Press releases from the World Superbike and World Supersport teams after qualifying at Magny-Cours on Saturday:
Magny-Cours ? Qualifying Practice 2 & Superpole.
Team BMW Motorrad Motorsport started with high hopes in today's Superpole qualifying at Magny-Cours (FRA). In the previous practice and qualifying sessions, factory riders Leon Haslam (GBR) and Troy Corser (AUS) were close to the top on their BMW S 1000 RRs. But in the deciding Superpole qualifying both of them experienced some issues that prevented them from qualifying at the very front. Leon finished seventh and will start the penultimate round of the 2011 FIM Superbike World Championship from the second row. Troy qualified 12th and on the third row. Ayrton Badovini (ITA) from the BMW Motorrad Italia SBK Team will start with his RR from 16th. His team mate Xavi Fores (ESP) qualified 17th.
Leon Haslam:
Fastest lap Qualifying Practices: 1:38.483 min (P5) / Fastest lap FP: 1:39.344 min (P10) / Fastest lap Superpole 3: 1:38.382 min (P7)
"We had a few issues in Superpole, which made the bike quite difficult to ride. If we can sit down now and solve these issues before tomorrow then a podium finish is certainly what we are aiming to achieve. We have been strong so far this weekend and the times are good on race tyres, but we just need to make some small improvements then we will be in a good position for the races. Right now starting positions and lap times are not what I am thinking about because we know if everything falls into place then we can be right up there."
Troy Corser:
Fastest lap Qualifying Practices: 1:38.485 min (P6) / Fastest lap FP: 1:39.334 min (P9) / Fastest lap Superpole 2: 1:38.516 min (P12)
"It was a tough session. The qualifying tyres didn't really improve my time as I was able to do the same times on race tyres, and that cost us in the end. It is a little frustrating because in order to qualify well you need to be going faster on the softer tyres, otherwise you won't be able to match the speed of the other guys who can. But on race tyres the bike is working really well and I am happy with the set-up, so let see what happens tomorrow. Around here you need to get away well and run with the leaders, otherwise it can become very difficult to make up the time. A lot will depend on the first lap tomorrow. We have been in the top five all weekend so we are optimistic."
Rainer B�umel (Head of Race Operations):
"Leon did a good job. In Superpole 3 he did not have a qualifying tyre left. In view of this he did a good lap time. All the riders are very close and in Superpole 1 we had to send out both riders on qualifying tyres. Nearly everybody in the field did that, as one tenth of a second more or less means five places higher or lower. Troy unfortunately had some issues with his tyres in Superpole 2 that led to small mistakes. That is a shame, because otherwise he would also have made it to the next session."
FABRIZIO AND SUZUKI ON 4TH ROW
Team Suzuki Press Office - October 1
Team Alstare Suzuki's Michel Fabrizio will start tomorrow's pair of 23-lap World Superbike Championship races at Magny Cours in France from the fourth row of the grid after he and the team were unable to solve the problems in practice and qualifying.
Although the team tried many different solutions with the GSX-R1000, none of them worked sufficiently well for the Italian to proceed any further than Superpole 1. It was a disappointing afternoon, but they are hoping that tomorrow morning's warm-up will provide some answers and at least allow Fabrizio to challenge in the races.
Jonathan Rea (Honda) took Superpole this afternoon with Eugene Laverty (Yamaha) second and series leader Carlos Checa (Ducati) third.
Michel Fabrizio - 14th, 1:38.565:
"Obviously I am very disappointed how things have turned out today. Yesterday was not good, but the team and I felt that we would find some solutions to our problems and improve, but it didn't turn out that way. We seemed to have tried everything possible, but the bike is still giving me problems on the brakes and on acceleration out of the turns. We've tried going back to our base set-up, but even that hasn't worked as we expected, so we will have to try some more ideas and hopefully I can then push the bike harder.
"Of course, my grid position is not good and I am going to have to make two superb starts if I am to have any chance of doing well tomorrow. If we can get the bike working better, I know that I can keep up a good race pace and chase some decent results. If we don't improve the bike, the races are going to be very hard indeed. I remain positive that the team will improve the bike in the warm-up and then I will have a chance in the races.
Final Qualifying and Superpole: 1 Jonathan Rea (GBR-Honda) 1:37.490, 2 Eugene Laverty (GBR-Yamaha) 1:37.600, 3 Carlos Checa (ESP-Ducati) 1:37.932, 4 Leon Camier (GBR-Aprilia) 1:38.006, 5 Sylvain Guintoli (FRA-Ducati) 1:38.094, 6 Tom Sykes (GBR-Kawasaki) 1:38.094. 14 Michel Fabrizio (ITA-Alstare Suzuki) 1:38.565.
Optimistic Ellison heading up second row
BOGDANKA PTR HONDA's James Ellison took more than 1.5seconds from his lap time yesterday to claim fifth on the grid for tomorrow's penultimate round of the World Supersport Championship at Magny Cours in France - and he feels good to challenge for the podium.
Pawel Szkopek will start from 19th and with consistent race pace. With a good start he will be in a position to challenge for points in the race that starts at 1330CET tomorrow, Sunday, October 2nd.
James: "I am chuffed to bits with fifth. Before qualifying I thought a high 1m41secs lap was possible but managed to do a mid 1m41secs lap. Not only that but I managed five laps very consistently at similar pace so it was not just a one-off. My Bogdanka PTR Honda is steering and turning well so I am happy and as ever, my target is the podium."
Pawel: "I am OK with 19th but am a little disappointed not to have improved my lap times more. Anyway, I am close enough to the riders in front that if I get a good start then I can challenge for more points in the race, that is my target."
Simon Buckmaster, Bogdanka PTR Honda Team Manager: "Well done to James and his crew, this equals his best qualification this year but if anything is in better conditions for the race. He is consistent and fast; he has every chance of scoring a podium tomorrow.
"Pawel started the weekend very well and 19th is a good effort by him. He is in a decent position to score points so we will be aiming for that in the race."
Fast Sam on the front row
PARKALGAR HONDA'S Sam Lowes is fourth on the front row of the grid for tomorrow's 11th round of the World Supersport Championship at Magny Cours in France - and he clearly has the pace to challenge at the sharp end.
Miguel Praia on the second Parkalgar Honda qualified 15th after slashing his times by one-second from yesterday. He has the pace to challenge for a top 10 in the race that starts at 1330CET tomorrow, Sunday, October 2nd.
Sam: "I am happy with a front row position and more than that I am pleased with my pace over race distance. We have worked hard this weekend and we have the ability to challenge at the front. It's been a big team effort so far and I'll be doing my best to deliver Parkalgar Honda a good result."
Miguel: "I had a small crash at the end as I was getting faster and faster but I am OK. It is a shame as that was the end of the session for us with 15-minutes to go. Anyway, my lap times are one second faster than yesterday and for race distance we are OK. Normally we race better than we qualify and I am very positive."
Simon Buckmaster, Parkalgar Honda Team Manager: "It's a great job by Sam to take a second of his qualifying times from yesterday and he is less than 2/10ths from pole position. He has been improving all weekend and we are in a good position for the race.
"Miguel has also cut his lap times and is consistent. He races much better than he qualifies so we are confident he can be challenging for the top 10."
CHECA AND ALTHEA RACING TO FACE TOMORROW'S DAY OF RECKONING FROM THE FRONT ROW OF THE GRID AT MAGNY-COURS
Nevers (France), Saturday 1st October 2011: Carlos Checa and the Althea Racing team showed themselves to be very competitive in today's Superpole at the Magny-Cours circuit. Despite a technical problem between the first and second phases, the Spanish rider qualified in third position for tomorrow's races, in which he needs to earn just three points in order to be crowned 2011 World Champion.
The Superbike riders were out on a fairly cool track for the morning's second qualifying session. Carlos continued to work hard with his team, concentrating on tyres. At the end of qualifying, Althea's rider was in tenth position, easily securing himself a spot in the afternoon's Superpole.
By the early afternoon, the high temperatures had returned (44C track temperature) and Checa and his team enjoyed a positive free practice session. Carlos completed two long-runs, making a series of very fast laps and recording a best of 1m38.5. He closed in first place.
Superpole 1- with a race tyre, Checa made two laps, positioning himself fifth by mid-session. To be sure of safe passage to the second phase, he went back out on a qualifier and this proved to be the right thing to do as, with this tyre, he recorded the fastest overall time of the first session, 1m37.780.
Superpole 2 ? due to a small technical problem with his first bike, Carlos had to switch to his second 1198. He made three fast laps, the last of which was sufficient to place him eighth at the session's end.
Superpole 3 ? though he had no more qualifying tyres available, Checa nevertheless made a couple of very fast laps as he aimed for a place on the front row. His second lap, a 1m37.9, assured him of overall third position on the grid for tomorrow's races, behind Rea and Laverty.
Carlos Checa:
"We thought that we'd be able to fight for a position on the front row and we managed to do that today. We had a few problems between the first and second Superpole phases but my technicians worked extremely hard to resolve these and we took a great result in the end. We made a big step forward at Imola in terms of points but we've come here to work as we do each work, giving it our all in each session and each race. There's a great atmosphere in the garage but my team is as professional as ever. We are enjoying the moment of course but tomorrow we will do everything that we normally do, as well as we can. There should be good weather and lots of fans and so I want to enjoy myself and make two great races ? it will surely be an unforgetable day."
TIMES (Superpole): 1. Rea (Honda) 1'37.4; 2. Laverty (Yamaha) 1'37.6; 3. Checa (Ducati) 1'37.9; 4. Camier (Aprilia) 1'38.0; 5. Guintoli (Ducati) 1'38.0; 6. Sykes (Kawasaki) 1'38.0; 7. Haslam (BMW) 1'38.2; 8. Melandri (Yamaha) 1'38.5
Rea takes pole position in France
Jonathan Rea will start tomorrow's 12th round World Superbike championship race at Magny-Cours in France from pole position after setting the fastest time in this afternoon's Superpole sessions.
Indeed, the Castrol Honda rider also beat the best Superbike lap at the 4.411km circuit, knocking more than two tenths of a second off Cal Crutchlow's previous best, which was set in 2010.
It is Rea's second World Superbike pole position, his first being set at Assen in Holland last season, and his time of 1m37.490s came in the final Superpole session after his Castrol Honda crew found an improved balance for his Honda CBR1000RR in the earlier free practice session.
Rea's Castrol Honda team-mate, Ruben Xaus, did not ride today after being advised by circuit medical staff to rest his neck injury sustained in his first lap crash in yesterday's opening free practice session. The 32-year-old Spaniard is confident of being fully fit for the final SBK round at Portimao in two weeks.
Jonathan Rea ? P1 1m37.490s
It was a strong lap but we've had a good base for most of the weekend and we knew we had to make an extra step to make Sunday more comfortable. The guys gave me a great bike in free practice this afternoon and transformed some things with the balance of the bike, which gave me more confidence to push. So I kind of expected to be somewhere near the front but I didn't expect the lap time to be that fast. We had a good Superpole 1 and that freed us up with the qualifiers for Superpole 2 and 3, so everything worked out perfectly. The big step we made in free practice means I can be quite consistent on my preferred race tyre, so I'm looking forward to tomorrow now. The team did a great job today, so I'd like to thank everyone.
Ronald ten Kate ? team manager
Of course, we all know that Sunday is the most important part of the weekend but Jonathan's pole position here is reward for all the hard work that's been put in back at the workshop over recent weeks. Also, a big credit must go to his crew for finding a breakthrough in his set-up ? we believe the CBR is pretty much dialled in now and, as we all know, Sunday is when Jonathan wakes up with his race-face on, fully focused on what's needed.
Pole position : 1m37.490s (162.884Km/h) Jonathan Rea, Honda
Circuit record lap : 1m38.619s (161.020Km/h) Noriyuki Haga, Ducati, 2009
Circuit Best Lap : 1m37.490s (162.884Km/h) Jonathan Rea, Honda, 2011
Rea wins his first Tissot-Superpole of the year
Magny-Cours (France), Saturday 1st October 2011 ? Jonathan Rea (Castrol Honda) made the best of perfect weather conditions to take the Tissot-Superpole win in France with a 1 minute 37.490 second lap ? a new track best. It was his first top starting place this season, and only the second in his career. Second overall after the three-part contest, which determines the top 16 starting positions, was Eugene Laverty (Yamaha World Superbike) from championship leader Carlos Checa (Althea Racing Ducati) and Aprilia Alitalia rider Leon Camier. Checa only just made it into Superpole 3 but still starts from the front row tomorrow, on what is almost certain to be the day he wins the championship outright.
Jonathan Rea: "My Superpole lap was very strong and very good for the team. It looked like the pace was close all weekend, and we knew that the team needed to make that extra step to make Sunday more comfortable. My guys gave me a great bike in FP2, they transformed some things, changing the balance which gave me more confidence to push. I expected to be near the front but didn't expect the lap time to be so fast."
Eugene Laverty: "This was the first track where I rode the R1 last year and I went strong immediately so I was looking forward to coming back to a track I've already ridden the bike at. I was hoping to fight for pole position, but Johnny beat me to it. I've been second so many times on the grid this year so I've accepted I'm not going to get a free Tissot watch! It would be good to win again after Monza, I'll try for it but more important is two finishes on the podium."
Carlos Checa: "I think our rival is now myself, in the sense that I must keep my concentration, do one more race and keep the emotions for after. Today has not been easy, but finally we concluded with a satisfactory qualifying position considering the situation and we are quite happy. In the box the Althea team is very professional, everyone is calm and so far we are doing perfect."
Sylvain Guintoli (Effenbert-Liberty Racing Ducati) was the top French competitor in fifth, one place up on Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team Superbike) even though they set identical lap times. The top two rows were completed by Leon Haslam (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) and Marco Melandri (Yamaha World Superbike).
Superpole 2 ended the chances of Noriyuki Haga (Pata Aprilia), Kawasaki Racing Team's Joan Lascorz, Supersonic Ducati's Maxime Berger and Troy Corser (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) improving on their third row starting positions.
The first four riders to exit from the Tissot-Superpole contest were Jakub Smrz (Effenbert Liberty Racing Ducati), Michel Fabrizio (Alstare Suzuki), Mark Aitchison (Pedercini Team Kawasaki) and Ayrton Badovini (BMW Motorrad Italia SBK). Javier Fores (BMW Motorrad Italia SBK) and Roberto Rolfo (Pedercini Team Kawasaki) were the only two riders not to qualify for Superpole, with Ruben Xaus (Castrol Honda) already out of the running due to an injury picked up in practice yesterday.
Times: 1. Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 1'37.490; 2. Laverty E. (IRL) Yamaha YZF R1 1'37.600; 3. Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 1'37.932; 4. Camier L. (GBR) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1'38.006; 5. Guintoli S. (FRA) Ducati 1098R 1'38.094; 6. Sykes T. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1'38.094; 7. Haslam L. (GBR) BMW S1000 RR 1'38.382; 8. Melandri M. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R1 1'38.562; 9. Haga N. (JPN) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1'38.137; 10. Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1'38.204; 11. Berger M. (FRA) Ducati 1098R 1'38.347; 12. Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 1'38.516; 13. Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R 1'38.524; 14. Fabrizio M. (ITA) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1'38.565; 15. Aitchison M. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1'38.623; 16. Badovini A. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 1'38.687; 17. Fores J. (ESP) BMW S1000 RR 1'39.230; 18. Rolfo R. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1'39.982
World Supersport
Broc Parkes scored his third pole position of the year in WSS qualifying for the Kawasaki Motocard.com team, his second on the run after Imola, with a time of 1 minute 41.395 seconds. Alongside the Australian on the front row of the grid will be two top Italians, Luca Scassa (Yamaha ParkinGO) in second and Friday pace-setter Massimo Roccoli (Lorenzini by Leoni Kawasaki) in third. The front row is completed by Sam Lowes (Parkalgar Honda).
Points leader Chaz Davies (Yamaha ParkinGO) will only start from the eighth slot on row 2, with James Ellison (Bogdanka PTR Honda), David Salom (Kawasaki Motocard.com) and Fabien Foret (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) ahead of him.
Times: 1. Parkes B. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'41.395; 2. Scassa L. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 1'41.397; 3. Roccoli M. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'41.490; 4. Lowes S. (GBR) Honda CBR600RR 1'41.586; 5. Ellison J. (GBR) Honda CBR600RR 1'41.588; 6. Salom D. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'41.614; 7. Foret F. (FRA) Honda CBR600RR 1'41.916; 8. Davies C. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R6 1'41.952; etc.
Superstock 1000
Once again there will an all-Italian front row for the Superstock 1000 race tomorrow, with Danilo Petrucci (Barni Racing Team Ducati) ahead of title chaser Davide Giugliano (Althea Racing Ducati), the former also setting a new best lap for the category. Third quickest was Niccol� Canepa (Lazio Motorsport Ducati) while Lorenzo Zanetti (BMW Motorrad Italia Superstock) completed the front row.
Frenchman Sylvain Barrier (BMW Motorrad Italia Superstock), who crashed again in the final session, will start from row 2 followed by Lorenzo Baroni (Althea Racing Ducati), Lorenzo Savadori (Lorenzini by Leoni Kawasaki) and the returning Loris Baz (Ten Kate Junior Team Honda).
Times: 1. Petrucci D. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'41.335; 2. Giugliano D. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'41.372; 3. Canepa N. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'41.680; 4. Zanetti L. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 1'41.690; 5. Barrier S. (FRA) BMW S1000 RR 1'41.828; 6. Baroni L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'41.929; 7. Savadori L. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1'42.328; 8. Baz L. (FRA) Honda CBR1000RR 1'42.373; etc.
Superstock 600 - Race
A thrilling 12-lap race saw Jed Metcher (MTM-RT Motorsports Yamaha Team) move further ahead in the championship battle by taking second place behind race winner Michael Van der Mark (Ten Kate Junior Team). This was the Dutch Honda rider's third win of the year and puts him third overall in the championship rankings, 25 points behind Metcher but with a better win ratio, which may be crucial at the final round in Portugal.
One-time race leader and pole man Joshua Day (Revolution Racedays Kawasaki) was third in the race and is now 19 points behind Metcher in the table, with one race remaining. Tony Covena (Nito Racing Yamaha) was fourth today, eight seconds back, with Robin Mulhauser (RRT Racing Yamaha) fifth.
Results: 1. Vd Mark M. (NED) Honda CBR600RR 21'05.878 (150,532 kph); 2. Metcher J. (AUS) Yamaha YZF R6 1.699; 3. Day J. (USA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1.743; 4. Covena T. (NED) Yamaha YZF R6 8.642; 5. Mulhauser R. (SUI) Yamaha YZF R6 8.997; 6. Beretta D. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 11.345; 7. Marchal M. (FRA) Yamaha YZF R6 17.331; 8. Cocco F. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 19.447; etc.
Points (after 9 of 10 rounds): 1. Metcher 137; 2. Day 118; 3. Vd Mark 112; 4. Lanusse 101; 5. Lombardi 86; 6. Russo 83; 7. Duwelz 67; 8. Covena 50; etc.
Broc Secures Third Pole Start Of The Year
WSS, Magny-Cours, France, 1 October 2011
Broc Parkes was in fine qualifying form and secured pole position at the penultimate round of the year with a 1'41.395 lap time, beating Luca Scassa to the best starting spot by 0.002 seconds.
David Salom took his official Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R to sixth place on the grid after being denied a clean lap by back markers in the hot and sunny conditions in France today.
In a good weekend of qualifying for Kawasaki riders, Massimo Roccoli (Lorenzini by Leoni Kawasaki) was fastest of all on day one, and then third in combined qualifying, despite making a small improvement in his best lap time today. The battle for pole and starting places was a close affair, with the top six covered by only 0.219 seconds.
Roccoli's team-mate Vittorio Iannuzzo was 14th on the grid today, and starts Sunday's 22-lap race from the fourth row of the grid.
Broc Parkes: "It was a good lap time and I had a few goes at it. I made a couple of mistakes myself and then we finally got one together and it felt good. Qualifying is good for me to be on pole but more important is tomorrow, and it should be a good race because the top times are really close. We have a good race setup so I should be going into the race in more competitive shape than I was last week at Imola. That is my goal for tomorrow. I don't think anybody will make a break tomorrow, it is way too close."
David Salom: "We improved our best time and our position today but I have too much chatter. I was not able to get rid of it completely. I think pole would still have been possible but I got caught up behind slower riders than me, and I did not get in a really clean lap. For the race our lap times are good and I think tomorrow it is possible to take a podium of some kind."
Top Ten Qualifying Places For Sykes And Lascorz
WSBK, Magny-Cours, France, 1 October 2011
Tom Sykes and Joan Lascorz secured sixth and tenth places respectively after Superpole qualifying at Magny-Cours and Sykes now starts Sunday's 22-lap races from the second row; Lascorz from row three.
For Tom Magny-Cours was a little tricky in Superpole and he did not get the hoped-for perfect run on a race tyre in Superpole One, meaning he had to use one of his two qualifiers before the ideal moment. He is still in an enviable starting place and has been on good form on his Ninja ZX-10R since the opening day.
He was second in the first free practice on Friday and then fourth in the first timed qualifying session. He went ninth in the second timed session this morning, seventh in the second free practice session this afternoon and then sixth in Superpole.
Joan Lascorz concentrate hard with his pit crew in regular qualifying and was rewarded with a Superpole start, pushing hard and earning himself a space on row three as the last rider inside the top ten places.
Mark Aitchison (Kawasaki Pedercini Team) made it into Superpole and qualified 15th. His team-mate Roberto Rolfo was 18th.
Tom Sykes: "We made quite a big change in Superpole and we have been struggling in the first sector all weekend. So we made a compromise set-up but unfortunately on race tyres in Superpole One I just didn't quite have my head around it and I had to use a qualifying tyre. It was touch and go because I think and there were only two riders who did not use qualifying tyres then. In Superpole Two, on a Q tyre, I did a 1'37.6 lap and so in Superpole Three we had to use an old qualifying tyre. It wasn't ideal but at one time I thought I would still be able to sneak a front row start but it wasn't to be. Big credit to the team because we are there and thereabouts this weekend again and we have a lot of information to take into tomorrow's races."
Joan Lascorz: "We made improvements in qualifying this weekend and we made it into Superpole, then progressed to Superpole Two. We could not get into the final session but we still qualified inside the top ten. For sure row three is a lot better than row five, where I was last weekend. Our times on a race set-up are also not so bad so I am hoping to be able to make two good starts and hope to run at least in the second group."
Impeccable Performance Secures Second Place on Tomorrows Grid for Laverty.
Eugene Laverty was on flying form today completing the second qualifying day at Magny Cours in second place, securing a front row start on the French grid for tomorrows two races. The sweltering heat and unusually high track temperature of 42� proved difficult on rubber in the afternoons superpole knockout. Laverty performed impeccably to shoot straight to the top of the time sheets in the first session on a race tyre, being bumped to fifth in the closing minutes as 14 of the 16 riders switched to qualifiers and went out to improve their times. Team-mate Melandri used both a race tyre and a qualifier to take him through to the second heat in 11th place. Both Yamaha riders comfortably qualified for the last session with Laverty in sixth place and Melandri in seventh. The third and final heat saw the Northern Irish rider clocking in an impressive 137.600, beating the previous best lap record before fellow Irishman Rea, beat him to pole by just 0.110 of a second. Melandri, having already used his sets of qualifiers was unable to secure a front row position and will start tomorrows races from eighth place on the grid.
Both Yamaha World Superbike riders successfully completed this mornings cooler qualifying practice having made further progress with the rear set up on their R1 machines. Melandri lapped the track for the first time ever yesterday, yet managed to set the fastest time in the todays session, having taken over a second off yesterdays lap time.
Eugene Laverty
Yamaha World Superbike Team , 2nd - 1'37.600
"This was the first place I tested the R1 last year and was strong immediately so I was really looking forward to coming back here again. Its always nice to go back to a track you know well and have had good results before, it helps gain confidence. I was hoping to get the pole position but Rea just beat me to it so Ill be aiming for that in Portimao, it would be nice to get aTissot watch before the end of the year. Id like to get another race win, its been a while since Monza, but Id be happy with rostrums as the last time I was up there was in Silverstone so Ill be aiming for two solid finishes on Sunday. "
Marco Melandri
Yamaha World Superbike Team , 8th - 1'38.171
"Today was both a positive and a negative qualifying day. We made good progress with our race pace this morning in the second qualifying session, but just like in the last few rounds I have struggled with the qualifying tyres. Ill be starting tomorrows two races from the second row on the grid which means it wont be easy but Im confident that we have a more competitive package than we had in Imola. Ill do my best to get off to a good start and push through the pack hoping for a podium finish."
Andrea Dosoli - Yamaha World Superbike Team Manager
"It was definitely a positive qualifying day for both riders. Eugene was impeccable in all 3 superpole sessions, saving the qualifying tyres for the second and third heats to secure his fourth 2nd place on the grid this year. In this mornings qualifying practice he demonstrated that he has a good race pace so I am confident that he will do two very strong races tomorrow. Marco made a leap in the right direction today; he improved over one second on yesterdays times, the fastest to lap the track in the second qualifying practice. He has a good race pace also and a second row start isnt dramatic. I am sure he will be competitive and fighting for a podium in both races tomorrow."
Davies all set to Battle for the Title at Magny Cours
Yamaha ParkinGO team just completed a successful second qualifying session today in hot conditions on the French track at Magny Cours and is looking confident ahead of tomorrows important race day. Luca Scassa and Chaz Davies were on top form, completing the session in second and eighth places respectively.
Luca Scassa was fast off the mark and dominated the top positions on the time sheet for the duration of the afternoons second qualifying practice. Having made some minor changes to the set-up, the Italian continued to improve on lap times and shot straight to the top. Held up by another rider in his lines, Scassas flying lap was interrupted, bumping him to second. The Italian will start tomorrows race from the front row on the grid and will be fighting for a well-deserved podium. Team-mate Chaz Davies was also on top form. Satisfied with a second row on the grid, the Welshman decided not to push too hard and made the most of the session to fine tune his R6 machine ahead of tomorrows title decider race. Davies wrapped up the session in eighth place, but confident that he has what it takes to be at the front, right off the grid.
Chaz Davies will be fighting for a race win tomorrow but with a 35 point advantage, he could consent the win to his closest adversary; Frenchman Fabien Foret and settle for third spot on the podium to still claim the 2011 WSS championship title.
Luca Scassa
Yamaha ParkinGO Team - 2nd, 1'41.395
"We made the most of the two days trying to find a good race set up and I think we are doing pretty well. We have a good race pace so I should be in a position to fight for a win, as I was doing in Imola. I didnt want to risk anything by pushing too hard in the second qualifying session, Im happy enough with the second row and Im confident I can get off to a good start. I havent prepared a race tactic, I just want to think about the race and nothing else. I still have a 35 point advantage and there are two races left, so I should be ok."
Chaz Davies
Yamaha ParkinGO Team - 8th, 1'41.952
"I am really disappointed that I didnt get the pole position today, especially seeing as I was well ahead until the very last few minutes when another rider got in my line and slowed me down. I am pretty sure I can be fighting for the race win tomorrow though, the bike is working well, we have a good race set up and all we need to do is a little fine tuning tomorrow morning. Id like to be able to celebrate a successful race day together with Chaz."
Second row start for Foret
Fabien Foret will start tomorrow's 11th round World Supersport race at Magny-Cours, in France from the second row of the grid after setting the seventh fastest time in this afternoon's final qualifying session.
Pole position was taken by Australian Broc Parkes, while series leader Chaz Davies qualified one place behind Foret in eighth place on the outside of row two.
Foret's Hannspree Ten Kate Honda team-mate, Florian Marino, was not able to improve his time from yesterday's opening qualifying session, which dropped him to 11th place on the grid for tomorrow's 22-lap race around the 4.411km Magny-Cours circuit.
Fabien Foret ? P7 1m41.916s
We couldn't really improve the setting very much from this morning and, although the time was a little better than yesterday, we really need to find something in the areas where I am struggling. The main problems are a lack of traction and inability to change direction quickly, so we'll look at everything again tonight and remind ourselves that it's the race that counts, and that's not until tomorrow.
Florian Marino ? P11 1m42.644s
We didn't really find the right way to go today and changed the gearing twice to try and find a solution to the problems we were having. That cost us a lot of time this afternoon and the bike was still not right. We were going in the wrong direction and everything felt the opposite of how I wanted the bike to be. But nothing is impossible, as Fabien showed at Imola last week, so we will try for something new tomorrow and hope for a good race.
Ronald ten Kate ? team manager
There is no disguising the fact that we are in a difficult situation but we haven't given up and we showed that we can bounce back with Fabien's amazing win at Imola last weekend. There is still a lot of work to do and probably a late night for the crews, but we'll try to come up with something that works for the riders in tomorrow's warm-up and then see what the race brings.
Source: http://www.motomatters.com/press_release/2011/10/01/2011_magny_cours_world_superbike_saturda.html
No comments:
Post a Comment