WSBK Report
Yamaha Sterilgarda World Superbike rider Cal Crutchlow showed solid race craft in the second superbike race today, confidently sticking with race leaders Max Biaggi and Leon Haslam to stand on the World Superbike podium for the first time.
After dropping to fourth initially Crutchlow capitalised on his opportunity to move up when Johnny Rea was pushed wide by Haslam going into the first corner on lap three. He was never more than 0.3 seconds from the lead, taking his well earned podium in third at the finish line.
Teammate James Toseland wrapped up the day in race two with style, charging through the pack from 15th, overcoming a number of competitive riders to cross the line in sixth, nearly ten places up from the start.
Race one proved to be a display of consistency and determination from British rider Toseland. Starting from a less than perfect 15th on the grid, Toseland gradually worked his way through the pack. The final lap saw him close down a half second gap, taking Haga on the last corner to steal a well deserved seventh place finish at the line.
His teammate Crutchlow spent the majority of the race in third until an unfortunate low-side crash three laps from the end dropped him to 15th. He managed to pass 14th placed rider Tom Sykes on the last lap to stay in the points.
Crutchlow heads to Valencia in tenth position with 25 points, Toseland heads to the third round in Spain in 11th, tied on points with his team-mate with 25.
Cal Crutchlow – Yamaha Sterilgarda World Superbike Team (14th, 3rd)
"It was a tough day today from the first race, I made a stupid mistake, my own fault I was pushing too hard. We’ve made big steps from Australia, all credit to Yamaha they’ve done a fantastic job. We came here fighting but unfortunately in the first race I went down and Johnny Rea got through and got the podium."
"I’m looking forward to the next weekend in Valencia, if we can continue doing a good job and getting the success we’re starting to experience it’ll be a good season, let’s keep the ball rolling. The team have put in a sterling effort this weekend. Well done to Max Biaggi and Leon Camier as well."
James Toseland – Yamaha Sterilgarda World Superbike Team (7th, 6th)
"We’ve still got a lot of work to do but we’ve made massive improvements. We really deserved the third and sixth in that last race, After Cal’s Superpole he was unlucky to crash in the first race so I’m really pleased with his result in the second. The potential of the bike is very good, once we use the full power of the engine we’re right up there."
"It was only my crash that stopped me being on the front row I think. I was a bit sore today and my head was bit fuzzy after its knock yesterday so I wasn’t completely on form. Considering that and starting from 15th on the grid we achieved some good results. It’s a shame we started on the back foot this year but we’re moving on and we’re keeping on pushing."
2010 WSB Portugal – Portimão 28/03/2010
Race 1 – 22 Laps
1   Max Biaggi   Aprilia   ITA   37’59.283
2   Leon Haslam   Suzuki   GBR   0’00.200
3   Jonathan Rea   Honda   GBR   0’06.901
4   Carlos Checa   Ducati   ESP   0’07.457
5   Leon Camier   Aprilia   GBR   0’07.564
6   Shane Byrne   Ducati   GBR   0’11.420
7   James Toseland   Yamaha   GBR   0’18.391
8   Noriyuki Haga   Ducati   JPN   0’18.536
9   Troy Corser   BMW   AUS   0’24.514
10   Ruben Xaus   BMW   ESP   0’32.427
11   Michel Fabrizio   Ducati   ITA   0’35.045
12   Lorenzo Lanzi   Ducati   ITA   0’36.816
13   Sylvain Guintoli   Suzuki   FRA   0’36.841
14   Cal Crutchlow   Yamaha   GBR   0’44.678
15   Tom Sykes   Kawasaki   GBR   0’44.942
Race 2 – 22 Laps
1   Max Biaggi   Aprilia   ITA   38’06.128
2   Leon Haslam   Suzuki   GBR   0’00.191
3   Cal Crutchlow   Yamaha   GBR   0’00.658
4   Carlos Checa   Ducati   ESP   0’01.015
5   Leon Camier   Aprilia   GBR   0’03.123
6   James Toseland   Yamaha   GBR   0’09.131
7   Shane Byrne   Ducati   GBR   0’11.033
8   Noriyuki Haga   Ducati   JPN   0’13.452
9   Sylvain Guintoli   Suzuki   FRA   0’13.964
10   Troy Corser   BMW   AUS   0’16.377
11   Michel Fabrizio   Ducati   ITA   0’26.351
12   Ruben Xaus   BMW   ESP   0’27.964
13   Tom Sykes   Kawasaki   GBR   0’33.566
14   Lorenzo Lanzi   Ducati   ITA   0’33.823
15   Max Neukirchner   Honda   GER   0’37.372
RIDER STANDINGSÂ Â Â 28/03/2010
1.   Leon Haslam   Suzuki   GBR   85
2.   Max Biaggi   Aprilia   ITA   69
3.   Carlos Checa   Ducati   ESP   60
4.   Michel Fabrizio   Ducati   ITA   46
5.   Noriyuki Haga   Ducati   JPN   43
6.   Jonathan Rea   Honda   GBR   39
7.   Sylvain Guintoli   Suzuki   FRA   33
8.   Leon Camier   Aprilia   GBR   32
9.   Troy Corser   BMW   AUS   29
10.   Cal Crutchlow   Yamaha   GBR   25
11.   James Toseland   Yamaha   GBR   25
12.   Shane Byrne   Ducati   GBR   25
13.   Lorenzo Lanzi   Ducati   ITA   15
14.   Ruben Xaus   BMW   ESP   10
15.   Jakub Smrz   Ducati   CZE   8
MANUFACTURER STANDINGSÂ Â Â 28/03/2010
1.   Suzuki   85
2.   Ducati   71
3.   Aprilia   69
4.   Honda   40
5.   Yamaha   32
6.   BMW   29
7.   Kawasaki   7