From a press release:

Klaus Klaffenbock narrowly defeated arch-rival Steve Webster in a stunning Superside battle at Monza.

After 14 action-packed laps Klaus Klaffenbock crossed the finish line only 0.142-second ahead. The pair were locked in a titanic battle for the final laps after Klaffenbock hunted Webster down to produce a thrilling finish.

Earlier in the race Markus Schlosser fought with Webbo and Klaffi in a sensational three-way dice that often saw them three abreast heading into the Parabolica curve. The three swapped the lead and seemed incredibly closely matched, with Schlosser even out-dragging Webbo down the long Monza main straight. At one point they even swapped the lead three times in one corner!

But the battle proved too hot for Schlosser, who started to drop off the pace as his motor waned. His Suzuki mill eventually gave up the ghost on lap 13 leaving Klaffi and Webbo to fight amongst themselves over the result.

Webster was dealt a few blows on the final laps when backmarkers baulked him as the leaders started to lap slower outfits. But he recovered all the ground he lost carving through the backmarkers to close down on Klaffi for the final-lap decider. The two were nose-to-tail as they entered the final turn. Then, as they raced onto the final straight, Webbo pulled out of Klaffi’s slipstream and only missed out on victory by a matter of centimetres.

“It was a fair race,” said Webster afterwards, “and it was also a great race!”

Klaffi also enjoyed himself; “That was pure fun! It’s a shame that not all the races are so enjoyable.”

Klaffi’s passenger joined in the spirit of things saying; “We couldn’t have had better race for our first win of the season!”

During the race Klaffi seemed able to outbrake Webster at will, using the lower weight of his R1/LCR combination to full advantage. The surprise came when he also showed he could power past Webster on the main straight. “My engine was sensational – I was able to overtake all the other outfits when I pulled out of their slipstream,” he said.

After the race Webster’s Liveonscreen.com team admitted that they had lowered the compression ratio on his Suzuki engine in order to avoid a repeat of the reliability problems he had suffered in qualifying.

Steve Abbott moved steadily through the field after an appalling start to grab a useful third place. “I thought I stood a good chance of winning the race today if I got a good start,” said Abbott. “Unfortunately I got a terrible start!”

Jorg Steinhausen and passenger Trevor Hopkins bounced back from their spot of upside-down grass-tracking earlier in the day to finish a creditable fourth.

Liveonscreen.com’s Stuart ‘Spotty’ Muldoon was another victim of the intensity of battle, or at least his motor was. They were forced to retire after only six laps with engine failure. The team found the remains of an inlet valve seat in his airbox after the race. That the part was fired out through the carburettor suggested that Muldoon had the throttle pinned wide open at the time of the failure!

The thrilling race, undoubtedly the best of the season so far, will go down in history as one of Superside’s all-time classics.

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Edwards masters the wet at Monza

By Glenn LeSanto

Colin Edwards on the Castrol Honda VTR looked smooth and in control in wet conditions at Monza for the final Superbike qualifying.

With the track wet from an earlier rain shower and light drizzle continuing to fall during the session, no riders could better Neil Hodgson’s pole time set on Friday in the dry.

Troy Bayliss was second fastest in the wet on his Infostrada Ducati, with Chili a surprise third, despite still nursing his shoulder injury from Kyalami. Chris Walker took fourth fastest in front of his former British Superbike rival Hodgson.

Benefiting from the wet conditions was Peter Goddard on the Benelli Tornado who finished the wet session in eighth, behind Haga, sixth and
Xaus, seventh.

The weather is forecast to be changeable for the rest of the weekend, if Superpole is wet, the riders have 50 minutes to complete a maximum of
twelve laps with the fastest deciding their grid position. Because Xaus was unable to improve on his time from Friday, he didn’t make Superpole.

World Superbike
Monza
Second qualifying session

1. C.Edwards, USA, Honda, 1:56.394
2. T.Bayliss, AUS, Ducati, 1:56.426
3. P.Chili, ITA, Ducati, 1:56.696
4. C.Walker, GBR, Kawasaki, 1:56.717
5. N.Hodgson, GBR, Ducati, 1:57.401
6. N.Haga, JPN, Aprilia, 1:58.533
7. R.Xaus, ESP, Ducati, 1’59.135
8. P.Goddard, AUS, Benelli, 2:00.055
9. J.Toseland, GBR, Ducati, 2:00.561
10. B.Bostrom, USA, Ducati, 2:00.981

Superpole entry list (Friday’s qualifying times)
1. N.Hodgson, GBR, Ducati, 1:48.282
2. C.Edwards, USA, Honda, 1:48.612
3. T.Bayliss, AUS, Ducati, 1:49.036
4. B.Bostrom, USA, Ducati, 1:49.052
5. P.Chili, ITA, Ducati, 1:49.082
6. J.Toseland, GBR, 1:49.335
7. C.Walker, GBR, Kawasaki, 1:49.671
8. G.Lavilla, ESP, Suzuki, 1:49.923
9. M.Borciani, ITA, Ducati, 1:50.127
10. E.Bostrom, USA, Kawasaki, 1:50.175
11. N.Haga, JPN, Aprilia, 1:50.271
12. J.Borja, ESP, Ducati, 1:50.279
13. S.Martin, AUS, Ducati, 1:50.434
14. L.Pedercini, ITA, Ducati, 1:50.459
15. A.Antonello, ITA, Ducati, 1:50.737
16. B.Parkes, AUS, Ducati, 1:50.737

This just in, from racer John Jewett:

CCS racer Matt Hartlieb seriously injured

Arizona resident Matt Hartlieb remains in ICU at Las Vegas University Medical Center after a crash during a CCS sprint race at the Las Vegas Classic Road Course Sunday May 5. Matt crashed and was struck by another rider, causing a multi-bike pile-up. Matt was unconscious and transported to UMC. Matt had a serious head injury with bleeding of the brain in two areas, but did not require emergency surgery. He remained in an induced coma and on a ventilator until Thursday.

As of Friday he is doing much better. Doctors have cut back on the meds and taken him off of the ventilator. His girlfriend, mother and friends are by his side supporting him. Doctors hope to transfer him soon to Phoenix to complete his recovery. Matt was having a great weekend, having just won Expert Unlimited GP on his Suzuki 600.

Friends have set up an account for anyone wishing to help defray the costs of travel, hospital, ect. Your prayers are greatly appreciated.

Wells Fargo Arizona acount # 1006123929

Friends are also planning to raffle an electric go-ped at the next CCS race at Firebird May 18-19, to raise additional funds.

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By Glenn LeSanto

Hodgson takes pole in thrilling Superpole

Neil Hodgson has dominated the World Superbike class all weekend. He kept up that domination by taking pole in a thrilling Superpole.

After two days of rain the sun broke through, dried off the Monza Tarmac and the Superpole was declared dry. Hodgson took full advantage of the conditions and rode an aggressive but controlled lap to grab pole.

Behind him Troy Bayliss was just beaten by Colin Edwards, the difference between Bayliss and Edwards was only two-thousandths of a second or when measured in distance only 21cm!

“It was very close,” said Bayliss, “I did everything I could but I made one little mistake. On a lap like that you can’t make a mistake and it just wasn’t good enough. I’m happy to be on the front row and depending on what the weather does tomorrow it’s going to be an exciting race.”

Asked if he had a good setup in the wet and dry Bayliss replied: “For both conditions we are happy with the way things have gone, it’s bit more competitive this year. Last year it was really only Colin and myself, we were just having a bit of a battle between ourselves, but it’s going to be very different tomorrow and it should be great for everybody.”

“I want to be out front and leading them all,” said Edwards. “Hodgson’s obviously riding real good. I think it was Sugo where he decided to wake up but wherever, he’s going to give us a run for our money. It’s good to have him back up here. It’ll be the three of us for sure and a few more guys from the pack ain’t far behind. I don’t have a race plan; we all have the same goal in mind and we’ll just have to see how it pans out.”

Hodgson admitted it had taken him a couple of races to wake up this season. “I don’t know why but at Valencia I wasn’t really riding at my hardest. It’s taken me a little time to gel. But now I am riding really hard and I’m enjoying my racing.”

Hodgson was obviously happy to be at Monza, “I really enjoy it here it’s one of my favourite circuits. There’s the long back straight where you can have a bit of a rest, I like to go past all the people hanging on the walls.”

Asked how the circuit was on his Dunlop tyres Hodgson replied; “It might come as a shock but we have a race tyre! Dunlop have been working very hard, it’s much better, it goes the distance and also there’s no chatter. My plan tomorrow is I have no plan, I’m just going to ride as fast as I possibly can from the green light”

Pierfrancesco Chili bounced back from his injury to snatch the final front row position.

Broc Parkes had to re-do his Superpole lap after somebody ran in front of him on the track as he started his lap! Unfortunately it was all too much for his Ducati which ground to a halt a short while into his second attempt at a flying lap.

World Superbike Championship Final Qualifying Results From Monza:

1. Neil Hodgson, Ducati 998 F01, 1:47.913
2. Colin Edwards, Honda RC51, 1:48.413
3. Troy Bayliss, Ducati 998 F02, 1:48.415
4. Pierfrancesco Chili, Ducati 998 RS, 1:48.662
5. Noriyuki Haga, Aprilia RSV1000, 1:49.206
6. James Toseland, Ducati 998 F01, 1:49.541
7. Lucio Pedercini, Ducati 998 RS, 1:49.800
8. Eric Bostrom, Kawasaki ZX-7RR, 1:50.009
9. Steve Martin, Ducati 998 RS, 1:50.035
10. Ben Bostrom, Ducati 998 F02, 1:50.091
11. Marco Borciani, Ducati 998 RS, 1:50.402
12. Alessandro Antonello, Ducati 998 RS, 1:50.577
13. Gregorio Lavilla, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:50.945
14. Juan Borja, Ducati 998 RS, 1:50.958
15. Chris Walker, Kawasaki ZX-7RR, 1:51.002
16. Broc Parkes, Ducati 998 RS, 1:50.737
17. Ruben Xaus, Ducati 998 F02, 1:50.994
18. Mauro Sanchini, Kawasaki ZX-7RR, 1:51.835
19. Paolo Blora, Ducati 996 RS, 1:51.926
20. Serafino Foti, Ducati 996 RS, 1:52.975

24. Peter Goddard, Benelli Tornado 900, 1:54.128



More, from a Castrol Honda press release:

SECOND FOR EDWARDS

Castrol Honda¹s Colin Edwards will start from second place on the grid in tomorrow¹s fifth round of the World Superbike championship here at Monza, Italy despite beating his own lap record by more than half a second in the Superpole final qualifying.

Edwards starts on the front row, alongside polesetter Neil Hodgson and American SP-2 rider Edwards believes the two races will be a three-way tussle between himself, Hodgson and third-on-the-grid, Troy Bayliss.

“Monza is not easy to put the perfect lap together,” said Edwards. “It’s about the longest circuit we use and you have to be perfect through all three chicanes ­ I made a mess of the second one on my Superpole lap.

“I know that Neil (Hodgson), Troy (Bayliss) and myself will be near the front in tomorrow¹s races but I wouldn’t be surprised if Chili or someone else is up there too.

“We’re in good shape with the race set-up although, if it is wet tomorrow, that will count for nothing. We could have done with a little more dry weather testing but that’s the same for everyone.”



More, from Troy Bayliss’ publicist:

FRONT ROW START FOR BAYLISS AT MONZA WORLD SUPERBIKE ROUND

Monza, Italy – The changing weather conditions at the Monza Circuit continued to play havoc for the teams and riders as they worked their way through a wet final qualifying session, before the weather cleared for the Superpole session which determined the starting order for tomorrow’s fifth round of the 2002 Superbike World Championship.

With rain falling during this morning’s final qualifying session, defending World Superbike Champion Troy Bayliss along with everyone else was unable to improve on their lap times set during Friday’s opening qualifying session. All attention was then drawn to the afternoon’s grid position determining Superpole, which was fortunately held in dry conditions.

On his Superpole lap Bayliss was able to improve on his previous best time to record a 1-min 48.415-sec around the famous 5.793km Italian circuit. His time however was eclipsed first by Castrol Honda’s Colin Edwards (1:48.413) and finally by Neil Hodgson (HM Plant Ducati) who smashed the lap record to grab pole position for the event with a stunning time of 1:47.913. Hodgson’s time was a full second under Edwards’ existing Superbike lap record set at last year’s event.

“My Superpole lap was OK but it wasn’t perfect,” said Bayliss. “I ran a bit wide at the Ascari bends, plus I don’t think that I was as aggressive as I could have been. Both Neil (Hodgson) and Colin (Edwards) have been on the pace all weekend, so I’m not too surprised by the times, but it would have been nice to have been on pole, but it is still good to be on the front row of the grid anyway. Because of the high speeds around Monza we have had to switch from a front tyre that I would normally use to another type due to the heat that is generated. I think a few of the other guys have had a similar problem, it’s a case f different tyres suiting different tracks I guess.

“The weather has made things very difficult around here that’s for sure,” Bayliss added. “The track dries quickly which is good and with the mixture of wet and dry sessions that we’ve had, we have been able to set the bike up well to cope with either condition.

“As for the race tomorrow I expect them to be tough as usual. There could be about six or so different guys in the lead group, so the plan will be to stay with them and keep out of trouble in the first eight laps or so and see what happens from there. I did a lot of laps on the race tyre that we will likely use tomorrow, so I’m confident that we will have a good package for the race.”

Completing the front row of the grid for tomorrow’s two 18-lap World Superbike races is local favourite and four times SWC race winner at Monza, Pierfrancesco Chili. The NCR Ducati rider posted a time of 1:48.662 in what is his comeback ride after missing the last two rounds of the championship with a broken collarbone.

Row two will be headed by Japan’s Noriyuki Haga (Playstation2 Aprilia) who was the big improver in the session, moving from eleventh to fifth on the grid after setting a time of 1:49.206. Joining Haga on row two are James Toseland (HM Plant Ducati, 1:49.541), Lucio Pedercini (Pedercini Ducati, 1:49.800) and Eric Bostrom (Fuchs Kawasaki, 1:50.009). Australian Steve Martin (DFX Ducati, 1:50.035) was ninth and will head row three one place ahead of Ben Bostrom (L&M Ducati, 1:50.091) who rounds out the top ten.


From a Fuchs Kawasaki press release:

BOSTROM BLITZES HIS WAY ONTO THE SECOND ROW AT MONZA

Eric Bostrom blitzed his way around his Superpole lap at Monza this afternoon, recording his best time of the weekend to claim a second row start for tomorrow’s two 18-lap Superbike races.

The Californian, standing in for regular Fuchs Kawasaki rider, Hitoyasu Izutsu, hadn’t even seen Monza before arriving at the circuit on Thursday, but that didn’t stop him backing his factory Kawasaki ZX-7RR into almost every turn on his way to setting the eighth fastest time in Superpole. Despite wowing the crowd with his hang it all out style, the reigning AMA Supersport 600 champion was surprised to learn he’d qualified so far up the grid.

‘I don’t feel I belong on the second row, because my Superpole lap didn’t really feel all that good,’ said Bostrom. ‘This is a tough track at which to get into a groove; it’s not so bad when you string a few laps together, but it’s difficult to go out cold and put in one fast lap when you don’t really know the place that well. The track flows, so if you mess up in one turn, it affects your whole lap, and I think that’s what happened to quite a few riders out there this afternoon. We’ve not been that much faster on qualifying rubber compared to race tyres, so I’m hopeful that we’ll be able to continue the improvement we’ve seen in each session so far during the races tomorrow.’

Chris Walker saw any chance of a high grid position disappear when a missed gear and a near highside at Ascari lost him valuable time on his Superpole lap. Walker will start tomorrow’s two races from the fourth row of the grid – or the barbeque row as he refers to it; ‘…because you always get smoked at the start.’

‘My Superpole lap started out well, but then I missed a gear going into the left-hander, ran in way too deep and then ran wide on the exit. I got on the gas early at the next turn, trying to make up time, but the back end stepped out and had me out of the seat; game over,’ said Walker. ‘It’s going to be tough starting from the fourth row tomorrow. This is a real fast track at which slipstreaming plays a vital part and once the leading group manage to get away, they’re never going to come back to you. It’s just going to be a case of head down and go for it tomorrow I guess.’

More from an Aprilia press release:

HAGA UP IN SUPERPOLE RATINGS

Monza (Milan), Saturday 11 May 2002 – Noriyuki Haga took the Aprilia RSV Mille into fifth place in the final qualifying sessions of the Italian round at Monza. The Japanese ace gained no fewer than six places compared with Friday’s tests and reduced the gap separating him from the fastest lap time. Despite the changing weather and track conditions which complicated the development work, the Playstation2 – FGF Aprilia Team is back in the running for a prestige result. Noriyuki Haga is increasingly an idol for the Italian public: throughout the entire day, Nitro-Nori’s pits were besieged by fans.

NORIYUKI HAGA (Playstation2 – FGF Team Aprilia rider) declared: “We made the greatest progress during the warm-up for the Superpole, the session we use for preparing for the race. I found some solutions which let me maintain a good pace for several consecutive laps. As far as the tyres are concerned, I’ve got some pretty clear ideas. We now need to see what’s going to happen tomorrow as far as the weather’s concerned. This is the first time I’ve raced at Monza: we started from scratch but we’re sure catching up with the competition.”

GIACOMO GUIDOTTI (Technical Manager Playstation2 – FGF Aprilia Team) commented: “The biggest problem on Friday was again the vibrations at the rear – we worked long and hard but we’re still not quite there. On the other hand, we have made some progress. We’ve still got tomorrow’s warm-up session to carry on getting things right.”

More an HM Plant Ducati press release:

Hodgson on pole at Monza

HM Plant Ducati/GSE Racing rider Neil Hodgson obliterated his own outright lap record at the Monza Autodrome, to take pole position for Sunday’s Superbike races. His Superpole lap time of 1:47.913 was over 0.3s faster than his best time from Friday’s qualifying session, 0.5s quicker than that of his nearest rival, and almost 0.7s quicker than the previous lap record. His team-mate James Toseland will start from sixth place on the grid after putting in an extremely impressive 1:49.541 Superpole lap.

Colin Edwards (second) and Troy Bayliss (third) will line up next to Hodgson on tomorrow’s grid. The pair of world champions were simply unable to match the devastating speed of the #100 HM Plant Ducati.

“I’m absolutely ecstatic to be on pole,” said Hodgson, “and to have done it so convincingly makes it all the sweeter. I feel totally at one with my bike at the moment and would like to thank the HM Plant Ducati/GSE Racing team for all their hard work. A lot of the credit also has to go to Dunlop. They’ve dedicated a lot of time to me for this round and the fantastic tyres that I now have at my disposal complete the awesome package that we now have. For the first time this season I feel like I’m in a position to take race wins and I’ll be giving it everything to make sure that that’s exactly what I do.”

James Toseland’s sixth-placed start tops-off a glorious day for the HM Plant Ducati/GSE Racing team. The young Sheffield-based star excelled around the ultra high-speed 5.79km circuit, putting himself firmly among the front-runners for tomorrow’s competition.

“I feel really strong right now and I think that my qualifying performance reflects that. My confidence in the HM Plant Ducati is at an all-time high and I feel like I’m in a good position to make my presence felt during the races. I truly believe that this is my best chance yet of making it onto the podium.”

Should the British pairing realise their aims, it would be the first time in SBK history that both riders from a non-factory team have made it onto the same podium.

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Hodgson fast at Monza

By Glenn LeSanto

Neil Hodgson recorded the fastest time in Friday’s qualifying at Monza today with a best lap of 1:48.282.

The HM Plant Ducati rider beat the existing lap record for the historic 3.6-mile circuit, known to many as the ‘cathedral of motorsport’. Colin Edwards, who was second fastest in the session, also beat the record.

Edwards thought he could have gone faster still, “I got two clear laps in the whole of the one-hour session and both of them were 1:48.6,” said Edwards “It’s really difficult to get a lap with riders looking around everywhere trying to get into your slipstream at 200mph.”

Edwards was also twice penalised for overshooting the circuit’s first chicane, he joked: “Braking’s not my strong point at that chicane at the moment!” Riders who miss the chicane during qualifying have their lap time discarded.

Troy Bayliss was third fastest and Ben Bostrom lined up alongside his fellow Ducati rider on the provisional front.

Pier-Francesco Chili is in fifth place, only five weeks after breaking his collarbone in South Africa.

James Toseland in sixth, Chris Walker in and Gregorio Lavilla completed the second row.

Friday’s World Superbike qualifying times:

1 Neil Hodgson, GB (Ducati) 1:48.282
2 Colin Edwards, USA (Castrol Honda) 1:48.612
3 Troy Bayliss, Australia (Ducati) 1:49.036
4 Ben Bostrom, USA (Ducati) 1:49.052s
5 Pier-Francesco Chili, Italy (Ducati) 1:49.082
6 James Toseland, GB (Ducati) 1:49.335
7 Chris Walker, GB (Kawasaki) 1:49.671
8 Gregorio Lavilla, Spain (Suzuki) 1:49.923
9 Marco Borciani, Italy (Ducati) 1:50.127
10 Eric Bostrom, USA (Kawasaki) 1:50.175


More, from a press release:

TROY BAYLISS Racing – Media Information
For immediate release
Friday, 10 May 2002

Round 5, 2002 Superbike World Championship
Monza Circuit, Italy
First qualifying session

BAYLISS THIRD FASTEST IN OPENING QUALIFYING SESSION AT MONZA

Monza, Italy – Clearing weather conditions for the opening qualifying session for round five of the 2002 Superbike World Championship have seen defending World Superbike Champion, Australian Troy Bayliss post the third quickest time at the Monza Circuit in Italy today, Friday May 10.

Fastest rider in today’s qualifying session was Britain’s Neil Hodgson (HM Plant Ducati), who set a best lap of 1-min 48.282-secs around the fast 5.793km Italian circuit. Second fastest and the only other rider in the sub 1:49 bracket was Castrol Honda’s Colin Edwards with a best of 1:48.612. Bayliss completed 23-laps during the one hour session aboard his Infostrada Ducati 998R, recording a time of 1:49.036 to see him third fastest and on the front row of the grid at this early stage. Rounding out the top four was American Ben Bostrom (L&M Ducati) who shaded Bayliss with a 1:49.052.

“I had hoped to do a bit better than I did, but it didn’t work out that way,” Bayliss said afterwards. “Things were going well during the session and we were making good progress, but I just wasn’t able to put the lap together that I needed to get near or better than Neil’s time. After the rain this morning the track dried for the afternoon which was good, so hopefully it will stay that way for the rest of the weekend. The weather has been very indifferent here over the past few days, but I’m sure that we can go a lot quicker if the track remains dry for tomorrow’s sessions. We have a few more things to try on the bike tomorrow, so I’m confident we can be right on the pace that is needed.”

Fifth fastest was local favourite and four-times SWC Monza race winner Pierfrancesco Chili. The Italian NCR Ducati rider is returning after breaking his collarbone at the third round of the championship in South Africa and was within a second of Hodgson’s fastest lap stopping the clocks with a 1:49.082. He was lying fourth overall until the final moments of the session when Bostrom bettered his time.

Rounding out the top 10 were James Toseland (HM Plant Ducati, 1:49.335), Chris Walker (FUCHS Kawasaki, 1:49.671), Gregorio Lavilla (Alstare Suzuki, 1:49.923), Marco Borciani (Pedercini Ducati, 1:50.127) and Eric Bostrom (FUCHS Kawasaki, 1:50.175).

Qualifying for the World Superbike competitors concludes tomorrow (Saturday) morning, followed by the afternoon’s Superpole session that will determine the starting order for the top 16 riders for Sunday’s two 18-lap SWC races.

First Qualifying session, Friday (Top Ten)

1. Neil Hodgson (HM Plant Ducati), 1:48.282

2. Colin Edwards (Castrol Honda), 1:48.612

3. Troy Bayliss (Infostrada Ducati), 1:49.036

4. Ben Bostrom (L&M Ducati), 1:49.052

5. Pierfrancesco Chili (NCR Ducati), 1:49.082

6. James Toseland (HM Plant Ducati), 1:49.335

7. Chris Walker (FUCHS Kawasaki), 1:49.671

8. Gregorio Lavilla (Alstare Suzuki), 1:49.923

9. Marco Borciani (Pedercini Ducati), 1:50.127

10. Eric Bostrom (FUCHS Kawasaki), 1:50.175

Superbike lap record: Colin Edwards (Honda), 1:48.913 (2001)



More, from Castrol Honda:

HODGSON SETS SUPERBIKE PACE

Neil Hodgson set the fastest time in the opening qualifying session for round five of the World Superbike championship at Monza in Italy on Friday.

The British Ducati rider and second-placed Colin Edwards, the 2000 world champion, were the only two riders to beat the existing lap record for the
3.6-mile circuit near Milan.

Castrol Honda’s Edwards said he was happy with his display in the one-hour session and on his opening day performance after leading the way in this morning’s free practice session.

“I know that we¹ve got a lot more to come from the SP-2 yet,” said Edwards. “We’ve spent today working on the machine set-up but mainly looking for potential race tyres.

“The rain this morning and a damp track at the start of this afternoon’s session hasn’t helped but it’s the same for everyone. I got two clear laps in the whole of the one-hour session and both of them were 1:48.6. It’s really difficult to get a lap with riders looking around everywhere trying to get into your slipstream at 200 mph.”

Edwards was also twice penalised for overshooting the circuit¹s first chicane, he joked: “Braking’s not my strong point at that chicane at the moment!”

World Champion and this year’s series leader Troy Bayliss was third quickest as the sun shone on the picturesque parkland track.

Ben Bostrom, on a Ducati, completes the provisional front row for Sunday’s two 18-lap races. Pier-Francesco Chili ­ back from injury after breaking a shoulder at the South African round five weeks ago ­ heads the provisional second row, in fifth place.

James Toseland took sixth on his private Ducati with Chris Walker seventh on a Kawasaki and Suzuki’s Gregorio Lavilla eighth.


And now the Fuchs Kawasaki version:

WALKER AND BOSTROM QUALIFY TOP TEN ON THEIR FIRST VISIT TO MONZA

Chris Walker timed his qualifying run to perfection at Monza this afternoon, jumping from fourteenth to seventh place on the provisional grid in the final two minutes of the session.

Not having raced at Monza before, and with this morning’s free practice being held in damp conditions, the opening qualifying session was the first opportunity for Walker to learn his way around the circuit in the dry. As the session progressed, so did Walker’s times, with the 30-year-old Fuchs Kawasaki rider eventually ending the day as the fastest four-cylinder qualifier.

‘Considering the fact that this is my first time at Monza, I’m pretty happy with the way things have gone today,’ said Walker. ‘There are still improvements to be had though, as I’m losing a lot of time through the fast chicane at the back of the circuit, where I’m having a few problems getting the bike stopped and turned. I’m probably losing half a second through the chicane and then another half a second down the following straight, because I’m not coming out of the turn as fast as I should be. Obviously, this is an area we will be looking to improve upon tomorrow. Everywhere else the bike feels fine and, overall, I’ve had a pretty good day.’

Like his team-mate, the opening qualifying session was also Eric Bostrom’s first time on a dry Monza circuit. After qualifying tenth fastest, higher up the provisional grid than a number of the more experienced WSB regulars, the Californian declared himself impressed with the speed of the circuit.

‘This circuit takes balls,’ commented Bostrom. ‘It’s real fast but, because of the speed, you have to be real accurate with your braking markers. My main problem today was the amount of pressure I put on myself. After this morning’s wet session I really wanted to go well this afternoon and the end result was that I was trying just a little too hard, not letting it come naturally and not riding consistently from lap to lap. Overall I’m happy, but we know we’ve got a lot of work to do tomorrow.’


From Ducati:

WORLD SUPERBIKE CHAMPIONSHIP
Round 5 – Monza (Italy)

Friday Qualifying

FIVE DUCATIS IN TOP SIX – BAYLISS (DUCATI INFOSTRADA) & BOSTROM (DUCATI L&M) 3RD AND 4TH – HODGSON QUICKEST FOR HM PLANT DUCATI

Troy Bayliss (Ducati Infostrada) and Ben Bostrom (Ducati L&M) powered to third and fourth position respectively in first qualifying for the Italian round of the World Superbike Championship at Monza on Sunday. Championship leader Bayliss, who won both races here last year, set 1’49.036 on his Ducati 998 Factory, seven-tenths of a second away from polesitter Neil Hodgson, who was in excellent form on an HM Plant Ducati. Californian Ben Bostrom was a fraction slower than Bayliss on his L&M Ducati 998 Factory to make up the provisional front row. Ruben Xaus could only manage seventeenth fastest time on the second Infostrada Ducati 998 and risks missing out on Superpole if it rains in tomorrow’s second and final qualifying session.

“I was expecting to do a bit better today after recent testing here”, declared Bayliss, “but we ended up by being half-a-second off last week’s pace on the same tyres. The set-up of my Ducati Infostrada 998 is not so bad, but I need a bit more grip at the rear and then I’ll be a lot happier. We’re going in the right direction and we tested a few things today, but we’ve still got some way to go”.

“I was a bit disappointed with my time despite being fourth quickest”, commented Bostrom. “Troy and I went out together at the end of the session, but there were 5 guys in front of us and I couldn’t get a good lap on a softer tyre. I’m pretty happy with the changes we made to the steering, they have made the bike feel much better. Hopefully the weather will be good tomorrow, so we can fine-tune the set-up and get comfortable with the new bike settings, and then we should be right there”.

“I didn’t test here last week like the other guys so it’s taking me a bit of time to get used to riding again and I was unable to get a good set-up on the bike” said Xaus. “My hand is not giving me too much trouble, but for the moment I’m not able to lap as quick as I would like. When the time came for me to go out and set a quick lap at the end of the session, I found traffic on the track, but that’s life. Tomorrow hopefully it won’t rain, which will give me a chance to qualify for Superpole”

More from a HM Plant Ducati press release:

Hodgson sets fastest ever lap at Monza

HM Plant Ducati/GSE Racing star Neil Hodgson has scorched to provisional pole position for Sunday’s Superbike races at the Monza Autodrome. The 28-year-old from Burnley was in devastating form as he smashed the outright lap record at the Northern Italian circuit, going 0.3s faster than his nearest challenger, 2000 World Champion Colin Edwards. Hodgson’s team-mate James Toseland also put in an outstanding qualifying performance to become the sixth quickest rider of the session.

Torrential rain had blighted the first timed session and the track was still drying when Hodgson set his best time of 1:48.282 – 0.3s faster than anyone has ever covered the 5.79km circuit.

“I’m really pleased to be in such as strong position,” said Hodgson, “just in case the weather doesn’t hold out. The most encouraging thing about my time is that it was clocked on a race tyre. I didn’t get within a second of that on a qualifier, because I got caught up in traffic. This circuit rewards riders who have total confidence in their machinery and can keep it smooth through the chicanes and high-speed corners. That suits me because I really feel in tune with the HM Plant Ducati and always try to keep things flowing. My Dunlop tyres are also performing fantastically well and we’ve got some really good settings worked out, and that means that the bike is an absolute missile around Monza.”

James Toseland once more outperformed other more experienced factory riders, including Chris Walker and Noriyuki Haga, to state his case for a second row start. The Sheffield-based rider’s impressive time of 1:49.335 was just one second off the searing pace set by his provisional pole-sitting team-mate.

“Sixth is as good as I could have hoped for at this stage. I’ve learned a lot from studying Neil’s set-up and once I had the bike as I wanted it, I knew that I could improve in this afternoon session. My confidence is growing with every lap on the HM Plant Ducati and that’s what you need around this circuit – confidence.”

More from an Aprilia press release:

HAGA AT WORK TO GAIN GROUND

Monza (Milan), Friday 10 May 2002 – Noriyuki Haga makes 11th time in the first day of qualifying sessions for the Italian Superbike Grand Prix at Monza. The Playstation2 – FGF Aprilia Team rider from Japan made use of today’s two sessions to match the settings and suspension to the characteristics of the new Dunlop tyres. On the 2002 championship’s fastest track, Haga has only the experience of a brief half-day test ten days ago – by no means sufficient to complete the task of perfecting the set-up.

NORIYUKI HAGA (Playstation2 – FGF Aprilia Team) said: “Track conditions have little in common with the brief test we did on Monday 29 April. So we’ve had to start from scratch. We’ve got to solve the problem of rear-wheel vibration during braking, and we’re hoping to get there by changing the calibration of the suspension. There’s still one more day to improve our position.”

GIACOMO GUIDOTTI (Technical Manager, Playstation2 – FGF Aprilia Team) commented: “Monza is a lightning-fast circuit, very different from the ones we’ve been on so far this season: we’ve found ourselves up against a whole series of problems we weren’t expecting. We worked today on the performance of the tyres, frame, suspension and brakes without caring too much about the timing. Haga did very few kilometres here with our bike and we still don’t have all the data we need to take on the competition. But the potential for getting our own back sure isn’t lacking.”

More from a Benelli press release:

Benelli return to racing at historic Monza

After their unfortunate problems at Valencia earlier this year, which resulted in Benelli missing the last three rounds, Benelli Sport
returned to World Supersport competition today.

“It’s good to be back!” declared Team owner Andrea Merloni. “We have solved all the problems we had in Valencia. The reliability is back
although we are a little disappointed with the results today, we were faster here in testing on the 29th of April.”

Despite being given tyres specially made by Dunlop for Monza, the team struggled with severe chatter in qualifying. Peter Goddard managed to
qualify in a provisional 24th place.

“Maybe it’s the tyres,” said Merloni. “Or maybe it’s a combination of suspension, tyres and even the weather, but we expected to be two
seconds faster here today. We need another dry qualifying session to get a good grid position, unfortunately we can’t rely on the weather
forecast, in Italy they are a lottery!”

Away from racing there was good news for Benelli, the beautiful Tornado road bike is in full production and Benelli expect to start the first
deliveries to dealers in a little over a week.

“We already have many orders for the new road bike,” confirmed Merloni. “That makes me very happy.”

Reaction to the Benelli Tornado has been positive since the first time the bike was shown to the public, and the factory have managed to bring
the bike from prototype to production while remaining faithful to the original design. The bike looks set to become an instant Italian
classic!

From a press release:

Foret bounces back into provisional pole

Despite a massive crash on his first flying lap of the qualifying practice, Fabien Foret literally bounced back to take provisional pole.

Foret lost the back end of his Honda CBR600FS going into the chicane and literally flew into the gravel. He was taken to the medical centre for treatment, but then made an astounding comeback when he returned to the track. He blitzed his way into provisional pole with a fastest time of 1:53.867.

“I’m happy to be in provisional pole after such a big crash,” said Foret. “When I first arrived at the medical centre I didn’t feel so good, but they treated me and passed me fit to return to the session. Then I just got back to work! The Ten Kate Honda CBR600FS is very fast and at Monza that’s ideal. But the speed is no good on it’s own and I am fortunate that the Pirelli tyres and the WP suspension are working so well, the combination allows me to go fast. But now I need to rest, it was a big crash!”

Foret’s team mate Iain MacPherson wasn’t having such a great session, he finished sixteenth fastest. “The set up we have from Assen just hasn’t worked here for me, we’ve got some figuring out to do tonight!” said the
Scot.

Team Manager Ronald ten Kate was amazed by Foret’s performance, “It was storybook stuff,” commented ten Kate. “One minute he’s sat dazed in the medical centre and then the next he’s on provisional pole. This show’s just how dedicated he is to racing.

“With Iain MacPherson things weren’t so easy. We have plenty of work to do to try to get a good set up worked out for Iain, but I’m confident that the team will find a solution. And I’ve told Fabien to get some rest, he needs it after that session!”

Friday World Supersport Qualifying

1. F. Foret, 1:53.876, Ten Kate Honda
2. K. Muggeridge, 1:54.228, Honda
3. P. Casoli, 1:54.244, Yamaha
4. K. Fujiwara, 1:54.519, Suzuki
5. A. Pitt, 1:54.639, Kawasaki
6. C. Vermeulen, 1:54.742, Van Zon TKR Honda
7. S. Chambon, 1:54.756, Suzuki
8. P. Bontempi, 1:54.987, Ducati
9. J. Whitham, 1:55.025, Yamaha
10. A. Corradi, 1:55.100, Yamaha
16. I. MacPherson, 1:55.324, Ten Kate Honda

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

The AMA National scheduled for May 16-19 at Road Atlanta will feature more Air Fence and Alpina soft barriers than ever used before at an AMA road race.

According to AMA Road Race Manager Ron Barrick, 44 sections–about 1232 linear feet–of inflated soft barriers will be deployed around the racetrack with additional sections held in reserve to replace any sections that become damaged.

In addition to the Air Fence and Alpina soft barriers, 2200 haybales will be deployed around the track, Barrick said.

The soft barriers being deployed at Road Atlanta include 20 sections provided by Alpina’s rental service; Alpina’s Dan Lance is arriving at the track with a four-man set-up and maintenance crew on Monday, May 13.

Funding for the rented 20 Alpina soft barriers is being provided by Race Promotion Management (promoters of the race), Road Atlanta, American Suzuki Motor Corp., the Roadracingworld.com Action Fund and private contributors.

From a press release:

The Force Will be with IFMA Freestyle Riders Tonight on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno”
Freestyle Riders on NBC Tonight

AURORA, Ill., (May 10, 2002) – A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…people said Freestyle Motocross wouldn’t stand up to the test of time. Nay sayers will eat their words tonight when IFMA Freestyle Motocross is featured on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” tonight at 11:35 PST.

Mike Jones, Kenny Bartram, Dustin Miller, and Jake Windham will be flanked by Nate Adams and Jimmy McGuire as the top riders of IFMA Freestyle Motocross to conquer the newly created FMX course on the NBC lot in Burbank, Calif. Additionally, EA SPORTS Supercross and freestyle phenom Travis
Pastrana will make his first public appearance in weeks as he returns to guest commentate on tonight’s performance.

“The jumps are going to be spectacular, and the riders will have just enough time to practice their biggest tricks ever. This is a great moment for the sport of motocross,” said TD Lovett, vice president for Clear Channel Entertainment’s motor sports division, commenting from NBC trackside today.

Tonight’s show will also feature Hayden Christensen, who plays Anakin Skywalker in the upcoming Star Wars Episode II blockbuster movie that premieres Thursday, May 16, and musical guest Remy Shand.

This isn’t the first time high-flying motocross has traversed Jay Leno’s stage. Jeremy McGrath started the annual tradition two years ago with the first Tonight Show Cup and supercross rider appearance.

“The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” airs weeknights on NBC at 10:35 CST, 11:35 PST and is from Big Dog Productions in association with NBC Studios. For more information, visit www.nbc.com.

For more information on IFMA Freestyle Motocross, including rider bios, visit www.pacefmx.com.

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

After the MotoGP races at Jerez, the FIM released official word that Red Bull Yamaha’s Garry McCoy and Proton rider Jeremy McWilliams were penalized five seconds each for passing under a waving yellow flag on the last lap of the MotoGP race at Jerez.

Also, 125cc GP rider Manuel Poggiali was disqualified from the Jerez race results for riding “in an irresponsible manner, causing danger to rider Alex de Angelis”.

Both decisions are final.

According to another press release from the FIM, the riders in MotoGP will be allowed to have one crew member stand to the rear and side of the grid “in the interest of safety” until the riders depart on the warm-up lap. The crew member will be allowed to assist in the event their rider stalls on the grid before the warm-up lap.

And in a final press release from Switzerland, the World Championship sidecar race will be moved from the Sunday schedule of World Superbike/World Supersport rounds to Saturday. In addition, the “Superside” class will no longer have a Superpole session. The changes take effect at Monza May 10-12.

From a press release:

Airfence™ Safety Systems (Australia) Pty. Ltd.

Geelong West, Victoria, Australia.

Airfence Safety Systems, the world’s leading provider of motorcycle and Karting safety barriers, announced the appointment of Northern California-based Michael Fontaine as the North American Representative for Airfence.

“Mr. Fontaine is a great addition to our team and we are excited that he will provide our current and future customers with new levels of service in North America,” said Director, Andy Coffey. “Michael’s role will be to ensure that the North American motorsports and leisure industries are given levels of support which enable them to place Airfence Safety Systems on their tracks and customers get the assistance to ensure their Airfence works to its capacity. Mr. Fontaine is a member of the AMA, AHRMA and a lifelong motorcyclist and motorsports enthusiast.”

“It’s thrilling to be involved with the industry leader for safety barriers, Airfence”, said Mr. Fontaine. “With its growing and prestigious customer base, I am looking forward to working with Andy and the Airfence team in the support and growth of its leading safety systems solutions.”

About Airfence Technologies – Airfence Safety Systems are highest quality safety barriers designed to protect riders, drivers and other sports people from solid barriers in accidents, safely decelerating them in an air cushion and dissipating the energy to prevent rebound onto a racing course. They are durable, easy to handle and repair using the best materials. There are differing systems and models for different applications. Airfence helps to maintain a safe environment for our sport, while still having spectators close to the action. In motorcycle road racing Airfence is currently deployed by the AMA, Clear Channel and CCS, by Texas World Speedway, Mazda Raceway at Laguna Seca, NHIS at Loudon and most recently, California Speedway.

Safety Systems are also available for Karting, skiing and any other sports where participants could be hurt from impacting solid or semi-solid barriers.

Director:
Andy Coffey
P.O Box 7161
Geelong West
Victoria 3218 Australia
011 61 3 5229 1311
Fax 011 61 3 5229 2544
Andy [email protected]
www.airfence.com

North America Contact:
Michael Fontaine
P.O. Box 9238
Auburn, California
95604 U.S.A.
(530) 889-5522
Fax (530) 888-7136
Michael [email protected]
www.airfence.com

Airfence™ is a registered trademark of Airfence Safety Systems (Australia) Pty. Ltd.