Team Suzuki Alstare Brux rider Max Neukirchner endured a difficult day in the fourth round of the Superbike World Championship at Assen, but still managed to take a hard-fought for ninth place in the second race. Earlier in the day, he had crashed on lap seven, whilst in sixth, but grittily remounted and got back into the race. He fought his way up through the field to finish 13th. In race two, he used the same bike and tyres, but the bike was harder to ride. Despite the problems, he kept attacking and ended with 9th position. His team mate Yukio Kagayama also endured a hard day. He crashed on lap two of race one and was unable to get back on his bike. In race two he suffered problems, but still managed to finish 12th.
Max - Race 1: 13th, Race 2: 9th:
"Race one was good until the crash of course! The chassis was not quite 100 per cent perfect, but I really wanted to get a good result so I was pushing quite hard. I lost the front in the the chicane before the start finish straight and although I got back on the bike and started again, I was down in 22nd place. I decide to keep going and fight for some points and I managed to end 13th and get a few points, so I think the effort was worth it. We used the same bike and the same type of tyres for the second race, but the bike didnt work as well. It was harder to ride and more difficult to brake late. It was also not so easy in the turns and so I found it a bit frustrating, but I am only five points behind Fabrizio in the standings, so I know that I can improve a lot."
Yukio - Race 1: DNF, Race 2: 12th:
"I am not sure why I crashed in race one because it seemed to be a bit of a strange crash. Normally you lose the front end, on the brakes, going into turns, but this time I was exiting the turn and just getting on the gas when the front just suddenly went without any warning. I wasnt hurt, but I was a bit angry.
"In race two, I used the same bike and same tyres, but found it hard getting the bike to stop. Its possible that there was a small problem with the clutch, but we will not know for sure until we get back to the workshops, look inside the engine after seeing all the data. I kept going and had the chance to pass Xaus on the last corner but there were yellow flags out, so I could not make my move.
"I am hoping for better things in Monza, because I need some good results."
Results -
Race 1: 1. Spies (USA-Yamaha)
2. Haga (J-Ducati)
3. Haslam (GB-Honda)
4. Sykes (GB-Yamaha)
5. Biaggi (I-Aprilia)
6. Smrz (CZ-Ducati)
13. Max Neukirchner (D-Suzuki Alstare Brux)
Yukio Kagayama (J-Suzuki Alstare Brux) DNFRace 2: 1. Haga
2. Haslam
3. Smrz
4. Fabrizio (I-Ducati)
5. Rea (GB-Honda)
6. Sykes
9. Max Neukirchner (D-Suzuki Alstare Brux)
12. Yukio Kagayama (J-Suzuki Alstare Brux)Points: 1. Haga 180
2. Spies 120
3. Haslam 94
4. Fabrizio 80
5. Max Neukirchner (D-Suzuki Alstare Brux) 756. Sykes 70
12. Yukio Kagayama (J-Suzuki Alstare Brux) 39
