The Yamaha World Supersport Team took first and second in an exciting two-part race today at Misano with Anthony West taking the win and Broc Parkes finishing second. This is the first time since Brands Hatch last season that the both riders in the team have stepped on the podium together. The pair started the race on the front row with Parkes in pole and West in second. Unfortunately Broc got a bad start and went back to fifth while Anthony leapt into the lead and wasted no time setting the fastest lap. Parkes had climbed up to second place and was chasing West when the race was red flagged doe to oil on the circuit.
The race was re-started, with times being calculated on aggregate, and West and Sofuoglu fought for the led from the off. The pack of riders behind, which included Parkes, were in a close battle of their own, allowing West and Sofuoglu to get some distance ahead. But by lap 12 Parkes had broken through to third and set about catching the leaders. It was only two laps later when Parkes made his move on Sofuoglu but was re-taken when he dropped back suddenly on lap 20. This was caused by him hitting the pit lane limiter as he swerved the bike while removing a visor tear-off.
Meanwhile West had put in a textbook performance and lead the race from lap 14 to take his second win for the Yamaha World Supersport Team. Parkes took second by 0.143 seconds from Sofuoglu after recovering from his tear-off incident.
Massimo Roccoli got a good start in the second heat of the race to go from tenth to fifth where he was contending with Parkes for position. He put in a strong performance to finish fourth.
Anthony West (1st - Yamaha World Supersport Team)"It's great to win another race and I'm even happier to win it in the dry because I now feel that I have really proven myself and that people won't necessarily say I only won at Silverstone because of the weather. I was very nervous on the front row but I just focused on watching the gaps open up in front of me. I wasn't sure what to expect in the second half but I saw riders in front making mistakes which gave me confidence and kept me focused. I'd like to thank the Yamaha team for all their hard work and I'm pleased to win for them as much as for me."
Broc Parkes (2nd - Yamaha World Supersport Team"I got a really bad start in the second heat but I just put my head down and worked my way through the pack. It still took me a while to catch Anthony once I'd passed everyone else; I had three seconds to make up and that's not easy to do in a race. Then I ripped off a tear-off and hit the pit lane limiter, which lost me over a second and let Sofuoglu passed. I knew I had to be within half a second at the finish line to beat him overall but we were both riding completely on the limit for the last bit of that race! I've crashed three times now while in second place so, despite the fact that I wanted to catch Anthony, I decided that points are more valuable than to risk another crash at this stage in the championship. I'm just so happy to step on the podium again! Thanks to the team for their efforts and support this weekend, it has all come together nicely."
Massimo Roccoli (4th - Yamaha Team Italia)"I'm disappointed about the first half of the race as there was an eight second gap between me and the riders in front. I was not happy about starting on the third row either but I got a good start in the second half and was in the front group. It is very important to me to have had a good result here. It might be my home track but I don't know it well at all. I want to thank the team for all their efforts this weekend."
Circuit Length: 4060
Temp: 25
Crowd: 68,000
Weather: Sunny
Race 1 - 22 Laps - WSS Misano:1. Anthony West - Yamaha - AUS 36'47.866
2. Broc Parkes - Yamaha - AUS 0'4.197
3. Kenan Sofuoglu - Honda - TUR 0'4.340
4. Massimo Roccoli - Yamaha - ITA 0'15.123
5. Robbin Harms - Honda - DNK 0'18.429
6. Simone Sanna - Honda - ITA 0'18.741
7. Javier Fores - Honda - ESP 0'18.915
8. Katsuaki Fujiwara - Honda - JPN 0'25.082
9. Gianluca Vizziello - Yamaha - ITA 0'30.240
10. Sebastien Charpentier - Honda - FRA 0'31.633
11. Yoann Tiberio - Honda - FRA 0'32.743
12. Matthieu Lagrive - Honda - FRA 0'33.093
13. Barry Veneman - Suzuki - NED 0'33.592
14. Sebastien Gimbert - Yamaha - FRA 0'35.678
15. Gilles Boccolini - Kawasaki - ITA 0'37.193
Best Lap: Anthony West - Yamaha - AUS 1'39.109
Rider Standings:1. Kenan Sofuoglu - Honda - TUR 161
2. Fabien Foret - Kawasaki - FRA 100
3. Katsuaki Fujiwara - Honda - JPN 77
4. Robbin Harms - Honda - DNK 70
5. Anthony West - Yamaha - AUS 66
6. Barry Veneman - Suzuki - NED 50
7. Broc Parkes - Yamaha - AUS 47
8. Massimo Roccoli - Yamaha - ITA 46
9. Gianluca Nannelli - Ducati - ITA 43
10. Andrew Pitt - Honda - AUS 40
11. David Salom - Yamaha - ESP 34
12. Lorenzo Alfonsi - Honda - ITA 34
13. Simone Sanna - Honda - ITA 30
14. Pere Riba - Kawasaki - ESP 30
15. Sebastien Charpentier - Honda - FRA 29
19. Kevin Curtain - Yamaha - AUS 25
23. David Checa - Yamaha - ESP 20
24. Sebastien Gimbert - Yamaha - FRA 15
Manufacturer Standings:1. Honda 181
2. Yamaha 132
3. Kawasaki 111
4. Suzuki 57
5. Ducati 43
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