After a weekend of records at Valencia, thanks to the Pirelli tyres which used to improved the lap records in all the classes, Assen delivered another great performance from the Pirelli tyres.
In the SBK class the riders use a qualifing tyre and Bayliss set the new record in Superpole with the incredible time of 1’38.420, having set an even better one in final free practice, 1’38.355.
No qualifying tyres were needed for a new pre-race record from the Diablo SUPERCORSA tyre, and Broc Parkes.
In the two Stock classes DIABLO SUPERCORSA produced records, with Corti in the 1000 class (a time of 1’41.576 which could let him race in the SBK class) and Petrucci in the 600cc class.
In SBK the first row was Bayliss, Haga, Xaus and Corser.
Race1:
After Pole and a new record, Bayliss took the holeshot on his Ducati. The race pace was impressive, with Troy trying to escape from Kagayama and Neukirchner. The race ended too soon for Xaus and Haga, touching each other and then crashing.
Almost all riders went for a hard rear and front tyre and only Bayliss and Checa tried a soft front. This granted Checa a good race, recovering many places, and allowed both leading riders to have a really strong pace for all the race distance.
Bayliss took the win and the 25 points, starting to enjoy a greater gap over the other main title hopes, who still put on a good show at Assen. Second place went to Checa followed by Suzuki riders Neukirchner and Kagayama. There was a new race lap record for the Pirelli DIABLO SUPERBIKE tyres thanks to Neukirchner’s third lap, overtaking Haga’s previous record.
Air Humidity: 39%
Air Temperature: 19°C
Track Condition: Dry
Track Temperature: 23°
Race Standings:
1. Bayliss - Ducati 1098 F 08 - Ducati Xerox 36’50.907
2. Checa - Honda CBR1000 RR - Hannspree Ten Kate Honda +2.132
3. Neukirchner - Suzuki GSX-R1000 - Team Alstare Suzuki +2.179
4. Kagayama - Suzuki GSX-R1000 - Team Alstare Suzuki +10.919
5. Corser - Yamaha YZF R1 - Yamaha Motor Italia WSB +11.051
Race 2:
A great race ended an impressive weekend for SBK in general. With weather and temperature situations similar to race one, almost every rider replicated their race one tyre choices but Checa (a harder front), Smrz (a softer front), and Biaggi (a softer front) changed. At the rear everyone used race one’s hard solution.
At the green light the fastest starter was once again Troy Bayliss, followed by Xaus and Haga, who soon caught him, and started to follow closely on his tail.
Behind the two leading guys, and battling with Xaus, were Neukirchner, Kagayama and Checa - again performing a great comeback after not starting from the front row.
Bayliss and Haga raced at an impressive pace: Bayliss set his fastest lap at the 17th time of asking but most of all they went the whole race with impressive laptimes. Haga never gave an inch to Troy, who finished the 22 laps race with a last lap of 1’40.144 and won the race despite his and determined Haga’s bikes being right with each other.
Pirelli DIABLO SUPERBIKE tyres collected an impressive sequence of records again but the most impressive result was the great show put on in all the races.
On the podium, Bayliss preceded Haga and Checa, who passed Xaus on the last lap. Fifth place for Neukirchner after a race one podium cancelled out his unlucky weekend in Valencia.
The next race will be at Monza but before that there will be a press conference, organized at the Pirelli headquarters in Milan, which will be broadcast on www.pirellityre.com on Wednesday 8th May. It will feature many riders, representing all the different classes.
Air Humidity: 31%
Air Temperature: 22°C
Track Condition: Dry
Track Temperature: 31°
Race Standings:
1. Bayliss - Ducati 1098 F 08 - Ducati Xerox 36’46.238
2. Haga - Yamaha YZF R1 - Yamaha Motor Italia WSB +0.082
3. Checa - Honda CBR1000RR - Hannspree Ten Kate Honda +6.336
4. Xaus - Ducati 1098 RS 08 - Sterilgarda Go Eleven +7.575
5. Neukirchner - Suzuki GSX-R1000 - Team Alstare Suzuki +8.011
Championship Standings:
1. Bayliss - Ducati 1098 F 08 - Ducati Xerox 178
2. Checa - Honda CBR1000RR - Hannspree Ten Kate Honda 108
3. Corser - Yamaha YZF R1 - Yamaha Motor Italia WSB 89
4. Nieto - Suzuki GSX-R1000 - Alstare Suzuki 85
5. Xaus - Ducati 1098 RS 08 - Sterilgarda Go Eleven 81
6. Haga - Yamaha YZF R1 - Yamaha Motor Italia WSB 67
7. Neukirchner - Suzuki GSX-R1000 - Team Alstare Suzuki 66
8. Biaggi - Ducati 1098 RS 08 - Sterilgarda Go Eleven 54
9. Lavilla- Honda CBR1000RR - Ventaxia VK Honda 48
10. Lanzi - Ducati 1098 RS 08 - R. G. Team 42
World Supersport
The 2008 Assen race was definitely one of the most impressive ever. From the first to the last lap many overtakes were put in, with riders swapping positions and lines constantly.
The main protagonists of this show were Rea and Pitt, taking it in turn to lead the race. The only other rider able to take the lead was Lascorz, the championship leader who ended up third behind them the race. Fourth position was Foret’s, after a slow start but a great race, with many passes. At the end the battle ended with five riders in three-tenths, demonstrating how close this class really is.
Lascorz will be participating the press conference on the 8th of May, broadcast live from Pirelli headquarters on www.pirellityre.com
Air Humidity: 34%
Air Temperature: 20°C
Track Condition: Dry
Track Temperature: 27°
Race Standings:
1. Pitt - Honda CBR600 RR - Hannspree Ten Kate Honda 36’10.751
2. Rea - Honda CBR600 RR - Hannspree Ten Kate Honda +0.014
3. Lascorz - Honda CBR600 RR - Glaner Motocard.com +0.150
4. Foret - Yamaha YZF-R6 - Yamaha World SSP Racing +0.201
5. Parkes - Yamaha YZF-R6 - Yamaha World SSP Racing +0.283
Championship Standings:
1. Lascorz - Honda CBR600 RR - Glaner Motocard.com 70
2. Pitt - Honda CBR600 RR - Hannspree Ten Kate Honda 50
3. Parkes - Yamaha YZF-R6 - Yamaha World SSP Racing 49
4. Foret - Yamaha YZF-R6 - Yamaha World SSP Racing 46
5. Brookes - Honda CBR600 RR - Hannspree Stiggy Motorsport 43
6. Rea - Honda CBR600 RR - Hannspree Ten Kate Honda 41
7. Jones - Honda CBR600 RR - Parkalgar Racing Team 39
8. Harms - Honda CBR600 RR - Hannspree Stiggy Motorsport 28
9. Vizziello - Honda CBR600 RR - Berry Racing 26
10. Lagrive - Honda CBR600 RR - Intermoto Czech 20
Superstock 1000 FIM Cup
With a temperature lower than yesterday’s practice Pirelli DIABLO SUPERCORSA SC2 tyres still offered the best performance in every condition. Pirro’s fastest lap (his second) was a masterpiece to reduce the gap with Corti, who started in first position and took the lead - until the 10th lap when he crashed, after missing the racing line in the chicane.
Berger (Honda) immediately took advantage of the situation and then the lead heading up Pirro (Yamaha) and Simeon (Suzuki). Three different bikes were on the podium underlining Pirelli DIABLO SUPERCORSA SC2’s great level of adaptability on all the different machines.
The leader of the championship is now Berger and he will be representing the Superstock 1000 class in the pre-event press conference of Monza, broadcast on Thursday 8th May at noon on www.pirellityre.com.
Air Humidity: 46%
Air Temperature: 18°C
Track Condition: Dry
Track Temperature: 20°
Race Standings:
1. Berger - Honda CBR 1000RR - Hannspree IDS Ten Kate 22’24.450
2. Giugliano - Yamaha YZF R1 - Yamaha Lorenzini by Leoni +0.904
3. Simeon - Suzuki GSX-R 1000 - Alstare Suzuki Corona Exta +2.848
4. Polita - Ducati 1098R - Sterilgarda Go Eleven +4.811
5. Antonelli - Honda CBR 1000RR - Althea Racing AX 52 +5.481
Championship Standings:
1. Berger - Honda CBR 1000RR - Hannspree IDS Ten Kate 34
2. Simeon - Suzuki GSX-R 1000 - Alstare Suzuki Corona Exta 32
3. Pirro - Yamaha YZF R1 - Yamaha Team Italia 30
4. Giugliano - Suzuki GSX-R 1000 - Cruciani Moto Suzuki Italia 28
5. Polita - Ducati 1098R - Sterilgarda Go Eleven 26
Superstock 600 European Championship
Superstock 600 riders often offer a good show and tough races which have been raising the visibility of this class.
Petrucci crashed at the first corner and abandoned the race.
Four riders then started to lead the race, creating a gap between them and the followers. They were Linfoot, Vostarek, Lonbois and Beretta, who managed to end the race in this order.
One more new record was set by Pirelli - the fastest race lap by Dan Linfoot on the 6th lap, thanks to his DIABLO SUPERCORSA SC2 and his Yamaha YZF-R6.
New Championship standings are the result of a dramatic start to the season. The next appointment with the leaders will be on the www.pirellityre.com website, on Wednesday 8th May, at noon, during pre race Monza press conference at Pirelli’s headquarters in Milan.
Air Humidity: 32%
Air Temperature: 21°C
Track Condition: Dry
Track Temperature: 30°
Race Standings:
1. Linfoot - Yamaha YZF R6 - Beowulf Racing 17’40.133
2. Vostarek - Honda CBR600RR - Intermoto Czech +3.188
3. Lonbois - Suzuki GSX-R600 - MTM Racing Team +5.707
4. Beretta - Suzuki GSX-R600 - Cruciani Moto Suzuki Italia +6.454
5. Baz - Yamaha YZF R6 - Yamaha Junior Team +7.023
Championship Standings:
1. Linfoot - Yamaha YZF R6 - Beowulf Racing 41
2. Baz - Yamaha YZF R6 - Yamaha Junior Team 36
3. Beretta - Suzuki GSX-R600 - Cruciani Moto Suzuki Italia 26
4. Vostarek - Honda CBR600RR - Intermoto Czech 25
5. Petrucci - Yamaha YZF R6 - Team Trasimeno 20
