Race Results
Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra rider Max
Biaggi moved into second place in the World
Superbike Championship after taking victory in the
second race of the Brno round in the Czech Republic
today.
Team mate Yukio Kagayama started the
day well by taking third place in race one but he
crashed out of the second trying to get up into the
top three. He was uninjured but disappointed not to
be in contention for a podium in the latter stages
of the race.
Series leader James Toseland (Honda)
won the first race after a terrific battle with
Biaggi, Kagayama and Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha).
Towards the end of the race Toseland ran wide and
into the dirt, kicking up stones and dirt.
Biaggi was right in his wheel tracks and was
showered with stones, some smashing holes in his
windscreen and another hitting his left glove and
ripping a hole in it, damaging one of his fingers
that needed medical attention.
At one stage, he and his good friend
Haga touched but luckily they both were able to
carry on -although Haga's gesticulation afterwards
showed his displeasure.
The second race saw a determined
charge up the field by Biaggi. The race had been
delayed because of light rain and then shortened by
one lap to nineteen. Biaggi was seventh at the
end of the opening lap but moved up the field and
passed Toseland to take the lead on lap 14.
From then on in, he kept a cool head and ran out the
winner by over one and a half seconds at the flag.
Max Biaggi - Race 1: 2nd,
Race 2: 1st: "Brno loves me and I love Brno.
It's incredible to think of how many good memories I
have of this place and today continued that pattern.
It's a fantastic track because there is such a good
variety of turns - some fast, some not so fast.
Tires were always going to be a bit of a problem
today, but the second race was better for them
because it was a bit cooler. I didn't change
anything to the bike from the first race to the
second, except put fresh tires in of course. I
want to thank the whole Alstare Suzuki squad for
these great results today; it's been a while since I
won a race, but to win one today and finish second
in the other makes me very happy."
WSB Results: Race 1: 1
Toseland (GB-Honda), 2 Max Biaggi (I-Alstare Suzuki
Corona Extra), 3 Yukio Kagayama (J-Alstare Suzuki
Corona Extra), 4 Haga (J-Yamaha), 5 Rolfo (I-Honda),
6 Fabrizio (I-Honda), 7 Corser (Aus-Yamaha), 8 Lanzi
(I-Ducati), 9 Neukirchner (D-Suzuki), 10 Nakatomi
(J-Yamaha),
Race 2: 1 Max Biaggi (I-Alstare
Suzuki Corona Extra), 2 Toseland, 3 Fabrizio, 4
Haga, 5 Rolfo, 6 Bayliss (Aus-Ducati), 7 Lanzi, 8
Nieto (E-Kawasaki), 9 Nakatomi, 10 Xaus (E-Ducati).
DNF: Yukio Kagayama (J-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra).
Championship Points: 1
Toseland 305, 2 Max Biaggi (I-Alstare Suzuki Corona
Extra) 262, 3 Haga 260, 4 Bayliss 249, 5 Corser 191,
6 Lanzi 150, 7 Xaus 140, 8 Rolfo 131, 9 Neukirchner
111, 10 Yukio Kagayama (J-Alstare Suzuki Corona
Extra) 105.
Qualifying
July 21, 2007 - Noriyuki Haga today became the
first rider to do a sub two-minute lap at Brno,
taking pole position with a time of 1'59.603.
With this morning's track
temperature over ten degrees cooler than yesterday's
qualifying, both Haga and Corser found the going
easier in second qualifying. Haga went out this
morning and put in two fast laps, waking the rest of
the pack up and reinforcing his place at the head of
the qualifying table. Corser also beat his best time
from yesterday, breaking into the 2'00 lap times,
but was unable to hold off an attack for second from
Bayliss.
Superpole was where the action
really heated up. Haga was the last rider to
complete his Superpole lap and did not disappoint as
he went to the top of the board to take his second
successive pole at the Czech circuit with the
record-breaking lap time. Corser's lap earlier
in the session had been smooth throughout the first
two sections until he lost grip on the final part of
the circuit, putting him in third. It was only Haga
and Bayliss' laps afterwards that shifted him to
fifth.
Shinichi Nakatomi had another good
day of progress as he took almost a second off his
best time to put himself in 13th going into his
second Superpole of the season. He went even
better on his flying lap, posting a 2'01 lap to
maintain his 13th grid position going into
tomorrow's race.
Haga is joined on the front row
tomorrow by Biaggi, Bayliss and Toseland and both
Corser and Haga will be keen to give Yamaha their
150th WSB podium. With rain forecast, though, the
weather will become an important factor in the day.
Noriyuki Haga (1st - 1'59.603
- Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team): "The track
temperature was lower this morning which meant the
tires felt better and had more grip. This is
why I was able to put in a couple of fast laps right
at the start of the morning session. I then
focused on doing a long distance run and found a
much better front set-up, though the rear still
needed work.
My Superpole lap was almost perfect
except for one small mistake. To lap in less
than two minutes is excellent; I'm very pleased with
that achievement. If the weather is the same
as this tomorrow it's going to be a tough race.
I'll be happy if it rains, which it might, as it'll
then be survival of the fittest."
Troy Corser (5th - 2'00.251 -
Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team): "The grip was a
bit better this morning than yesterday but I think
that was more down to the track temperature than any
tire options we tried! We concentrated on
finding the right set-up this morning to help the
tires in this heat but we haven't quite got there
yet, as my Superpole lap showed. I was going
well in the first and second sections but then I
lost some grip in the final one, which lost me time.
Second row isn't great but I'm confident of a good
start."
|
2007 World Superbike -
Brno, Czech Republic - Qualifying |
|
Circuit Length: 5403. Temp:
32. Weather: Sunny. |
|
July 21, 2007 Superpole |
|
Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total
Time |
|
1 Noriyuki Haga Yamaha JPN
1'59.603 |
|
2 Max Biaggi Suzuki ITA
2'0.018 |
|
3 Troy Bayliss Ducati AUS
2'0.034 |
|
4 James Toseland Honda GBR
2'0.235 |
|
5 Troy Corser Yamaha AUS
2'0.251 |
|
6 Yukio Kagayama Suzuki JPN
2'0.879 |
|
7 Lorenzo Lanzi Ducati ITA
2'1.078 |
|
8 Max Neukirchner Suzuki GER
2'1.177 |
|
9 Roberto Rolfo Honda ITA
2'1.234 |
|
10 Michel Fabrizio Honda ITA
2'1.690 |
|
11 Karl Muggeridge Honda AUS
2'1.708 |
|
12 Fonsi Nieto Kawasaki ESP
2'1.755 |
|
13 Shinichi Nakatomi Yamaha
JPN 2'1.849 |
|
14 Ruben Xaus Ducati ESP
2'2.237 |
|
15 Regis Laconi Kawasaki FRA
2'2.279 |
Race Preview
The World Superbike Championship goes to Brno this
weekend for the ninth round in the 2007 season.
Since the last race at Misano in June, the teams
have been in the thick of testing at Brno and
Vallelunga and are now raring to clarify their race
winning potential again.
There has been a race circuit at
Brno since the 1930s and it first hosted a
motorcycle world championship in 1965, though this
year will only be the fifth time the World Superbike
Championship has stopped at the Czech circuit.
Its first appearance on the calendar was in 1993,
then 1996 and then it didn't reappear until 2005
when it was the scene of Yamaha's first WSB win,
with Haga taking the honor for the team when he went
from 18th to win with over three seconds lead.
|
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|
Brno Race Circuit |
|
|
Almost all the riders in the
championship like Brno with its flowing elevation
changes and wide, grippy surface. The Yamaha
Motor Italia WSB Team returns to Brno after testing
there only three weeks ago.
During the two-day test Corser
posted the second fastest time with a 2'00.4 on both
race and qualifying tires. This time was
matched only by Kagayama on the Suzuki. Haga
came in a close third fastest over the duration of
the test, posting a 2'00.8 on race rubber. The
objective of the test was to try a variety of tires
and to find the right set-up for the forthcoming
race but cooler temperatures than normal and windy
conditions may have affected the results of the
test.
Haga goes to Brno third in the
championship standings but only five points behind
Bayliss and an achievable 26 points behind Toseland
in first place. Haga's podium at Misano
reinforced his championship standing although he was
fiercely disappointed to be stopped from taking away
further points due to a race one incident in which
Biaggi took him out. Misano proved better for
team mate Corser as he took his 111th podium with a
second place as well as finishing fifth in the
second race. He goes to Brno still fifth in the
championship standings.
2006 proved to be a good year for
Haga at Brno - he took the Superpole, best lap and
race record (for race two) and finished third and
fourth there. He also previously won there in
2006 and showed good form at the test last month,
posting the fastest time on day one before finishing
the test in third overall.
"I like Brno because it's such a
challenge to ride properly. You need to have a
good amount of power to be quick on the uphill
sections but you also need to have the bike set up
well in order to shave time off in all the tight
corners," Haga says of the Czech circuit.
"The test at Brno was good for
getting a base setting but with the conditions
cooler than we expect for the race we know that we
will still have some work to do at the start of the
weekend finding the best set-up. I am
confident though! My main aim for Brno is to cut the
points gap as much as possible but you just never
can predict what will happen until the checkered
flag has dropped. One thing is for sure - I'll
be doing my best this weekend to get maximum points
in both races!"
Corser has had a good relationship
with the Czech circuit to date, with him racking up
three out of six wins there, including a double win
in 1996, and two pole positions so far. His
recent form at the test in June suggests that this
good relationship is set to continue this weekend.
"The test last month was very
useful; the times we managed are what we will need
to achieve in the race this weekend but it is
totally achievable," Corser says of June's testing
session at Brno.
"The weather was a bit cooler than
we'd have expected but, in that respect, the test at
Vallelunga a couple of weeks ago gave us some good
information which we'll be able to use. I like
the circuit with all its elevation changes and
on/off camber corners; it's fun to ride but also a
technically challenging place that demands the bike
to be set up just right. I think I've had good
results there in the past because it is similar to
my home circuit of Phillip Island; they're both fast
and flowing and just the kind of tracks that I like.
I'm looking for a win this weekend; it's about time
I got on the top spot of the podium!"
Suzuki Team Report - Team Alstare Suzuki Corona
Extra riders Max Biaggi and Yukio Kagayama go to the
World Superbike ninth round at Brno in the Czech
Republic this weekend confident of improvement and
chasing podium places.
Kagayama scored a double victory at
the track last year and recent performances indicate
that he is ready to fight for the top honors again.
He and the team have worked hard all season to
improve the new K7 and now he is much happier about
the bike and can look forward to pushing harder for
the rest of the season.
For Biaggi, this year's Brno race
will be another story: Although he has never raced a
Superbike at the 5.403 kilometer track before, he
has a lot of experience of it from his days in GP
and MotoGP. He has also tested his Alstare
Suzuki there recently so this will not be another
weekend with another new track to learn.
Max Biaggi: "Brno is a
circuit I know from before and it is a track I like.
It is a good track for riders and fans and I hope I
can make some good results there. I tested at
Brno not so long ago and I know that there are many
things we have to do with the bike to get it right
for this track - as usual. I always like to
get a good set-up and feeling before I push hard and
that's what we'll start working on the first day of
practice."
Yukio Kagayama: "If I
can repeat my results from last year, I will be a
very happy man! Last year was my first ever
double in World Superbikes and it was a very special
feeling. The start of my season this year has
not been so good, but recently my team and I have
found a good setting and now I feel much more
comfortable riding the bike and I can push much
harder. Now I understand the limit of the bike
and that makes my job easier. I wish we had
found this set-up earlier, but that is how racing
goes sometimes. Now it is up to me and the
team to improve this feeling and challenge for
podium places in every race.
2006 Results - Race 1: 1
Yukio Kagayama (J-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra), 2
Toseland (GB-Honda), 3 Fabrizio (I-Honda). Max
Biaggi - DNS. Race 2: 1 Yukio Kagayama (J-Alstare
Suzuki Corona Extra), 2 Fabrizio, 3 Haga (J-Yamaha).
Max Biaggi - DNS.
