WSBK Pre-Race Report
Fresh from recording their best result so far in the FIM Superbike World Championship at Valencia, Spain, Team BMW Motorrad Motorsport – headed by BMW Motorrad Motorsport Director Berthold Hauser – are busy preparing for the fourth WSBK race weekend of the 2010 motorcycle racing season.
Riders Troy Corser (AUS) and Ruben Xaus (ESP) will be striving to maintain the SBK team’s upturn in form at the classic Assen circuit in the Netherlands.
The BMW Motorrad Motorsport test team stopped off at the Mugello circuit in Italy during the week before Assen. Troy and the crew spent Tuesday and Wednesday working on the set-up of the BMW S 1000 RR SBK. The Australian racked up a total of 564 kilometers over the two days.
Troy Corser says:"In the early years of my career we used to race on the old Assen circuit, which I liked a lot. It was an old-school kind of track, the sort you used to get a lot of in the 1970s: flat, quick and with a lot of long, sweeping corners. The character of the circuit has been retained, despite a series of modifications, but it has lost some of its appeal for the riders. That’s not the case for the fans, though; this is still a great event and the atmosphere’s fantastic."
He continued: "I’ve never really nailed a race at Assen, although I have made the podium a few times. At Assen you have to take a big risk to be really ultra-fast, and that doesn’t necessarily suit my riding style. If the bike isn’t set up perfectly you lose a lot of time – especially in the last section through the three right-handers Mandeveen, Duikersloot and Meeuwenmeer and the long left-hander afterwards. I’m just taking each race as it comes. We’ve made some key improvements to the bike over the last few weeks and taken big steps forward in terms of acceleration and top speed."
Ruben Xaus says: "I’m a fan of Assen, and the track suits my riding style. I’ve finished on the podium here several times and won one of the races in 2003. My crew is doing an outstanding job. We are improving our understanding of the bike all the time and I’m only one small step away from getting some good results. I hope I can turn things around at Assen and will be fighting all the way; I owe it to BMW."
Berthold Hauser (BMW Motorrad Motorsport Director) says:"After our most successful race weekend to date at Valencia, we move on to our next challenge. The TT Circuit Assen is not one of the better tracks for our bike. However, we showed in Spain that we’re now able to give a good account of ourselves in places where we’ve struggled in the past. After six races we’ve collected 16 points more than at the same stage in our debut season. Our aim is to continue the upward trend of the past couple of weekends."
"With the nature of the Assen track it’s important that Troy and Ruben keep everything very smooth. The traction control software developments our technicians have been working on should help both riders here."
2010 World Superbike Championship Points (After 3 of 13 Rounds): 1. Haslam 123; 2. Biaggi 105; 3. Checa 80; 4. Haga 79; 5. Rea 60; 6. Toseland 50; 7. Guintoli 50; 8. Fabrizio 46; 9. Corser 46; 10. Crutchlow 41
2010 WSBK Manufacturer Points: 1. Suzuki 123; 2. Ducati 107; 3. Aprilia 105; 4. Honda 61; 5. Yamaha 57; 6. BMW 47; 7. Kawasaki 13
