This weekend sees one of the biggest races in the World Superbike Championship as the circus goes to Brands Hatch in the UK for the tenth of thirteen rounds this year. After this weekend's round the championship will have a five week break prior to the final three rounds. Brands Hatch is a favourite stop on the championship calendar for both riders and British fans alike, attracting up to 120,000 spectators. Its natural amphitheatre-style layout makes for good viewing and the challenging mix of fast, blind corners and elevations means the circuit is highly rated by virtually all riders. The circuit was originally used as a military training ground but was taken over by motorcycles for grass track racing in 1926. It ran anti-clockwise until 1954 but has run clockwise ever since.
Brno's race weekend two weeks ago promised a lot but the reality didn't live up to the team's expectations. Haga took the Superpole for the second year running there but grip issues prevented him from converting it into race wins. He managed two good fourth place finishes and took away 26 valuable points at this key stage in the championship. Corser also struggled with grip problems in race one but held on to take seventh. In race two he was forced to retire when an engine bolt broke leaking oil over the tyre.
Looking forward, Brands could be considered Haga's lucky charm as he has been on the podium in every race there during the past three years. He did the double in 2004 and then in 2005 took a race win and a second, getting the fastest lap of both races in the process. Last year he came third in the first race and won race two. For 2007, Haga is looking to equal or better last year's result and further his championship fight as we move into the final few races of the season.
"Brands is a good circuit to race; you can hear the crowd as you are racing which helps a lot. I'm pleased to go there after Brno; I need a good result after the disappointment of Brno and I've always had good finishes at Brands," Haga says. "My focus is now very much on the championship title. I've trained very hard this year, mentally and physically, and we've worked hard on the bike and set-up. I'm confident and I'll be pushing hard this weekend. I know there has been a lot of rain in England recently and I'll be as happy if it rains on race day as I will be if it's dry. Rain will mean survival of the fittest and I'm ready for that."
Corser's last race win at Brands was in 2005, when he also took a second place finish as well as pole position. The 'Superpole' king has actually taken pole three times at this circuit, though his best result last year was a pair of sixth positions.
"I'm looking forward to Brands; it can only get better after Brno! I like the layout at Brands and the atmosphere's great there but I must admit it's not been my favourite track over the years, more because of the close proximity of the walls than anything else" says Corser. "After missing out in the second race at Brno I'm determined to win this weekend. I'm confident I would've been on the podium if the bolt hadn't broken. So rest assured I'll be pushing this weekend!"
World Supersport ChampionshipBrno won't go down in Parkes' books as a good race weekend after he and Harms crashed on the last lap whilst fighting for second place. Parkes managed to re-mount and finish 13th just behind fellow Australian and stand-in team mate Jason O'Halloran, who came home in 12th. O'Halloran was drafted in for the Brno race weekend after a good test at Vallelunga with the Yamaha World Supersport squad at the start of July. The best Yamaha result came from Massimo Roccoli with a sixth place finish.
Last year's Supersport race proved to be a very good vintage for Broc Parkes, with him taking the race win as well as pole position at the British round.
"I must admit that I don't really like Brands much; I've not had the best of times at the circuit traditionally. I crashed there the first few times I raced there and it's not one of my favourite tracks because of that. Having said that, I did well there last year so I guess I might have to change my opinion of it! Last year everything seemed to click into place and I'm hoping that it'll be the same this year,' Parkes says about Brands. "Brands is actually quite an exciting track; it's more like a motocross track with all the ups and downs and technical corners."
Parkes is joined this weekend by the Yamaha British Superbike rider Tommy Hill. Hill is a popular figure on the British circuit, having won the inaugural R6 Championship before going on to ride with the Yamaha Virgin Media Team in British Superbike. "I'm looking forward to this weekend, it's a great opportunity to ride at a world level," says Hill. "There's going to be some close and fast racing; everyone in this championship is fast and I know it's not going to be easy but I'm going to enjoy it! Of course, there's a bit of a learning curve and I'm keen to get to know the team but I'm confident of a good result on Sunday."
FIM Superstock 1000 Cup
Yamaha had a good Superstock 1000 race at Brno with Umbria Bike rider Matteo Baiocco taking second and Claudio Corti joining him on the podium in third. Corti's result was particularly good because he was suffering with a broken right foot, following a crash in an Italian national championship race at Misano in July. Despite doctors' requests for him not to race, the Italian went out and brought his YZF-R1 home in third. Brno also saw the return of Didier Van Keymeulen, who has been recovering from back and wrist injuries sustained at Silverstone. Van Keymeulen showed that he is on the road to recovery with a solid eighth place finish.
Following his second place at Brno, Baiocco goes to Brands still the championship leader but the gap is very close all the way down the leader board and the Cup is very competitive so anything is possible at this weekend's eighth round.
Track Data:Track length: 3703m
Track opened: 1926
2006 WSB winners: Bayliss (Ducati), Haga (Yamaha)
2006 WSB fastest lap: 1'26.351 (Toseland, Honda)
WSB lap record: 1'25.449 (Bayliss, Ducati, 2006)
Circuit tel: +44 (0)1474 872331
Circuit website: www.motorsportvision.co.uk/brands-hatch
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