Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By Glenn Le Santo

We all knew after Troy Bayliss’ record breaking Superpole lap yesterday that a double win for him today was inevitable. That double is now even more likely after Bayliss cruised to yet another win in what is proving to be an incredible season for the Infostrada Ducati rider. Today’s win came after Troy was forced to swap bikes after the sighting lap. Colin Edwards put Bayliss under some early pressure, and even held the lead for a few laps, but Bayliss wore him down to take the win.

Bayliss got the holeshot but Edwards dived inside at the first turn. But Bayliss was back at him in the next corner. The pair struck away out front with Edwards again in the lead, leaving Neil Hodgson, Ruben Xaus, Ben Bostrom and Nori Haga to fight over their crumbs. The battle got too hot for Xaus who stepped off on lap four exiting the chicane.

Hodgson made sure of third with some spirited riding. It was perfectly obvious just how hard he was pushing it ­ his HM Plant Ducati was doing its best to swap ends out of turns. Even Bayliss was having his moments, he saved a near highside early in the race, but it didn¹t slow him down at all. All Edwards could do was watch Bayliss ride off to a win. Hodgson settled down to take third in front of Haga in fourth and Bostrom in fifth. All three riders were alone for much of the race.

Pierfrancesco Chili broke away from a scrap with Chris Walker and James Toseland to take sixth.

With the result decided, bar a mistake on Bayliss’ part, the attention turned to a titanic scrap going on between Toseland and Walker for seventh place. Walker lived up to his nickname, The Stalker, stalking Toseland for several laps before making his move on the last lap. He drove past Toseland’s Ducati, wringing every ounce of power out of his Kawasaki. Both riders were leaving massive black lines out of every turn as their battered tires struggled with the heat and the pace. They swapped the position three or four times on that lap before Toseland got in a big slide a few turns from the end. He kept it pinned to try to keep his pace up and grabbed too much throttle coming out of the Variante Arena turn. The bike slipped, gripped and tossed the young British rider high into the air. Toseland kept hold of the bars, landed in the saddle and rode momentarily onto the grass. By the time he got the plot back under control, Walker had made seventh his.

First race results:
1. Troy Bayliss, Ducati 998F02, 25 laps, 40:04.994
2. Colin Edwards, Honda RC51, -2.906
3. Neil Hodgson, Ducati 998F01, -14.095
4. Noriyuki Haga,Aprilia RSV1000, -19.000
5. Ben Bostrom, Ducati 998F02, -33.644
6. Pierfrancesco Chili, Ducati 998RS, -42.275
7. Chris Walker, Kawasaki ZX-7RR, -47.899
8. James Toseland, Ducati 998F01, -49.885
9. Lucio Pedercini, Ducati 998RS, -53.545
10. Gregorio Lavilla, Suzuki GSX-R750Y, -57.204
11. Marco Borciani, Ducati 998RS, -63.071
12. Mauro Sanchini, Kawasaki ZX-7RR, -70.073
13. Steve Martin, Ducati 998RS, -75.226
14. Serafino Foti, Ducati 996RS, -86.304
15. Peter Goddard, Benelli Tornado 900, -93.220
16. Paolo Blora, Ducati 996RS,-1 lap
17. Ivan Clementi, Kawasaki ZX-7RR, -1 lap
18. Alessandro Valia, Ducati 996RS, -1 lap
19. Mark Heckles, Honda RC51, -1 lap
20. Bertrand Stey, Honda RC51, -1 lap
21. Marjan Malec, Ducati 996RS, -1 lap
22. Michele Malatesta, Ducati 996RS, -20 laps, DNF
23. Broc Parkes, Ducati 998RS, -21 laps, DNF
24. Giuliano Sartoni, Ducati 996RS, -21 laps, DNF
25. Ruben Xaus, Ducati 998F02, -22 laps, DNF, crash
26. Juan Borja, Ducati 998RS, -22 laps, DNF
27. Alessandro Antonello, Ducati 998RS, -25 laps, DNF

More, from a HM Plant Ducati release:

Hodgson back on the podium at Misano

HM Plant Ducati/GSE Racing’s Neil Hodgson finished third in the first race at Misano behind Troy Bayliss and Colin Edwards after 25 scorching laps of the 4km circuit near Rimini. Team-mate James Toseland was eighth on his HM Plant Ducati after a blistering battle with fellow British rider Chris Walker.

Bayliss got the holeshot into turn one only to be passed by Edwards midway through the first lap, with Hodgson holding a watching brief in third. The top three then pulled away from the rest of the field, with the only change in position recorded when Bayliss outbraked Edwards into Tramonto on lap ten. The remainder of the race was processional with Bayliss, Edwards and Hodgson finishing in their overall championship running order.

“I was able to get off the line well and got towed along by the leading duo for the first seven or eight laps,” said 28-year-old Hodgson after his fourth rostrum position of the season. “After that I had a lonely but enjoyable ride and was even able to conserve my energy for the second leg over the last five laps. There was nothing that I could do about Troy or Colin. They’ve been fast all the way through testing and I knew that it would be difficult to beat them. I’ll have to try harder – if that’s possible – and see if I can get in between them in the next race.”

The other two top British contenders in the World Superbike field had a close dice for seventh, but Toseland made a critical and ultimately decisive mistake on the last lap: “I was leading Chili and Walker in the early stages of the race, before Chili got passed me and pulled away. That left me fending off Walker and I thought I had seventh in the bag until the last lap. I overcooked it on the chicane, the back end came round and I had to back off, letting him through to take the flag.”

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By Glenn LeSanto

Colin Edwards and Troy Bayliss fought over provisional pole under the burning Italian sun at Misano. The pair pushed each other harder and harder as the session wore on, but in the end it was again Bayliss who prevailed, holding onto provisional pole with a time of 1:34.420 compared to Edwards’ best effort of 1:34.561.

Ben Bostrom was also up there on the timesheet but couldn’t match the lead duo. He finished the session third on 1:34.669, just ahead of Neil Hodgson who made a late charge into fourth.

The provisional second row features Pierfrancesco Chili, Noriyuki Haga, Ruben Xaus and James Toseland. Steve Martin was just edged off the second row by Toseland in the closing stages.
Martin’s first Pirelli rider, qualifying for this afternoon’s Superpole in ninth.

The grid will be final decided in the heat of Superpole at 4:00 p.m. this afternoon.

World Superbike
Misano, San Marino
Combined qualifying times

1. Troy Bayliss, Ducati 998F02, 1:34.420
2. Colin Edwards, Honda RC51, 1:34.561
3. Ben Bostrom, Ducati 998F02, 1:34.669
4. Neil Hodgson, Ducati 998F01,1:34.717
5. Pierfrancesco Chili,Ducati 998RS, 1:34.802
6. Noriyuki Haga, Aprilia RSV1000, 1:35.110
7. Ruben Xaus, Ducati 998F02, 1:35.390
8. James Toseland, Ducati 998F01, 1:35.464
9. Steve Martin, Ducati 998RS,1:35.641
10. Lucio Pedercini, Ducati 998RS, 1:35.689
11. Marco Borciani, Ducati 998RS, 1:35.767
12. Chris Walker, Kawasaki ZX-7RR, 1:36.144
13. Gregorio Lavilla, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:36.210
14. Juan Borja, Ducati 998RS, 1:36.276
15. Mauro Sanchini, Kawasaki ZX-7RR, 1:36.963
16. Alessandro Antonello, Ducati 998RS, 1:36.995
17. Serafino Foti, Ducati 996RS, 1:37.016
18. Broc Parkes, Ducati 998RS, 1:37.273
19. Peter Goddard, Benelli Tornado 900,1:37.296
20. Ivan Clementi, Kawasaki ZX-7RR, 1:37.774
21. Hitoyasu Izutsu, Kawasaki ZX-7RR, 1:37.811
22. Michele Malatesta, Ducati 996RS, 1:38.746
23. Alessandro Valia, Ducati 996RS, 1:38.855
24. Mark Heckles, Honda RC51, 1:39.069
25. Bertrand Stey, Honda RC51, 1:39.123
26. Paolo Blora, Ducati 996RS, 1:39.322
27. Giuliano Sartoni, Ducati 996RS, 1:40.153
28. Marjan Malec, Ducati 996RS, 1:40.883
NQ. Jiri Mrkyvka, Ducati 996RS, 1:41.065
NQ. Yann Gyger,Honda RC51, 1:41.229
NQ. Cristian Caliumi, Ducati 996RS, 1:42.055

From a press release:

The heat is on at Misano

HM Plant Ducati/GSE Racing’s Neil Hodgson and James Toseland flew the Union Jack proudly at Misano by recording their fastest ever lap times, but it wasn’t enough to beat reigning World Champion Troy Bayliss in an incredible Superpole. Bayliss hammered his Ducati 998 F02 around the 4km track in an amazing time of 1:33.525, just over 0.5 seconds faster than team-mate Ben Bostrom, Colin Edwards, Hodgson and Toseland.

The heat was certainly on during qualifying for the eighth round of the Superbike World Championship with scorching afternoon sunshine providing the ultimate test for the riders, superbikes and tyres. However, the Ducati riders responded to dominate the final grid positions – eight of the top ten riders will line-up on the Italian machines for Sunday’s two races on home soil.

Neil Hodgson’s fastest lap of 1:34.356 was almost a full second inside his pole position time from last year. The HM Plant Ducati star was delighted with his time and is looking forward to race day: “I achieved my objective of going under the 1:35 barrier this morning and knew that I could go even faster with a qualifying tyre on a clear track. That’s the way it turned out, but fair play to Troy who seems to have an awesome set-up here at Misano.

“HM Plant Ducati/GSE Racing has had a good practice day and haven’t really had any problems. We’ve worked hard to get the best out of the HM Plant Ducatis and I’m confident that I’ll be able to jump back on to the podium tomorrow. My main aim is to consolidate my third position in the championship and maybe take some points off the front two [Bayliss and Edwards] if I have the opportunity.”

Fifth position represented Toseland’s best qualifying position in the series and he was delighted with his breathtaking Superpole lap: “I’ve often performed well in qualifying, only to make a mess of my Superpole lap. So, I’m over the moon to have made it on to the front of row two. A good start is imperative at Misano and I’m in a good position to achieve it. I said at the start of the season that I’d be hoping for the odd rostrum finish, so that has got to be my goal tomorrow.”

From a Ten Kate Honda press release:

Foret has the pole position habit

Fabien Foret withstood temperatures in the upper thirties to take his third pole position in three races here at Misano today.

While other riders wilted in the heat or suffered from bike problems, Foret kept his cool to head the pack again. “I could have gone faster still,” said Foret, “but there were no other riders putting pressure on me so I didn’t see the point of pushing even harder in this heat. But my bike feels great, I have a very good race set up and am confident that my Pirelli tyres and WP Suspension can cope with the extreme conditions.”

His team mate Iain MacPherson dropped down the order late in the session to finish ninth on the grid after a freak incident. MacPherson banged his knee so hard on the kerb 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 centre. By the time he was released, the session was over.

Team Manager Ronald ten Kate was happy again to see one of his riders in pole position. “The problem at Misano is very specific heat! We’re spending a lot of time and effort on keeping the riders cool with ice and fans and the bikes cool with blowers.”

He was also full of praise for the Honda CBR600FS, “This bike is cool, literally! The race tomorrow will be very hard on bikes, tyres and riders, but I am confident we have the best combination of all three.”

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.”