until he got T-Boned. It was a difficult weekend for him because the first day was such a nightmare we had to play catch-up. We just ran out of time but I am quite sure that he has got the potential in him to get the best out of the bike.” James Toseland SBK Winston Ten Kate Honda Rider (Race 1: 3rd position Race 2: 2nd position Championship Position: 2nd with 75 points) “In race two I kept getting a plus zero on my pit board, because Troy was right behind. I didn’t make a mistake but Troy just out braked me into the hairpin and then he pulled away at the end there. It was a great race though, and I made sure I rode well in the places where it would be difficult for him to get past me. In the first race Troy was unlucky not to win. In race two I waited to see if he would have similar problems as race one but when it was obvious he was fast and I had to settle for second. But I’m happy; we had a good, consistent weekend again. We’re pushing them hard and we’re only one point from the lead right now.” Karl Muggeridge SBK Winston Ten Kate Honda Rider (Race 1: DNF Race 2: DNF Championship Position: 15th with 11 points) “A terrible weekend in the office, but at least in the second race we had the bike a lot better. We made a bit of a mess on Friday so we had to catch up all weekend. Even though it was a crash from someone else that took me out of race two, I can walk away confident. The bike is a lot better now so we can do it for sure.” More, from a press release issued by Team Yamaha Motor France – Ipone Some points at Phillip Island The Phiilip Island weekend was difficult for Norick Abe, Shinichi Nakatomi and Sebastien Gimbert, the three riders of the Team Yamaha Motor France – Ipone. Only Norick manages to save the honour of the team with the points of 12th position in the second race. In the first race, Shinichi Nakatomi crashed and was happily unhurt, while Sebastien Gimbert came back to the pits and retired. Only Abe finished with a modest 17th position. In race 2, things went better with Norick finishing 12th, Nakatomi 19th and Gimbert 20th. Norick Abe: “After race 1, we changed the set up because I could only finish 17th because of chattering. The second race was better and I had a great fight with a group of good riders. It was hard for me to overtake because I was losing time in the main straight. It took me very long to pass each rider. I had some chattering problems, but the biggest trouble was the lack of power which made it hard to overtake the other riders.” Shinichi Nakatomi: “In the first race, I crashed when I lost the front while braking trying to pass another rider. In race 2, my rear tyre was sliding a lot. Not enough grip made it slippery.” Sebastien Gimbert: “I had some trouble shifting down in race 1. I could not use any more the 1st gear. I had some chattering, which was not the case during practice. In race 2, I did not have enough grip when I wanted to accelerate. The front was moving a lot. The lack of engine power did not help for acceleration and top speed. We have two months to work. I hope to prove I am a good rider at the next 24 Hours of Le Mans where I go to win.” Team-manager Martial Garcia: “Our January tests were very promising so this is a deception for me. We never could find this weekend the same level of grip. Our times were quicker, but not enough compared to the opposition. Abe saves our weekend with a few points, thanks to his great starts and his courage, because the chassis set up of our bikes is far from being perfect, therefore our top speed problems. We had some chattering problems that we could never solve during the practices and the races. So I cannot be satisfied, despite the exemplary courage of our three riders. We must work harder, including during the next tests in Valencia and Misano.” More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse: BAYLISS (DUCATI XEROX) RETURNS TO WINNING WAYS AT PHILLIP ISLAND AFTER A FOUR-YEAR BREAK Phillip Island (Australia), Sunday 5 March: Troy Bayliss put a first race disappointment behind him to take the Ducati Xerox Team’s first win of the season and the Australian’s 23rd World Superbike career victory at Phillip Island. It was the former world champion’s first win since Laguna Seca in 2002 and helps to maintain a slim one-point lead in this year’s championship. Bayliss set a storming pace in the first race, but excessive tyre wear in the final stages dropped him down to sixth behind eventual winner Troy Corser (Suzuki). Troy made amends in the second race when he fitted a harder rear tyre compound on his Ducati 999 and rode a more defensive race. He out-braked Toseland (Honda) into Honda corner on lap 16 to take the chequered flag in front of an ecstatic home crowd. Earlier winner Corser crashed out on lap 4. “It’s been a really good weekend, obviously I was on a bit of a downer after race 1, but that’s racing”, declared Troy. “It all went well because we’ve got a smart team and they know what to do. We obviously did a race distance on the tyre before but something strange happened. Anyway we put that behind us and we decided to use the hardest tyre Pirelli brought along. Then I made my move on Toseland at two-thirds race distance and although I was nearly in the same situation with the tyres with three laps to go, I still managed to pull a good enough gap to win. We’re leading the championship again, so that’s a bonus. Now we move on to Valencia and Monza which are places we like so I hope to keep the momentum going”. Lanzi, who had to start from the pit-lane after encountering a clutch problem during the warm-up lap, powered up the field to eleventh place, but was unable to make further progress as he struggled to maintain the pace. In the second race he was attempting to move up amongst the mid-field runners when he high-sided on lap 11. “It has been a pretty tough weekend, we didn’t find the right direction immediately with the team and I made a few errors” commented Lorenzo. “This morning in the warm-up finally we found a good set-up to race maybe for the podium, but then we had bad luck with the clutch in race 1 and I had to start last. In race 2 I was recuperating places but I made a mistake and crashed. Muggeridge was ahead of me, and I brought him down when I high-sided. Now we’ve got a month and a half before the next race, so I can get back to 100% fitness, because here I was still in a bit of pain with my ankle and knee from the crash in Qatar”. More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing Information: TOSELAND AND BARROS ON EACH PHILLIP ISLAND PODIUM Alex Barros (Klaffi Honda CBR1000RR) and James Toseland (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR) shared second and third place finishes at the Australian World Superbike round, and thus shared the honour of top Honda rider on display at the classic Phillip Island track. For other supported Honda riders, fortune was less kind, with Michel Fabrizio (DFX Honda CBR1000RR) next best with an 11th in race one, Pierfrancesco Chili (DFX Honda CBR1000RR) only in the points once and Karl Muggeridge (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR) not scoring at all in his home event. In the first 22-lap race of the day, Toseland, who had qualified an impressive third in Superpole in only his second meeting on his new machine, secured third after long term leader Troy Bayliss faded to sixth. Troy Corser held off Barros for the win, with the Brazilian scoring his best ride of the season so far. He was to go third in race two, after a fight with Noriyuki Haga. Fabrizio fended off his team-mate to take the last point on offer in race one, improving from his 20th place in qualifying. In race two he was to improve to 11th, for overall eighth, on 25 points. Chili scored 14th in race two, despite fatigue and the effects of his recent Qatar crash. Muggeridge, who qualified sixth, had to retire from race one with set-up and tyre issues on the hot tarmac, and was then unceremoniously knocked out of the second race, when Lorenzo Lanzi’s Ducati skittled him at Honda hairpin. Toseland, who has now scored one win and two further podiums in the four 2006 season races so far, was satisfied with his race rhythm, on a day when warm track conditions made for some unpredictable results. He is now second in the championship race, with 74 points to leader Bayliss’ 75. “In race two I kept getting a plus zero on my pitboard, because Troy was right behind,” said Toseland. “I didn’t make a mistake but Troy just outbraked me into the hairpin and then he pulled away at the end there. It was a great race though, and I made sure I rode well in the places where it would be difficult for him to get past me. In the first race Troy was unlucky not to win. In race two I waited to see if he would have similar problems as race one but when it was obvious he was fast and I had to settle for second. But I’m happy; we had a good, consistent weekend again. We’re pushing them hard and we’re only one point from the lead right now.” Barros had two highly impressive rides on a machine which is still undergoing development; with the Brazilian’s experience of racecraft a valuable asset around Phillip Island’s high speed twists and turns. “Things are obviously getting better and better,” said Barros after his second podium of the day. “I lost a little bit of concentration when Troy Corser crashed right in front of me, and I could not avoid him. I was afraid that I injured him, but I was told he was OK. But in this moment I could not avoid hitting him. I had some good fights today, especially with Haga. I really enjoyed today’s races, and to get two podiums was great for our team at this stage.” Fabrizio ran off the track in race one, and finished the second lap dead last, which explained the discrepancy in his race one and two results. “My rear tyre was finished five laps before the end of race one,” said Michel. “I had the same problem in race two, but without the earlier problem, I kept my position better, and managed the lack of grip. I am 80% happy but for sure I must have more feeling with the bike in a short space of time.” Chili was philosophical about his Phillip Island experiences, as he scored a 16th and a 14th in difficult circumstances. “It was very taxing in race one because the bike had a lot of chatter,” said Chili. “It felt very hard and operating the clutch was very difficult for so many laps in a row, considering my broken finger on my left hand. That meant that I was completely finished before the end of race two.” Muggeridge was blunt in summation of his latest race weekend, but knows that all the indications are for better performances quite soon. “A terrible weekend in the office, but at least in the second race we had the bike a lot better,” said Muggeridge. “We made a bit of a mess on Friday so we had to catch up all weekend. Even though it was a crash from someone else that took me out of race two, I can walk away confident for the next few. The bike is a lot better now so we can do it for sure.” The first European round of the year will be at Valencia, on 23 April. More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki: Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra experienced practically every sort of emotion in the second round of the Superbike World Championship at Phillip Island today with Troy Corser causing most of the ups and downs. He won the first race after a tremendous battle with Troy Bayliss (Ducati) and Alex Barros (Honda), then crashed out of the second race while challenging for the lead. In the opening race, Corser took the lead when Bayliss slowed because of trashed tyres. Barros was right with him and proved to be more than a handful in the closing stages, but Corser used his experience and took the chequered flag by almost half a second. Team mate Yukio Kagayama suffered clutch problems and was forced to overshoot Honda hairpin and rejoined the track in 21st place. He charged his way back up the field and managed 12th place before running out of laps. Fabien Foret was 13th after the first lap, but was forced to retire with a throttle problem after 10 laps. The second race was another one of drama for the team, starting with Corser’s crash after three laps when he highsided just after Lukey Heights. In the fall, he was hit by Barros’ Honda and was lucky to escape serious injury. The footpeg of the bike hit him just behind his head and the rest of the bike struck his shoulder, elbow and hip. He was taken to the Clinica Mobile but the X-Rays revealed no broken bones. To make sure, Corser went to Melbourne hospital for a precautionary check. Kagayama was 12th at the end of lap one before getting stuck in a group of riders. He had a difficult time getting through the pack but he fought hard and grabbed sixth position at the flag. Foret made a good start but had to run wide at the second turn to avoid another rider which dropped him well down the order. He ended 18th after being caught up for the second part of the race with the Yamahas of Shinichi Nakatomi and Sebastien Gimbert. Troy Corser – Race 1: 1st, Race 2: DNF: “Well that was a day and a half for sure. A fantastic win in the first race and then a crash in the second! I knew Bayliss would not be able to keep up that pace in the first race and that his tyres would not last. I got caught in a group at the beginning and knew that I couldn’t hang around with them too long, so when James Toseland made a little mistake and ran wide, I sneaked through. When I caught Bayliss, I could see he was having problems, so it was no surprise when I passed him – in fact he let me through. I then had a pretty good fight with Barros, but held him off at the end. In race two, on the approach to the turn after Lukey Heights, I lost the rear end suddenly and highsided. I felt a thud on my back and knew I had been hit by a bike. I went to a hospital in Melbourne for a check-up. I really don’t know why I crashed because the telemetry shows that I wasn’t doing anything different to the previous laps. But that’s racing!” Yukio Kagayama – Race 1: 12th, Race 2: 6th: “Not such a good day I think. I had problems with the clutch in the first race – similar to Qatar – and it was very difficult to ride the bike. The feeling was not consistent and sometimes it worked ok and sometimes it did not! I did my best to stay out and finished 12th. In race two, my start was not perfect and that meant I had a lot to do in the race. It is always hard to make a good result from the third row of the grid, but if I had made a better start then I think I could’ve challenged for a podium.” Fabien Foret – Race 1: DNF, Race 2: 18th: “It was a bit of a disappointment for me today but it’s all part of my learning process in Superbikes, I guess. I really thought that I would be able to score some points today, but the DNF in race one didn’t help. My throttle was not consistent at all – sometimes it would stay open after I had shut it – so I had to pull in. I made a good start in the second race, but had to run wide to avoid a rider who had made a mistake and that cost me many places. Then I got caught up in a battle with two Yamaha riders and that was that. I am looking forward to some tests before the next race because I need to understand this bike more than I do at the moment.” More, from a press release issued by Foggy Petronas Racing: Steve in the points for FPR at Phillip Island Steve Martin secured two finishes for Foggy PETRONAS Racing in a roller-coaster of a second round of the Superbike World Championship at Phillip Island, Australia. Having qualified on the front row of the grid, the Australian had to battle for the minor places when the starts to both races left him in the middle of the field. His 14th and 15th places were scant reward for the team’s efforts during the weekend. Steve finished the first race less than 30 seconds behind winner Troy Corser. A similar gap in last year’s race would have seen him finish in eight place. He was eventually involved in a battle for 11th with Lorenzo Lanzi, Yukio Kagayama and Regis Laconi, again highlighting the new strength in depth of the championship. Team-mate Craig Jones completed his first race in World Superbikes in 21st place in the afternoon after being unhurt in a high-side crash coming out of Honda Corner on the 11th lap of the opening race while running in 22nd place. Corser emerged victorious from a long tussle with Alex Barros after early runaway leader, Troy Bayliss, dropped back through the field in the closing laps of the opening race. Bayliss made amends in the second race, while Corser was taken to hospital after being hit by Barros following a spectacular high-side. Steve said: “I have three more points than I had at the same point last season. Even though the standard is tougher we are also closer to the leaders than we have been before. I feel as though I am riding well, we just need to work on acceleration and we have a few things to try with the handling at the two tests before the next round. I got a better start in the second race and I managed to stay up there until they came past one by one on the straight. The tyre started to wear and the others could then use their acceleration even more. I was just doing the best I could to hang on where I was. In the first race I got the best start I could but it is a longish run to the first corner and that doesn’t help us. I was racing in a quality group and was less than 30 seconds behind the winner. My bike was handling well compared to the bikes of the guys I was dicing with, but had less acceleration. So I was heaps quicker coming onto the straight but couldn’t do anything with it.” Craig said: “I had forgotten where parc ferme was! It was a long boring race but I am just glad to finish one. My times were really slow and I was struggling like anything but I was determined to finish no matter what. I definitely feel better for getting one under my belt and now I can build on that, starting with the two tests when I am going to be working on handling in general and getting a good base set-up. I have already been fast on the bike, I just need to get consistent and build on what we have got. In the first race I didn’t have any grip, which was causing the back to pump. I was in a rhythm and going steady and I can’t believe the bike sprung me off.” Team manager Jack Valentine said: “The team has done everything they possibly could with our current package. The bike was handling superbly and Steve rode as hard as he could. We are just losing a lot of speed on the straights and acceleration out of the turns. I’m pleased that Craig had his first finish in World Superbikes. He rode consistently and hopefully he can build on that to regain the confidence he had during winter testing.” More, from a press release issued by Scuderia SC Caracchi: AT PHILLIS ISLAND EXCELLENT ROBY ROLFO IN SUPERBIKE (Phillip Island 2006, March 5) Two splendid performances light up the day of Roberto Rolfo in Superbike today at Phillip Island. Forced to start from the fourth row after yesterday’s Superpole result Roby made two fighting races, recovering positions and positions and ending fifth in race-1 and seventh in race-2. For both races Roby made a couple of very good start, but then I found before him some slower rider, difficult to pass, and lost time on the leaders in the early laps. “I’m satisfied of today’s races, they have been amusing and extremely exciting.” relate Roberto Rolfo, with all his celebrating team around. “Unfortunately I’ve been penalized by my starting position because, also with a good start it’s always possible to find some rider that stops your action, so you see the leaders that are going away and you are no able to do anything. Today I’m confident I could stay together with the Yamahas, at the end of race-1 I could also catch Haga, that I believe was in tyre crisis, but he had too much advantage. Actually they have been a couple of excellent results, but most of alla I’m satisfied for the job we made during all the week end. After yesterday’s free practice and Superpole session, that bring us a little bit out, from the morning’s warm up I felt competitive. In this moment the teamm too has been important for me: they have done an high level work and helped me very much. We are already at a good competitive level, despite a few test time during the winter, now we have a couple of month to work with calme, with an important test in Spain that we have to use in the best way. The fight with Kagayama during race-2 has been very exciting, I passed him in corner 10, but he overtook me at the end of the finish line; then he’s been very skilful to keep all the door closed, but in a correct way, and I’m not been able to pass him once more, but it has been a nige fight too.” More, from a press release issued by Yamaha Racing: Yamaha Motor Italia rider Noriyuki Haga battled traction problems to grab a brace of fourth places at round two of the Superbike World Championship at the Phillip Island circuit in Australia. The popular Japanese rider rode hard in the day’s two 22-lap races to score 26 valuable points over the two races. Haga had run at the front of the day’s opening race but faded when his rear traction reduced at around half-distance. Despite running a somewhat lonely fifth for most of the race, the 31-year-old continued to ride hard to pass a fading Troy Bayliss (Ducati) and fend off a late charge from Roberto Rolfo (Ducati). Race two saw Haga make some further suspension changes to lead a thrilling battle at the front with Bayliss, James Toseland (Honda), Alex Barros (Honda), Troy Corser (Suzuki) and Yamaha Motor Italia team-mate Andrew Pitt. A nasty crash for Corser saw the Yamaha riders take avoiding action and let Bayliss and Toseland build a gap. The Yamaha pair was able to stay in touch with Barros in the battle for third but the lack of traction saw them settle for fourth and fifth place at the flag. Pitt was made to pay for an incorrect tyre choice in race one. The Australian chose a harder compound Pirelli tyre, which stopped him running at the same pace as the leaders in the opening laps. Stuck in a thrilling mid-pack battle for most of the race, he ended the race a subdued ninth. For race two he chose the same softer compound tyre as his rivals and was able to run with the leaders, eventually finishing fifth, just behind Haga. The Yamaha Motor France squad had a difficult weekend in Australia. Still running their 2005-specification engines, the team’s only points came from former MotoGP rider Norick Abe, who took 12th in race two. Fellow Japanese rider Shinichi Nakatomi crashed out of race one, before continuing his world superbike education with 19th in race two. The team’s third rider, Frenchman Sebastien Gimbert, retired from the opener with set-up problems before following home Nakatomi in 20th place in race two. Race one was won by Corser after a race long fight with Barros. Toseland finished third. Bayliss had led the opener by six seconds after obliterating the lap record on lap two. However, the Australian dropped back to eventually finish six, behind Haga and Rolfo. He gained revenge in race two, winning comfortably from Toseland, with Barros taking another podium in third. Bayliss now leads the championship on 75 points, one ahead of Toseland. Pitt leads the Yamaha riders, in fifth place with 45 points, with Haga sixth on 42 points. Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia) “I tried to push hard in both races but unfortunately at the end the tyre is gone and this means I cannot open the throttle and turn the bike properly in both races. The performance of the bike is very good at the beginning of the race but unfortunately after seven or eight laps the performance drops off quite a lot.” Andrew Pitt (Yamaha Motor Italia) “In the first race I used a different type of rear tyre to most of the other riders and it did not work all that well in the early stages of the race. We used a different compound rear tyre for the second race and this meant that I was at least able to get away at the start, although the consistency is still not there over the race distance.” Norick Abe (Yamaha Motor France) “From race one to race two we got on a little bit better, because we changed a lot of settings. We had no grip at the end of race one, sliding all the time, and lots of chatter as well. My lap times were into the 1:36s; slower than I expect. In the second race it was better but our engine was not fast this weekend so I could only follow other riders and had to catch up in the corner entries. Finally I got a 12th in race two, so we scored some points.” Shinichi Nakatomi (Yamaha Motor France) “We did not have the grip from the rear we wanted and that held my lap times back. It was a very difficult weekend. I pushed hard in the first race and lost the front end trying to pass another rider. We finished race two, but to score no points is disappointing.” Massimo Meregalli (Team Coordinator – Yamaha Motor Italia) “It has not been an easy weekend for us but in the end we have scored some good points for the championship. There is less grip here than in Qatar and both our riders have struggled for traction all weekend. We did not test at Phillip Island over the winter and although we found a little bit more today, it wasn’t quite enough to allow us to run at the very front. There are a few other low grip circuits like this and we must work hard to improve our performances at these kind of tracks.” Martial Garcia (Team Manager – Yamaha Motor Italia) “A very bad day. We had many chassis set-up problems, and we did not find the same grip we had in January, when we were very happy with the settings. I think we did not make a good job, because we did not find a good solution. Phillip Island is a special circuit and a lot depends on weather. We have some tests before the next race and we will use our new engine, which is more powerful. Abe is mentally very strong and I know that he can come through this difficult period strongly. The others we must help to build their confidence.” More, from a press release issued by Troy Corser’s publicist: JOY AND DESPAIR FOR TROY It was a day of mixed emotions for Troy in the second round of the Superbike World Championship at Phillip Island. He won the first race after a titanic battle with fellow countryman Troy Bayliss (Ducati) and Brazilian Alex Barros (Honda) which had the fans jumping and down throughout the 22-lapper. In the second race he was tucked in behind leader Toseland (Honda) after two laps, but then highsided on lap four and was hit by the Honda of Barros as he slid along the track. It was a frightening looking crash because the bike’s footpeg narrowly missed Troy’s head and struck the back of his leathers. Troy was taken to the Clinica Mobile for X-rays, but no broken bones were revealed. However, just to make sure, Troy went to a hospital in Melbourne for a precautionary check-up. TROY – Race 1: 1st, Race 2: DNF All races at Phillip Island are hard but the first race was one of the toughest I’ve ever done for sure. I had a feeling that Bayliss would not be able to keep up that pace for the whole race and that his tyres would not last, and that’s how it worked out. When I got caught in a group behind Bayliss at the beginning, I knew that I couldn’t hang around with them too long, so when James (Toseland) made a little mistake and ran wide, at Honda, I was able to nip through. Then there was a clear track ahead of me, so I put my head and chased Bayliss. When I caught him, I could see he was having problems, so it was no surprise when I passed him. I then had a pretty good fight with Barros, but held him off at the end. Winning in Phillip Island is always sweet! I was well-placed in race two, but on the approach to the turn after Lukey Heights, the rear end suddenly went and I was highsided. I felt a thud on my back and realised I had been hit by a bike, but I thought I had got away with it. But, to make sure, I went to a hospital in Melbourne for a check-up. I really don’t know why I crashed, because the telemetry shows that I wasn’t doing anything different to the previous laps. But I guess that’s racing!. More, from a press release issued by FGSport Group: CORSER THEN BAYLISS AS PHILLIP ISLAND PROVES UNPREDICTABLE HOT FAVOURITE BAYLISS SCORES A SINGLE AFTER UNWANTED SIX Having dominated qualifying and Superpole, and having set another new track best of 1’31.908 in morning warm-up, Troy Bayliss was the hottest favourite imaginable for a double win on his home circuit. His lead in race one dropped off to an eventual sixth place, as Troy Corser (Alstare Corona Extra Suzuki) took a determined and committed win, from Alex Barros (Klaffi Honda) and a more distant James Toseland (Winston Ten Kate Honda). Corser crashed out of contention in race two, as Bayliss finally got the much-desired first win of his prodigal SBK season, ahead of Toseland and Barros. The ups and downs for some of the top riders changed the complexion of the championship table, with Bayliss now in a single point lead over Toseland (75 to 74), with Corser third on 63, and Barros fourth on 55. RACE ONE Troy Bayliss (Ducati Xerox) looked to have the first race trophy locked up safe and sound until a mid race loss of forward drive dropped him down the order at a rapidly accelerating pace. Troy Corser held off the attentions of Alex Barros in the first race of the day, with James Toseland (Winston Ten Kate Honda) scoring third place after the long time leader fell from eventual grace. With the return of the sunshine, after dull early morning conditions, Troy Bayliss (Ducati Xerox) looked to have the first race in the bag long before the finish, such was his early pace and huge lead at half race distance. He set a new lap record of 1’32.402 on the second lap but with his times increasing dramatically in the final third, he was to finish only sixth. Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia) went fourth, with new SBK rider Robby Rolfo (Ducati SC Caracchi) a strong fifth, after a ride through the field from ninth on lap one. An incredible midfield battle saw nine riders fighting for the points for much of the race, in what was another all-time classic event. RACE TWO The second 22-lap event of the day took place in similarly warm ambient conditions as the opener, but with a much warmer track temperature showing up, some riders opted for harder compound tyre choices. One such was eventual winner Troy Bayliss, fired up by his problems in race one. He eventually passed long time leader Toseland with seven laps left, to take a hugely popular win. In third place, Alex Barros had the best of a three rider fight for much of the race, having survived a scary moment when Troy Corser crashed out of a podium place in front of him, exiting MG corner on lap four, and Barros could not avoid hitting the luckless Aussie. Corser escaped without injury, despite suffering a heavy impact on his crash helmet and neck area, plus his torso. For his own peace of mind, Corser has nonetheless opted to go for further checks in Melbourne, given his history of internal injuries. In race two Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia) took his second fourth place finish of the day, beating his team-mate Andrew Pitt, who had finished race one in a slowly fading ninth. Yukio Kagayama (Alstare Corona Extra Suzuki) slotted his Suzuki into sixth place in race two, after an unhappy race one 12th. ROLFO SHOWS HIS POWER WITH TWO STRONG FINISHES Roberto Rolfo (Ducati SC Caracchi) had an outstanding fifth place in the first race, mastering an incredible multiple rider fight for the top ten positions. At one stage of race two, there were 13 riders in one group, battling for supremacy behind the leading ranks, with a bewildering number of overtakes being put in throughout the duration of each 22-lap race. On a good day for the 2005-spec Ducati 999 riders, Ruben Xaus, once more overcame the need to use crutches when walking, to boom his Sterilgarda Berik Ducati to seventh in race one and eighth in race two. His Spanish countryman Fonsi Nieto (PSG-1 Kawasaki) was one place behind each time, with Chris Walker (PSG-1 Kawasaki) twice finishing in tenth. Third PSG-1 rider Regis Laconi struggled hard through the day to finish 13th and 16th. MIDFIELD MAYHEM FOR THE FINAL POINTS Pierfrancesco Chili (DFX Honda) narrowly missed out on a point in race one, but scored two in the second race, despite feeling the after effects of two hard races. His team-mate Michel Fabrizio had a better start to race two than the first, and duly finished 11th, making up for a disappointing 15th in the opener. Lorenzo Lanzi was to have another eventful day in Australia, as he had to start race one from pitlane, after returning to the pits for machine changes during the sighting lap. He battled to 11th, but in race two, he suffered a crash, which left race one retiree Karl Muggeridge (Winston Honda Ten Kate) out the points entirely after Lanzi’s crashing machine took out the Aussie star. Only one Yamaha Motor France rider scored points at PI, Norick Abe fighting to 12th in race two, one place up on Max Neukirchner’s Pedercini Ducati. PETRONAS BOYS MAKE FINISHES A front row start for local boy Steve Martin (Petronas FP-1) led to a 14th place in race one, then a 15th in race two. His team-mate Craig Jones crashed out of race one, but took a 21st place finish, his first of the year.

Supersport World Championship Round 2 Phillip Island, Australia March 5, 2006 Race Results: 1. Sebastien CHARPENTIER, Honda CBR600RR, 21 laps, 34:01.822 2. Kevin CURTAIN, Yamaha YZF-R6, -1.361 seconds 3. Broc PARKES, Yamaha YZF-R6, -7.796 seconds 4. Yoann TIBERIO, Honda CBR600RR, -16.788 seconds 5. Robin HARMS, Honda CBR600RR, -16.798 seconds 6. Josh BROOKES, Ducati 749R, -21.250 seconds 7. Johan STIGEFELT, Honda CBR600RR, -21.344 seconds 8. Dean THOMAS, Kawasaki ZX-6RR, -26.309 seconds 9. Christian ZAISER, Ducati 749R, -26.473 seconds 10. Maxime ROCCOLI, Yamaha YZF-R6, -26.515 seconds 11. Sebastien LE GRELLE, Honda CBR600RR, -29.839 seconds 12. Mauro SANCHINI, Yamaha YZF-R6, -34.988 seconds 13. Gianluca VIZZIELLO, Yamaha YZF-R6, -36.328 seconds 14. Didier VAN KEYMEULEN, Yamaha YZF-R6, -37.402 seconds 15. Javier FORES, Yamaha YZF-R6, -38.574 seconds 20. Chris PERIS, Yamaha YZF-R6, -83.477 seconds 25. Kenan SOFUOGLU, Honda CBR600RR, -10 laps, DNF, crashed twice 26. Anthony GOBERT, Yamaha YZF-R6, -10 laps, DNF, mechanical More, from a press release issued by Winston Ten Kate Honda: CHARPENTIER EXPERIENCES ANOTHER PERFECT RACE WEEKEND Sebastien Charpentier (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR) scored his second win of the 2006 championship season, after 21 hot and challenging laps of the classic Phillip Island Circuit. His winning margin of 1.361 seconds was earned the hard way after a race long fight with Kevin Curtain, and the race was only ended as a contest after Charpentier upped the pace on the last three laps. With Curtain second overall, Charpentier’s championship lead now stands at ten points, 50 points to 40. Kenan Sofuoglu was in a battle for fourth place when he fell on lap 12, at Honda corner, and he was unable to re-start. He suffered a hard impact on his right wrist, but examinations in the medical centre showed no fractures. A rookie at the Phillip Island circuit, Sofuoglu had enjoyed a good qualifying session, and looked set for a comfortable double-digit point score until his fall. Sofuoglu’s misadventure now puts him sixth overall in the championship fight, on 16 points. Ronald Ten Kate Team Manager “It was another good win for us and it is particularly pleasing because we didn’t have any pre-season testing at this track. We know that the two Yamaha guys had both been testing around here. That makes it all even better. Sebastien had to ride for his money today but it seems that he was ultimately in control. Just like in Qatar, he could go for a few quick lap times even at the end, opening up a gap. He leads the championship by even more points now, so we couldn’t be happier for him. It was a shame for Kenan, because he was riding very well in warm-up, after we had confirmed some things with his set-up. He was a little bit behind the leading bunch, and he made a few little mistakes under braking, so he had to work hard. But he was making the same lap times as the leading group, and then I think he maybe asked too much from the front tyre and fell. It’s a learning year for him, he’s on a steep learning curve, so we’ll see more of him when we arrive back in Europe.” Sébastien Charpentier WSS Winston Ten Kate Honda Rider (1st position Championship Position: 1st with 50 points) “Another nice race, for sure. Kevin was very strong, he pushed me very hard but this is normal, and it was a home race for Kevin as well. I tried very hard to win today and it was a very hot race. There was a lot of spinning from the rear, but the bike was very good today, even if the Yamaha was very close. It will be necessary to work extra hard for the next race in Europe, in Valencia. It was a very good weekend here, two wins in the season so far, so I have to say thank you to Honda and Pirelli.” Kenan Sofuoglu WSS Winston Ten Kate Honda Rider (DNF Championship Position: 6th with 16 points) “I tried too hard to catch the first group but I made a mistake and fell back down the order a little. There was a small gap to the leaders but I worked my way up to fifth position again, in the second group, managed to overtake another rider, and then I crashed. Not the best weekend result but I hope I can be strong again in Valencia.” More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing Information: CHARPENTIER MAKES IT TWO WINS OUT OF TWO Reigning Champion Sebastien Charpentier (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR) continued his perfect run of results with his second win of the season, scoring the Phillip Island victory after 21-laps under a warm Australian sun. Once more he took a win after scoring pole position, and once more he had to beat off a strong attack from his race-long companion, Kevin Curtain (Yamaha). Upping the pace in the final few laps, Charpentier took an eventual 1.361 second margin of victory, and now leads Curtain by ten points, 50 to 40. Eighth in qualifying, Yoann Tiberio (Team Megabike Honda CBR600RR) got his championship campaign off to a brilliant start, with a brave and rapid fourth, reversing a pass from another fast Honda rider, Robbin Harms (Stiggy Motorsports CBR600RR). His fourth place puts him 11th overall, on 13 points. Kenan Sofuoglu (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR) crashed out at half race distance, having qualified well in sixth place, on a track that was new to him. He now sits sixth in the table, thanks to his 16 points from Qatar. Charpentier was once more peerless when it really counted, but had to work hard throughout, being pushed by the pace of determined hometown runner, Kevin Curtain. “Another nice race, for sure,” said Charpentier, the master of understatement. “Kevin was very strong, he pushed me but this is normal, and it was a home race for Kevin as well. I tried very hard to win today and it was a very hot race. There was a lot of spinning from the rear, but the bike was very good today, even if the Yamaha was very close. It will be necessary to work extra hard for the next race in Europe, in Valencia. It was a very good weekend here, two wins in the season so far.” At only 19-years-old, and as a Phillip Island rookie, Tiberio could have been forgiven for adopting a gentle touch in his first race, but his cool-headed aggression delivered him an outstanding result. “After I had to miss Qatar,” said Tiberio, “this was my first race of the year. I qualified OK on the second row, but the race was much harder. Qualifying is only for one lap, but the race had 21, and it was quite hot. I wasn’t sure if I could get Harms before the finish line came up but I got on the gas earlier and just managed it.” After a great podium finish in Qatar, Sofuoglu’s Phillip Island experience proved a bitter one, but the young Turkish rider is ready to make amends. “I tried too hard to catch the first group but I made a mistake and fell back down the order a little,” said Kenan. “There was a small gap to the leaders but I worked my way up to fifth position again, in the second group, managed to overtake another rider, and then I crashed. Not the best weekend result, but I hope I can be strong again in Valencia.” More, from a press release issued by Scuderia SC Caracchi: IN SUPESPORT GOOD RESULT FOR JOSH BROOKES, NO LUCK FOR LUKA NEDOG (Phillip Island 2006, March 5) Joshua Brookes fighet as a lion, finishing an all attack race in 6th position, after a thrilling fight against the Swdish rider Stigefelt, and now is at the 5th place of Championship Standing: “In front of my fans I gave the 110% and at the end we reach a good result.” said finally smiling Brookes at the end of the race “For the warm up session we worked on the set up and we good positive answer. For the race I got a good start, at the first split I was 9th , then somebody touched me and I lost a couple of positions. However I recovered, at fourth lap I was 10th and at the thirteenth I was 7th. I fought for many laps with Stigefelt, but at the end I overtook him and on the straight I tried without success to get my trail, our Ducati 749R has too much power. I’m happy for this result, also at the beginning of the season I was confident to do better, but I’m sure that finally we got the right way.” No luck on the contrary for Luka Nedog that, after improving his qualifying lap time more as 2″ during the warm up, was hoping in a good race. On the contrary first a jump start ride trough penalty and the a crash stopped his race. “With the team during the warm up we made a totally new set up, and the result has been quickly excellent.” commented back in the pit Nedog “I recorded easily a 2″ faster lap time as during qualifying, so I was confident in a good race, also because the bike was very fast. On the contrary the track conditions was strongly changed at race time as in the morning warm up, and immediately in the sighting lap I feel subit the bike different. Then the jump start penalty, the following ride trough make me nervous and I crashed at the middle of the race in a strange way, I miss the rear tyre with the throttle totally closed. I haven’t any injury and the bike too isn’t damaged, but my race was finished.” More, from a press release issued by Yamaha Racing: Yamaha Motor Germany riders Kevin Curtain and Broc Parkes took their first double podium finish of the year at round two of the Supersport World Championship in Philip Island. The Australian riders were involved in a race-long battle with world champion Sebastien Charpentier (Honda), with the two R6 riders breaking the lap record in the opening stages as they applied pressure to the Frenchman. Parkes demonstrated the new R6’s speed by setting a new lap record on lap three, just minutes after Curtain had lowered Katsuaki Fujiwara’s three year old record. Curtain passed Charpentier at MG corner to take the lead on lap five. However the two Yamaha riders succumbed to rear end traction problems in the later stages of the race, allowing Charpentier to take the win, while the Yamaha men rode sensibly to bring their machines home for valuable championship points. Yamaha Team Italia riders Massimo Roccoli and Gianluca Vizziello brought their R6s home in tenth and 13th places respectively. FIM Superstock 1000 Cup champion Didier van Keymeulen finished 14th, with Javier Fores gaining a point for 15th. Former world superbike race winner Anthony Gobert ran as high as fifth on his GMT94 entered R6 but retired with set-up problems. Charpentier’s win extends his championship lead to 10 points over second placed Curtain. Parkes’ 16 points for third place moves him to fifth in the standings with two of the 13 races gone. Round three of the race takes place at the Ricardo Tormo circuit close to Valencia in Spain on April 23. Prior to that, the Yamaha Motor Germany squad will undertake tests in Misano and Valencia, where they plan to have new parts to increase the competitiveness of their machines. Kevin Curtain (Yamaha Motor Germany) I got in front of Charpentier a couple of times but every time I thought I could get a break on him, he came past again. It was close racing but always fair, because Sebastien and I trust each other. It’s the first stage of race development for our new R6. So after Qatar and here, I think we can say that the first stage is going pretty well. I can’t wait for the second stage – can’t wait to get to Valencia now.” Broc Parkes (Yamaha Motor Germany) “It’s not my best result but I’m really happy to be on the podium here, because it’s my first one in Australia. Having only done a lap last week this was really my first race of the season. I struggled to get my lines flowing today and I probably geared the bike a bit too low. I was able to run with Kevin and Seb in the opening laps, but when I was in the slipstream the bike was hitting the rev-limiter, which I knew wasn’t good. I tried to stay with them but in the end it was better to take the third than try anything silly. I’m looking forward to Valencia as it is a track that suits my style.” Massimo Roccoli (Yamaha Team Italia) “I am quite satisfied to finish in the top 10 in my first race at this circuit. I had a small problem with my braking, which meant that I could not brake as hard as I like into the hairpin but we have no problem with the traction and otherwise the bike was very good.” Gianluca Vizziello (Yamaha Team Italia) “I am happy to get some points today. The front of the bike was sliding quite a lot and this meant I could not push as hard as I liked in the fast corners. So, some points are definitely better than none!” Anthony Gobert (Yamaha GMT94) “I had excessive chatter in the front, but I felt like I could still get into the top five. It got so bad I had to stop. We looked at the bike and everything seemed OK, but the chatter just continued and I had to retire.” Terrell Thien (Team Manager – Yamaha Motor Germany) “The early season results have gone well for us. Always our plan was to get as many points as possible in these opening races so to get three podium finishes is as good as we can expect. We expect to have our next performance step for the Valencia race and as the championship goes to Europe we must now target race wins.” More, from a press release issued by FGSport Group: WORLD SUPERSPORT CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND 2 The big guns of World Supersport fired loudest once more, as Sebastien Charpentier (Winston Ten Kate Honda) took his second successive race win, ahead of Yamaha Motor Germany pairing Kevin Curtain and Broc Parkes. Third was a good finish for Parkes on his own track, bit one rider could count Phillip Island as the race of his life. Young French pilot, Yoann Tiberio (Megabike Honda), put in a fourth in his first ever WSS tour of duty, just edging out another impressive rider, Robbin Harms (Stiggy Motorsports Honda). Josh Brookes (Ducati SC Caracchi) rode his heart out on home tarmac to take his 749 to sixth, the top finishing place for a Ducati rider. A possible sixth for Barry Veneman (Hoegee Suzuki) disappeared when his rear tyre punctured and he slipped down the order to retire. In the championship itself, Charpentier now leads by ten points, from Curtain on 40 and Harms on 21.

Superbike World Championship Round 2 Phillip Island, Australia March 5, 2006 Race One Results: 1. Troy CORSER, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 22 laps, 34:33.545 2. Alex BARROS, Honda CBR1000RR, -0.450 second 3. James TOSELAND, Honda CBR1000RR, -7.974 seconds 4. Noriyuki HAGA, Yamaha YZF-R1, -15.121 seconds 5. Roberto ROLFO, Ducati 999F05, -16.292 seconds 6. Troy BAYLISS, Ducati 999F06, -17.120 seconds 7. Ruben XAUS, Ducati 999F05, -17.192 seconds 8. Fonsi NIETO, Kawasaki ZX-10R, -22.457 seconds 9. Andrew PITT, Yamaha YZF-R1, -22.490 seconds 10. Chris WALKER, Kawasaki ZX-10R, -23.176 seconds 11. Lorenzo LANZI, Ducati 999F06, -28.347 seconds 12. Yukio KAGAYAMA, Suzuki GSX-R1000, -28.413 seconds 13. Regis LACONI, Kawasaki ZX-10R, -28.833 seconds 14. Steve MARTIN, Foggy Petronas FP1, -28.977 seconds 15. Michel FABRIZIO, Honda CBR1000RR, -29.122 seconds 16. Pierfrancesco CHILI, Honda CBR1000RR, -30.825 seconds 17. Norick ABE, Yamaha YZF-R1, -30.955 seconds 18. Max NEUKIRCHNER, Ducati 999RS, -35.417 seconds 19. Ivan CLEMENTI, Ducati 999RS, -46.919 seconds 20. Franco BATTAINI, Kawasaki ZX-10R, -68.373 seconds 21. Shinichi NAKATOMI, Yamaha YZF-R1, -6 laps, DNF, crash 22. Karl MUGGERIDGE, Honda CBR1000RR, -7 laps, DNF, mechanical 23. Fabien FORET, Suzuki GSX-R1000, -10 laps, DNF, mechanical 24. Craig JONES, Foggy Petronas FP1, -12 laps, DNF, crash 25. Vittorio IANNUZZO, Suzuki GSX-R1000, -13 laps, DNF, crash 26. Marco BORCIANI, Ducati 999F05, -14 laps, DNF, mechanical 27. Sebastien GIMBERT, Yamaha YZF-R1, -18 laps, DNF, mechanical 28. Lucio PEDERCINI, Ducati 999RS, -19 laps, DNF, mechanical More, from a press release issued by Team Klaffi Honda: First Podium for Alex Barros at Phillip Island “At Phillip Island we will see Alex on the podium!” This was Klaus Klaffenböck’s forecast and already in the first race today it came true. Alex was 5th in the grid, Bayliss, Corser, Toseland and Martin in front of him. A good start was important and Alex did it. When the riders came back from lap one Alex was on 5th position. Only a few laps later the Brazilian started his first attack. He passed Haga, moved forward to position 4. Bayliss was ahead having a big lead over his followers, Corser and Toseland. Alex put the screws on Toseland and passed him in lap 8. Bayliss, Corser and Barros the parts seemed to be assigned for the rest of the race. Everybody expected Bayliss to be winner of the first heat. But there were still 6 laps to go the Australian lost speed. He had a tyre problem and Corser and Barros passed him. Now Alex was on second position just behind Troy Corser. In the last laps he tried to challenge the Australian but it was not possible to pass him. – Alex Barros finished second in his third race of World’s Superbike Championship. Alex Barros: “The team worked very hard and so I had a perfect adjustment of the Klaffi Honda Fireblade in the race. I organised my tyres very well to have enough grip even at the end of race. When I was chasing Corser I planned to attack him in the last lap. But then in the crucial moment I was not close enough to him. It was too risky and it was better to assure the second position. The first heat was quite okay. I hope the second race today will be as good as the first.”

German rider Rico Penzkofer, 30, became the first man to win a race on a Buell XB-RR with a victory in the CCS Supertwins race at Daytona International Speedway Saturday. Penzkofer took the lead on the first lap of the six-lap contest but was passed mid-race by Dario Marchetti, a former World Superbike regular who was riding a Ducati 999RS Superbike. Thanks in part to the top speed advantage of his motorcycle, Marchetti led the second half of the sprint, but Penzkofer was able to stay close. On the final lap, Marchetti led into and out of the chicane and looked sure to hold his lead to the checkered flag. Marchetti was forced to back off, however, when his helmet visor began fogging as he approached a group of slower riders on the run from NASCAR Turn Four to the finish line. This allowed Buell of Hanover’s Penzkofer to sneak through and take the XB-RR’s first victory in its debut race weekend. “I hope it is not the last win for this bike – or for me,” Penzkofer told Roadracingworld.com. The race at Daytona was Penzkofer’s first competitive event in the U.S. Penzkofer has previously tested twice at Daytona, the first time in December 2005 and the second time in January. Earlier in the day, Penzkofer qualified the Buell XB-RR eighth for the ASRA Superbike race, which is scheduled for Sunday. Penzkofer turned a 1:47.202, about five seconds slower than polesitter Jason DiSalvo and his factory Yamaha YZF-R6 at 1:42.290. Steve Crevier, also riding a Buell XB-RR, qualified first for the ASRA Thunderbike race, turning a 1:49.695 but was disqualifed because he had not actually entered the race. The lap times turned so far by Penzkofer and Crevier may indicate that wild Internet speculation that the two-valve, pushrod, air-cooled twin-cylinder Buell XB-RR will steamroll next week’s AMA Formula Xtreme race against four-valve, DOHC, water-cooled four-cylinder 600cc machines is somewhat premature.

Catalunya MotoGP test Day two, Saturday March 4 2006 GIBERNAU IMPROVES, CAPIROSSI RECUPERATES Ducati Marlboro Team riders Sete Gibernau and Loris Capirossi had very different days at Catalunya today. While Gibernau was able to ride 82 laps and improve on his Friday best by 0.772s, Capirossi spent most of the day recuperating from a nasty stomach virus. In cloudy and slightly cooler conditions, Gibernau was happy with progress, improving the consistency of his Desmosedici GP6 by careful work on set-up and tyres. This allowed him to ride his fastest lap at the end of the day when track conditions were past their best. Capirossi only completed 15 laps after a sleepless night. Despite severe stomach pains he did ride two outings, immediately improving his best time by 0.672s and verifying the front-end geometry adjustments made to his GP6. Test rider Vittoriano Guareschi focused on engine braking to better understand yesterday’s engine-braking issues. FILIPPO PREZIOSI, Ducati Corse director “Loris wasn’t able to do much today but he did try different front-end geometry for more high-speed stability. My thanks to him for testing even when he was sick. Sete meanwhile worked his way through many different things. He tried different front-end geometry for more stability and better front feel, plus different rear-shock settings, different handlebars and, of course, different tyres. Most importantly the bike is now more consistent on lap times. We solved our engine-braking problems by going back to the set-up we used at the previous test for Loris, while Sete was able to test some new software which worked to his satisfaction. Loris will try this software tomorrow when we also hope to continue our set-up work because we still have a lot more things to try.” SETE GIBERNAU, 82 laps, 5th fastest, 1m 43.784s “Today was a tough, tough day, very physically and mentally demanding but it’s been good. We went through a lot of stuff and I’d like to thank the team and Bridgestone for giving 100 per cent and doing a great job. We are still working hard on the bike, we’ve still a way to go but we’re definitely chipping away. We worked on geometry, electronics, tyres, everything. We are making the whole package better, more predictable, more consistent, and the tyres are giving me more driveability now, which is the whole ballgame.” LORIS CAPIROSSI, 15 laps, 13th fastest, 1m 44.581s “What a bad day. I didn’t sleep all night, I was sick and had stomach pains, probably because of a virus. This morning the Clinica Mobile put me on a drip, but they advised me not to ride. Anyway, I wanted to test the set-up changes we’d made. I did just two outings and that was enough to realise we had taken the right direction because I faster straight away, even though I’m sick. This is very important for tomorrow. If the dry weather stays and I’m feeling better we will be able to fully exploit our last day here.” Temperatures: Ambient: 19 degrees C. Track: 20 degrees C More, from a press release issued by Dorna: Rossi and Checa continue to impress at MotoGP Official Test Valentino Rossi was once again the fastest rider at the MotoGP Official Test, with a dominant display at the Circuit de Catalunya. Already yesterday’s fastest on track, he took just under twenty minutes to top the timesheets today, with a fast lap of 1’43.704 coming at 1pm local time. Amongst those to take to the track early this morning were Sete Gibernau, Alex Hofmann and Hopkins, with Rossi the last to make an appearance at the Spanish circuit. Weather conditions all day were gloomy and overcast but luckily no rain fell, although the cloudy skies caused temperatures to drop from yesterday on the track. With many riders breaking for lunch, Repsol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa crashed out on turn four. The incident left the Spaniard uninjured, but forced him to ride on his second bike for the rest of the session. Rossi continued to ride fast, but later in the afternoon the top spot on the leaderboard was exchanged rapidly between four riders. Colin Edwards set a lap of 1’43.388, but just minutes later Kawasaki’s Shinya Nakano put in a flying lap of 1’43.245 to snatch the position. Carlos Checa continued his tremendous preseason form by breaking the circuit record. The Spaniard has so far been the surprise story of the Official Test, yesterday completing an all-Yamaha top three and today going one better. Fifteen minutes after setting his fastest lap though, Checa saw Rossi break the 1’43 second barrier and pip him to first place. Behind the top four of Rossi, Checa, Nakano and Edwards, there were three other riders to lap quicker than 1’44: Ducati’s Sete Gibernau, French rookie Randy de Puniet on the Kawasaki and Suzuki’s John Hopkins. Completing the top ten were the three fastest Honda riders of the day. HRC rider Nicky Hayden clocked the eighth fastest lap of the day ahead of Makoto Tamada and Dani Pedrosa. Some light rain is predicted for tomorrow, which will be both the final day of the Official Test and the scene of the BMW M Award competition, which starts at 2pm local time and will see the riders compete to earn the fastest lap in a 40 minute session. The winner of this action-packed race against the clock will receive a brand new BMW Z4 M Roadster. More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki Racing: TOP THREE FOR NAKANO IN CATALUNYA Kawasaki’s Shinya Nakano mastered difficult conditions today, at a cold and windy Catalunya, to finish the second day of the annual IRTA test with the third fastest time overall. Nakano started the day with shakedown tests on the latest specification Ninja ZX-RR engine, before switching to his second bike, and an earlier version motor, to continue tyre testing with Bridgestone. The 28-year-old Japanese rider lapped consistently throughout the day, rarely dropping outside of the top six, before securing third position on the timesheet with his final flying lap. Despite still suffering from the effects of a heavy landing after highsiding his Kawasaki Ninja ZX-RR yesterday, Randy de Puniet also made significant improvements to his lap time, eventually finishing sixth fastest and ahead of a number of more experienced factory MotoGP riders. Like his Kawasaki teammate, de Puniet also dedicated most of today’s session to tyre testing, as the 25-year-old Frenchman and Bridgestone worked to complete their test schedule in the dry, but cold, conditions. Today saw a strong performance from both Kawasaki riders, and one that stands Nakano and de Puniet in good stead for tomorrow’s traditional qualifying competition. The fastest rider during a timed, one hour session tomorrow afternoon will leave Catalunya with a brand new car, courtesy of series sponsors, BMW – a prize both Kawasaki riders have said they would be happy to collect! Shinya Nakano: #56 – 3rd (1’43.245) “This is a new experience, both for me and the team. In the past we have struggled to achieve a good result at this first European test, but today everything came together and we finished top three on the timesheet. For sure, we have to do the same tomorrow during the last day, but this result has provided a real boost to the team, all of whom have worked so hard to get us to this point. And we think there is more to come, because we still have a further evolution of the Ninja ZX-RR engine to test in Jerez next week. I also managed to do some tyre testing for Bridgestone today, but it is difficult to evaluate tyre performance when the track temperature is so low. Hopefully we can continue to improve tomorrow, although it looks like the rain that we managed to avoid today will definitely make an appearance for tomorrow’s qualifying session.” Randy de Puniet: #17 – 6th (1’43.847) “This morning I was a little bit sore from my big crash yesterday, but the only place it was really noticeable was through the first split, where I was losing a little bit of time. This morning we concentrated on tyre testing with Bridgestone; with most of the tyres we tried offering some improvement despite the cold track conditions. Last thing this afternoon I tried a couple of laps on a qualifying tyre, and I’m happy with the lap times, but again I was losing a little bit of time on the first part of the track because of the soreness in my lower back and my ankle. I hope that it stays dry for tomorrow, as I’m confident that I can make further improvements before we head for the next test at Jerez.” Naoya Kaneko: Technical Manager “Today we ran shakedown tests with Shinya and Randy on the latest specification engine, with positive results, and we’ll continue testing with this engine when we move on to Jerez for the second IRTA test next week. Conditions today haven’t been ideal for testing, but both riders are happy with the base set-up on their respective bikes and we have managed to collect development data for Bridgestone, despite the low track temperature. We’ve pushed to complete our test schedule as quickly as possible because of the threat of rain, so tomorrow we have a few things to evaluate, but the main focus will be on the qualifying session in the afternoon.” More, from a press release issued by Fortuna Honda: FORTUNA HONDA COMPLETE SECOND DAY OF OFFICIAL TESTS MOTOGP TEST CATALUNYA, day 2 FORTUNA HONDA riders Marco Melandri and Toni Elías completed their second day of official testing duties at the Circuit de Catalunya in cold weather conditions today. The two riders worked hard throughout the day although at the end they were forced to settle for twelfth and seventeenth position respectively. Marco was able to complete the programme he had for today although he was unable to reach the desired results. The Italian, who produced a stunning run of form at the end of last season to seal second place in the championship, knocked a fraction of a second off his time from yesterday but that was not enough to leave him satisfied at the end of the day. His team-mate Toni Elías, who is riding a MotoGP bike for the first time at this track, was unable to improve on the 1’44.672 he clocked yesterday. Tomorrow the riders will have the opportunity to demonstrate their potential in front of thousands of spectators, who will flock to the track to enjoy the timed BMW Award session which runs from 14:05 until 14:45. MARCO MELANDRI (76 laps, 1’44.512) 12th fastest: “They’ve been two very tough days for us but we’ve still got a long way to go. I’m struggling to find the ideal feeling to enter the corners comfortably and I still need to improve my corner speed and line. Fortunately we’ve still got four days of tests left before the first race at Jerez. I’m disappointed we are not at the level we would like to be at but I still look forward to this season with optimism.” TONI ELIAS ( 70 laps, 1’45.782 ) 17th fastest “Yesterday we saw one side of the coin and today we saw the other. This wasn’t a great day for us even though we worked really hard to make it that way. We had a few grip problems and the track temperature didn’t help much either. We can’t use that as an excuse though because it was the same track for everybody. We tried a few different tyres without finding the ideal one but I’m sure we will find it through hard work. I actually felt more comfortable on the bike yesterday.” More, from a press release issued by Camel Yamaha: YAMAHA MEN CONTINUE TO DOMINATE ON SECOND DAY AT CATALUNYA Camel Yamaha Team rider Valentino Rossi clocked the fastest time once again on the second day of MotoGP Official Test at the Catalunya Circuit in Spain, after another encouraging session for Yamaha. With Rossi again setting the pace for much of the day, closely followed by his team-mate Colin Edwards, the pair took advantage of the warm afternoon conditions to continue to run through their pre-season testing programme at an impressive rate. Edwards ended the day with the fourth fastest time after briefly leading the time sheets in the closing stages, shaving seven tenths of a second off his best time from yesterday and making continued progress with the race set-up of his YZR-M1 machine. Rossi lapped 1.2 seconds faster than he had managed yesterday, closing in on lap record time as both riders prepare an assault on tomorrow’s timed 40-minute session, which will reward the fastest lap with the prize of a new car. Meanwhile, Yamaha Tech 3 rider Carlos Checa continued his impressive pre-season form with the second fastest time of the day. VALENTINO ROSSI (1st, 1’42.477, 72 laps) “To go so fast so early in the test yesterday was the big surprise to us, so today we have just built on that and continued to make improvements. We completed some more important tests and the base setting is good now – we had a few problems with chatter earlier in the pre-season but we seem to have solved those now and today the lap times became faster and faster. I’m also really happy because, to me, this bike feels like my daughter and now I can see it is going well for other riders Colin and Carlos both love it. Looking at the time sheets this evening of course I am in with a good chance for the new car, but tomorrow is another day and we will have to see what happens. Hopefully the weather will stay as it has done for the last couple of days and we can complete the whole programme we had planned for this test in a positive way.” COLIN EDWARDS (4th, 1’43.388, 65 laps) “We had a few things to test today and every step we made seemed to take us in a positive direction, so I couldn’t be happier really. The bike is getting better and better and we just keep improving so that is all I can ask for. The cool track temperatures mean that we can’t do much for Michelin here so we’re just focusing on the bike and refining the setting as much as we can before Jerez. We played with the suspension and the engine mapping a little today but we had no major dramas and the 65 laps went by really quickly. Right now I feel we’re ready to go racing so it’s just a case of adding the finishing touches.” DAVIDE BRIVIO CAMEL YAMAHA TEAM DIRECTOR “Another good day for Yamaha! It is nice to see our bikes at the top end of the time sheets the riders are doing a great job and the team are able to stick closely to the testing programme. We had some items to test for Michelin and Yamaha today mainly with the chassis setting to try and improve the variables of the bike. We got some good information together and now we’re ready for the challenge tomorrow. Really the car is not so important but it would be nice to start the year in a positive way and both our riders are ready to compete for it.” Lap Times 1. VALENTINO ROSSI (ITA) Camel Yamaha Team, 1’42.477 2. Carlos Checa (SPA) Tech 3 Yamaha, 1’43.142 3. Shinya Nakano (JPN) Kawasaki Racing Team, 1’43.245 4. COLIN EDWARDS (USA) Camel Yamaha Team, 1’43.388 5. Sete Gibernau (SPA) Ducati Marlboro Team, 1’43.784 6. Randy de Puniet (FRA) Kawasaki Racing Team, 1’43.847 7. John Hopkins (USA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP, 1’43.970 8. Nicky Hayden (USA) Repsol Honda Team, 1’44.029 9. Makoto Tamada (JPN) Konica Minolta Honda, 1’44.246 10. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda Team, 1’44.369 11. Kenny Roberts (USA) Team Roberts, 1’44.407 12. Marco Melandri (ITA) Fortuna Honda, 1’44.512 13. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Ducati Marlboro Team,1’44.581 14. Chris Vermeulen (AUS) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP, 1’45.001 15. James Ellison (GBR) Tech 3 Yamaha, 1’45.488 16. Jose Luis Cardoso (SPA) D’Antin Pramac, 1’45.582 17. Toni Elias (SPA) Fortuna Honda, 1’45.782 18. Alex Hoffman (GER) D’Antin Pramac, 1’46.185 19. Vittoriano Guareschi (ITA) Ducati, 1’48.205 Catalunya Lap Record: Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) 2005 1’43.195 Catalunya Best Lap: Sete Gibernau (Honda) 2005 1’42.337 More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing: MotoGP test Catalunya. Day two of three-day test, March 4, 2006. Nicky Hayden again fastest RCV rider at IRTA Catalunya test. Repsol Honda rider was again the fastest Honda RC211V rider of the day at the IRTA test at Catalunya. Hayden shaved two-tenths of a second off his best time of yesterday despite struggling to find rear wheel grip in the cold and blustery conditions at the 4.727 km Spanish GP circuit, close to Barcelona. American Hayden is putting in a mammoth stint each day of testing as he runs through a heavy HRC test programme with the 2006 RCV. Despite the low temperatures and high winds Hayden managed to get in a staggering 107 las today. Dani Pedrosa, on the second Repsol Honda, improved his time by over half a second but crashed just after lunch. The youngster lost the front end of his RCV entering turn four but escaped injury and was quickly back on track and up to pre-crash speed. The Fortuna Honda riders experienced mixed fortunes with their efforts to improve performance. Italian Marco Melandri was faster than yesterday but he struggled to come to grips with the new Michelin rear tyre. Melandri had been the Honda man to catch during the winter test series but the ideal RCV set up on the previous best Michelin rear proved to be way off the mark for the latest upgraded product from the French tyre supplier. Melandri’s team-mate, Toni Elias was a full second off his best time of yesterday struggling from a lack of rear wheel grip. The young Spaniard tried a range of Michelin tyres but was never comfortable on his RCV today. Japanese star Makoto Tamada improved his performance on the Konica Minolta Honda taking half a second off his best time of yesterday. Tamada tried the new Michelin rear tyre but found he needed to do a lot of work on the base set up of his RCV before he began to get the best out of he tyre. Despite some improvement Tamada feels he still has a lot of work to do if he is to get the best out of the new tyres. Team Roberts had an up and down day with the KR211V. The team started the day with the all-new third generation Roberts chassis but struggled to find grip in the morning and decided to test the old chassis in a bid to determine where their problem lay. They made progress with finding grip around mid-day transferring the data to the new chassis and ended the close to where they need to be at this stage of the three-ay test. Honda rider lap times and quotes. Nicky Hayden, Repsol Honda: 1m 44.029s 107 laps. “We spent a lot of time working with the new chassis today and testing some improved parts that Honda has brought from Japan. The bike’s now really stable on the brakes and turning into the corner is much better, so we’re getting there. It’s still moving around a bit on the exit of corners and better traction is something we’re working on. We’re moving forward though and we’ve still got a lot of stuff to try.” Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda: 1m 44.369s 71 laps. “Today was good and not so good because we were making some progress, I was getting a better feel with the bike on this track, and then I crashed. Physically I’m ok but I think the bike is not in such good shape! I lost the front entering turn four and I think maybe it’s because I was using too much brake into the corner. I went out again and I was able to get up to speed again so I feel ok.” Makoto Tanaka Repsol Honda Team Manager “We had quite a busy and a hard day today. Nicky did a very good job, especially working on the frame, and he did a lot of laps just like yesterday. Dani, I think he learned a lot today! He continued to build up his MotoGP experience and tried some chassis set-up work today. His speed improved well but unfortunately he fell off this afternoon when he tried to up the pace. But I’m happy because he is ok. We are not totally satisfied with the result today but we did some good testing here and I’m looking forward to seeing both Nicky and Dani ride well tomorrow.” Marco Melandri, Repsol Honda: 1m 44.512s 76 laps.”They’ve been two very tough days for us but we’ve still got a long way to go. I’m struggling to find the ideal feeling to enter the corners comfortably and I still need to improve my corner speed and line. Fortunately we’ve still got four days of tests left before the first race at Jerez. I’m disappointed we are not at the level we would like to be at but I think I can still look forward to this season with optimism.” Toni Elias, Repsol Honda: 1m 45.782s 70 laps. “Yesterday we saw one side of the coin and today we saw the other. This wasn’t a great day for us even though we worked really hard to make it that way. We had a few grip problems and the track temperature didn’t help much either. We can’t use that as an excuse though because it was the same track for everybody. We tried a few different tyres without finding the ideal one but I’m sure we will find it through hard work. I actually felt more comfortable on the bike yesterday.” Makoto Tamada, Konica Minolta Honda: 1m 1m 44.246s 63 laps. “The performance of today has got better, but we are still far from the top standing positions. It seems the fastest riders have found the right setting to obtain the best performances of the new 2006 tyres. Today, we have started testing the new rear Michelin tyres but, to be effective as I would like to be in the central phase of the corner, I still have some little problems to solve. At this juncture, the bike behaviour is completely different from last year and we need much more time to find the best configuration. Anyway, I am satisfied because I could verify that the global potential of our technical package is definitely high.” Giulio Bernardelle Konica Minolta Honda Technical Director “Today, for the first time in 2006, we could use the new rear Michelin tyres. For sure, a good step ahead in the global performance has been done but the first impression is that the bike needs an absolute specific setting in order to obtain all its potential. In the second half of this afternoon, we have only been able to start this work getting a first improvement in performances. The problem to be solved is that the grip increase of the rear tyre leads to a non-perfect balance of the bike up to the corner central phase. For this, we should attain to adjust our Honda RC211V bike.” Kenny Roberts Junior, KR Honda: 1m 44.407s 71 laps. “We just couldn’t find grip with the new chassis early this morning and went back to the chassis we ran at the last Sepang test. That chassis has been modified and brought up to close on new bike spec. We got it too work pretty good and used the data on the new bike and ended the day with both chassis’ working pretty much the same. But I don’t think we will have two bikes with the same frames and performance before we get to the Jerez race.”

Superbike World Championship Round 2 Phillip Island, Australia March 4, 2006 Superpole/Final Qualifying Results: 1. Troy BAYLISS, Ducati 999F06, 1:32.159 2. Troy CORSER, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:32.373 3. James TOSELAND, Honda CBR1000RR, 1:33.003 4. Steve MARTIN, Foggy Petronas FP1, 1:33.206 5. Alex BARROS, Honda CBR1000RR, 1:33.373 6. Karl MUGGERIDGE, Honda CBR1000RR, 1:33.571 7. Andrew PITT, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:33.598 8. Norick HAGA, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:33.631 9. Lorenzo LANZI, Ducati 999F06, 1:33.791 10. Chris WALKER, Kawasaki ZX-10R, 1:33.928 11. Pierfrancesco CHILI, Honda CBR1000RR, 1:33.998 12. Yukio KAGAYAMA, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:34.111 13. Fonsi NIETO, Kawasaki ZX-10R, 1:34.158 14. Regis LACONI, Kawasaki ZX-10R, 1:34.492 15. Roberto ROLFO, Ducati 999F05, 1:34.719 16. Ivan CLEMENTI, Ducati 999RS, 1:35.032 17. Norick ABE, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:34.269 18. Fabien FORET, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:34.513 19. Max NEUKIRCHNER, Ducati 999RS, 1:34.559 20. Michel FABRIZIO, Honda CBR1000RR, 1:34.632 21. Sebastien GIMBERT, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:34.666 22. Ruden XAUS, Ducati 999F05, 1:34.790 23. Marco BORCIANI, Ducati 999F05, 1:34.944 24. Shinichi NAKATOMI, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:35.039 25. Franco BATTAINI, Kawasaki ZX-10R, 1:35.316 26. Craig JONES, Foggy Petronas FP1, 1:35.886 27. Lucio PEDERCINI, Ducati 999RS, 1:35.931 28. Vittorio IANNUZZO, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:36.202 More, from a press release issued by Team Klaffi Honda: Phillip Island – Alex Barros Fifth in the Grid A thrilling second day at Phillip Island! Yesterday Alex Barros finished second in Qualifying I. This morning the Brazilian improved his lap time again. But Alex tested a different setting of his Klaffi Honda Fireblade. This solution was not so perfect and with a 1’33.749 Alex achieved 9th position. So he had to push in Superpole. And Alex managed this job! In the Free Practice before the pole he did a 1’33.471 lap time. In Superpole Alex covered the 4.445 m of the track in only 1’33.373. Faster than Muggeridge, Pitt, Rolfo and Haga he finished 5th. Tomorrow Alex starts from second row in the grid. Alex Barros: “The conditions are perfect here at Phillip Island. I like the hot and sunny weather very much. And there are no gusts of wind from the seaside which may attack you sometimes here. But beside this we took a big step forward since Qatar. We have a very good adjustment for the race tomorrow. I start from the second row. Position 5 in the grid is not so bad at all. Bayliss and Corser, the two Australians, are in front. They are fast but it is not impossible to catch them!” More, from a press release issued by Winston Ten Kate Honda: TOSELAND TO START FROM FRONT ROW AT PHILLIP ISLAND Having set the fourth fastest time in regulation qualifying, James Toseland (Winston Ten Kate Honda) improved both his time and his starting position in Superpole, slashing half a second off his previous best outing on race tyres, with a 1’33.003. Only his fellow former World Champions, Troy Bayliss and Troy Corser, set times faster than Toseland in Superpole, with Bayliss on pole thanks to a 1’32.159. In the second timed qualifying session, which determines the Superpole qualifying order, Toseland set a 1’33.548. Toseland will be going for win number two of the season in Sunday’s two 22-lap Superbike races, having won the opening leg of the year in Qatar. Karl Muggeridge (Winston Ten Kate Honda) will start from a second row grid position, having qualified sixth fastest with a time of 1’33.571, also beating his regulation qualifying time. Muggeridge is the fourth Australian rider in the top six places, proving how much of a boon local knowledge and support means at this fast and sun-drenched track. Ronald Ten Kate Team Manager “We knew that it was going to be an epic battle between the two Troys to grab pole here and so we have been concentrating on race settings. They seem to be quite consistent on race tyres. We also had messy Superpole laps, with some small mistakes and slides, but what happens, happens, and we are happy for James to make a front row start. After we saw how things went for Karl yesterday, it was pretty good for him to get onto the second row today. I think he had some things on his mind, like his little boy back in Switzerland. Now he is fully focussed back here. We are sure he can do well here tomorrow, because on a race set-up he is running quite a constant pace. Tomorrow morning we will make use of warm-up to define race set-up. With James we are really close, for Karl we maybe have to do a bit more to play catch up, because we almost lost yesterday. I’m happy, we are looking good, and I don’t think anyone can make five or six laps into the 1’32s. I would be very surprised with that.” James Toseland SBK Winston Ten Kate Honda Rider (3rd position 1’33.003) “I’m happy to be on the front row again, it’s hard out there because the two Troys are going particularly well this weekend and I didn’t expect anything else. I’ve got a good race setting for tomorrow, so I’m happy enough. I’m also confident I can be consistent and everybody is going to have a few tyre issues tomorrow, so we’ll be spinning towards the end of the race. But we’ll have the same as everybody and we’ll be in with a shout. I’m learning every time out there, I’m doing a lot of laps, and the bike is a great package. I’ve qualified on the front row here and in Qatar, then won and took a fourth, and now I’m tied for second in the championship. If we can build on that, I’ll be happy.” Karl Muggeridge SBK Winston Ten Kate Honda Rider (6th position 1’33.571) “Not so bad, considering that yesterday was such a disaster. We had to chase like hell today to make everything in a better direction. I wasn’t extremely happy with my Superpole lap but we made some big changes between yesterday and today, but it has worked. We still have stuff to do in warm-up on Sunday but I feel much better on the bike today.” More, from a press release issued by Team Yamaha Motor France – Ipone Getting ready for the race Norick Abe, Se©bastien Gimbert and Shinichi Nakatomi did not qualify for Superpole and worked hard this Saturday so their Yamaha R1s have the best settings to perform as well as possible during the races. The level of the 2006 Superbike World Championship is very impressive: After the qualifying sessions, there were only 1.5 seconds between the riders from 4th to 24th position! In this context, Norick Abe missed the 16th and last qualifying spot for the Superpole by only 0.08. Sebastien Gimbert was 21st and Shinichi Nakatomi 24th. It is interesting to see that we could have a great starting grid with the riders who did not qualify for Superpole : Abe, Foret, Neukirchner, Fabrizio, Gimbert, Xaus, etc. The temperature in Australia is quite high, with 37° Celsius for the air and 53° for the track on Friday afternoon. On Saturday morning, it was already 26° and 37°. This makes it difficult for the technicians to find the right settings because the grip is changing a lot. Norick Abe : “There is less grip than during the January tests, probably because of the higher temperature, and I had to change my settings. We tried to find some grip, but with little success. My engine lacks power. This is the second time in a row that I do not qualify for Superpole so I am not very happy.” Sebastien Gimbert : “I am not satisfied because this grid position is definitely not mine. During my fast lap, I had to avoid one rider exiting the pit lane and I lost between 3 to 4 tenths of a second. So I shall have to start from the back of the grid. The front of my bike moves a little bit too much so we shall try to find the right settings for the race. I am 20 kph (13 mph) slower than the fastest guy so I lose roughly 2 tenths in the main straight. The positive points are that my brake problems have been solved and there is less chattering.” Shinichi Nakatomi : “I am so-so satisfied with my qualifying practices. There is a chattering problem that appeared with the new tyres, and there are many little things we have to improve. We shall try to find the best settings for the race.” Martial Garcia (team-manager): “Our riders did the same lap time than in January, which is positive, but they could not improve. Setting the bikes up is difficult because the new tyres have more grip, then more chattering. The opposition is very strong and we did not qualify for Superpole. Abe had an engine problem. Because of lack of time, we are using the 2005 engines.” More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse: BAYLISS (DUCATI XEROX TEAM) SMASHES SEVEN-YEAR-OLD PHILLIP ISLAND LAP RECORD TO GRAB SECOND POLE OF THE YEAR ON THE DUCATI 999F06 Phillip Island (Australia), Saturday 4 March: Troy Bayliss smashed Phillip Island’s seven-year-old record lap time to take a second successive pole position of the year on the Xerox-backed factory Ducati 999 machine. In scintillating form throughout the weekend, the 36-year-old Australian was quickest in every practice and qualifying session and clinched pole with a time of 1m32.159s, a full second faster than Troy Corser’s 1999 mark. Bayliss’s Superpole lap also made it three world champions in the top three positions as he lines up with Corser (Suzuki) and James Toseland (Honda) alongside him, while Steve Martin completed the front row for the Petronas team. “It’s very nice to be on pole back here at Phillip Island, at the moment I’m having a bit of a dream run” declared Troy. “Everything’s gone well today, my lap was good enough to take pole, but honestly I thought I was going to do a little bit better. It was messy and I had my feet in the wrong place in a few spots, but I’m happy. I’m not kidding myself however because I realise how hard tomorrow is going to be, with two long races and plenty of heat out there. I really need to get a good start if I want to try and do something special, but Phillip Island makes for great racing and it tends to bring the top few guys together and you end up having a race and then it gets sorted out at about two-thirds distance”. Team-mate Lorenzo Lanzi made progress in the morning’s second session, when he qualified 15th, and the Italian followed that up with ninth quickest time in Superpole, which was good enough for the third row of the grid. “It has been a very difficult weekend for me” said Lorenzo. “We started off well on Friday morning then we encountered a bit of difficulty. I made a few changes on the bike, which didn’t take us in the right direction but now it seems that I have got it more to my liking. I made a few errors in Superpole, without them I might have been able to get on the front row, or at least the second. So all things considered I’m in a better position than I was this morning. Hopefully I can get a good start, because the most important thing is to start with a win in mind or at least a good placing. It’s going to be tough seeing as the two Troys are in such great form on this track, but my aim is to stay in the second group and do a good race starting from the third row”. More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki: Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra rider Troy Corser will start tomorrow’s second-round World Superbike Championship round at Phillip Island, Australia from the front row after taking second place in today’s Superpole. It was a mixed day for Alstare Suzuki riders Yukio Kagayama and Fabien Foret: Kagayama crashed in regular qualifying and bruised his right hand and the base of his spine. Then, on his Superpole lap, he ran wide exiting Siberia, went over the white line and hit the dirt. He stayed on the bike, but he lost time in the process and ended up with only the 12th fastest time overall. Foret continued his Superbike learning process, but failed to make Superpole by the narrowest of margins. Troy Bayliss (Ducati) topped the time sheets with James Toseland (Honda) third and Steve Martin (Petronas) fourth. Troy Corser – 2nd, 1:32.373 “We struggled a bit yesterday with grip and the clutch, so we made some adjustments to the set-up and changed the clutch today. It was definitely an improvement – though not perfect yet. I think we’re all going to have some sort of grip problems tomorrow if the weather stays as hot as it has been these two days. Most of us are all on the same tyres so it’s going to be a very long, hard day tomorrow. I would’ve liked to win Superpole – in front of all the Aussie fans – but being on the front row is what counts. There are quite a few guys in with a chance so it’s going to be a fantastic day’s racing for all the fans.” Yukio Kagayama – 12th, 1:34.111: “We changed the front and rear set-up from yesterday but I don’t think there was any improvement so we will probably go back to our original set-up tomorrow. A couple of mistakes today for me: First a crash in the last corner and I hurt my hand and the bottom of my back. Then in Superpole, I ran wide and nearly lost it when my bike went on to the dirt. Because of that, I lost time and that means I am on the third row of the grid. I need a very good start, otherwise I will get held up in a group and I don’t want that to happen. I hope my back is not too sore tomorrow because I need two good races and many points. Fabien Foret – 18th, 1:34.513: “We made some changes to the front end this morning and the bike felt a bit better. But in the afternoon, we could not make any improvement, so we’ll try another change in the tomorrow morning’s warm-up. The bike is very sensitive and I am not finding it so easy to ride as fast as I would like, but I am confident that I will get there. We’ll try and make it handle better over the bumps and be a bit easier to ride. At the moment I am still learning about the difference between a Supersport bike and a Superbike and I think I must change my style of riding if I want to make good progress.” Final WSB Qualifying: 1 Bayliss (Aus-Ducati) 1:32.159, 2 Troy Corser (Aus-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) 1:32.373, 3 Toseland (GB-Honda) 1:33.003, 4 Martin (Aus-Petronas) 1:33.206, 5 Barros (Bra-Honda) 1:33.373, 6 Muggeridge (Aus-Honda) 1:33.571, 7 Pitt (Aus-Yamaha) 1:33.598, 8 Haga (J-Yamaha) 1:33.631, 9 Lanzi (I-Ducati) 1:33.791, 10 Walker (GB-Kawasaki) 1:33.928. 12 Yukio Kagayama (J-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) 1:34.111. 18 Fabien Foret (F-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) 1:34.513. More, from a press release issued by Foggy Petronas Racing: Martin on front row for Foggy PETRONAS Racing at Phillip Island Steve Martin will start from the front row of the grid on the PETRONAS FP1 for the second season in succession at Phillip Island tomorrow. The Australian qualified in fourth place for the second round races in the Superbike World Championship, alongside James Toseland, Troy Corser and Troy Bayliss. Having qualified in fifth place in the morning session, Steve posted his best lap time of the weekend of 1:33.206 to claim his front row place. He was also able to complete extensive race simulation runs during afternoon free practice, in which he finished sixth fastest. Craig Jones continued to gain valuable knowledge of the circuit, in only his second visit to Phillip Island, and sliced more than half a second off yesterday’s best time during morning qualifying. Steve said: “I have gone progressively quicker all weekend and to do my fastest lap when it counted was great. It was just about as quick as I could go, while knowing that I would be returning! So we have given ourselves every chance for the races tomorrow, as being on the front row is a great asset for us. I have been practising starts all weekend and think I have them nailed now, so I can be nice and aggressive into the first corner. I might not be able to run the top guys but I should be able to race for the points this weekend and I am really hoping for a top ten finish, which should be achievable. The level of competition in the Superbike World Championship has always been high but to be on the front row this year, with the addition of the MotoGP riders, is a real achievement and a measure of how much progress we are continually making with PETRONAS.” Craig said: “I made a little bit of progress with the bike towards the end of morning qualifying and tried other things in the free practice which didn’t make a massive difference. Trying to make the bike suit me and go fast at a track that I don’t fully know is difficult. I have a setting I am reasonably happy with but circuit knowledge is important round here, but tomorrow I will be riding as hard and as fast as I can with the package I have.” More, from a press release issued by Scuderia SC Caracchi: WELL ROBY IN AUSTRALIA, BUT FAILS THE SUPERPOLE (Phillip Island 2006, March 4) To play all the work done during qualifying sessions in a “dead live lap” could be exiting, but sometime could also get you angry. That what happen today at Phillis Island for Superbike qualifying. After having recorded at the end of qualifying a fantastic seventh fastest, just a tenth of second behind the third position, in the afternoon Roberto said to fly away the possibility of a prestigious starting grid position due a wrong performance in Superpole that fling him in the fourth row. SC Caracchi 999F05 Ducati rider looks confident for tomorrow races. “Unfortunately I made a wrong lap during Superpole session.” admits Roberto Rolfo, but not very disappointed for what has happened. “Still the lap start I’ve been not very fast, but I could repair at that mistake, then in the central sector of the track I made several mistakes, I’ve lost the pace and I finished the lap with a bad lap time. We used qualifying tyres, but I’ve not been able to use them at the best. However I’m confident that the bike with race set up is good, as shows by the seventh fastest this morning with race tyres. I believe that I have still to coordinate my job on this bike to have some improvement more. During those couple of days we always improved our performance, more and more looking at the Qatar week end, so it’s going all at the best, I just have to forget this wrong Superpole lap.” More, from a press release issued by Yamaha Racing: Yamaha Motor Italia duo Andrew Pitt and Noriyuki Haga bagged second row starts during today’s superpole qualifying session for round two of the Superbike World Championship at Phillip Island in Australia. Having ended combined qualifying with Haga third and Pitt sixth, the pairing was a little disappointed at being unable to maintain their positions on the soft tyres used for superpole but satisfied with their performances in race trim. After struggling to find a good balance for his R1 in yesterday’s opening qualifying session, Pitt’s crew completely revised the machine’s settings for today’s practice. Their work paid dividends with the Australian carving a massive 1.3 seconds from his Friday time in the Saturday afternoon, lifting him from 16th to sixth in the timesheets with a 1:33.567 lap time. However, on his grid deciding superpole lap, Pitt was one of the few riders not to better his time from the two one-hour sessions, losing one place with a fractionally slower 1:33.598. Team-mate Haga was another rider unable to improve his lap. His 1:33.631 superpole lap was two-tenths of a second slower than his time from regular qualifying, dropping him five places on the grid – from third to eighth. The Japanese rider had made many changes to the rear suspension on his machine in a bid to improve traction in the sweltering conditions and, despite his team working late into the night and trying many different shock and swingarm combinations, Haga was unable to find a perfect setting for his qualifying lap. The team is expected to make further adjustments this evening ahead of tomorrow’s two 22-lap races. Yamaha Motor France rider Norick Abe starts tomorrow’s races from 17th position after missing out on superpole by less than a tenth of a second. The Japanese rider continued to experience set-up problems, as did team-mates Sebastien Gimbert and Shinichi Nakatomi. Gimbert ended the day 21st after being baulked on his flying lap, while world championship rookie Nakatomi took over a second off his Friday time to end the day in 24th. Troy Bayliss (Ducati) took pole position with a 1:32.159 lap time. Troy Corser (Suzuki), James Toseland (Honda) and Steve Martin (Petronas) complete the front row. Andrew Pitt (Yamaha Motor Italia) “We’ve improved a lot today although we’re still not quite there yet. It’ll be a hard race as we’re struggling for traction but, with the exception of Bayliss and Corser, I think everyone’s in the same boat. We can do six or seven quick laps and then it drops off, so we’ll try to improve it further overnight. I thought I did a pretty good lap, so I was a bit disappointed when I saw my time. It could be a lot worse though. Second row’s not the end of the world and we can get a good start from there.” Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia) “We did a good job today. We tried many different things today although the feeling is still quite similar to yesterday and we couldn’t quite get a good setting for the superpole. I made a small mistake on my superpole lap but it is ok. Tomorrow we will try a few more things. It will be hard but I know that we are always stronger in the race than in qualifying.” Norick Abe (Yamaha Motor France) “We have less grip than when we tested here in January. Probably this is down to the increased temperature but it means that we must change the settings of the bike. We are still looking for grip. I am disappointed to miss out on superpole for the second week in a row. We are a little down on power and must try to find some improved settings overnight.” Sebastien Gimbert (Yamaha Motor France) “I am not happy because 21st is not my normal position. A rider exited the pits and cut in front of me as I attacked my fastest lap and this probably cost me about four-tenths-of-a-second, so I am sorry to be so far back on the grid. We made some improvements today. We changed the brake discs and this was better, and we managed to reduce the chatter. We have to work and improve the set-up overnight though, as we have still to match our performance from our test here. The front is still moving around a lot and I am down on top speed compared to the fastest riders.” Shinichi Nakatomi (Yamaha Motor France) “I’m not happy to end the day so far down. We have a problem with chattering, as well as some other small things. We changed the settings in the afternoon and I hope we can find some more improvements this afternoon.” Massimo Meregalli (Team Coordinator – Yamaha Motor Italia) “After our strong performances in Qatar we have found it a little bit more difficult than expected here. I am still confident about tomorrow though. We know what Nori can do in the race while Andrew will have a boost from riding at his home track.” Martial Garcia (Team Manager – Yamaha Motor France) “When we tested here in January we were using the 2005 tyres and although the new specification Pirellis perform better, they also create more chatter with these settings. As a result we have been almost able to match our performances with from the test but not improve on them. Because of the early start to the season we have had to use 2005-specification engines and because the level is much higher this season we have not been able to make the superpole today.” More, from a press release issued by Troy Corser’s publicist: FRONT ROW FOR TROY Troy rode a superb Superpole lap at Phillip Island today but ended up second quickest behind his fellow countryman Troy Bayliss (Ducati). Just two tenths of a second separated them at the end of the 16-rider Superpole shoot-out and now the scene is set for a tremendous day’s racing tomorrow. Third fastest today is James Toseland (Honda), with Steve Martin (Petronas) alongside him on the front row of the grid. TROY – 2nd, 1:32.373 Superpole would’ve been good, especially as I have my family and friends here, but the front row is all that matters and I’m ready to race. We had some problems yesterday with grip and the clutch and the bike seemed to be spinning a lot instead of giving good traction. So we made some changes to both and there was an improvement today. I can’t say it’s fully OK, but it’s better than yesterday for sure. Tomorrow is going to be another long, hard day and I’m sure we’re all going to feel tired after two 22 lap races. There’s going to be quite a riders in with a chance of a win and that’s going to mean really good racing. With good weather and good racing, the fans are in for a treat.