Both Haga and Corser suffered a day of ups and downs in today's round of the World Superbike Championship at Assen. Haga took second place in race one but suffered a technical failure in race two and was forced to retire. Corser suffered a mechanical fault in race one causing him to crash at high speed but rode through pain in race two to take fourth slot.
Race one started so well for Haga, who had qualified in 15th following a mistake during his Superpole lap yesterday cost him valuable seconds. By the end of the first lap he had already pushed through the field to take seventh and he then carried on through to first place but settled back in fourth with team mate Corser just behind in fifth. On lap 15 Haga made another charge for the front of the pack and overtook Bayliss for second place with only two laps to go. He also contended for first place but had to settle for second.
Corser put in a strong performance and was in a comfortable fifth place for much of the race, moving up to third on the penultimate lap when he overtook Bayliss and Xaus. Both riders were on track for podium finishes but Corser suffered a broken radiator hose clip causing fluid to spray over his rear tyre and making him high-side at a fast part of the circuit.
Both riders got a good start in race two with Corser moving up to fourth and Haga taking fifth slot on lap one. Haga went through to challenge Lanzi and then Bayliss using his usual wild sliding riding style. Haga then focused on closing the gap between him and front man Toseland and he took the lead on lap nine. The two riders were battling for first place when Haga had to pull off the track on lap 11 with an electrical-based engine problem.
Corser spent the main part of the race in a battle for fifth place with Lanzi but took fourth when Lanzi crashed out. The Australian fought the pain of his injuries received in race one to bring his bike home in fourth.
The weekend finished on a good note for Team Yamaha YZF rider Shinichi Nakatomi with him finishing in the points in both races. Settings alterations made throughout the weekend gave the team one of their best results so far this season with the Japanese rider taking seven points away from Assen.
The weekend's results means that Haga goes to Monza third in the championship, 20 points behind Biaggi who is in second. Corser lies in fifth in the championship.
Noriyuki Haga (2nd and DNF - Yamaha Motor Italia)"In race one I got a good result considering where I started. From the fourth row to the podium isn't bad for one race! The bike was feeling good and the suspension modifications we made worked well. In race two I made a good start but then a problem forced me to retire which is unlucky as I was on target to get a good result again. This has been a bit of a mixed day but I am sure Monza will be better."
Troy Corser
Troy Corser (DNF and 4th - Yamaha Motor Italia)"The incident in race one was so unlucky. I can't believe that such a small part can do that - it shouldn't have happened. That just put me out of serious contention for race two. I have a very sore left hip which has been X-rayed and they say nothing is broken. I am going to get further checks tomorrow as I can't believe how sore it is. Everything else feels okay at the moment, we will see."
Massimo Meregalli (Team Coordinator, Yamaha Motor Italia)"Race one was going very well until a really minor problem on Troy's bike cost him a podium position and caused him some injuries. In the same race Haga got a really good start from fifteenth to finish second. It was a very mixed result for the team.
In race two Haga was making similar progress as he had done in the first race but a different problem to Troy's forced him to retire and lose valuable points. Corser did a good job under the circumstances in race two. After his race one crash he had to have painkillers and was still in pain during the second race. He has definitely shown his determination today."
Shinichi Nakatomi (13th and 12th - Team Yamaha YZF)"In race one I got a good start, gaining a couple of positions until I nearly had a high-side on the back part of the circuit. For race two we changed the front tyre compound and it was better. I am confident the next race will be better as we are working on some modifications which are sure will help."
Martial Garcia (Team Manager, Tam Yamaha YZF)"Race one was satisfying, we are starting to bear the fruits of our hard work. We had the second top speed of the race even though we made a wrong choice for the front tyre. The bike is working well and Nakatomi's confidence is much improved. For race two we made some small modifications which helped further. Shinichi has better confidence with the frame and the engine now."
Circuit Length: 4555
Temp: 19
Weather: Sunny
Race 1 - 22 Laps - WSB - Assen:1. James Toseland - Honda - GBR 37'2.097
2. Noriyuki Haga - Yamaha - JPN 0'0.663
3. Ruben Xaus - Ducati - ESP 0'3.698
4. Troy Bayliss - Ducati - AUS 0'7.134
5. Lorenzo Lanzi - Ducati - ITA 0'9.312
6. Max Biaggi - Suzuki - ITA 0'9.534
7. Yukio Kagayama - Suzuki - JPN 0'18.286
8. Fonsi Nieto - Kawasaki - ESP 0'18.403
9. Roberto Rolfo - Honda - ITA 0'19.873
10. Max Neukirchner - Suzuki - GER 0'22.914
11. Jakub Smrz - Ducati - CZE 0'29.602
12. Michel Fabrizio - Honda - ITA 0'40.961
13. Shinichi Nakatomi - Yamaha - JPN 0'41.008
14. Dean Ellison - Ducati - GBR 1'12.714
15. Marek Svoboda - Yamaha - CZE -2 Laps
Race 2 - 22 Laps:1. Troy Bayliss - Ducati - AUS 36'54.133
2. James Toseland - Honda - GBR 0'0.009
3. Max Biaggi - Suzuki - ITA 0'7.439
4. Troy Corser - Yamaha - AUS 0'12.379
5. Roberto Rolfo - Honda - ITA 0'23.052
6. Michel Fabrizio - Honda - ITA 0'23.158
7. Max Neukirchner - Suzuki - GER 0'23.311
8. Fonsi Nieto - Kawasaki - ESP 0'24.147
9. Jakub Smrz - Ducati - CZE 0'29.660
10. Regis Laconi - Kawasaki - FRA 0'32.301
11. Yukio Kagayama - Suzuki - JPN 0'32.389
12. Shinichi Nakatomi - Yamaha - JPN 0'39.091
13. Joshua Brookes - Honda - AUS 0'39.128
14. Luca Morelli - Ducati - ITA -1 Laps
15. Marek Svoboda - Yamaha - CZE -1 Laps
Best Lap: Troy Bayliss - Ducati - AUS 1'39.906
Rider Standings:1. James Toseland - Honda - GBR 196
2. Max Biaggi - Suzuki - ITA 164
3. Noriyuki Haga - Yamaha - JPN 144
4. Troy Bayliss - Ducati - AUS 128
5. Troy Corser - Yamaha - AUS 114
6. Ruben Xaus - Ducati - ESP 99
7. Lorenzo Lanzi - Ducati - ITA 98
8. Max Neukirchner - Suzuki - GER 70
9. Roberto Rolfo - Honda - ITA 64
10. Michel Fabrizio - Honda - ITA 47
11. Fonsi Nieto - Kawasaki - ESP 46
12. Regis Laconi - Kawasaki - FRA 43
13. Yukio Kagayama - Suzuki - JPN 41
14. Jakub Smrz - Ducati - CZE 37
15. Joshua Brookes - Honda - AUS 35
16. Shinichi Nakatomi - Yamaha - JPN 19
Manufacturer Standings: 1. Honda 205
2. Ducati 173
3. Yamaha 167
4. Suzuki 164
5. Kawasaki 69
Related Linkswww.yamaha-racing.com
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