WORLDSBK.COM - bis 20.06.2011

[WORLDSBK.COM]

Chris Vermeulen has pulled out of this weekend's US Round at Miller Motorsports Park as a result of his crash a couple of weeks ago at Monza. In mutual agreement with the team and with Kawasaki, Chris has decided to focus his attentions on getting back to full fitness once again and not to further aggravate the injury to his left elbow, with a clear intention of being ready for the next round at Misano.

This year the former World Supersport champion has only been able to participate in the first race at Assen, but he will continue his recuperation in Europe during the MMP weekend and then test at Aragon in early June to get some welcome track time on his Ninja ZX-10R machine outside of the pressures of a regular race weekend. This special test will show how his recently injured left elbow has healed up since the previous round at Monza as well as giving Chris the chance to try our different machine settings and learn a circuit he has never been to before. Aragon is KRT's designated test track, and the venue for the seventh round of the championship.

Vermeulen declared: "It is disappointing to not race in America but my injuries are still healing. The good thing is they are improving. The decision was taken with the team and Kawasaki to miss the race and concentrate on testing. That's not only for myself to get some time under my belt away from the racing, but also to get more information about the bike. That means I should hopefully come back strong at Misano which is a track I know quite well. I have never ridden at Aragon before so it will be good to get some track time in and learn the track before we go there after Misano."

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After an unfortunate race 2 at Monza, which came to an abrupt end shortly after the start, Jonathan Rea (Castrol Honda) is preparing for what could prove to be a crucial round of the season at Miller Motorsports Park. The young Northern Irishman, who now lives on the Isle of Man, is hoping to make use of the track time he put in during last weekend's designated testing on the US track.

"We nominated Miller as our test track this year because last season we really struggled with bike set-up. I really enjoy riding here in America but the bumpy nature of the track makes it very difficult to find the optimum settings for the bike. My team have pulled out all the stops though, and we had a lot of new items to test."

The new parts brought by the Dutch team were used by Rea, who was positive about the new swingarm, which has been designed to get the best out of the rough track surface. But because of poor weather conditions Rea was unable to make the most of the tests, despite being pleased with the overall result.

"The weather wasn't on our side, so the track conditions were pretty dirty out there. I found a better feeling for corner entry with a new swing-arm and this really helped the feeling when the tyre life starts to drop. I also had some new suspension items to test and, while we found some positives, it will take more time to get it dialled in properly. We are in much better shape now to start the weekend and as always we will do our best."

The Castrol Honda man is currently 56 points away from leader Carlos Checa and the Miller Motorsports Round represents a fundamental opportunity for the Irishman to keep alive his title hopes this year.

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[WORLDSBK.COM]

Like he did in 2008, Carlos Checa set pole in front of Max Biaggi, Cal Crutchlow and Jakub Smrz. Leon Haslam, Biaggi's main contender for the title run was just behind, starting from fifth. The only mistake by Carlos in this weekend was at the start of race one, when he was passed by Biaggi and Camier and was forced into third at the first corner; moments later Smrz broke his engine, running half of the opening lap with his bike smoking.

Checa was able to pass Camier during the opening lap, Leon tried to fight back, but Checa held on to second and moments later he took first from Biaggi, recording the fastest race lap. Carlos pulled away and was set for a comfortable win, but an electrical problem sidelined him with three laps to go, leaving the win to Biaggi.

Checa at the start of race two was faster and left the Aprilias behind: at the end of the opening lap he already had a seven tenths advantage over Biaggi. Checa pulled away immediately, increasing his advantage to 1.2 seconds by the third lap. On the eighth lap Checa again retired due to mechanical failure and Biaggi had an easy run for the win, having already a huge gap over his rivals.

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WorldSBK.com takes a quick look at the stats, facts and figures regarding the fifth round of the FIM Superbike World Championship in the USA.

RIDERS

Max Biaggi won both races last year: the Italian however took the lead only when Carlos Checa retired with mechanical failures. Max has always scored points here in all the six races he contested;

Leon Camier last year was able to complete the double for Aprilia in race two, finishing behind Biaggi, he was fourth in race one;

 

Jonathan Rea climbed on the podium only once in Miller, in 2009, race two, third, however he always scored points here;

The Miller track is undoubtedly special for Carlos Checa: in 2008 he started from pole, recorded the double (maiden career pole and win) and scored both fastest laps, a feat he would have recorded also last year, if two mechanical failures hadn't sidelined him when he was clearly leading. In 2009 he had to give way to Ben Spies' dominance at his home track, finishing second in race one and retiring in race two after a crash;

Troy Corser obtained his best result at Miller with Yamaha in his first weekend here, 2008, posting a second in race one. After that he endured qualifying problems, always missing the top-10 spots, but last year from the fifteenth spot he scored two fifths;

Two Supersport races for Joan Lascorz in Miller: in 2009 he started from pole, ending up fourth behind Kenan Sofuoglu, Eugene Laverty and Cal Crutchlow, while last year he finished third behind Sofuoglu and Laverty;

Noriyuki Haga after his retirement in race one in 2008 for a crash (broken collarbone), has always finished in the top-10, scoring his best result in race one last year, third;

Roberto Rolfo endured a difficult weekend in 2008: he qualified second to last and from there scored only a twentieth and a sixteenth;

Starting from the twelfth grid spot, last year Sylvain Guintoli was able to finish both races in the top-10: eighth in race one and sixth in race two;

Eugene Laverty in the Supersport Championship obtained in Miller two second places, in both cases behind Kenan Sofuoglu and in both cases starting from the second grid spot;

Miller is a tough race for Tom Sykes: his best grid spot is a lowly eighteenth, but despite this he has always managed to score points, even a ninth from the 22nd spot in the second 2009 race;

Michel Fabrizio in the four races run in 2008 and 2009 always climbed onto the podium, starting both weekends from the fourth grid spot. Last year he crashed in race one and was ninth in race two;

Ayrton Badovini in 2008 was the best Kawasaki rider in race one, seventeenth; he was able to score points in twelfth in race two;

Only a podium placement for Leon Haslam in Miller: a second in race one last year. In both his weekends here he fell in race two;

For Jakub Smrz the Miller races have reserved little success: a sixth in race one from the eleventh grid spot in the first 2008 race is maybe his best result. In the following year he started from fifth, but finished sixth and eighth and last year he retired twice for mechanical problems starting from the front row (fourth);

Ruben Xaus with BMW obtained his best results here, finishing tenth and eleventh last year. Quite different his performances the year before, when he finished both races outside the points.

TEAMS

In all the races run here, only in last year's second race has Ducati been unable to finish on the podium. Ducati has the record for podium placements here (five) but has never won;

Honda, after a double by Checa in 2008 saw its results decline: a couple of podiums the following year, none at all last year;

Kawasaki scored its last top-10 placement in the first race of 2009, when Jamie Hacking was seventh;

Suzuki scored two podium placements in Miller, a couple of seconds: in 2008, race two with Max Neukirchner and last year in race one with Leon Haslam;

Yamaha won both races in 2009 with Ben Spies, then they obtained only one podium placement, in race two last year with Cal Crutchlow, third.

MILESTONES IN THE UNITED STATES

 

(from 1989 to 1991 the race was held at Brainerd, from 1995 to 2004 at Laguna Seca)

 

1989 - first win for the future World Champion Raymond Roche;

 

1990 - first win for Doug Chandler, who in qualifying scored the first Kawasaki pole;

 

1999 - first win for Ben Bostrom;

 

2000 - first pole position for Troy Bayliss;

 

2008 - First pole and win for Carlos Checa, 100th win for Honda;

 

2009 - Ben Spies breaks the record streak of pole positions, recording his seventh straight pole, the previous record was set by Doug Polen in 1991.

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The Karting Centre in the paddock of the Miller Motorsports Park circuit today was the scene for an entertaining pre-race Media Event called the MMP Celebrity Kart Race.

15 teams took part, each one made up of a World Superbike or AMA rider, a member of the media, a representative of the Armed Forces and a fan who won a competition organized locally for the event.

The race consisted of each rider completing five laps, with the aggregate best times of each team member making up the standings, and the win going to the team that lapped the quickest.

In the end the win went to Team Troy Corser, followed by Team Melissa Paris and Team Carlos Checa.

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Carlos Checa notched up the quickest time in the first free practice session at Miller this morning. The Althea Racing Ducati man once again proved to be a master of the high-altitude Utah circuit with a lap time of 1 minute 48.914 seconds, a time that came about despite the fact that he was twice sidelined with technical problems during the one-hour session. Behind Checa can be found the two Aprilias of Leon Camier and Max Biaggi, one-tenth adrift of his team-mate.

Jakub Smrz (Effenbert-Liberty Racing Ducati) moved up the timesheets towards the end of the session to grab the fourth slot, overhauling Michel Fabrizio (Suzuki Alstare). Jonathan Rea (Castrol Honda) was sixth, while Marco Melandri (Yamaha World Superbike Team) was in tenth.

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[WORLDSBK.COM]

Carlos Checa continued his brilliant first day form on the Althea Racing Ducati machine at Miller Motorsports Park, the points leader blasting his way to a time of 1 minute 48.260 seconds.

With a few drops of rain appearing towards the end of the session, but not sufficient to disturb normal proceedings, the time that Checa set in the early phase was a full eight-tenths of a second clear of the one recorded by the next man, Leon Camier (Aprilia Alitalia). The young Brit was competitive enough to end the session just ahead of his team-mate and last year's double winner Max Biaggi. Kawasaki Racing Team's Tom Sykes put together a quick lap to earn the final place on the provisional front row, just a tenth behind Biaggi.

Other riders who featured well up in the one-hour session were Aussie Troy Corser (BMW Motorrad) in fifth, followed by Jonathan Rea (Castrol Honda), Jakub Smrz (Effenbert-Liberty Ducati) and Eugene Laverty (Yamaha World Superbike), who make up the provisional second row. Michel Fabrizio, who is suffering from a heavy bout of flu, was next up in ninth for Suzuki Alstare, with Ayrton Badovini (BMW Motorrad Italia SBK) completing the top 10.

Outside the top 16 for the moment are Spain's Joan Lascorz (Kawasaki Racing Team) and the still convalescing James Toseland (BMW Motorrad Italia SBK) in 17th and 18th.

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[WORLDSBK.COM]

Non-stop rain since yesterday halted progress in the second qualifying session at Miller Motorsports Park, preventing any improvement in the lap times. As a result Carlos Checa remains at the top as they riders head towards Superpole, in front of the Aprilia Alitalia duo of Leon Camier and Max Biaggi.

In the session the quickest time was set by Camier, ahead of Jakub Smrz (Effenbert-Liberty Racing Ducati) and Leon Haslam (BMW Motorrad Motorsport). Checa was fourth, despite his slight aversion to the wet, ahead of Sylvain Guintoli (Effenbert-Liberty Racing Ducati) and Biaggi.

Marco Melandri was the only rider to crash, the Italian and his Yamaha machine ending up in the muddy infield. Those who failed to make this afternoon's Superpole cut were Joan Lascorz (Kawasaki Racing Team), James Toseland (BMW Motorrad Italia SBK), Mark Aitchison (Pedercini Kawasaki), Maxime Berger (Supersonic Racing Ducati) and Roberto Rolfo (Pedercini Kawasaki).

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Leon Camier (Aprilia Alitalia) continued to show impressive wet weather form this afternoon in the second free practice session, the British rider going quickest once again just before the Superpole run.

Camier was ahead of Troy Corser (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) and Jakub Smrz (Effenbert-Liberty Racing Ducati). Marco Melandri (Yamaha World Superbike) moved up to sixth place, while Max Biaggi (Aprilia Alitalia) was eighth quickest, and Carlos Checa (Althea Racing Ducati) three places behind.

 

 

 

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[WORLDSBK.COM]

Carlos Checa (Althea Racing Ducati) put in a 1 minute 58.315 second lap on a drying track to take his fourth Tissot Superpole win of the 2011 season and give himself the best possible starting slot for raceday on Monday.

Only just behind was Jakub Smrz (Effenbert-Liberty Ducati), deposed by Checa with no time left to go faster. Yamaha World Superbike team-mate Marco Melandri and Eugene Laverty completed the front row, mastering the damp conditions well when it counted most.

The second row is headed by Sylvain Guintoli, Smrz's team-mate, with the top official BMW rider on show Troy Corser going sixth. Late faller in Superpole 3, Max Biaggi, was seventh for Aprilia and impressive BMW Motorrad Italia Superbike rider Ayrton Badovini was eighth.

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[WORLDSBK.COM]

Monday's action in the USA Round of the championship at Miller Motorsports Park got underway this morning with the warm-up. Ruben Xaus set the quickest time of 1 minute 52.148 seconds on his Castrol Honda machine in cold conditions, but his time was some way off the top dry weather laps. Xaus finished ahead of Jakub Smrz (Effenbert-Liberty Ducati) and Noriyuki Haga (PATA Racing Team Aprilia).

Max Biaggi (Aprilia Alitalia) was in fourteenth, in front of Marco Melandri (Yamaha World Superbike), while Carlos Checa (Althea Racing Ducati) only completed a couple of laps.

 

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[WORLDSBK.COM]

Carlos Checa (Althea Racing Ducati) won the first race of the day at Miller, in what was a clean sweep for Ducati in the opening 21-lap contest on a dry track. Effenbert - Liberty Racing Ducati pairing Jakub Smrz and Sylvain Guintoli filled the remaining podium places, in second and third respectively, with Leon Camier (Aprilia Alitalia) recovering from a mid-race hiccup to take fourth place away from Eugene Laverty and his Yamaha World Superbike machine.

Tom Sykes made a great final push to take sixth on his Kawasaki Racing Team Superbike machine. Satellite rider Ayrton Badovini (BMW Motorrad Italia Superbike) held off the challenge from official BMW rider Leon Haslam to finish seventh. Max Biaggi (Aprilia Alitalia) and Jonathan Rea (Castrol Honda) clashed on the opening lap, both riders ending up in the mud and on the DNF sheet.

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[WORLDSBK.COM]

Carlos Checa (Althea Racing Ducati) took his second win of the day and his sixth of the year when he was victorious in race two at MMP, leading home the Aprilia Alitalia duo of Leon Camier and Max Biaggi with some degree of ease.

Fourth place went to Eugene Laverty and Yamaha, with Michel Fabrizio making a fine return from a race one fall to record fifth for Suzuki Alstare. Marco Melandri had an eventually lonely run to sixth on his Yamaha World Superbike machine. Guintoli, Smrz, Badovini and Sykes rounded out the top ten, with star names Noriyuki Haga and Troy Corser not making the end of the race.

In the championship standings, Checa leads with 195 points, from Melandri on 134, Biaggi on 133 and Laverty on 109.

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The Miller Motorsports Park round was a successful one for the Effenbert-Liberty Racing Team, thanks to a double podium in race 1 (second place for Jakub Smrz, third for Sylvain Guintoli), giving the Czech Republic team its best results of the season.

After Jakub Smrz's outstanding form in Superpole, 75/1000ths away from Checa, the team also proved to be competitive in the races, both with Smrz and Guintoli, the Frenchman finally in good physical shape following the injuries he picked up at Phillip Island (double fracture of a hand bone and right ankle).

"I am delighted to have achieved the first podium of my career in Superbikes," declared Guintoli. "I am very happy to have achieved it with this bike and with this team, I could have achieved it even before if I didn‘t suffer that big crash in Australia that has influenced my results for some races . Now my physical condition is almost optimal and the results could be seen immediately."

It was Guintoli's first Superbike podium and Smrz's second this season, but as at Donington ‘Kuba' was unable to repeat his excellent race 1 performance in the next race due to lack of rear grip.

"I am extremely satisfied today" Smrz said, "the team did a great job providing me with an excellent bike that allowed me to reach the second podium of the season, sadly in race two I had problems with the rear wheel and I could not push as I wanted. We will carefully analyze the reasons of this problem but the results remain very positive."

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[WORLDSBK.COM]

WorldSBK.com takes a quick look at the facts & figures that emerged from the fifth round of the FIM Superbike World Championship at Miller Motorsports Park in Utah.

• Carlos Checa in the beginning of this season has already scored more wins than the rest of his previous three-year career, six to five. He is the 22nd rider in history to reach the goal of ten wins, ending up at eleven after the Miller races. Checa has already scored eight podiums this year out of ten races;

• At Miller Checa scored pole, double win and two fastest laps, like in 2008. A similar performance has been recorded only twenty times in Superbike history. The previous one before Carlos was Cal Crutchlow last year at Silverstone;

• Miller confirms its status as a one-way track: in all cases the winner scored the double and three times out of four scored also pole and both fastest laps. The only time this feat wasn't accomplished was last year due to a double mechanical failure by Checa;

• Max Biaggi is experiencing a very different start of the season to last year: his win drought has now reached ten races; during this time-span he has scored five seconds and a third. Last year after ten races Max had scored four wins. In race one Max retired in a first-lap accident for the first time since Portimao 2008, when he was hit by Michel Fabrizio. Excluding the black flag in Donington, it's the first retirement for Biaggi in 54 races where he has always classified (since Monza 2009);

• Leon Camier equalled his best career race result, second in race two, scored one year ago at the same track. The same applies for Jakub Smrz, second in race one (like at Donington race one this year);

• Tom Sykes with a sixth in race one obtained his best result since last year's Imola races when he was sixth and fourth;

• Maiden front row for Marco Melandri, third on the grid;

• Maiden podium for Sylvain Guintoli, third in race one;

• For the first time this season, Ayrton Badovini was the best classified rider for BMW in race one. For the first time in his career he is running a streak of three races in the top-10;

• in race one only Ducati bikes made up the podium: the last time this happened was at last year's Imola round, race one;

• On the other hand in race one no Honda bikes finished in the points for the first time in 162 races: Honda has scored points since the 2005 Qatar round.

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The fifth World Superbike round at Miller Motorsports Park coincided with the return to the circuit of the main categories of the domestic AMA Pro Road Racing championship as support events to WSBK.

Even though the three classes making up the series this year - Superbike, Supersport and SportBike - have lost a bit of their shine of the past, with the departure of Mladin, Spies and others, the races all went down to the line.

In the Superbike category the win went to Blake Young (Suzuki), the young Canadian (in the photo, courtesy of AMA Pro Road Racing) who rode a Suzuki Alstare machine at Donington in 2009, from points leader Josh Hayes (Yamaha) by seven-tenths. Next up were the two Hayden brothers, Tommy and ex Pedercini Kawasaki man, Roger Lee, both on Suzukis. With this win Young moves closer to Hayes in the standings.

In SportBike Josh Herrin (Yamaha) took the win from PJ Jacobsen on a Ducati 848, while another ex from the world stage Jason Di Salvo (Ducati) finished sixth to consolidate his leadership. Melissa Paris (Yamaha) finished 16th.

The Supersport race was won by Corey Alexander (Suzuki Yoshimura), while Elena Myers (Suzuki) finished fifth. Points leader Benny Solis (Honda) was 20th but holds on to his championship lead.

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Giorgio Barbier, Racing Director Pirelli Moto, sums up the fifth round of the 2011 Superbike World Championship from the point of view of the championship's one-make tyre supplier.

"Just a few dry practice sessions on Saturday gave WSBK teams a limited possibility to set up their machines, since Sunday qualifying saw a constant downpour of rain. Hard-compound SCR2 Diablo Rain tyres were supplied in order to guarantee excellent performance on this wet abrasive track and to keep riders' confidence in such difficult conditions, considering the need for numerous changes in traction control settings. As always, Pirelli was prepared with full-rain, intermediate and Diablo Superbike slicks, a total of 1500 tyres for this USA Round. Superpole's variable conditions left two Ducatis and two Yamahas on the front row for race day.

Cold temperatures overnight made for a cold but drying track for morning warm-up, but the cloud break showed promise. Even with 3 front and 3 rear solutions available for dry racing, including last year's race-winning tyres, 20°C on the asphalt and uncertain bike settings pushed all riders towards the SC1 mid-soft Diablo Superbike rear tyre solution for Race 1, the most performing choice for colder conditions. Still, some riders pushed too hard at the race start and caused increased tyre wear, accelerated also by various wet spots on the track. It was pole sitter and Best Lap winner Carlos Checa (Ducati) who used his Diablo Superbike SC1 tyres to lap consistently in the 1'49 and 1'50s, finally earning a 2.7 second win over Ducati riders Smrz and Guintoli, the latter his first podium of the season.

Race 2 brought only one tyre change by Lascorz (Kawasaki) who switched to the A front, although many discussed changes with the sun out and a warming track. Aprilia riders Camier and Biaggi came back to fight in Race 2 for a 2nd and 3rd place finish, but double-winner Checa (Ducati) set the Best Lap of 1'48.827 and repeated his excellent results of three years ago at Miller Motorsports Park. Biaggi was preceded by Laverty (Yamaha) and Fabrizio (Suzuki) to make 4 manufacturers in the top five."

Pirelli BEST LAP Awards:

SBK Race 1 - Carlos Checa (Althea Racing), 1'49.779 (Lap 7)

SBK Race 2 - Carlos Checa (Althea Racing), 1'48.827 (Lap 4)

Total BEST LAP (SBK): Biaggi M. (Aprilia Alitalia Racing): 3, Checa C. (Althea Racing): 3, Haga N. (PATA Racing Team Aprilia): 1, Sykes T. (Kawasaki Racing Team Superbike): 1, Camier L. (Aprilia Alitalia Racing): 1, Fabrizio M. (Team Suzuki Alstare): 1

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It's been a remarkable start to the season for Yamaha World Superbike rider Eugene Laverty. A true giant in the Supersport World Championship in the past couple of years, he has made impressive strides throughout his short but glorious WSBK career so far.

Two wins at Monza have been the obvious highlights, but his movement at Miller Motorsports Park, into fourth place in the overall championship fight, is even more impressive from the rider from Toomebridge.

He was looking good for at least a podium in race one at Miller until he started to lose traction but ending the day with a fifth and a fourth was still a boost to his season, especially when his team-mate Marco Melandri could finish only tenth and sixth in comparison. Laverty was once more a front row starter at the last round, his third such grid placement in a row.

Melandri is still second in the championship fight, but Laverty is the coming man as we approach two intense weekends of racing in succession, at Misano and Aragon.

Said Laverty of his latest efforts in the USA, "I managed to get a great start off the line in both races and maintain my starting position into the first curve. In race one I made a mistake changing the gears, which caused me to drop back to 15th. I climbed up to second by mid race but then I began to suffer from extreme tyre wear. We improved the chassis setting before race two and I was a lot more cautious with the tyre. I was sitting in third place from early on but I didn't want to push too hard in on Max to ensure the tyres would last to the end. I'm quite happy having finished fifth and fourth in the two races and I'm now fourth in the standings, which I'm pleased with."

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Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team Superbike) used all his experience and pace to take a popular pole position at Misano, overcoming wet but slowly drying conditions better than his peers to take Kawasaki's first pole on the new Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R. His last pole was in similar conditions at Imola last season, on the previous model of Kawasaki.

Points leader Carlos Checa (Althea Racing Ducati) ran him close after three wet superpole sessions but starts second, with Jakub Smrz (Effenbert Liberty Racing Ducati) third and the front row completed by Marco Melandri (Yamaha World Superbike).

Leon Haslam (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) crashed out late on and missed the chance to improve on fifth, while Troy Corser (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) overcame the pain of a fall yesterday to take sixth place. Max Biaggi (Aprilia Alitalia) and Sylvain Guintoli (Effenbert Liberty Racing Ducati) completed the front two rows.

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Sam Lowes on his Parkalgar Honda took pole in the WSS division, after the second qualifying session proved to be wet today and therefore the only times that counted were those set on the first day of dry track action.

Sam's best of 1 minute 39.541 seconds means that Yamaha ParkinGO rider Chaz Davies will line up second, and the Kawasaki Motocard.com machines of David Salom and Broc Parkes will start Sunday's race in third and fourth places.

Fabien Foret (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) will head the second row from Italian champion, Ilario Dionisi (Honda Italia) and Robbin Harms (Harms Benjan Honda) and Florian Marino (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) complete the second row. Marino was fastest in the wet session today.

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The Superstock 1000 runners also failed to improve their times from yesterday's first session due to the rain, and so the pole position remains in the hands of Danilo Petrucci (Barni Racing Team Ducati).

For tomorrow's race the Italian will be flanked by Davide Giugliano (Althea Racing Ducati) on the front row. Third quickest was Frenchman Sylvain Barrier (BMW Motorrad Italia Superstock) with Andrea Antonelli (Lorini Honda) next up.

Former champion Niccolò Canepa (GOELEVEN Kawasaki), Monza winner Lorenzo Zanetti (BMW Motorrad Italia STK), South African Sheridan Morais (Lorenzini by Leoni Kawasaki) and Michele Magnoni (Baru Racing BMW) make up row 2.

Top runners in the wet conditions were Giugliano, Petrucci and Zanetti.

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[WORLDSBK.COM]

Giuliano Gregorini (RCGM Yamaha) took the first Italian win of the season in this year's European Superstock 600 Championship.

Gregorini, from Fano just down the Riviera coast was in top form in the wet conditions, not only remaining upright throughout in a field decimated by crashes, but also setting a fast pace. The gap to the next man at the flag was more than seven seconds.

The runner-up slot went to Australian talent Jed Metcher (MTM-RT Motorsports Team), with Frenchman Romain Lanusse (MRS Yamaha Racing France) next up and Nicola Jr Morrentino (Elle2Ciatti Yamaha).

In the points standings Lanusse still leads the way followed by Metcher and Gregorini, while Dino Lombardi (Martini Corse Yamaha), who crashed today, has slipped down to fourth place in the table.

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The leading riders and figures from the Two Countries Cup were introduced formally to the WSBK paddock on Saturday afternoon at Misano, the scene of the first of two race meetings designed to bring on and publicize talent from the Russian Federation and non-professional riders. The two-race series has its first race this weekend at Misano, then a second later in the year at the Canyon Circuit near the Tatarstan city of Kazan, in the Russian Federation.

On stage were Alexander Yakhnich of Yakhnich Motorsport, Paolo Ciabatti from Infront Motor Sports and Claudio Corsetti, an Italian journalist who runs racing schools and is now a partner in the thrust to develop young Russian and Italian talent on two wheels. Joining them on stage were several competitors from the new race class, including fastest qualifier so far, Vladimir Leonov.

The press conference was also the opportunity for the media to ask about the possibility of a race in Russia in 2012, and as Mr Yakhnich explained, there are two possibilities, the Canyon Circuit in Kazan and the Moscow Raceway, some 70km from the capital. Each circuit is about to undergo an FIM inspection, with work already started at each to meet the standards of international racing at the highest level.

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Roman rider Davide Giugliano (Althea Racing Ducati) scored a popular win and a new lap record of 1 minute 38.825 seconds at Misano, with the race finally red flagged with just over three laps to go and the results counted back to lap 10. Pole man Danilo Petrucci (Barni Racing Team Ducati) was second, 3.1 seconds behind Giugliano, and Lorenzo Zanetti (BMW Motorrad Italia Superstock) was third, 5.2 seconds back.

Sylvain Barrier, Niccolo Canepa and Michele Magnoni were next up, in an almost overwhelming day for riders of Italian origin.

In the championship, after three rounds, Giugliano has 70 points, Petrucci 53, Zanetti 48 and Barrier 29.

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Carlos Checa (Althea Racing Ducati) posted another race win, his seventh of the year, as he dominated the second half of the first race at Misano, heading long time race leader Max Biaggi (Aprilia Alitalia) by 0.9 seconds. Third was Marco Melandri (Yamaha World Superbike) who slowed in the final lap but still took a clear third. Behind, Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team Superbike) took his best finish of the year in fourth, after a last corner sort-out with fifth place rider Eugene Laverty (Yamaha World Superbike).

 

 

 

 

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