Category: Superbikes

1. Ace Cafe T3 Racing Team at Donington this weekend!

   Posted on 8:27am Friday 6th Sep 2013

   Rob Guiver looks for a top ten finish at Donington Park

   After their best finish of the season at Cadwell Park, the Ace Cafe T3 Racing team are moving the goal posts and aiming for a top ten finish.

   The team are now leading the Cup class by 56 points and are in a strong position for the rest of the season. Combined with two top 12 finishes at Cadwell Park and the knowledge that he broke the lap record at Donington Park in the Triumph Triple Challenge last year, confidence is running high.

    Guiver spoke to us about his aim for the weekend:

   “I’m looking forward to Donington, I love the place and after a good weekend at Cadwell I’m hoping to build on that and hopefully be able to fight for a top ten finish! My aim is to win the Cup race too, just keeping my fingers crossed that the rain stays away!”

   There was a new found confidence from Guiver at Cadwell Park and it was reflected out on track. The team have been working hard to find the winning formula for him and it has paid off. Team Principal of the Ace Cafe T3 Racing team Tony Scott commented:

   “We’ve been working so hard this season, at times it felt like it was one step forward three steps back, but to see it all come together has been fantastic for all the team. We knew before that a top twelve finish was possible but the way Rob’s riding and the way the bike is going, I think he’s definitely got a top ten finish in him.”

   Guiver will be out on track for the British Supersport races at 15.40 on both Saturday and Sunday. You can see more of the team by dropping into the Ace Cafe T3 Racing awning or check out the races live on Eurosport 2.

   For more race updates and information follow us on twitter @T3Racing or find T3 Racing on twitter. Alternatively you can head to www.t3-racing.co.uk or www.ace-cafe-london.com

    

2. TWO RED FLAGS IN THE PENULTIMATE LAP STOP THE RACES ON THE NÜRBURGRING

   Posted on 11:42am Sunday 1st Sep 2013

   SECOND PLACE IN RACE 2 FOR EUGENE LAVERTY WHO WAS MAKING A PLAY FOR THE LEAD WHEN THE RACE WAS STOPPED.

    

   WITH A FOURTH AND FIFTH PLACE FINISH SYLVAIN GUINTOLI LIMITS THE DAMAGE AND STAYS CLOSE TO THE LEAD IN THE RIDER STANDINGS.

    

   APRILIA CONTINUES TO LEAD THE MANUFACTURER CHAMPIONSHIP.

   Nürburgring, 1 September 2013 – Two red flags due to oil on the track, both during the penultimate lap, stopped the World Superbike races at the Nürburgring. A blown out engine for Sandi first and a crash by Smrz in the second forced Race Direction to end the competitions a lap early.

   While the finishing order had all but been decided when Race 1 was suspended, in the second race the duels between Davies and Eugene Laverty for first place and between Sylvain Guintoli and Sykes for fourth place were just heating up. In fact, the red flag kept the Aprilia Racing Team standard bearers from a direct attack on their rivals at the chequered flag.

   After a difficult Superpole Sylvain Guintoli got off to a good start in both races, immediately gaining positions. After successfully fending off attacks by Giugliano and Camier, Sylvain's race for the podium stopped short at fourth place in Race 1. In the penultimate lap an oil leak caused Rea and Camier to crash, unfortunately injured in the accident, putting an end to the race and deciding the finishing order. Race 2 followed a similar script, at least in the first part. With an excellent start followed by a series of fast laps, the French rider had closed the gap with the leading pack, nipping at Sykes' heels during the final laps. Just as the duel was about to start in earnest, a crash by wild card Smrz with fluids leaking onto the track from his bike put an end to the race a lap early. Thanks to his fifth place finish, Sylvain is now in second place in the rider standings, just one point behind Sykes.

   Sylvain Guintoli: “This was a difficult weekend on a very physical track. In Race 1 I couldn't find my rhythm in the first laps, dropping behind the leaders and having to ride alone, fending off attacks. In Race 2 the changes we made to my RSV4 really worked well. I pushed hard to catch Sykes up and when I did my plan was to attack in the last lap, but unfortunately the red flag stopped the race. My only consolation is that my shoulder responded well. I was able to push hard all the way to the end in both races without serious problems. It hurts now, but as long as I'm on the bike everything is OK. We'll go to Turkey as pursuers, but it's a track that I like where I think I can make a good play for it just as well as the other four or five riders who have proven to be consistently fast”

   It was a double-sided weekend for Eugene Laverty. Starting from the twelfth spot on the grid, the Northern Irish rider also had two good starts. However, his comeback in Race 1 was interrupted in the fourth lap when a crash forced him to head back to the garage. After the damage to his bike was repaired Eugene went back out, ending the race in fifteenth place and earning one point. In Race 2 Eugene unleashed his potential from the start, reaching the podium range within a few laps where he engaged in battle first with Sykes and then with Melandri, overtaking them both and setting his sights on frontrunner Davies. All signs pointed to an assault in the final laps, just when the red flag that ratified a second place finish for Eugene came out.

   Eugene Laverty: “It was a shame about the red flag in Race 2 when I was about to attack Chaz Davies for first place. I'm not saying I would have won it, but I would have had a go. The crash in Race 1 created a bit of a mess. I want to battle for the Championship and mistakes like that one can be costly. When you start so far back on the grid there's a lot more pressure and with that comes the risk of making some mistakes. We definitely will not be able to make any more slip ups for the rest of the season. All told we haven't lost too much ground behind the Championship leaders but we've got a hard battle ahead.”

   Aprilia leads the manufacturer championship with 369 points in front of Kawasaki (341), BMW (321), Honda (201), Suzuki (175), Ducati (144) and Yamaha (4). 

3. Pata Honda riders battle in Germany

   Posted on 11:33am Sunday 1st Sep 2013

   Lorenzo Zanetti and Michael van der Mark finished in fourth and fifth places respectively in the tenth-round World Supersport championship race at the Nürburgring in Germany this afternoon.

   The 19-lap race around the 5.137km circuit was won by series leader Sam Lowes after his closest challenger Kenan Sofuoglu crashed out of contention. Starting from fifth place on the grid, Zanetti was battling in a podium position for much of the race but a small error two laps from the end saw him slip back a place.

   It was a different race for van der Mark, who started from the fourth row after set-up issues and bad weather affected his qualifying performance. The 20-year-old Dutch ace dropped back to 16th in the opening laps but fought his way through the pack impressively to fifth, retaining fourth place in the points standings.

   Lorenzo Zanetti – 4th

   I have not been 100% fit this weekend, but after Silverstone I had some confidence. I wasn’t sure we could fight for the podium here but I like the circuit and we made some good steps. We changed completely the front of the bike after warm-up this morning. It was a big change and I started the race without trying it, which was a bit strange. Two laps before the end I made a mistake and I lost the podium position but before this I had a good rhythm and was staying with the front guys. I feel positive for Turkey and the rest of the season.

   Michael van der Mark – 5th

   My start was not so good and I probably released the clutch a little bit too fast. In the fourth corner a rider in front of me made a stupid move and cut right across me so I had to close the throttle. Everybody passed me and then I was 16th, I think. I had to push all through the race and, although I had the pace for the podium, I lost too much time and too many positions at the start.

   Pieter Breddels – technical co-ordinator

   Michael started from quite a way back and then had to come back from 16th after not such a good first lap. To fight back to fifth was another amazing achievement and he showed again what he can do on the bike. Lorenzo also had a good race but couldn’t quite hold on to third place. He fought all through the race, though, and the result was a good achievement.

   2013 World Supersport championship, round 10

   Nürburgring, Germany – 5.137km, 19 laps

   Race result:

   1 Sam Lowes (GBR) Yamaha

   2 Fabien Foret (FRA) Kawasaki

   3 Kevin Coghlan (GBR) Kawasaki

   4 Lorenzo Zanetti (ITA) Pata Honda

   5 Michael van der Mark (NED) Pata Honda

   6 Ricardo Russo (ITA) Kawasaki

   Championship points after 10 of 14 rounds:

   1 Lowes 185, 2 Sofuoglu 131, 3 Foret 121, 4 van der Mark 91, 5 Zanetti 86, 6 Scassa 69. Next round: Istanbul, Turkey – 13-15 September

4. Provisional second row for Zanetti

   Posted on 11:49am Friday 30th Aug 2013

   Lorenzo Zanetti bounced back from a month-long summer break to take fifth place in today’s first qualifying session for the tenth round World Supersport championship event at Nürburgring in Germany today.

   The Italian rider is still not at 100% fitness after sustaining injuries in a crash in July but it didn’t stop the 26-year-old from setting a time of 1m59.686s at the 5.137km Nürburgring circuit, less than 0.7s from provisional pole sitter, Sam Lowes.

   Despite a promising free practice session this morning, Zanetti’s Pata Honda team-mate Michael van der Mark was twelfth fastest this afternoon and admitted going in the wrong direction with the settings on his Honda CBR600RR.

   Lorenzo Zanetti – P5 1m59.686s

   My condition is still not perfect and I only restarted normal training one week ago, but I like this track. I lose a lot of time in turn three but it was a good start and I think we can improve things here and in other areas of the track. I had a crash at the end of the session and I must apologise to my team because, although I was fine, the bike is not OK and I made a lot of work for them.

   Michael van der Mark – P12 2m00.100s

   This morning started really well. We tried a few different things and in the last few laps I was able to do a pretty good time. We still had some changes that we needed though, so we tried them for qualifying but we went in the wrong direction. It was difficult to ride the bike this afternoon so I think we will go back to the earlier settings to make things easier tomorrow.

   Pieter Breddels – technical co-ordinator

   Michael had a really good free practice this morning but in the afternoon things didn’t quite go his way. We changed the setting a little, but it had more of a negative effect and in the end he was twelfth and couldn’t match his free practice time. We’ll try again tomorrow. Lorenzo did well today and things are looking quite positive, despite his crash on the very last lap today.

   2013 World Supersport championship, round nine – Nürburgring, Germany

   First qualifying results:

   1 Sam Lowes (GBR) Yamaha 1m58.993s

   2 Kenan Sofuoglu (TUR) Kawasaki 1m59.107s

   3 Fabien Foret (FRA) Kawasaki 1m59.433s

   4 Vladimir Leonov (RUS) Yamaha 1m59.677s

   5 Lorenzo Zanetti (ITA) Pata Honda 1m59.686s

   6 Jack Kennedy (IRL) Honda 1m59.701s 12 Michael van der Mark (NED) Pata Honda 2m00.100s

5. Pata Honda returns at the Nürburgring

   Posted on 11:54am Thursday 29th Aug 2013

   After a four-week summer break, the Pata Honda team is heading to the Nürburgring in Germany for this weekend’s (30 Aug-1 Sept) tenth round of the 2013 World Superbike championship.

   Riders Jonathan Rea and Leon Haslam are looking forward to riding their Honda CBR1000RR machines again at the famous 5.137km Nürburgring, which nestles 100km south of Cologne in Germany’s Eifel Mountains, adjacent to the iconic Nordschleife public-roads circuit.

   Jonathan Rea has enjoyed success with Honda at the Nürburgring in recent years, winning in 2009, his debut SBK season. He took another win and a second place the following season and rates it as one of his favourite circuits.

   Haslam, meanwhile, who became a father for the second time after the last SBK round, has taken one podium finish and been a consistent top six finisher at the German track, which has hosted World Superbike races since 2008 and features this season a slight modification after the tight first corner.

   Jonathan Rea

   I’m feeling good, with recharged batteries after the summer break, and I’m really excited at the prospect of riding my bike again this weekend. I really like going to the Nürburgring and it’s a nice circuit to come back to after a few weeks off. It’s both technical and fast-flowing, which I really enjoy. Hopefully, the guys back at the workshop have had some good downtime, too, because now it’s time to go back to work. I’m looking forward to free practice on Friday and hopefully we can carry on our recent form.

   Leon Haslam

   The break seems to have gone really fast, but then I’ve had my hands full a bit with the new baby! I’ve been having some more physiotherapy on my leg and I managed to get back riding a trials bike, which is fun. I’ve also been having a few sessions at my dad’s race school and the leg is definitely getting back to where I want it to be. So, I’m looking forward to getting back on the race bike at the Nürburgring, where I’ve always been able to battle at the front in previous races. The track seems to suit British riders especially, so I hope we can have a good weekend there.

   Pieter Breddels – technical co-ordinator

   It’s been a good break in the schedule and the whole team has had some time off, which we needed. We’ve carried on the evolution of the electronics system, specifically in throttle response, and we have also been preparing a lot of parts because we have four races in the next six weeks, with a flyway to Laguna Seca included. But we’ll focus on the Nürburgring now, where we know the CBR1000RR has gone pretty well in the past. Leon is getting back to strength and Jonathan is in a good run of form, so our hopes are high for the weekend.

   2013 World Superbike championship, round 10

   Nürburgring, Germany – weekend schedule (local times – GMT+2)

   Friday 30 August

   11.45-12.30 Free practice

   15.30-16.15 Qualifying 1

   Saturday 31 August

   09.45-10.30 Qualifying 2

   12.30-13.15 Free practice

   15.00-15.14 Superpole 1

   15.21-15.33 Superpole 2

   15.40-15.50 Superpole 3

   Sunday 1 September

   09.20-09.35 Warm-up

   12.00 Race 1 (20 laps 102.740km) 15.30 Race 2 (20 laps 102.740km)