— Chaz Davies ends the Aragon round in perfect fashion
Eni FIM Superbike World Championship says goodbye to 2013 Round 2 at MotorLand Aragon after a thrilling and exciting race day. Chaz Davies (BMW Motorrad GoldBet SBK Team) has proven testing to be done in the right direction by scoring his maiden double win in the series (the second one for BMW). Davies lies now 2nd in the standings behind Sylvain Guintoli (Aprilia Racing Team), 2nd in both races, and ahead of the other factory Aprilia rider Eugene Laverty. The unlucky Irish rider never made it to the chequered flag today, first due a technical problem in race 1 and then because of a crash on the opening lap of race 2.
A 3rd place each for Marco Melandri (BMW Motorrad GoldBet) and pole-sitter Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) did not fully satisfy the two 2012 title contenders. A technical issue on his ZX-10R put an early end to the Brit’s tough battle at the front, but in race 2 Sykes was able to keep a competitive Davide Giugliano (Althea Racing Aprilia) behind for the final place on the rostrum.
Leon Camier (FIXI Crescent Suzuki) decided to pay a visit to his WSBK peers and to sign autographs during the pit-walk, after the successful left knee operation he underwent Friday night: a nice surprise for the fans who attended the round – who reached a total of 26.910 over the three days.
Race 1
The MotorLand Aragon circuit proves again to be a special place for Chaz Davies (BMW Motorrad GoldBet), World Superbike Race 1 winner. It was a perfect race for the Welsh rider – who got his maiden podium in the series last year on this very track – out on his own after two potential winners were forced back to the pits.
Eugene Laverty (Aprilia Racing Team) and Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) experienced technical problems – while they were on the lead – during lap 4 and 5 respectively and had to make their way back to the their garages. Aprilia works rider went back on track later on to test his RSV4 after the work done by his crew.
The positive note for Noale’s manufacturer comes from 2nd place and new Championship Leader (after Race 1) Sylvain Guintoli. BMW chances for a one-two were denied by a false neutral experienced by Marco Melandri, who then had to make his way through from 5th to 3rd at the chequered flag.
An unfortunate technical problem on the last lap stopped Davide Giugliano (Althea Racing Aprilia) from finishing in 4th place. Carlos Checa (Team Ducati Alstare) crossed the line in 7th place behind Jonathan Rea (Pata Honda World Superbike), Loris Baz (Kawasaki Racing Team) and Jules Cluzel (FIXI Crescent Suzuki).
Race 1 results: 1. Davies (BMW) 20 laps/106.880 km in 39’50.332 average 160.968 kph; 2. Guintoli (Aprilia) 5.216; 3. Melandri (BMW) 7.089; 4. Rea (Honda) 8.196; 5. Baz (Kawasaki) 14.417; 6. Cluzel (Suzuki) 18.332; 7. Checa (Ducati) 24.306; 8. Fabrizio (Aprilia) 25.884; 9. Haslam (Honda) 35.721; 10. Badovini (Ducati) 44.129; 11. Neukirchner (Ducati) 51.424; 12. Sandi (Kawasaki) 1’09.217; 13. Clementi (BMW) 1’14.091; 14. Iannuzzo (BMW) 1’48.328; NC. Laverty (Aprilia); RT. Giugliano (Aprilia); RT. Lundh (Kawasaki); RT. Aitchison (Ducati); RT. Sykes (Kawasaki).
Race 2
A Sunday to remember for Chaz Davies, who repeated first race success and got a double race win at Aragon. The BMW Motorrad GoldBet SBK Team rider was unstoppable under MotorLand Aragon heat and crossed the finish line with a big margin over Sylvain Guintoli, still Championship leader after race 2.
Chaz Davies: “For me it is just an amazing day. I cannot explain how happy I am. My first victory with BMW and then the double win – this is something I was hoping to achieve this year but I did not expect it this early. In race one, the DNFs by Tom and Eugene definitely made it easier. In race two it seemed that I had a comfortable lead, but I had to push a lot. One of the most impressing things is the fact that we have done a lot of testing in Jerez but not here in Aragon. What a weekend!”
A race day to forget for second works Aprilia rider Eugene Laverty, who lost the front of his RSV4 on the opening lap of the race at Turn 2, straight after getting the hole-shot ahead of Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team): 2012 WSBK runner-up was 3rd at the chequered flag after pulling away from a tenacious Davide Giugliano (Althea Racing Aprilia).
Tom Sykes: “Scoring a podium in race two was not a perfect way to end race weekend but it was certainly an acceptable way. It would have been good to finish race one as well just so that I could have collected a bit more information to take into race two, but I am not making excuses – the riders ahead of me in race two rode fantastically well. We are now moving onto circuits where we are a little bit stronger than here. I am also riding uninjured now and Kawasaki has been working really hard so let’s see what Assen can bring next time out.”
Fifth place for Marco Melandri (BMW Motorrad GoldBet), not as competitive as in race 1 but still able to finish ahead of Loris Baz (Kawasaki Racing Team) and Jules Cluzel (FIXI Crescent Suzuki). Both French riders had an outstanding Race 2, as Baz and Cluzel moved off from the pit lane. Carlos Checa (Team Ducati Alstare), on his home track, finished in 8th place the second race of the day.
Race 2 results: 1. Davies (BMW) 19 laps/101.536 km in 37’52.691 average 160.836 kph; 2. Guintoli (Aprilia) 5.035; 3. Sykes (Kawasaki) 7.677; 4. Giugliano (Aprilia) 12.549; 5. Melandri (BMW) 19.766; 6. Baz (Kawasaki) 23.855; 7. Cluzel (Suzuki) 26.926; 8. Checa (Ducati) 31.593; 9. Haslam (Honda) 35.308; 10. Badovini (Ducati) 44.497; 11. Fabrizio (Aprilia) 53.071; 12. Neukirchner (Ducati) 55.223; 13. Lundh (Kawasaki) 1’32.995; 14. Clementi (BMW) 1’41.979; 15. Rea (Honda) 1 Lap; RT. Sandi (Kawasaki); RT. Iannuzzo (BMW); RT. Laverty (Aprilia); NS. Aitchison (Ducati).
Standings (round 2 of 15): 1. Sylvain Guintoli (Aprilia) 85; 2. Chaz Davies (BMW) 63; 3. Eugene Laverty (Aprilia) 45; 4. Marco Melandri (BMW) 43; 5. Michel Fabrizio (Aprilia) 42; 6. Tom Sykes (Kawasaki) 38; 7. Jules Cluzel (Suzuki) 33; 8. Loris Baz (Kawasaki) 31; 9. Jonathan Rea (Honda) 30; 10. Leon Haslam (Honda) 29; 11. Davide Giugliano (Aprilia) 23; 12. Max Neukirchner (Ducati) 20; 13. Carlos Checa (Ducati) 17; 14. Leon Camier (Suzuki) 14; 15. Ayrton Badovini (Ducati) 12; etc. Manufacturers: 1. Aprilia 90; 2. BMW 79; 3. Kawasaki 49; 4. Honda 37; 5. Suzuki 35; 6. Ducati 28.
World Supersport – Foret wins unpredictable WSS Aragon race
Mahi Racing Team India gets its 2nd win of the season today at Aragon, this time courtesy of Fabien Foret, who crossed the line on his own in first place, following the gear shift problem on Sam Lowes’ Yakhnich Motorsport Yamaha that forced the Brit to a frustrating retirement on the last lap. Thanks to his 16th race win of the career, the 2002 WSS Champion becomes the new leader in the standings.
An almost countless number of crashes, technical issues and unforeseeable happenings characterised today’s Supersport close race, starting from the braking issue that put an early end to Reigning Champion Kenan Sofuoglu attempt for a repeat performance. Scot Kev Coghlan (DMC Lorenzini Racing Team) had a shot at the lead during the race, but at crash at Turn 7 prevented him from maintaining the first position.
Michael van der Mark (Pata Honda World Supersport) gets another podium finish in his rookie season, a 2nd place this time ahead of Italy’s Luca Scassa (Kawasaki Intermoto Ponyexpres), Andrea Antonelli (Team Goeleven Kawasaki), Riccardo Russo (Puccetti Racing Kawasaki) and team mate Lorenzo Zanetti.
Race results: 1. Foret (Kawasaki) 18 Laps/96.192 km in 37’10.286 average 155.268 kph; 2. Vd Mark (Honda) 6.595; 3. Scassa (Kawasaki) 9.909; 4. Antonelli (Kawasaki) 10.110; 5. Russo (Kawasaki) 11.950; 6. Zanetti (Honda) 12.658; 7. Kennedy (Honda) 16.105; 8. Leonov (Yamaha) 16.800; 9. Rolfo (MV Agusta) 26.034; 10. Marconi (Honda) 29.106; 11. Baldolini (Honda) 29.296; 12. Roccoli (Yamaha) 29.336; 13. Coghlan (Kawasaki) 45.557; 14. Menghi (Yamaha) 47.652; 15. Tamburini (Suzuki) 55.948; etc
Standings (Round 2 of 14): 1. Foret 38; 2. Vd Mark 36; 3. Scassa 26; 4. Sofuoglu 25; 5. Antonelli 22; 6. Lowes 20; 7. Zanetti 18; 8. Kennedy 15; 9. Russo 11; 10. Salom; 11. Roccoli 11; 12. Marconi 10; 13. Leonov 8; 14. Rolfo 7; 15. Baldolini 6; Manufacturers: 1. Kawasaki 50; 2. Honda 36; 3. Yamaha 28; 4. MV Agusta 7; 5. Suzuki 4.
Superstock 1000
Sylvain Barrier concludes the first battle of his FIM Superstock 1000 Cup Title defence campaign in the best way by winning the 12-lap race at Alcaniz MotorLand Aragon. The BMW Motorrad GoldBet rider, after he got the lead from Niccolò Canepa (Barni Racing Ducati) on lap 3 at Turn 16, down the long straight, rode comfortably and kept a pace quick enough not to let the former WSBK rider close the gap.
Barrier’s 6th win in the series completes the perfect weekend for the French youngster, who has proved once again to be the man to beat in 2013, following yesterday’s pole position. The STK1000 comeback for Niccolò Canepa proved to be a successful one: the experienced rider from Genova led the early part of the race and tried not to lose contact with Barrier, but the lack of horsepower on the straight didn’t help his mission.
Argentinian Leandro Mercado (Team Pedercini Kawasaki), back for a full Superstock 1000 with some great confidence shown on track by finishing 3rd and getting the maiden rostrum finish in the series.
Race results: 1. Barrier (BMW) 12 Laps/64.128 km in 24’22.239 average 157.882 kph; 2. Canepa (Ducati) 3.255; 3. Mercado (Kawasaki) 5.852; 4. Guarnoni (Kawasaki) 10.437; 5. La Marra (Ducati) 10.477; 6. Lanusse (Kawasaki) 21.436; 7. Jezek (Ducati) 27.271; 8. Bussolotti (BMW) 30.099; 9. Ferrer (BMW) 30.488; 10. Gildenhuys (BMW) 31.586; 11. McFadden (Honda) 36.124; 12. Andreozzi (Kawasaki) 39.829; 13. Dittadi (Kawasaki) 40.204; 14. Ponsson (Kawasaki) 43.572; 15. Ockelfelt (Suzuki) 55.039; etc.
Standings (Round 1 of 10): 1. Barrier 25; 2. Canepa 20; 3. Mercado 16; 4. Guarnoni 13; 5. La Marra 11; 6. Lanusse 10; 7. Jezek 9; 8. Bussolotti 8; 9. Ferrer 7; 10. Gildenhuys 6; 11. McFadden 5; 12. Andreozzi 4; 13. Dittadi 3; 14. Ponsson 2; 15. Ockelfelt 1.Manufacturers: 1. BMW 25; 2. Ducati 20; 3. Kawasaki 16; 4. Honda 5; 5. Suzuki 1.
European Junior Cup
The opening round of the Pata European Junior Cup, powered by Honda was, as expected, a close and exciting race. With a leading group of eleven riders locked together throughout, nobody could predict the final outcome. The race was eventually won by Kiwi Jake Lewis (Jake Lewis Racing), who stole the victory by 0.003s from Spanish wildcard rider Albert Arenas, who had taken pole position yesterday. The final podium position went to Italian rider Michael Canducci (Colors Experience).
Sabrina Paiuta (LS2 Helmets Racing Team) from Brazil was once again the fastest of the female competitors, at one point making the fastest lap of the race, before eventually finishing in 13th position. The next round of the series will take place at Assen, The Netherlands, in two weeks time.
Race results: 1. Lewis (Honda) 8 Laps/42.752 km in 19’45.835 average 129.788 kph; 2. Arenas (Honda) 0.003; 3. Canducci (Honda) 0.143; 4. Raymond (Honda) 0.494; 5. Fernandez (Honda) 0.598; 6. Levy (Honda) 0.754; 7. Rusmiputro (Honda) 1.539; 8. Sebestyen (Honda) 3.756; 9. Manfredi (Honda) 3.847; 10. Mykhalchyk (Honda) 4.975; 11. Anne (Honda) 5.225; 12. Aranda (Honda) 5.338; 13. Paiuta (Honda) 8.357; 14. Orellana (Honda) 15.299; 15. Garofoli (Honda) 15.350.
Standings (Round 1 of 8): 1. Lewis 25; 2. Arenas 20; 3. Canducci 16; 4. Raymond 13; 5. Fernandez 11; 6. Levy 10; 7. Rusmiputro 9; 8. Sebestyen 8; 9. Manfredi 7; 10. Mykhalchyk 6; 11. Anne 5; 12. Aranda 4; 13. Paiuta 3; 14. Orellana 2; 15. Garofoli 1.
Please find attached the Pirelli Press Release, tyre selection and tyres chosen by riders.
— BMW Goldbet
It was a dream day for the BMW Motorrad GoldBet SBK Team at the Spanish track of Motorland Aragón. Factory rider, Chaz Davies (GBR) was the man to beat at the second round of the 2013 FIM Superbike World Championship after the Welshman won both races on his BMW S 1000 RR. He made the best use of his front row start and celebrated his first ever double-victory in the series. His team mate Marco Melandri (ITA), who started from eighth, jumped on the podium in third place in race one. In the second race, Marco finished fifth. In the Riders’ championship, Chaz has now climbed into second place with 63 points, while Marco sits in fourth with 43 points. In the Manufacturers’ classification, BMW lies in second with 79 points.
In both races, Chaz was on for the victory from the word go. In race one, the Welshman took the lead on lap five, while his immediate rivals, Eugene Laverty (IRL) and Tom Sykes (GBR), ran into difficulties. Once at the front, Chaz grabbed the chance to secure his first season victory with both hands and lap by lap he increased his lead which brought the win home safely. Marco improved from eighth to sixth within the opening lap, but went wide when fighting for positions and consequently fell back to ninth place. The Italian once more showed a great determination and caught up: on lap five, he was already third, taking second place on lap 13 by overtaking Sylvain Guintoli (FRA). Unfortunately on lap 16 he went wide again and dropped a number of positions, only to fight his way back onto the podium crossing the line in third place. The second race was shortened to 19 laps after the start was delayed. This time, Chaz took the lead on the second lap and began building the gap in front of his pursuers. He kept a cool head and rode a determined race to secure his second victory of the day. Not only this, but he also rode the fastest lap of the race. In the opening stages it seemed that both riders of the BMW Motorrad GoldBet SBK Team would be on the podium as Marco had a brilliant start and took third place on lap two. But he then experienced some issues and was not able to hold the position. Consequently, Marco slipped back into fifth which was the position he held until the chequered flag.
In the FIM Superstock 1000 Cup, reigning champion Sylvain Barrier (FRA) rode to victory at the season opener at Aragón. This meant that the BMW Motorrad GoldBet STK Team rider secured the first ever international victory for the brand new BMW HP4. The bike is equipped with the Dynamic Damping Control DDC, meaning this was also the first ever victory of an electronic damping system in the history of motorcycle racing. Sylvain’s team mate Greg Gildenhuys (RSA) finished tenth. In addition, BMW Motorrad Motorsport congratulates Jörg Steinhausen and Grégory Cluze for their success at Aragón. The pair won the first round of the 2013 FIM Sidecar World Championship with their LCR BMW S 1000 RR.
Chaz Davies:
Result Race 1: 1st / Fastest Lap Race 1: 1:58.218 min (lap 2)
Result Race 2: 1st / Fastest Lap Race 2: 1:58.860 min (lap 2
“For me it is just an amazing day. I cannot explain how happy I am. What a weekend! My first victory with BMW and then the double win – this is something I was hoping to achieve this year but I did not expect it to happen this early. I want to thank BMW and everybody who supported me. I knew coming here that we are going to be strong. BMW has done a fantastic job over the last month we had off since Australia, and everybody was working very hard. In addition, I now really feel that the RR is mine, I feel so comfortable on it.
In race one, the DNFs by Tom and Eugene definitely made it easier. In race two it seemed that I had a comfortable lead, but to be honest I had to push a lot. One of the most impressing things is the fact that we have done a lot of testing in Jerez but not here in Aragón, where nearly everybody else has been. So to win with that up against us, is quite impressive and it is credit to the work BMW has done. We will now keep being focused, continue to work hard and look forward to Assen, another race track I really like.”
Marco Melandri:
Result Race 1: 3rd / Gap to 1st: 0:07.089 min / Fastest Lap Race 1: 1:58.751 min (lap 11)
Result Race 2: 5th / Gap to 1st: 0:19.766 min / Fastest Lap Race 2: 1:59.351 min (lap 3)
“For me, it wasn’t the best weekend. After race one I was still pretty happy. At the start I wasn’t very comfortable with the front end and I made a big mistake trying to catch the guys in front of me at the end of the main straight. After that I got into a good rhythm and improved into second place. I thought that would be my position in the end but unfortunately the bike went into neutral between third and second gear. But I finished in third place which was not so bad for me. In race two, based on my experience with the 16.5 inch tyre, I chose a harder tyre for the front. But with the 17 inch tyre, it worked differently to how I expected. I had less grip and could not ride properly. In the beginning I pushed very hard, but then I preferred not to risk too much. I had no pain in my shoulder, but by the end of the race I had no strength left in my arms. I am looking forward to the next race in Assen, when we will be in a better shape. Congratulations to Chaz. He rode awesome – well done!”
Andrea Buzzoni (General Manager BMW Motorrad WSBK):
“It was an extraordinary weekend. All team members have worked day and night over the last six months to make it possible. The guys in Munich and Bologna are extremely committed and this is the perfect reward for them. These results show their passion and show the amount of responsibility they put into their jobs. Chaz has impressively shown his talent with two perfect races today. He demonstrated that he was a mature rider and to be ready to be one of the season’s main contenders. We trust him and he proves to be an excellent rider and person. Marco, despite a difficult Saturday, had a good first race. If things would have gone a little bit smoother, it’s possible that he could have fought for the victory. In race two, a wrong front tyre choice prevented him from being amongst the front runners. He collected important points for the season after finishing in fifth place.
“This weekend, the brand new BMW HP4 equipped with DDC made its debut in the Superstock Championship. Thanks to the development work that the team have done over the last three months, BMW wrote an important page in the history of motorcycle racing as it is the first bike to win with an innovative electronic damping system. I want to congratulate both the team along with our colleagues in Munich for developing the system and Sylvain, who knows how to make perfect use of this new technology: Sylvain dominated the whole weekend right from free practice up until this morning’s race.”
Stephan Fischer (Technical Director BMW Motorrad Motorsport):
“It is a great day for BMW. We are reaping the rewards of our development work, with the RR and as well with the new BMW HP4. The icing on the cake for sure was Chaz’ double victory in the top class, the World Superbikes. After race one, it could have been said that Lady Luck contributed her part, but in fact in racing you do need luck. But in race two Chaz impressively proved that he was dominating today. Over the whole weekend he rode at a constant rhythm, he did consistently fast laps, and the bike suited him perfectly. The development team provided the excellent basis and the race team at the track transferred it very well to suit Chaz’ needs and found the right set up quickly. It is a really great result for all of us. Marco struggled today, but we are convinced that he will be back to full strength very soon.
In the Superstock category, the new BMW HP4 proved its potential impressively. Over the whole weekend, Sylvain rode the best times consistently and as a result celebrated the victory today. We have built the basis for great success in the FIM Superstock 1000 Cup this year with introduction of the electronic damping system and the hard work of the team.”
— HRC
Jonathan Rea (Pata Honda World Superbike Team) and Leon Haslam (Pata Honda World Superbike Team) each scored points at Motorland Argon in round two of the FIM Superbike World Championship, with Rea’s fighting fourth place in race one the single best result on show.
Having qualified ninth on the grid Rea set about race one with relish and moving up to fourth place by lap five. He was only just over a second from a podium place in race one. The second race was not so kind to Rea, as his front brake adjuster wound itself in and he was unable to make the kind of adjustments needed at such a tough track for braking as Aragon has proved to be again. He came into the pits to get the problem addressed and rejoined the race to score one single point for 15th. The second race had been cut short to 19 laps, not the 20 laps as planned, after two delayed starts.
Haslam also encountered issues under braking in race one, finishing ninth from 14 race finishers. He had qualified 11th on the grid in Superpole, and went on to record a second ninth place finish in the race itself. Qualifying and practice time had been cut short for Haslam after falling early in the second official practice session and then having a tech issue in the final free practice before Superpole.
In the championship rankings Rea is ninth overall on 30 points and Haslam is tenth with 29.The next round of the season takes place at Assen, in the Netherlands, on April 28.
VAN DER MARK SECOND AFTER A TOUGH RACE IN MOTORLAND
The 2013 FIM Supersport World Championship had a dramatic second round of the year at Motorland Aragon but despite many other more experienced riders finding trouble rookie rider Michael van Der Mark (Pata Honda World Supersport Team) finished second. This was his second consecutive podium after he finished third in the opening round in Australia and he now sits second in the rankings, only two points from the lead. The 18-lap race was won by Fabien Foret (Kawasaki).
The temperatures went up higher than expected for the WSS race start and Lorenzo Zanetti (Pata Honda World Supersport Team) ended up sixth, only 12 seconds from the win in his second WSS race. He is seventh in the points as well, on 18 after posting his best result so far today
It was a good day all round for Honda’s batch of true WSS season rookies as Jack Kennedy (Rivamoto Honda) overcame a 16th place start on the grid to go seventh in the race, battling against the rising temperatures and some over adventurous riding from some of his peers.
Luca Marconi (PTR Honda) has another solid day and finished tenth, with Alex Baldolini (Team Lorini Honda) tenth. Raffaele De Rosa (Team Lorini Honda) fell and no scored after colliding with another rider. Balazs Nemeth (Complus SMS Racing Honda) just missed out on a point in 16th place and Alex Schacht (Racing Team Toth was 17th one place up on young Aussie Matt Davies (Team Honda PTR).
Sheridan Morais (PTR Honda) had qualified fourth but was taken out very early after making a less than perfect start from the line. Gabor Talmacsi (PRORACE Honda) fell right at the start, at turn two, having qualified 13th and struggled hard to be fit to race at Aragon after breaking his jaw in round one a few weeks ago.
Jonathan Rea (Pata Honda World Superbike Team)
Race result: 8th / 15th Championship position: 9th
“It’s hard to know what to say, really, because it was clear that we were on a bit of a high coming to the races here after the test two weeks ago. Immediately on Friday morning the bike felt a lot better and we worked really hard with the guys all weekend and put in a long run to understand the electronics setting. I feel that we got it in a satisfactory area where I was happy to push, but I’m disappointed with the overall performance. In the races I was unable to compete with the guys around me on the straight, which made riding the rest of the circuit very intense. In race one we had a game plan that worked out better than we expected because a few riders had some misfortune. We plugged away and were there to pick up the pieces and finished fourth. For me it felt like a podium because we’ve come from a long way back and we kind of had the feeling that we were climbing a ladder. Then in race two it was like someone kicked me back off of it because I had a problem with the brake adjuster. The brake kept winding itself in and for one lap I tried to ride with it but the lever was coming back to the bar. I was going to be a risk to other riders so I came in to fix that. Again, my pace was strong when I rejoined which is a real shame because I felt like we deserved some more points in race two. We go to Assen with no more testing which gives the guys some downtime. I think we all need it because we’ve had a lot of testing recently, but we’ll hopefully learn from these issues and start again in Assen.”
Leon Haslam (Pata Honda World Superbike Team)
Race result: 9th / 9th Championship position: 10th
“It was a tough start to the weekend with the issues we had on Friday and then Saturday even more so with the crash in qualifying and then the technical problem with a broken sensor in FP2. We finally got the bike running in Superpole, which I was really happy about and we found a really good amount of time. Today we’ve just had brake issues. Race one was worse than race two but the problems have kind of determined our results and they are long old races when you have those kind of problems.”
Michael van Der Mark (Pata Honda World Supersport Team)
Race result: 2nd Championship position: 2nd
“I had good pace all weekend and a good race. I made a quick start and took over the lead then I started to have a strange feeling from the bike, through the chassis, so I had to slow down a little. We got another podium in only my second race, which was better than we expected here. And it was a second place this time, not a third like in Australia. It was a difficult 18-laps but we got a reward. Yesterday we did a really good race pace simulation and if we had done that pace today I would have been nearer the front. We have to be happy with today. We have a good base in our bike and we work well in the team. Assen next my home race so that will be good. I will be aiming for the front there and see where we get to.”
Lorenzo Zanetti (Pata Honda World Supersport Team)
Race result: 6th Championship position: 7th
“I’m happy for the step we made today because we improved a lot compared to what we had before the race, thanks to the team for a good job. Another part of me is not so happy because I see that the podium is so close. I had some good pace in the first half of the race, similar to Mikey (van der Mark), and maybe enough to fight for the podium. But when the tyre went down I lost some time so I think I need to change the style a little more. I improved on my target of seventh and finished two seconds from the podium so for this I’m happy. I’m also happy for the team and congratulations to Mikey for his good result.”
Jack Kennedy (Rivamoto Honda)
Race result: 7th Championship position: 8th
“It was good but I was just hanging on in there at the end because everybody was just messing each other up and some of them were crashing all over. I would not like to say that I was struggling to hold onto them but I just dug deep. I have never raced for that long in that kind of heat so it was good to come away with an even better result than I did in Phillip Island especially staring from 16th as well. I just missed three crashes going on around me so it was a good day at the office.”
Matt Davies (Team Honda PTR)
Race result: 18th Championship position: NA
“It went all right out there and I am happy enough as I finished two spots higher than I did last time. We are keeping on moving forward all the time and learning all the time. I am pleased and looking forward to the next one.”
Gabor Talmacsi
Race result: DNF, Championship position: NA
“I made a perfect start, came forward and in the second corner on a good inside line until someone arrived and hit me from the side and ran off track to crash.”
Sheridan Morais: (PTR Honda)
Race result: DNF Championship position: NA
“My team-mate took me out and that was that. I had not a great start but was riding together with race winner Foret, so it was not too bad. The race pace I thought may have been a little bit quicker than that, but I was only watching from pitlane anyway. It was the first lap when I went into the first turn and something just hit me and that finished my day off.”
— Matt Davies
Matt Davies continues to impress in his debut World Supersport championship season after a race long duel saw the youngest full time rider in the series finish in 18th position in today’s race at Motorland Aragon.
Despite not making one of his usual lightning starts, Matt rode both smoothly and aggressively to end his second world supersport event less than 1.5 seconds from the points scoring places.
Looking ahead to Assen, Matt is confident that he can improve further with his experience PTR Honda team and challenge for a top 15 finish there.
Matt Davies – PTR Honda “I really enjoyed today’s race. We finished closer to the top 15 and that’s what we wanted to do. I’m happy and looking forward to the next one where I will try to improve more and get some points.”
