Results World Superbike-Supersport, Lausitz, Germany2007-09-09 11:05SOFUOGLU SECOND AFTER CLOSE LAUSITZ RACE RESULT New World Supersport Champion Kenan Sofuoglu (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR) had a close fight with eventual winner Broc Parkes all through the 23-lap Supersport race, finishing second by 1.987 seconds. Second again in qualifying, Sofuoglu provided great entertainment for the German crowd on a day that dawned blissfully dry, after a wet final qualifying session on Saturday. Sofuoglu also scored a new lap record, on lap six, with a time of 1'41.946s. Sofuoglu's 20 points from Lausitz ensure that Honda has now taken the Manufacturers' Championship, now having an advantage of 51 points over the next closest manufacturer, with two races to go. Sofuoglu now leads the championship he has already won by a margin of 100 points, from Lausitz non-finisher Fabien Foret, as Parkes moved into third place, on 87 points. Sebastien Charpentier (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR) looked set for a podium but reduced rear tyre traction from five laps into the race dropped him from the lead at one stage to an eventual ninth. He was particularly disappointed, as he had qualified on pole for the second successive meeting. Katsuaki Fujiwara (Althea Honda Team CBR600RR) retired from the race on lap ten, and his teammate Lorenzo Alfonsi (Althea Honda Team CBR600RR) fell on lap 20. Winning at Lausitz was high on Sofuoglu's list of priorities, despite his recent championship success. "For me it was really important to win this race because I won here last year and also because I am the champion now, I feel that I should prove myself by winning," said Kenan. "Broc Parkes was really strong today and I know that his bike is good around here. I fought with him for the entire 23-laps and it was not easy, but there is only so much you can do without losing the grip in the rear and in the front. He managed to get past me and by the final lap I knew there was nothing more I could do to catch him. Anyway, I put in 100% here so I know that at Vallelunga and Magny-Cours I will put in 130% - because I really want to win those races!" Charpentier was desolate at his misfortune, and he is now 12th overall, on 44 points. "After a few laps, about five, my rear grip just started to go and from then until the end I was fighting all the way," said Charpentier. "I have a new gearbox spec coming for Vallelunga because I feel right now that I am always between gears in the slower corners, so I hope that can let me get full confidence and make the most of what is a very good bike." Fujiwara had some bad luck on race day, when a crash he experienced on Saturday, in wet conditions, broke two small bones in is left ankle. He gallantly attempted to race, as he had qualified in fourth place on the grid, but after dropping out of the points his team signalled him into the box to retire. He lost third place in the championship due to his DNF, and is now fourth. "The problem was that my injury was to my left ankle," said Fujiwara. "That made gear changing very difficult. The team decided to bring me in to the pit box when I was no longer in the points. I also had a injury to my right leg, just from the impact of the crash, so it was an uncomfortable race for me." Alfonsi, who had qualified 22nd, was up to 12th at one point, but after a near collision with another rider he lost the back end as he tried to keep the power on, while running just off the ideal line. He is now 11th overall, with 45 points. "It was a pity because after losing the final day of qualifying because of rain I was making real progress in the race," said Alfonsi. "I almost touched with Gianluca Nannelli and that meant I was off line. I tried very hard to recover but the rear end just came around on me." World Superbike Round 11 of 13 TOSELAND LOSES SOME GROUND DESPITE STRONG TEAM EFFORT James Toseland (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR) battled as hard at Eurospeedway Lausitz as he ever has to win races in the 2007 series, but was rewarded with only a ninth and fourth place finish, and a reduced championship lead to boot. Despite losing ground to both his main championship rivals, he still leaves Germany with a healthy 41-point championship lead. Noriyuki Haga won the first race and Troy Bayliss the second. In the championship Toseland now has 375 points, Haga 334, Max Biaggi 322 and Bayliss 296. In the Manufacturers' Championship, Honda has a five-point advantage, with four races and two rounds still to go. In the first race, second row qualifier Toseland was in trouble from the start, with a mystery lack of rear traction throughout, leading to a reduction of forward push that caused him to drop from the leading bunch to ninth. He was passed on the very last lap by Lorenzo Lanzi; finding himself unable to do anything about it. Top Honda finisher in race one was thus Roberto Rolfo (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR) in fifth, with next best rider being Karl Muggeridge (Alto Evolution Honda CBR1000RR) who took tenth place. Rookie rider in his first SBK race, Yoann Tiberio (Alto Evolution Honda CBR1000RR) scored one point for finishing 15th. Michel Fabrizio (DFX Corse Honda CBR1000RR) crashed and had to pull out of race one while in a top position, while his teammate Luca Morelli (DFX Corse Honda CBR1000RR) also failed to finish. In race two, Toseland was in the leading group at the start once more but although not able to compete for the podium places, he fended off the close attentions of Troy Corser to secure fourth place, and more valuable points to take into the final rounds. Rolfo was seventh in race two, Muggeridge again tenth, with a tiring Fabrizio 13th, and Tiberio 18th. A second technical issue, on lap eight of the second race, forced Morelli out. For Toseland the story of his day was clear - sheer bad luck. The fact that he had to swap to his second bike to eradicate the mere possibility there was a problem with his first machine was not an ideal way to finish a race weekend as important as this one. "A tough day at the office today," said the championship leader. "I have worked so hard to get the advantage I took away from Brands Hatch that to be riding round in ninth in race one does not do me or this team justice. The second race was just normal by comparison, but because things were so bad with traction in the first race we had to swap to my spare bike because we didn't know what was happening with the lack of grip in race one. We set the second bike the same as the first one was in race two - and it was two or more seconds a lap quicker. But the bikes were the same, so it was nothing mechanical in race one. If I had a third and a fourth today, which was more than possible, then I would have left here without too much of an indentation in my championship lead. It could have been worse, but after a double win at Brands Hatch I shouldn't have been worrying about my lead being cut here." Rolfo, now eighth in the title chase, was happy to be as high up as he was in race one, but not so happy with the result of race two. "In some points we improved in race two but we elected to put a lot of fuel in and we lost the best part of the race," said Roby. "Later on I was fast and it went better. I feel a lot happier going fast on the bike than before but we still have to work, because I want to stay with the front riders. The start is where we need to concentrate, because the middle to the end is not a problem at the moment." Fabrizio was unfortunate to fall in race one, and it was his fourth crash in a weekend blighted with rain on day two. In race two, many factors took their toll on him, and he finished a depleted 13th. In the series overall he is 12th, on 112 points. "In race one the bike was good, the tyre too, and I was making real progress from the start," said Fabrizio. "But - I think - Corser put his knee slider on the earth around the inside of a corner and some dirt went onto the track. As soon as I reached it I lost the front. It was my fourth crash and I hurt my face and neck a bit this time. The bike was not OK, so I was finished in that race. In race two, after a few laps, the tyre was worn on my repaired bike and my body was very tired and painful after the crashes. With all that, I just hung on there to finish as best I could." Muggeridge was back on strong form after a recent test session in Italy and despite the day which was effectively lost to rain on Saturday, and a 14th place in Superpole, he was happy to be back in the main mix again. He is 15th in the overall championship after Lausitz. "My quickshifter broke in race one," said Muggeridge. "So I had arm pump working the throttle so hard during gear changes. I improved my race time by 11 seconds in race two; just what I thought I had lost in race one. Two top tens is not too bad. We really have a race bike now, and this is the first race where I got a top ten and none of the other riders fell off, so I am happy with that." Tiberio's first taste of Superbike action was relatively sweet, and he will be back for more in Italy in two weeks. "I rode with no real knowledge about a Superbike race until today but it was OK in the races," said the former WSS race winner. "There were so many things to think about but it was interesting. And very hard! But I enjoyed the bike and I have made a good progression through the weekend. Next race should be exciting." Morelli was disappointed with is first Lausitz weekend, as he was forced out of the contest on two occasions. "I am not happy at all," said Morelli, "because my bike just stopped twice, at almost the same point in each race. So now I look to Vallelunga, where I hope for better luck." The next stop for the WSS and WSB series is a new venue, Vallelunga, on September 30th, with Magny-Cours in France forming the final round of the championship, on November 7. Results SUPERSPORT: RACE : (Laps 23 = 98,095 Km) Pos /Rider /Nat. /Team / Time /Gap 1 / B. PARKES / AUS / Yamaha World SSP Racing / 39'25.235 / 2 / K. SOFUOGLU / TUR / Hannspree Ten Kate Honda / 39'27.222 / 1.987 3 / M.LAGRIVE / FRA / Intermoto Czech / 39'48.670 / 23.435 4 / C. JONES / GBR / Revè Ekerold Honda Racing / 39'53.147 / 27.912 5 / T. HILL / GBR / Yamaha World SSP Racing / 39'54.325 / 29.09 6 / D. CHECA / ESP / Yamaha - GMT 94 / 39'54.521 / 29.286 7 / M.ROCCOLI / ITA / Yamaha Lorenzini by Leoni / 39'54.534 / 29.299 8 / J. LASCORZ / ESP / Glaner Motocard.com / 39'57.349 / 32.114 9 / S. CHARPENTIER / FRA / Hannspree Ten Kate Honda / 40'04.445 / 39.21 10 / B. VENEMAN / NED / Pioneer Hoegee Suzuki Racing / 40'06.461 / 41.226 11 / G.NANNELLI / ITA / Team Caracchi Ducati SC / 40'06.755 / 41.52 12 / S. GIMBERT / FRA / Yamaha - GMT 94 / 40'07.474 / 42.239 13 / G.VIZZIELLO / ITA / RG Team / 40'09.036 / 43.801 14 / S. SANNA / ITA / Racing Team Parkalgar / 40'18.284 / 53.049 15 / S. NEBEL / GER / Lightspeed Kawasaki Supp. / 40'22.142 / 56.907 Fastest Lap 6° Kenan Sofuoglu 1'41.946 150,609 Km/h Lap record: 2006 K.Sofuoglu 1'42.090 150,400 Km/h Best Lap: 2006 K.Curtain 1'41.006 152,010 Km/h Riders Championship Standings: 1 SOFUOGLU 226, 2 FORET 126, 3 PARKES 100, 4 FUJIWARA 87, 5 ROCCOLI 84, 6 HARMS 83, 7 VENEMAN 70, 8 WEST 66, 9 JONES 58, 10 NANNELLI 49, 11 ALFONSI 45, 12 CHARPENTIER 44, 13 PITT 40, 14 CHECA 39, 15 RIBA 37. SUPERBIKE Race 1 : (Laps 24 = 102,360 Km) Pos / Rider / Nat. / Team / Time / Gap 1 / N.HAGA / JPN / Yamaha Motor Italia / 40'02.923 / 2 / M.BIAGGI / ITA / Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra / 40'13.930 / 11.007 3 / T. CORSER / AUS / Yamaha Motor Italia / 40'14.551 / 11.628 4 / T. BAYLISS / AUS / Ducati Xerox Team / 40'25.079 / 22.156 5 / R. ROLFO / ITA / Hannspree Ten Kate Honda / 40'29.005 / 26.082 6 / R. LACONI / FRA / Kawasaki PSG-1 Corse / 40'29.304 / 26.381 7 / F. NIETO / ESP / Kawasaki PSG-1 Corse / 40'39.793 / 36.87 8 / L. LANZI / ITA / Ducati Xerox Team / 40'46.388 / 43.465 9 / J. TOSELAND / GBR / Hannspree Ten Kate Honda / 40'47.181 / 44.258 10 / K. MUGGERIDGE / AUS / Alto Evolution Honda / 40'48.156 / 45.233 11 / S. NAKATOMI / JPN / Yamaha YZF / 40'55.476 / 52.553 12 / R. XAUS / ESP / Team Sterilgarda / 41'04.882 / 1'01.959 13 / J. SMRZ / CZE / Team Caracchi Ducati SC / 41'20.912 / 1'17.989 14 / S. MARTIN / AUS / Celani Team Suzuki Italia / 41'22.147 / 1'19.224 15 / Y. TIBERIO / FRA / Alto Evolution Honda / 41'39.550 / 1'36.627 Fastest Lap 9° Noriyuki Haga 1'39.033 155,039 Km/h Race 2: (Laps 24 = 102,360 Km) 1 / T. BAYLISS / AUS / Ducati Xerox Team / 39'49.291 / 2 / N.HAGA / JPN / Yamaha Motor Italia / 39'50.644 / 1.353 3 / M.BIAGGI / ITA / Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra / 40'02.292 / 13.001 4 / J. TOSELAND / GBR / Hannspree Ten Kate Honda / 40'03.932 / 14.641 5 / T. CORSER / AUS / Yamaha Motor Italia / 40'04.501 / 15.21 6 / R. XAUS / ESP / Team Sterilgarda / 40'15.121 / 25.83 7 / R. ROLFO / ITA / Hannspree Ten Kate Honda / 40'19.043 / 29.752 8 / F. NIETO / ESP / Kawasaki PSG-1 Corse / 40'19.238 / 29.947 9 / M.NEUKIRCHNER / GER / Suzuki Germany / 40'19.843 / 30.552 10 / K. MUGGERIDGE / AUS / Alto Evolution Honda / 40'23.106 / 33.815 11 / R. LACONI / FRA / Kawasaki PSG-1 Corse / 40'28.614 / 39.323 12 / L. LANZI / ITA / Ducati Xerox Team / 40'31.883 / 42.592 13 / M.FABRIZIO / ITA / D.F.X. Corse / 40'40.046 / 50.755 14 / S. MARTIN / AUS / Celani Team Suzuki Italia / 40'42.889 / 53.598 15 / S. NAKATOMI / JPN / Yamaha YZF / 40'45.575 / 56.284 Fastest Lap 7° Noriyuki Haga 1'38.622 155,685 Km/h Lap record: 2006 T.Bayliss 1'38.635 155,660 Km/h Best Lap: 2006 T.Bayliss 1'37.623 157,280 Km/h Riders Championship Standings: 1 TOSELAND 362, 2 HAGA 314, 3 BIAGGI 306, 4 BAYLISS 271, 5 CORSER 243, 6 LANZI 169, 7 XAUS 167, 8 ROLFO 157, 9 NEUKIRCHNER 123, 10 KAGAYAMA 116, 11 FABRIZIO 109, 12 LACONI 108, 13 NIETO 74, 14 SMRZ 61, 15 NAKATOMI 46. Source: Honda Pro Image Click here to visit our forums to discuss this story |
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