Press Release:The first race saw Yamaha rider Ben Spies drop back to fourth from the pole position start as they left the line. He recovered quickly and took second position back as they turned into the first corner, diving up the inside of Biaggi to tuck up behind championship rival Noriyuki Haga. Halfway round the first lap he was passed by Michele Fabrizio and settled into third position behind the two Ducatis as they battled for the lead for the majority of the race.
With seven laps to go, Spies dived passed Fabrizio on the last corner coming on to the start finish straight to take second. As the lap unfolded Fabrizio passed briefly but was taken straight again by Spies as the powerful Yamaha out dragged the Ducati from the corner. An unfortunate tank slapper coming out of Clubhouse allowed Fabrizio passed again, and as the tyres had now gone off it was impossible for Spies to catch up so he settled for third and a well deserved podium.
Race two saw disaster strike for Spies, having dropped to third off the start, he again passed Biaggi on the inside for the second place spot and coming round for lap three took Haga in a fantastic move for the lead. No sooner had he done this than his shit linkage broke, making it impossible to change gear and forcing him to retire from the race.
Team-mate Tom Sykes had a less than perfect start to race one, dropping from his eighth position start on the grid to 16th as they headed into the first corner. With ten laps to go he'd moved up to 11th position with a steady race pace and then swiftly took Lavilla for the tenth spot. Although maintaining a good race pace he couldn't get up to ninth so settled for 10th. Race two saw a better start, dropping initially to 10th, he worked hard to take two places and move up to the eighth spot which he held until briefly before the finish when Suzuki rider Kagayama took back the spot, relegating him to ninth.
Ben Spies, Yamaha World Superbike Team, (3rd,DNF)"We were struggling to hang in there in race one, it was a good race for all three of us up at the front. When I passed Michel I tried to reel in Nori and then unfortunately made a mistake. I was really strong in parts of the track but giving up too much time in some corners and couldn't get in there. The second race was very unfortunate, I was feeling good and had secured an early lead, then obviously had the technical problem and had to retire, I'm really disappointed about it. I'm looking forward to going home to the USA for the next round and seeing if we can make it up."
Tom Sykes, Yamaha World Superbike Team, (10th, 9th)"I got away badly in the first race and initially dropped down to sixteenth which was a shame as I felt I could have been more consistent. The second race I got away ok from the start and was closing in on Checa and a couple of the boys, but the last five laps or so I was really struggling. If we could have found a bit more grip it would have been better. We struggled on the power this weekend as well which was tough on this circuit. I'm looking forward to getting to Miller as I think the track will suit the R1 really well, and I want to close the gap and get up into fourth place as I think it's possible."
Massimo Meregalli, Yamaha World Superbike Team Manager"Both riders did really well in the first race as we have been having issues here with the tyres, making it hard to be consistent throughout the race. For Ben in race two we had a problem with the shift linkage so he was unable to change gear and had to retire. We knew from practice that it was going to be tough racing here but both Ben and Tom did their best. The Ducati engine was stronger here on the day. "
Circuit Length: 4263
Weather: Sunny
Lap Record: 1'42.178 (Noriyuki Haga, 01/01/2002)
Fastest Lap Ever: 1'37.288 (Ben Spies, 17/05/2009)
Race 1 Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time
1 Noriyuki Haga Ducati JPN 39'47.436
2 Michel Fabrizio Ducati ITA 0'00.950
3 Ben Spies Yamaha USA 0'03.391
4 Jonathan Rea Honda GBR 0'08.914
5 Max Biaggi Aprilia ITA 0'09.019
6 Carlos Checa Honda ESP 0'14.812
7 Shinya Nakano Aprilia JPN 0'14.971
8 Yukio Kagayama Suzuki JPN 0'15.723
9 Shane Byrne Ducati GBR 0'21.529
10 Tom Sykes Yamaha GBR 0'21.795
11 Gregorio Lavilla Ducati ESP 0'29.872
12 Ryuichi Kiyonari Honda JPN 0'34.216
13 Sheridan Morais Kawasaki RSA 0'34.275
14 Jakub Smrz Ducati CZE 0'38.280
15 Broc Parkes Kawasaki AUS 0'40.885
Race 2 Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time
1 Noriyuki Haga Ducati JPN 39'45.027
2 Michel Fabrizio Ducati ITA 0'00.322
3 Jonathan Rea Honda GBR 0'08.936
4 Leon Haslam Honda GBR 0'10.561
5 Max Biaggi Aprilia ITA 0'10.767
6 Carlos Checa Honda ESP 0'12.413
7 Shinya Nakano Aprilia JPN 0'12.616
8 Yukio Kagayama Suzuki JPN 0'14.878
9 Tom Sykes Yamaha GBR 0'16.225
10 Jakub Smrz Ducati CZE 0'18.197
11 Sheridan Morais Kawasaki RSA 0'20.629
12 Gregorio Lavilla Ducati ESP 0'24.320
13 Ryuichi Kiyonari Honda JPN 0'24.564
14 Broc Parkes Kawasaki AUS 0'38.747
15 Fonsi Nieto Suzuki ESP 0'50.045
Best Lap
Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time
Michel Fabrizio Ducati ITA 1'38.548
Rider Standings 17/05/2009
Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Points
1. Noriyuki Haga Ducati JPN 250
2. Michel Fabrizio Ducati ITA 165
3. Ben Spies Yamaha USA 162
4. Leon Haslam Honda GBR 116
5. Jonathan Rea Honda GBR 106
6. Max Biaggi Aprilia ITA 103
7. Tom Sykes Yamaha GBR 103
8. Regis Laconi Ducati FRA 77
9. Max Neukirchner Suzuki GER 75
10. Carlos Checa Honda ESP 73
11. Ryuichi Kiyonari Honda JPN 72
12. Yukio Kagayama Suzuki JPN 68
13. Jakub Smrz Ducati CZE 64
14. Shinya Nakano Aprilia JPN 52
15. Shane Byrne Ducati GBR 48
Manufacturer Standings 17/05/2009 Pos. Manufacturer Points
1. Ducati 275
2. Yamaha 203
3. Honda 170
4. Aprilia 106
5. Suzuki 105
6. BMW 59
7. Kawasaki 27
