WSBK Report
With just four hundredths of a second between them, James Toseland and Cal Crutchlow shot out of the legendary Parabolica curve on the final lap of World Superbike race one today in second and third respectively to deliver Yamaha Sterilgarda’s first SBK double podium of the year.
Crutchlow, having qualified second on his Yamaha motorcycle, had initially got off the line in fifth with Toseland two places behind in seventh. They worked their way up as a pair, passing Fabrizio and Corser to take third and fourth by lap three.
Toseland then made a sweet motorcycle racing move to pass his teammate for third on lap four at the end of the high speed start-finish straight, then closed down on Haslam and Biaggi at the front.
A brief fight with Haslam with some heart stopping passes saw Toseland take second where he stayed tucked up behind race leader Biaggi. Team mate Crutchlow took second from him briefly on lap 14 having caught up again after a missed chicane dropped him to fourth.
Toseland was quick to recover position however and got as far as a look up the inside of Biaggi coming out of Parabolica before settling for second less than three tenths from the front at the chequered flag.
World SBK race two was brought short for both riders. Another rider collided with Toseland going into the first chicane on the opening lap, causing a big crash leaving him with light concussion. He was awake following the incident but taken to hospital for a check up to assess if there was further injury.
Teammate Crutchlow made a good start and was chasing Biaggi in second place just 0.1 seconds behind the leader. On lap 11 stones from Biaggi’s rear wheel were flicked up, peppering Crutchlow’s helmet, with one piercing his oil cooler.
This caused him to low side going into the first chicane on lap 12. He was uninjured in the fall but unable to continue.
After the Monza round Toseland remains in fifth position in the championship on 106 points, now just four points away from Rea in third. Crutchlow remains in tenth position on 65 points, just seven behind Sylvain Guintoli in eighth.
James Toseland (Yamaha Sterilgarda World Superbike Team: 2nd, DNF) says: "The first race was a good strong race, I just want to congratulate the team, it’s their home race and to get two of us on the podium is great. Max Biaggi rode a great race, he had a strong bike here and we expected him to go well, he didn’t put a foot wrong. I was hoping on the last lap he was going to make a slight mistake, just enough for me to get alongside but he didn’t so fair play to him. We’re getting better with each race, moving in the right direction and it’s getting frustrating finishing in second and third now!"
Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha Sterilgarda World Superbike Team, (3rd, DNF) says: "I felt like I put together a really solid first race, we didn’t get the best of starts but made up for it and got stuck in. All credit to Yamaha, they’ve done a good job to give James and I a competitive package so it was great for us both to deliver them the podiums here for their home round. It was a strong result and we rode well so I was looking forward to the second race."
"I started really well and didn’t take long to get tucked in behind Max, I knew exactly what I was doing and had my strategy sorted to pass him on the last lap. Incredibly some stones flew up off his back wheel, I was so close behind I felt some hit my helmet and unfortunately a big one made a hole in my oil cooler. I made it through another lap, but coming into the first chicane it must have reached my back tyre and I went straight down."
Massimo Meregalli (Yamaha Sterilgarda World Superbike Team Manager) says: "This has been a really mixed race weekend for us. From Valencia we have been stronger and stronger, it’s clear by the podiums the riders have been delivering and the pace of both of them, especially this weekend and in Assen that we have a very competitive, strong bike. The first race was fantastic for us; to take two hard fought podiums at our home round is very special."
"The second race was incredibly frustrating; to have both riders out for reasons that were completely out of our control is disappointing when we have been the strongest team here. Following James’s crash and concussion he was taken to hospital for scans as he complained of a pain in his neck. The first scan revealed no injuries, we are waiting for a second for confirmation. We expect to head to South Africa to fight for more podiums."
Circuit Length: 5777
Temp: 20
Weather: Sunny
Lap Record: 1’42.937 (Cal Crutchlow, 01/01/2010)
Fastest Lap Ever: 1’42.121 (Max Biaggi, 09/05/2010)
Last Years Winner: Ben Spies
Superbike – Race 1
1. 3 Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 31’07.044 (200,504 kph)
2. 52 Toseland J. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 0.247
3. 35 Crutchlow C. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 0.297
4. 91 Haslam L. (GBR) Suzuki GSX-R1000 0.958
5. 2 Camier L. (GBR) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 4.493
6. 111 Xaus R. (ESP) BMW S1000 RR 7.343
7. 84 Fabrizio M. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 7.369
8. 11 Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 9.344
9. 66 Sykes T. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX 10R 15.338
10. 50 Guintoli S. (FRA) Suzuki GSX-R1000 16.761
11. 41 Haga N. (JPN) Ducati 1098R 16.921
12. 76 Neukirchner M. (GER) Honda CBR1000RR 22.231
13. 67 Byrne S. (GBR) Ducati 1098R 22.602
14. 7 Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 22.742
15. 96 Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R 26.266
Superbike – Race 2
1. 3 Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 31’07.122 (200,496 kph)
2. 91 Haslam L. (GBR) Suzuki GSX-R1000 4.547
3. 11 Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 5.469
4. 2 Camier L. (GBR) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 10.267
5. 66 Sykes T. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX 10R 15.561
6. 41 Haga N. (JPN) Ducati 1098R 15.816
7. 50 Guintoli S. (FRA) Suzuki GSX-R1000 15.861
8. 96 Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R 20.977
9. 67 Byrne S. (GBR) Ducati 1098R 21.920
10. 99 Scassa L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 21.974
11. 7 Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 27.152
12. 76 Neukirchner M. (GER) Honda CBR1000RR 29.315
13. 77 Vermeulen C. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX 10R 30.858
14. 95 Hayden R. (USA) Kawasaki ZX 10R 47.160
15. 23 Parkes B. (AUS) Honda CBR1000RR 48.824
SBK Riders Standings
1. L. Haslam GBR 181
2. M. Biaggi ITA 178
3. J. Rea GBR 110
4. C. Checa ESP 110
5. J. Toseland GBR 106
6. N. Haga JPN 100
7. T. Corser AUS 92
8. L. Camier GBR 72
9. S. Guintoli FRA 70
10. C. Crutchlow GBR 65
11. M. Fabrizio ITA 62
12. S. Byrne GBR 58
13. J. Smrz CZE 47
14. T. Sykes GBR 35
15. R. Xaus ESP 35
