From a press release issued by MonsterMob Ducati:

MonsterMob Ducati British Superbike and Supersport Championship Team

THINK! British Superbike Championship
Rounds 5/6
Snetterton, Norfolk
24th/25th April

MORE POINTS FOR EMMETT AS LAVERTY TAKES VICTORY

MonsterMob Ducati riders Sean Emmett and Michael Laverty consolidated their positions in their respective championships after an action packed round three of the THINK! British Superbike Championship at a sun-kissed Snetterton today.

999 F02 mounted- Emmett followed up a hard fought fourth in the opening Superbike race with a battling rostrum in race two to move into third in the championship after three of the thirteen rounds.

“Not a bad day I suppose” summarised the 34 year old from Weybridge. “The four cylinder machines seemed to dominate here with their speed which we thought may happen. Also, still having an injury to my finger doesn’t help especially with not really having a break between now and OultonPark. This weekend was a damage limitation exercise but obviously there’s still a long way to go. This circuit is one of the weakest ones for us all year but you’re never going to be able to compete with the four cylinder machines on speed but wait until we get to some of the more technical circuits the twin will come into its own and I will get my pay back” said Emmett.

MonsterMob Ducati Supersport rider Michael Laverty moved to the lead in the championship after a superb debut victory aboard the 749 after a race long battle had seen him move from 11th in the opening stages.

The 22 year old Toomebridge, Northern Ireland rider snatched the lead with three laps to go but the race was red-flagged a lap short after an accident. However, Laverty was in the lead when the race was stopped and as a result took his second victory in three years at the Norfolk circuit:

“I had an awful first lap and dropped back to 11th but I rode a steady race and picked them off one by one as I didn’t want to try too hard early on. I never thought I would get through to the front but I was strong at the end of the race. The bike was brilliant and the tyres were good and it all just worked out for me” said a delighted Laverty.

Team owner Paul Bird was happy enough with his riders’ performances:
“That was a good day and we had three good finishes. We knew this wasn’t going to be a track for the Superbike and we had to make the best of a bad job, especially with Sean riding injured. We will go to Oulton Park next week which should hopefully suit the Ducati more. Michael’s result was excellent and we knew it was going to happen shortly. He has shown that he is world class, coming from way down on the first lap and he rode probably the best race of his career.”

Superbike Race One Result
1, Yukio Kagayama (Suzuki) 27:50.976
2, John Reynolds (Suzuki) -0.414
3, Michael Rutter (Honda) -1.018
4, Sean Emmett (MonsterMob Ducati) -1.597
5, Scott Smart (Kawasaki) -2.396
6, Dean Thomas (Ducati) -9.061
7, Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) -12.186
8, Tommy Hill (Yamaha) -18.779
9, Glen Richards (Kawasaki) -31.451
10, James Haydon (Ducati) -34.846

Superbike Race Two Result
1, John Reynolds (Suzuki) 26:40.720
2, Michael Rutter (Honda) -0.504
3, Sean Emmett (MonsterMob Ducati) -9.774
4, Yukio Kagayama (Suzuki) -12.937
5, Dean Thomas (Ducati) -14.436
6, Scott Smart (Kawasaki) -16.045
7, Glen Richards (Kawasaki) -16.710
8, Steve Plater (Yamaha) -21.023
9, Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) -26.050
10, Tommy Hill (Yamaha) -26.795

Supersport Race Result
1, Michael Laverty (MonsterMob Ducati) 23:14.750
2, Karl Harris (Honda) -0.537
3, Pere Riba (Kawasaki) -0.578
4, Luke Quigley (Suzuki) -1.813
5, Simon Andrews (Yamaha) -2.091
6, Jay Vincent (Honda) -2.259
7, Tom Sykes (Suzuki) -7.651
8, Adrian Coates (Suzuki) -8.394
9, Craig Jones (Triumph) -8.684
10, Matt Llewellyn (Ducati) -14.619



Superbike Championship Standings (after Round 6)
1, John Reynolds (Suzuki) 127 pts
2, Michael Rutter (Honda) 117 pts
3, Yukio Kagayama (Suzuki) 78 pts
3, Sean Emmett (MonsterMob Ducati) 78 pts
5, Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) 76 pts
6, Scott Smart (Kawasaki) 68 pts
7, Dean Thomas (Ducati) 48 pts
8, Tommy Hill (Yamaha) 40 pts
9, Glen Richards (Kawasaki) 33 pts
10, Gary Mason (Yamaha) 32 pts


Supersport Championship Standings (after Round 3)
1, Michael Laverty (MonsterMob Ducati) 51 pts
2, Karl Harris (Honda) 45 pts
3, Jay Vincent (Honda) 43 pts
4, Pere Riba (Kawasaki) 42 pts
5, Luke Quigley (Suzuki) 38 pts
6, Craig Jones (Triumph) 27 pts
6, Simon Andrews (Yamaha) 27 pts
8, Kieran Murphy (Honda) 19 pts
9, Adrian Coates (Suzuki) 15 pts
9, Tom Sykes (Suzuki) 15 pts



More, from a press release issued by MSS Discovery Kawasaki Team:

British Supersport/National Superstock Championships
Round three ­
Snetterton

Sunday, April 25, 2004

MSS DISCOVERY TAKE PODIUM FINISH WITH THIRD PLACE FOR RIBA AT SNETTERTON

MSS Discovery¹s Pere Riba finished third after an action-packed third round of the British Supersport Championship at Snetterton in Norfolk on Sunday.

The ZX-6RR rider was looking to add a maiden victory to his two fourth places so far this year. And, in a race which had five different leaders, Riba lost out on a possible second place when a seven-rider crash brought the 22-lap race to a premature end on lap 20.

“That was a great race,” said Riba. “I made one small mistake with a couple of laps to go and lost the lead but I still thought it was possible to fight back and win. The machine was fast and the brakes were brilliant.”

Riba, fourth in the championship but just nine points off the lead, continued: “There was nothing I could fault with the machine and the win was there for the taking ­ but for me running wide. Such a small mistake has cost us but it’s normal when you¹re leading and when you have a queue of riders behind you.”

MSS Discovery’s Rob Frost looked set to record his first points of the year as he held 10th place but the Lincolnshire ace was caught up in the seven-rider incident at the end of Snetterton¹s long, back straight.

Frost explained: “I don’t know what I’ve done wrong but I can¹t seem to get the points in the bag. The guy whose engine blew had just passed me so I had nowhere to go. I got a great start and was all on for the finish and the points that I needed.”

Battling Steve Allan fought through to an eventual eighth place in the National Superstock Championship race after qualifying in 18th. The Scotsman rode a calculated race on the ZX-10R and was holding eighth when the race was cut short by three laps due to a crash.

“I don’t ever want to qualify that low again–it was madness on the first lap,” reported Allan. “I just held on really and picked off a place when I could. I got involved in a few scraps but there was no way I was going to
take any risks.

“The problems we’d had with the brakes in qualifying were sorted out and the machine felt really good and consistent throughout,” added Allan, now up to sixth place in the Championship.


British Supersport Championship, round three result (20 laps,­ 39.00 miles):
1 Michael Laverty, Ducati, 23:14.750
2 Karl Harris, Honda, 23:15.287
3 Pere Riba, MSS Discovery Kawasaki, 23:15.328
4 Luke Quigley, Suzuki, 23:16.563
5 Simon Andrews, Yamaha, 23:16.841
6 Jay Vincent, Honda, 23:17.009
7 Tom Sykes, Suzuki, 23:22.401
8 Adrian Coates, Suzuki, 23:23.144
9 Craig Jones, Triumph, 23:23.434
10 Matt Llewellyn, Ducati, 23:29.369

Championship points after three of 13 rounds: 1 Laverty 51, 2 Harris 45, 3 Vincent 43, 4 Riba 42, 5 Quigley 38, 6 Jones and Andrews 27, 8 Kieran Murphy, Honda 19, 9 Coates and Sykes 15.

Next round: Oulton Park ­ May 3


National Superstock Championship, round three result (17 laps, 33.15 miles):
1 Danny Beaumont, Yamaha, 19:33.192
2 Ben Wilson, Suzuki, 19:33.663
3 Tristan Palmer, Suzuki, 19:34.361
4 Andy Tinsley, Suzuki, 19:35.469
5 Les Shand, Yamaha, 19:42.658
6 John Laverty, Yamaha, 19:45.282
7 Darren Mitchell, Suzuki, 19:48.257
8 Steve Allan, MSS Discovery Kawasaki, 19:53.480
9 Stephen Thomson, Suzuki, 19:55.550
10 Ryan Rainey, Yamaha, 19:57.109

Championship points after three of 13 rounds: 1 Tinsley and Wilson 58, 3 Beaumont 54, 4 Palmer 45, 5 Shand 31, 6 Allan 24, 7 Mitchell 20, 8 Mark Heckles, Yamaha 16, 9 Kelvin Reilly, Ducati 15, 10 Craig Fitzpatrick, Suzuki 14.

Next round: Oulton Park ­ May 3



More, from a press release issued by Scott Smart’s publicist:

FACTORY British Superbike racer Scott Smart rounded off another successful weekend at Snetterton yesterday with two top-six finishes – and managed to lead for part of race two after getting past series leader John Reynolds. Smart (27) worked hard on set-up during qualifying as he knew that the outright horsepower of the Suzukis and Hondas would be very hard to match along the Norfolk circuit’s two long straights, so he concentrated on getting his Hawk Kawasaki’s handling exactly right. And it paid off as he was able to keep with, and get past, the faster bikes through Snetterton’s twisty Esses/Bombhole/Coram section, only losing out on the straight bits.

“My race one start was a bit average, I went to the left side of the track and got blocked,” said Smart. “That meant I got really poor drive going to Sear corner and ended up going onto the back straight in tenth. I had to work really hard draughting to get past the Virgin Yamaha bikes, Plater was riding really well too, and then got up to and past Dean Thomas.

“After I passed him, I got my head down and chased the leading group. I managed to get up to Emmett but my tyre went off and I started sliding a lot, so I just yo-yo’d up to him, and then away again as I didn’t have enough grip.

“Before race two, I made a decision that, come hell or high water, I WAS going up the inside into the first corner, I got good drive and then did two more people going into Sear, got more good drive onto the back straight. Then I picked off one more bike and found myself in second, behind Reynolds.

“There was still some oil on the track at the Esses, but I was happy to go into it as fast as John. I sat with him for a couple of laps until he made a mistake into the Bombhole, went a little bit wide, I dived underneath him and took the lead. I managed to pull a little time on JR as we went over the line. I got round to Sear again, but had a moment, and John came whistling past up the Revett Straight, dragging Emmett in his slipstream.

“I tried to stay with them, but coming into Russell Chicane, I hit a false neutral, had to go across the grass and ended up back in tenth.

“Then it was damage limitation, so I got my head down again, and managed to get back up to sixth, passing my team-mate Glen on the way. “All in all, a great weekend, it was fantastic to lead a superbike race, and I’m really, really up for Oulton Park next weekend.”

From a press release issued by Corona Extra Suzuki:

NECK INJURY SIDELINES CRAGGILL

Corona Extra Suzuki Superbike rider Marty Craggill, who placed eighth in Race 1 of the AMA Superbike at Fontana and crashed out in race 2, has undergone surgery and will miss the upcoming event at Infineon Raceway.

After returning to Australia following Fontana, Craggill had a continuing pain in his neck. X-rays revealed nothing but after a week of persistent discomfort, a requested CAT scan revealed a fracture in his C6 vertebra. Marty was admitted for surgery earlier this week. The vertebra was pinned and a bone graft undertaken. Marty is recovering after the successful operation. His return to racing fitness will be determined following doctor review in May.

We all wish Marty a speedy recovery.

Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Provisional Saturday Morning AMA Formula Xtreme Practice Times:

1. Miguel Duhamel, Honda CBR600RR, 1:28.930
2. Jake Zemke, Honda CBR600RR, 1:29.260
3. Doug Chandler, Ducati 749R, 1:30.680
4. Jason Pridmore, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:30.870
5. Michael Barnes, Buell XB9R, 1:32.378
6. Larry Pegram, Yamaha YZF-R6, 1:32.627
7. Ty Howard, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:32.944
8. Vincent Haskovec, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:32.955
9. Blake Young, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:33.229
10. Chris Caylor, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:33.465
11. Alex Gobert, Honda CBR600RR, 1:33.514
12. Heath Small, Yamaha YZF-R6, 1:33.539
13. Jason Farrell, Kawasaki ZX-6RR, 1:34.676
14. Derek Keyes, Yamaha YZF-R6, 1:35.484
15. Jason Mathiason, Yamaha YZF-R6, 1:35.735
16. Mike Shreve, Yamaha YZF-R6, 1:35.814
17. Perry Melneciuc, Yamaha YZF-R6, 1:35.875
18. Ben Walters, Yamaha YZF-R6, 1:36.008
19. Nathan Hester, Yamaha YZF-R6, 1:36.770
20. Doug Duane, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:37.229

From a press release issued by MonsterMob Ducati:

MonsterMob Ducati British Superbike and Supersport Championship Team

British Superbike Championship
Rounds 5/6
Snetterton
24th/25th April

FRONT ROW FOR EMMETT

MonsterMob Ducati rider Sean Emmett will start rounds five and six of the THINK! British Superbike Championship at Snetterton from the front row of the grid after a dramatic final qualifying session this afternoon.

Having set fastest time in this morning’s first timed qualifying, the 34 year old Londoner was holding provisional pole position when with around ten minutes of the session to go, the red flag came out when James Haydon’s ETI Ducati blew an oil seal.

Despite the pain of a broken finger sustained in a race crash at Brands Hatch over Easter, Emmett was bumped back in the dying throes and despite setting a faster time, clung on to third place for an all important front row start. Remarkably, Emmett and Suzuki rival John Reynolds set identical times but Emmett got the nod by virtue of the fact that his second fastest lap was quicker than Reynolds’.

“I’m quite satisfied with that and it seems that me and Michael (Rutter) were the quickest on race tyres. However, one lap of qualifying is always a lottery as there are always those guys who can do one quick lap but doing twenty five of them is a different matter. The front row is what we wanted so I’m happy” said Sean.

Meanwhile, Emmett’s team mate Michael Laverty will have to battle through from row three of the grid having posted ninth fastest time during British Supersport qualifying. The 23 year old Ulsterman was comfortably in fifth place for much of the session but missed out late in the session.

“It would have been good to start the race from further up but we were concentrating on perfecting our race set up rather than doing one fast lap. We managed to do OK from even further back at Brands so I’m feeling confident about tomorrow’s race” said Laverty who won at Snetterton last season.

Superbike Qualifying
1, Michael Rutter (Honda) 1:05.713
2, Dean Thomas (Ducati) 1:05.766
3, Sean Emmett (MonsterMob Ducati) 1:05.909
4, John Reynolds (Suzuki) 1:05.909
5, Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) 1:06.098
6, Scott Smart (Kawasaki) 1:06.150
7, Steve Plater (Yamaha) 1:06.407
8, Yukio Kagayama (Suzuki) 1:06.449
9, Glen Richards (Kawasaki) 1:06.492
10, James Haydon (Ducati) 1:06.947


Supersport Qualifying
1, Karl Harris (Honda) 1:08.673
2, Luke Quigley (Suzuki) 1:08.721
3, Pere Riba (Kawasaki) 1:08.840
4, Tom Sykes (Suzuki) 1:08.967
5, Simon Andrews (Yamaha) 1:08.971
6, Tom Tunstall (Honda) 1:09.077
7, Jay Vincent (Honda) 1:09.095
8, Leon Camier (Honda) 1:09.099
9, Michael Laverty (MonsterMob Ducati) 1:09.101
10, Iain MacPherson (Honda) 1:09.135


More, from a press release issued by MSS Discovery Kawasaki Team:

British Supersport/National Superstock Championships
Round three ­
Snetterton, April 25 2004

Saturday April 24 2004

RIBA SCOOPS FIRST FRONT ROW START ON MSS DISCOVERY KAWASAKI

Pere Riba will make his first front row start on the MSS Discovery ZX-6RR Kawasaki after taking third place in Saturday¹s British Supersport Championship qualifying at the Snetterton circuit in Norfolk.

Riba, second in the Championship points standings, was just 0.1s away from a debut pole position in the class and is confident of a first podium finish after taking fourth place in the previous rounds at Silverstone and Brands Hatch.

“I’m very, very happy with what we’ve achieved today,” said Riba. “The machine and tyres feel better than they have done at any point this year. Everything continues to improve with the new ZX-6RR and this weekend feels like a major step forward in that development.”

Riba added: “There are some good, quality riders in the Supersport class so to be third on the grid, and on my first visit to Snetterton, is good. We also have a good race tyre – I was only 0.3s slower on the race tyre than the soft compound Metzeler we use for qualifying.”

Riba’s team-mate Rob Frost will start from 19th place on the grid, escaping injury after he crashed on the final lap of the qualifying session.

Frost explained: “We’d tried just about everything in the session in an effort to get the machine set-up right. Eventually we got the front end of the machine working good but it began bringing the rear around, going sideways on me.

“That’s exactly what happened with the crash, it came around and I knew it was my final lap so there was no way I could roll the throttle off. The race will be a battle but I’m ready for it and Snetterton is a good, open circuit for racing.”

The team’s National Superstock Championship rider, Steve Allan will start from 18th place on the grid after a qualifying day to forget for the Scotsman who took pole position for the opening round of the series four weeks ago at Silverstone.

Allan, less than one second off a front row start, said: “Everything about the ZX-10R is great–it’s the circuit which is causing us trouble this weekend. We’ve had trouble with the brakes since we got here. It’s the same
for every rider out there and it’s just how you can handle it best.

“The characteristics of Snetterton and its long straights mean you’re travelling from 160 mph down to about 30 mph as quick as you can, with
standard brakes it takes its toll. The team have got some ideas though and I’m hopeful we’ll get around the problem by the morning warm-up.”

British Supersport Championship final qualifying times:

1 Karl Harris, Honda, 1:08.673
2 Luke Quigley, Suzuki, 1:08.721
3 Pere Riba, Kawasaki, 1:08.840
4 Tom Sykes, Suzuki, 1:08.967
5 Simon Andrews, Yamaha, 1:08.971
6 Tom Tunstall, Honda, 1:09.077
7 Jay Vincent, Honda, 1:09.095
8 Leon Camier, Honda, 1:09.099
9 Michael Laverty, Ducati, 1:09.101
10 Iain MacPherson, Honda, 1:09.135
19 Rob Frost, Kawasaki, 1:09.779


National Superstock Championship final qualifying times:

1 Tristan Palmer, Suzuki, 1:08.047
2 Andy Tinsley, Suzuki, 1:08.147
3 Ben Wilson, Suzuki, 1:08.371
4 Mark Heckles, Yamaha, 1:08.433
5 Les Shand, Yamaha, 1:08.494
6 Danny Beaumont, Yamaha, 1:08.557
7 Marshall Neill, Suzuki, 1:08.725
8 Ryan Rainey, Yamaha, 1:08.880
9 John Crockford, Suzuki, 1:08.881
10 Aaron Zanotti, Suzuki, 1:08.949
18 Steve Allan, Kawasaki, 1:09.431



More, from a press release issued by Hawk Kawasaki:

BSB Championship, Round 3, Snetterton, Norfolk

Track length: 1.952 miles

Weather: dry, bright sunshine, slight breeze, 24° C

Track: 36° C

COMBINED QUALIFYING

TRAFFIC ROBS SMART OF FRONT ROW START

Hawk Kawasaki’s Scott Smart missed out on a front row start for tomorrow’s two BSB races at Snetterton, Norfolk, by two tenths of a second when he was baulked by slower traffic on his final few laps of qualifying.

Smarty held a strong third position for more than half of the sun-drenched second session and was looking to guarantee a front row start with a flying lap in the closing minutes of qualifying. Unable to avoid slower riders, Scott was forced to settle with sixth quickest time and a second row grid position.

“I had to back off on my last three laps when I was trying for a quick time,” he said afterwards. “It wasn’t the other riders’ fault, they were just mid-corner when I was trying to get through the turn faster and that’s just the way your luck runs sometimes. I ran a .61 and it could have been a .59 no problem if I hadn’t been slowed and that would have been good enough for the front row of the grid.”

His Hawk Kawasaki team-mate, Glen Richards, was also forced to abort his final few flying laps when his ZX-10R developed an miss-fire, leaving the Aussie unable to best his time of 1:06.492. He starts tomorrow’s tow races from ninth.

“It’s really frustrating,” said Glen. “I know I could have gone faster but my number one bike started cutting out and there was nothing I could do. It’s going to be hard starting from the third row, so my aim now is to get away as cleanly as I can.”

Smart’s speed aboard the team’s new Kawasaki ZX-10R surprised many – even Hawk Team Principal Stuart Hicken. “I was concerned about speed, but people said we wouldn’t do anything with the 750 and we did, and we’ve proved that again today with a new bike,” he said. “It’s also nice to see our bikes pass others in a straight line, rather than on the brakes. Being able to do that makes life much easier.

“Overall I’m really happy because it’s very, very close at the top. Scott thought he could’ve gone quicker, Glen definitely could have gone quicker but we were a little bit unlucky to get a miss-fire at the end of the session on Glen’s number one bike. The good thing is that through the speed trap on the back straight we were second and third.”

From a press release issued by d’Antin Ducati:

RUBEN XAUS SUPPORTS THE ONG “MOTOS SOLIDARIAS”

The d’Antin MotoGP rider Ruben Xaus has been appointed honour member of the “Motos Solidarias” organization during a function celebrated in the NH Podium Hotel in Barcelona.

“Motos Solidarias” is the Spanish branch of “Riders for Health” ONG founded in the year 1989 and devoted to saving lives supplying means of transport to canalise medical resources in different African countries. This ONG is dedicated to intensify its actions at present.

Spain is a very caring country and the passion for the two tyres sports takes root. That is why all the actions undertaken by “Motos Solidarias” have been a success in the same way it has happened in Great Britain.

The main World-Championship rider’s involvement is complete and this week Ruben Xaus went along with other riders such as Sete Gibernau and Carlos Checa to pick up the organization’s honorary member award from one of the main responsible hands, the ex-rider Randy Mamola.

Xaus is pride of having a chance to help to the development of this project: “I am very glad that they have counted on me and I can assure that my implication is going to be complete. I will attend as many acts called by Motos Solidarias as I can and I will contribute as much as I can taking part in the auctions or in any other activities. I think that even giving little help we can not lose the chance of doing so”.