From a press release, revealing the existance of new “evolution tires” from Dunlop:

SUPERBIKE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
Eighth round

SAN MARINO
Misano circuit, 4,060 m.
Second Qualifying Sessions

NORIYUKI HAGA ON SECOND ROW AT MISANO

Misano (Rimini), Saturday 22 June – Noriyuki Haga made sixth quickest time in the Superpole to establish the starting grid placings at the San Marino Grand Prix – the eighth round of the Superbike World Championship being held at Misano. The Japanese Playstation2-FGF Aprilia rider moves down one place compared with Friday’s ratings. The tests on the new evolution tyres, which arrived in the morning after being rushed in directly from the Dunlop factory in Britain, did not give the hoped-for results. On a track which has never given him great satisfaction in the past, Haga will be aiming to improve his position in the two races tomorrow.

NORIYUKI HAGA (Playstation2 – FGF Aprilia Team rider) – “I didn’t feel set-up and tyres were all that right: I tried out all sorts of solutions but in the end we rather lost track. The intense heat is making the tarmac very slippery and I haven’t got the grip I’d like to have. Still, the race is quite long enough, so we’ll see what happens.”

GIACOMO GUIDOTTI (Technical Manager, Playstation2 – FGF Aprilia Team) – “Haga didn’t get on too well with the evolution tyres we tested for the first time today: perhaps we needed more time. We’ve decided to test them again during the warm up. We haven’t got the settings right either – especially the fork. What’s more, after his two slides on Friday, Haga was tending to keep himself on the safe side.”

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By Glenn LeSanto

Ben Bostrom threw down the gauntlet to Troy Bayliss this afternoon in Superpole, setting a lap at almost 1:34 dead. Bostrom’s time of 1:34.074 looked good enough to claim pole. Colin Edwards was unable to beat it, but then came along the man of the moment, Troy Bayliss.

Giving a perfect display of controlled aggression, Bayliss lapped the Santa Monica circuit in Misano to take pole for tomorrow’s San Marino Superbike races. Bayliss recorded an incredible time of 1:33.525, half a second
quicker than Bostrom to confirm who’s boss in this series this year.

There seems little Bayliss can do wrong at the moment and all bets have to be on the Ducati Infostrada rider for yet another double in the races on Sunday. While the other riders making it to the front row looked like they were really trying, using all of the track and visibly sliding around, Bayliss looked like he was out for a quiet ride.

Colin Edwards was third fastest with Neil Hodgson rounding out the front row.

1. Troy Bayliss, AUS, Ducati, 1:33.525
2. Ben Bostrom, USA, Ducati, 1:34.074
3. Colin Edwards, USA, Honda, 1:34.258
4. Neil Hodgson, GBR, Ducati, 1:34.356
5. James Toseland, GBR, Ducati, 1:35.004
6. Noriyuki Haga, JPN, Aprilia, 1:35.032
7. Lucio Pedercini, ITA, Ducati, 1:35.459
8. Ruben Xaus, ESP, Ducati, 1:35.511
9. Steve Martin, AUS, Ducati, 1:35.517
10. Pierfrancesco Chili, ITA, Ducati, 1:35.931
11. Juan Borja, ESP, Ducati, 1:36.054
12. Chris Walker, GBR, Kawasaki, 1:36.202
13. Gregorio Lavilla, ESP, Suzuki, 1:36.253
14. M. Borciani, ITA, Ducati, 1:36.480
15. A. Antonello, ITA, Ducati, 1:36.893
16. Mauro Sanchini, ITA, Ducati, 1:37.227

More, from Bayliss publicist Steve Reeves:

TROY BAYLISS Racing
Media Information
For immediate release
Saturday, 22 June 2002

Round 8, 2002 Superbike World Championship

Autodromo di Misano, Misano Adriatica, Italy

Final Qualifying and Superpole Report

ELECTRIC BAYLISS TAKES POLE FOR MISANO SUPERBIKE ROUND

Misano, Italy (Saturday, June 22) – Defending World Superbike champion, Australian Troy Bayliss will start tomorrow’s eighth round of the Superbike World Championship from pole position after a sensational lap during Superpole put him well clear of his rivals at the Misano circuit in Italy.

Bayliss was almost two seconds under the existing superbike lap record as he produced an immaculate Superpole lap, stopping the clocks with a time of 1:33.525 aboard his Infostrada Ducati 998F-02. The only rider to dip into the 1:33 mark around the 4.060km circuit, Bayliss was 0.549 of a second clear of American Ben Bostrom (L&M Ducati) who was second fast with a 1:34.074. Colin Edwards (Castrol Honda) took third for tomorrow’s grid with a 1:34.258, with Britain’s Neil Hodgson (HM Plant Ducati) taking the final spot on the front row of the grid with a 1:34.356.

Today’s pole position takes Bayliss to a total of four for the season and his second consecutive pole after taking the number one position at Germany two weeks ago.

“That was a very special lap I must say,” said Bayliss after Superpole. “That is the fastest that I’ve ever been around here, including the times that we did a couple of years ago when the chicanes were slightly different and a lot faster. Just as I was walking out of my pit garage to the bike I saw that everyone was cheering that Ben (Bostrom) had done a good time, so I knew that I had to pull something special out and I did.

“The whole package is working extremely well at the moment, the bike, the tyres, the team, everything. I couldn’t be happier.” Bayliss added. “As for tomorrow, I know that Colin (Edwards) will be strong as usual, but I’m not sure about the others at the moment. It is forecast to be a lot hotter tomorrow, so 25 laps around here will be extremely difficult both for the riders and the tyres.”

The second row of the grid is headed by James Toseland (HM Plant Ducati) who after being eighth fastest during qualifying worked his way to fifth during Superpole with a 1:35.004. He was followed by Noriyuki Haga (Playstation2 Aprilia, 1:35.032), Lucio Pedercini (Pedercini Ducati, 1:35.459) and Ruben Xaus (Infostrada Ducati, 1:35.511). Steve Martin (DFX Ducati, 1:35.517) and Pierfrancesco Chili (NCR Ducati, 1:35.931) rounded out the top ten.

Bayliss heads into tomorrow’s two 25-lap SWC races holding a 39-point lead over Edwards in the championship (310 to 271) with the pair well clear of third placed Hodgson who has a total of 165 points.

The Australian rider has had a brilliant start to his title defence in 2002. Eleven wins from fourteen races and no worse finishing position than fifth, illustrate his determination in clinching his second SWC crown. His staggering win rate may suggest a dominance of the class, but he has been pressured all of the way by Edwards, with the American remaining within striking distance and ready to capitalise on any opportunity provided to him.

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By Glenn LeSanto

The heat is on in Supersport

Fabien Foret refused to wilt in the intense heat at Misano, running just fast enough to grab pole position again. Temperatures soared up to 37
degrees C (99 degrees F) with 50% humidity for the session, which was held mid-afternoon. Several riders suffered from the heat, either personally or mechanically.

Katsuaki Fujiwara was second fastest, but Foret claimed there was no pressure on him to ride faster. “I could have gone faster still, but no one was putting any pressure on me, so I didn¹t bother to push any harder in the heat.”

Stephane Chambon finished with third on the grid for Sunday’s race, despite suffering from bike problems which saw him pull off the track in the middle of a lap. Andrew Pitt made fourth fastest, after crashing out earlier in the session. His teammate James Ellison also crashed. Robert Ulm, riding for Van Zon Honda TKR in place of the injured Werner Daemon, is first man on the
second row. Ulm lines up on the second row in front of Cogan Kellner and Casoli.

The Belgarda Yamahas struggled with carburation in the heat, while the teams running CBR Hondas claimed the fuel injection was coping with the
conditions without problem.

Iain MacPherson dropped down to ninth after hitting his knee so hard on the curb while running a fast lap late in the session that he found he couldn’t shift gear. “I ran off the track and then just sat on my bike trying to let
the pain pass,” explained MacPherson. Doctors trackside thought he was suffering from heat exhaustion and hussled him onto a stretcher. MacPherson, who is from Scotland, couldn’t make his real predicament understood until he
arrived back at the medical center.

Final World Supersport qualifying times:
1. Fabien Foret, Honda, 1:37.669
2. Katsuaki Fujiwara, Suzuki, 1:37.864
3. Stéphane Chambon, Suzuki, 1:38.021
4. Andrew Pitt, Kawasaki, 1:38.129
5. Robert Ulm, Honda, 1:38.201
6. Christophe Cogan, Honda, 1:38.304
7. Christian Kellner, Yamaha, 1:38.315
8. Paolo Casoli, Yamaha, 1:38.324
9. Iain MacPherson, Honda, 1:38.396
10. Jörg Teuchert, Yamaha, 1:38.499
11. Alessio Corradi, Yamaha, 1:38.522
12. James Whitham, Yamaha, 1:38.586
13. Stefano Cruciani, Yamaha, 1:38.590
14. Piergiorgio Bontempi, Ducati, 1:38.590
15. Chris Vermeulen, Honda, 1:38.594
16. Kevin Curtain, Yamaha, 1:38.810
17. Karl Muggeridge, Honda, 1:38.990
18. Christian Zaiser, Yamaha, 1:39.191
19. Antonio Carlacci, Yamaha, 1:39.210
20. James Ellison, Kawasaki, 1:39.308
21. Camillo Mariottini, Yamaha, 1:39.516
22. Gianluca Nannelli, Ducati, 1:39.728
23. Matthieu Lagrive, Yamaha, 1:40.183
24. Nigel Arnold, Honda, 1:40.217
25. Sebastien Charpentier, Honda, 1:40.439
26. Diego Giugovaz, Yamaha, 1:40.536
27. John McGuinness, Honda, 1:40.565
28. Cristian Magnani, Yamaha, 1:40.643
29. Claudio Cipriani, Yamaha, 1:40.673
30. Robert Frost, Yamaha, 1:40.936
31. Norino Brignola, Suzuki, 1:41.321

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Troy Bayliss claws his way to the top in a hotly contested qualifying session

By Glenn LeSanto

The provisional front row had a few surprises in it for the first three-quarters of today’s World Superbike timed qualifying at Misano. But it was the irrepressible Troy Bayliss who pushed up to the top of the time sheet with a 1:34.420 lap. The Australian put the time in on his final circulation of the twisting Misano circuit, just as the clock ticked away the last few seconds of the session.

For a while though, it was Lucio Pedercini and Steve Martin who got in the limelight. Both lapped fast enough to put themselves on the provisional front row during the session. But as the big guns came out with their special qualifying tyres the pair slipped down the timesheet. Martin managed a 1:35.641 lap on his DFX Racing Ducati to qualify sixth. This made him by far the quickest of the three riders using Pirelli tyres in WSB. Pedercini was seventh.

Neil Hodgson pulled himself up the order in the final moments, going fourth behind Edwards in third and Bostrom who finished second fastest. Noriyuki Haga was fifth fastest despite trashing two bikes in heavy crashes. Haga was unhurt in both incidents. Edwards also crashed during qualifying, but like Haga, he was unhurt.

Friday’s World Superbike qualifying times:

1 Troy Bayliss, Australia (Ducati) 1:34.420

2 Ben Bostrom, USA (Ducati) 1:35.067

3 Colin Edwards, USA (Honda) 1:35.077

4 Neil Hodgson, GB (Ducati) 1:35.136

5 Noriyuki Haga, Japan (Aprilia) 1:35.411

6 Steve Martin, Australia (Ducati) 1:35.641

7 Lucio Pedercini, Italy (Ducati) 1:35.689

8 Ruben Xaus, Spain (Ducati) 1:35.818

9 Pier-Francesco Chili, Italy (Ducati) 1:36.096

10 Gregorio Lavilla, Spain (Suzuki) 1:36.272


More, from Bayliss publicist Steve Reeves:

TROY BAYLISS Racing
Media Information
For immediate release
Friday, 21 June 2002

Round 8, 2002 Superbike World Championship

Autodromo di Misano, Misano Adriatica, Italy

First Qualifying Session Report

BAYLISS FASTEST IN FIRST SUPERBIKE QUALIFYING SESSION AT MISANO

Misano, Italy (Friday, June 21) – In a time that was almost one second faster than the existing superbike lap record, defending World Superbike champion Troy Bayliss scorched around the Italian Misano circuit to record the fastest time in the opening qualifying session for round eight of the Superbike World Championship.

Bayliss was at the top of the time sheets for much of the one-hour session, but was momentarily headed by American Ben Bostrom (L&M Ducati) who recorded his best lap of 1-min 35.067-secs with approximately three minutes remaining. Bayliss was already out on the track at the time and pushed his Infostrada Ducati 998F-02 to an amazing 1:34.420 in the closing minutes, eclipsing Neil Hodgson’s current lap record of 1:35.403.

“I was quite happy with the time that I set this afternoon as it matched my fastest time from the test we had here about a month ago and given that it is so hot today, I think it was very good,” said Bayliss. “It’s forecast to stay hot all weekend, but I feel that there is still a bit of time to trim off the one that I did today.

“I’m very happy with how the Infostrada Ducati is working at the moment along with the Michelin tyres,” added Bayliss. “We managed to test a few different tyres today and have narrowed it down to two that I really like. Tomorrow we’ll continue the process of sorting through the tyres to find the combination that will be best suited to Sunday’s races. At the end of today’s session we put on one soft qualifying tyre and that was the one I used for my quick lap. We didn’t get time to try another, but it gives us a bit of an understanding of what we may need tomorrow.”

Bostrom held on for second, pushing fellow American Colin Edwards (Castrol Honda) to third, who after being the early pace setter of the session, crashed mid-way through the session before rejoining the session aboard his spare machine to record a best time of 1:35.077. Completing the provisional front row of the grid is Brit Neil Hodgson (HM Plant Ducati) with a 1:35.136.

Fifth fastest was Japan’s Noriyuki Haga (Playstation2 Aprilia, 1:35.411), just ahead of Steve Martin aboard his Pirelli shod DFX Ducati. The former Australian Superbike Champion had been as high as third fastest for a lengthy period of the session, but slipped down the order in the closing frantic minutes of the session with a 1:35.641. Lucio Pedercini (Pedercini Ducati, 1:35.689) was seventh, followed by Ruben Xaus (Infostrada Ducati, 1:36.818), Pierfrancesco Chili (NCR Ducati, 1:36.096), with Spaniard Gregorio Lavilla (Alstare Suzuki, 1:36.272) rounding out the top ten.

Qualifying concludes tomorrow morning, followed by Superpole in the afternoon. Sunday will see the SWC stars take to the grid for two 25-lap races in front of an expected huge crowd of emphatic superbike fans.


More, from a Ducati press release:

WORLD SUPERBIKE CHAMPIONSHIP
Round 8
Misano Adriatico, 23 June 2002

SAN MARINO ROUND – FRIDAY QUALIFYING

BAYLISS (DUCATI INFOSTRADA) AND BOSTROM (DUCATI L&M) HEAD THE PACK AT SUN-BAKED MISANO ADRIATICO

PROVISIONAL ROW 2 FOR XAUS (DUCATI INFOSTRADA)

Championship leader Troy Bayliss (Ducati Infostrada) and Ben Bostrom (Ducati L&M) led the way on the first day of qualifying for Sunday’s San Marino Round of the World Superbike Championship in searing heat at Misano Adriatico.

The Australian, winner of eleven races so far this season, was on terrific form at the 4.060 km Santamonica track and bolted on a qualifying tyre at the end of the session to end with a time of 1:34.420, eight-tenths of a second quicker than the qualifying lap record. Ruben Xaus (Ducati Infostrada) finished the day in eighth place on the second Ducati 998 Factory ’02 with a time of 1:35.818, while Californian Bostrom (Ducati L&M) revelled in the hot conditions and powered to second-quickest time of 1:35.067 on a qualifying tyre at the end of the one-hour session. Colin Edwards (Honda) and Ducati-contracted rider Neil Hodgson (HM Plant) make up the provisional front row in third and fourth.

Bayliss (Ducati Infostrada) and Edwards dominated the session until the final quarter when the Texan had a crash and was then overtaken by Bostrom in the timesheets. “Everything’s going really well, I’ve matched the time I did in the test here a month or so ago when it was a bit cooler” commented Troy. “It’s been really hot today but my chief engineer Luca did a good job with my bike and it’s really working well. We’ve got a couple more things to try tomorrow so I’m feeling very confident for Sunday’s two races. Although Ben was right behind me in qualifying, I still feel that Colin is the main man to watch for the weekend. I did my time on a qualifying tyre but I’m happy with my race tyre performance as well because I did a flat 1:35 for quite a few laps”.

Ruben Xaus (Ducati Infostrada) complained about lack of grip around the Santamonica track but was confident he would be further up the grid tomorrow after the second qualifying session. “I was only eighth fastest today but everything is OK. It’s very hot out there but I’m confident I can move up the timesheets tomorrow morning in the second session. The grip is coming better and better all the time, but I feel sure it’s the same for everyone. The good thing is that I did my best lap time ever here around here and I’m sure I can improve even more tomorrow”.

Bostrom (Ducati L&M) was pleased with his bike set-up but declared that he needed more rear grip to put together a quicker lap. “We’re second quickest but I think we should go quicker tomorrow morning” declared Ben. “The bike’s very good but the conditions are really hot and slimy and its really tough to put together a quick lap because when you think you’re on the right line you just slide right off it because the track is so hot. Sunday’s races are going to be very interesting if the conditions stay the way they are now.”

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Fabien Foret all out for vengeance

By Glenn LeSanto

Coming from a disqualification at Lausitzring after winning the race, you could expect Fabien Foret to be in determined mood. He was! He set the fastest ever Supersport lap time at Misano to take provisional pole in Friday¹s qualifying.

Foret, on the Ten Kate Honda CBR600, set his best time in the final minute of the 45-minute session. Suzuki’s Katsuaki Fujiwara ­ who inherited Foret’s win at Lausitz ­ was second quickest.

Andrew Pitt, the defending World Champion, set the third fastest time of the day in front of Iain MacPherson, who was fourth fastest on the other Ten Kate Honda.

Paolo Casoli on the Yamaha, also disqualified at Lausitz, came in fifth fastest. Stephane Chambon on the Alstare Suzuki, who leads the title chase, was sixth.

With temperatures in the 30s C and on a track that’s known to be abrasive and yet not so grippy, tires are sure to come into the equation in the race on Sunday. So while qualifying and grid positions are important, the result may be more down to tire endurance than grid positions.

Friday’s World Supersport qualifying times:
1 Fabien Foret, France (Honda) 1:37.669

2 Katsuaki Fujiwara, Japan (Suzuki) 1:37.864

3 Andrew Pitt, Australia (Kawasaki) 1:38.278

4 Iain MacPherson, GB (Honda) 1:38.396

5 Paolo Casoli, Italy (Yamaha) 1:38.420

6 Stephane Chambon, France (Suzuki) 1:38.471

7 Jorg Teuchert, Germany (Yamaha) 1:38.499

8 Christian Kellner, Germany (Yamaha) 1:38.582

9 Piergiorgio Bontempi, Italy (Ducati) 1:38.590

10 Chris Vermeulen, Australia (Honda) 1:38.624


More, from a press release issued by Honda:

FORET SETS SAN MARINO PACE


Honda’s Fabien Foret recorded the fastest ever Supersport lap in Friday’s opening qualifying practice for Sunday’s eighth round of the World Championship at Misano, San Marino.

Foret, on the Ten Kate CBR600, was in determined mood as he set his best time in the final minute of the 45-minute session. Suzuki’s Katsuaki Fujiwara ­ winner of the last round ­ was second quickest.

Andrew Pitt, the defending World Champion, set the third fastest time of the day with Foret’s teammate Iain MacPherson fourth to complete the provisional front row for Sunday’s 23-lap race.

Italian Paolo Casoli gave a healthy-sized home crowd some cheer as he put his Yamaha in fifth place with Championship leader Stephane Chambon sixth.

German Yamaha teammates Jorg Teuchert and Christian Kellner lie seventh and eighth fastest respectively with Ducati’s Piergiorgio Bontempi ninth and Van Zon Honda rider Chris Vermeulen 10th.

Honda UK’s Karl Muggeridge ended the day in 18th place with teammate John McGuinness 25th. Muggeridge said: “We’ve arrived here with more development work completed so it’s thrown the set-up out a little. I’m sure we can get it right for tomorrow.”

Friday’s World Supersport qualifying times:
1 Fabien Foret, France (Honda) 1:37.669

2 Katsuaki Fujiwara, Japan (Suzuki) 1:37.864

3 Andrew Pitt, Australia (Kawasaki) 1:38.278

4 Iain MacPherson, GB (Honda) 1:38.396

5 Paolo Casoli, Italy (Yamaha) 1:38.420

6 Stephane Chambon, France (Suzuki) 1:38.471

7 Jorg Teuchert, Germany (Yamaha) 1:38.499

8 Christian Kellner, Germany (Yamaha) 1:38.582

9 Piergiorgio Bontempi, Italy (Ducati) 138.590

10 Chris Vermeulen, Australia (Honda) 1:38.624

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

This just in, from racer Leo Venega:

“Just wanted you to know that Debi and I are pregnant, yup, that’s right. Due date is sometime mid-Feb. So she’s going to concentrate on the store and support me in my racing stuff. So that should be cool.”

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

This just in from AMA Pro Racing’s Hugh Fleming, in response to a June 17 posting of an AMA Pro Racing press release announcing the formation of a Medical Board for supercross racing under the headline “AMA Pro Racing Announces Medical Board without Any Road Racing Representation.” The release did not mention any specific future plans for the inclusion of doctors with road racing experience:

I would like to clarify a point made in your editorial regarding the AMA Pro Racing Medical Advisory Board. As announced back in December at the AMA Awards Banquet, AMA Pro Racing planned on working with a number of doctors specializing in many AMA Pro Racing disciplines to form this AMA Pro Racing Medical Advisory Board. At that time, we announced that the board would consist of doctors Bodnar, Augustine and Ting, who has since become unavailable. The plan then, as it is now, is to have the board include members with experience in many racing disciplines. And as we mentioned in the press release, the progress made in motocross is being used as a template for our other racing disciplines.

We have had contact with road racing doctors Jim Adams, David Kieffer and Ray Rossi and others, and our next meeting is set for the July 12-14 weekend at Laguna Seca where doctors Adams, Kieffer, Rossi, Bodnar and I will meet to focus on road-racing issues. Look for some of those doctors to be added to the advisory board very soon.

Most importantly, the mission of the medical advisory board is to promote the safety of the AMA professional athlete, to improve and elevate the quality of on-site medical care available at professional races, and to promote safety and performance research as it relates to professional motorcycle racing. Currently, the board is also formulating standardized policies on how to best deal with specific types of injuries, notably head injuries, which know no discipline boundaries.

In the future if you have questions about the AMA Pro Racing Advisory Board, please feel free to contact me at any time so we may answer your questions and concerns more directly and completely.

Hugh Fleming, AMA Pro Racing
Safety and Equipment Director

From a press release issued by Monstermob Ducati, and is it just us who notices that Inline Fours are not competitive for race wins in the British Superbike Series, which is being held up as the model for the future of AMA Superbike?

MONSTERMOB DUCATI BRITISH SUPERBIKE CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM

Round 7
2002 MCN British Superbike Championship Rockingham
June 22/23

ROCKINGHAM RETURN FOR HISLOP

The MCN 2002 British Superbike Championship hits the halfway stage when the action returns to the purpose-built Rockingham facility on the outskirts of Corby, Northamptonshire this weekend.

MonsterMob Ducati’s Steve Hislop enjoys a 16 point lead going into the two 22 lap races and is keen to get back into his winning ways after a couple of races in the doldrums. But any thoughts of his season-ending accident at the same track towards the end of last season is planted firmly in the back of the 40 year old Scot’s mind:

“That was a racing incident and could have happened anywhere. I never let my big Brands crash affect me so I don’t see this weekend being any different. I left Brands with a good base setting after the few problems we’ve endured recently and I’m confident our bad run is behind us now” said a rejuvenated Hislop.

For team mate Stuart Easton, he is hoping to rack up an unprecedented seventh successive win when he goes for glory in the MB4U.com Supersport race aboard the MonsterMob 748cc Ducati.

The 17-year-old from Hawick has a 59-point lead at the head of the standings and is hopeful of increasing that advantage this weekend, despite not getting a good result there last year:

“I didn’t really like the place in the wet on my 250cc bike last year but this year is a totally different proposition. I’m feeling confident and hope I can continue my good run” said the Scot who has also set five successive pole positions in his domination of the class.

For team owner Paul Bird, it will be his first visit to Rockingham after missing the race whilst away on business last year:

“I hope it’s kinder to us this year than last and I’m looking forward to seeing the place as I’ve heard a lot about it. Ask me after the weekend if I like it or not and that may depend on whether we’ve increased our lead in both championships!” jested the Penrith businessman.


MCN British Superbike Championship

Points after Round 6 (12 races) of 13 rounds (26 races)

1 Steve Hislop MonsterMob Ducati 20 25 25 25 16 10 25 10 13 20 4 20 213

2 Sean Emmett IFC Ducati 25 16 13 20 11 13 16 8 25 25 0 25 197

3 Michael Rutter Renegade Ducati 9 13 9 13 13 25 20 12.5 0 16 16 16 162.5

4 Steve Plater Virgin Mobile Yamaha 16 10 10 10 20 9 10 3 16 13 20 10 147

5 John Reynolds Rizla Suzuki 13 20 20 16 0 0 11 5.5 20 0 25 13 143.5

(Half points awarded in race eight due to abandonment of race after oil spillage)

From a press release:

PIRELLI TO PRESENT FREE TIRE SEMINARS AT LAGUNA SECA RACE WEEKEND IN CONJUNCTION WITH APRILIA

Pirelli has announced that company tech representatives will be conducting free tire seminars during the upcoming Laguna Seca AMA/World Superbike race weekend, July 13 and 14.

The seminars will be held at the infield Aprilia display area as part of a joint activity between the Italian premium-tire maker, and the famed Italian bike manufacturer that features Pirelli’s high-performance street tires as OE on many of its models.

The 45-minute seminars are designed to be both entertaining and highly informative. Subjects will include the tires’ role in transferring power to the ground, in steering, braking and acceleration, in working with the bike’s suspension, and in carrying the bike’s weight. A particularly interesting portion will cover how the increased needs of today’s riders, combined with the rapid advancements in motorcycle technology, require the highest level of tire development in such areas as mileage, wet and dry grip, handling and stability are how these demands are met in tire construction, contour and weight, and tread compound and design.

The seminars will help educate consumers on the different tire constructions, from bias to belted to radial, including, of course, Pirelli’s patented 0 steel-belted radial construction. Other subjects will cover how tread compound affects mileage, how tread pattern design affects mileage and grip, and how to ride safely. A question-and-answer session will follow each seminar.

Alberto Warburg, Pirelli’s North American Marketing Manager explained the rationale behind the seminars. “We want more consumer contact. We don’t want tires to be a mystery. We want people to understand them and how they work through more personal contact directly with our technical people. We want to do more than advertising and PR, we want to share our knowledge, technology and passion with consumers. That is why we are doing these seminars at Laguna and places like Americade and Honda Hoot. At Pirelli, our passion is motorcycle tires. We want to share this with riders who also feel passionate about their bikes and riding. Business does not just get done in big offices high up in big buildings. Good business also means getting out and getting in touch with your consumers.”

Everyone is invited to attend. Check the Pirelli tent in the Aprilia display area for seminar times over the two days.

Pirelli has emerged as a major player in roadracing over the past couple years, mainly on the strength of its Supercorsa DOT radials, and slicks. Pirelli tires dominated the just-completed 2002 Isle of Man TTs, and Supercorsas were chosen by Honda’s World Supersport factory team as the tire of choice for its 2002 assault on the World Supersport championship.

From a press release:

VIR test a success

June 20, 2002 – Alton, VA. After spending two days in the Southeast, piloting his Kawasaki Superbike through the turns at Virginia International Raceway (www.VIRclub.com) and showing off his new wild hairdo, Eric Bostrom came away from the test confident enough to label it a success. “Our pre-test setup was good going into the test and proved to be a winner, so we didn’t really have much to test. Of course, we still went through some suspension pieces and tried a number of things with the front end. The bike still seems a little too harsh on the bumps, but I’m pretty happy with how things went. In fact, I went over a second faster during the test on race tires (running consistent mid-1:25s) than I did last year on a Qualifier. So it’s all positive. Running the extra World Superbike rounds this year has really helped both my confidence and the team’s ability to set up the bike. Our learning curve has really steepened by being over there and our bike set-up is better now than it’s been all year. It’s also helped my riding and been a bit of a catalyst to my season.”

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With the big Laguna Seca weekend approaching, Eric is looking forward to making another strong showing in World Superbike, although he realizes he faces stiff competition at his favorite track. “I know my brother and Neil (Hodgson) were tough last year. And all the World Superbike guys ride hard all the time and then there’s that war between (Troy) Bayliss and (Colin) Edwards; those guys have been tough and incredibly fast this year. It’s basically going to be an all-out battle with those guys. So honestly, it’s going to be really tough to get on the podium, but I’m going to try really hard to make it happen. My fans expect that. It won’t be for a lack of effort if it doesn’t happen, that’s for sure.”

Back in the AMA Superbike Championship, Eric is experiencing a strong surge to his season, finishing on the podium in the last four consecutive Superbike races. In fact, Eric has managed to cut Nicky Hayden’s huge 80 point lead in half, taking it down to a reachable 40 points. But how does he feel about his chances to improve on his 2nd place finish in last year’s Championship and actually win the Superbike title this year? “It’s still a long shot, of course. But honestly, I’m not thinking about that at all right now. I want to see if we can win Brainerd first. That would be a huge confidence boost, and then, of course, I can’t wait for Laguna. I always feel confident about that one. So who knows? I do think that we can go strong in the last six races (4 rounds, 2 doubleheaders).”

If Nicky cracks under the pressure and makes a mistake, Eric might indeed end up surprising everyone for the Championship.

Eric Bostrom continues to be proudly sponsored by:
Kawasaki (www.Kawasaki.com and www.Kawasaki-Eckl.com)
RedBull (www.RedBull.com)
Alpinestars (www.Alpinestars.com)
Arai (www.AraiAmericas.com)
Oakley (www.Oakley.com)
Airtrix (www.Airtrix.com)
Ecko (www.Ecko.com)
Dunlop (www.DunlopMotorcycle.com)
Maxima (www.MaximaUSA.com)
Lockhart Phillips (www.LockhartPhillips.com)
Akrapovic (www.Akrapovic-ai.si)
Ohlins (www.Ohlins.com)