After taking part in a successful official FGSport test at Vallelunga in July both Troy Corser (Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team) and Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team) will see nothing but opportunities at the final Italian round on the 2008 World Superbike calendar.
Corser, who moved into second place in the championship standings after the previous round at Donington Park, will be out to make up ground on long-term championship leader Troy Bayliss, with three rounds left to run.
Haga secured a podium finish of third for Yamaha in the second race at Vallelunga in the 2007 season and he goes for his fifth race win of 2008 this weekend. Corser finished that same 2007 Vallelunga race immediately behind Haga, and with the improvements made on the YZF-R1 racebike since that competition last year, much is expected from the Yamaha duo this weekend.
The Vallelunga test in July this year was the site of the first public test of Öhlins' variable electronic suspension, which was tried again during the largely wet Donington rounds. The team intends to use this technology once more this weekend, and through to the end of the season.
Vallelunga was only adopted into the World Superbike calendar in 2007 and the experiences learned in that meeting demonstrated that there was not enough paddock space available for all the support classes, and therefore the 2008 Vallelunga weekend will only feature the World Superbike and World Supersport classes.
The team will also be using some new engine parts at this race, developed to keep the competitiveness going right to the end of what has already been a classic year of racing, one which has delivered Corser nine podiums so far, and Haga seven.
Corser is keen to get back into action at Vallelunga and he is raring to have another two tries at scoring his first WSB race win for Yamaha.
Corser:
"We tested at this track earlier in the year; mostly evaluating our electronics package and some development tyres. The track's layout is pretty good. I don't think they have changed it from last year, when we had a fair result. The weather may be changeable for us this weekend, even though we expected earlier it would be good, but either way our bike is working well in wet or dry conditions. In terms of set-up, we will probably start the weekend from where we ended testing, before we try anything different. My body is OK after my Donington falls, and the physiotherapy I have had has worked well, so I'm ready to race."
Haga:
"I go into the Vallelunga race ready to score more points. Donington didn't turn out well, but I am determined to make a good raceday this weekend. We have tested at Vallelunga already this year, so that will help us to find good settings for the track."
Shinichi Nakatomi (Yamaha Team YZF) scored points in the dry race at Donington, and this weekend he will be looking for some dry weather to meet the Vallelunga challenge. He is 21st overall, on 32 points.
David Checa (Yamaha GMT94) is currently 26th, after scoring well with an 11th place finish in race one at Donington. Sebastien Gimbert (Yamaha GMT94) is now two places behind Checa, but ready to take some more points if the opportunity arises.
Massimo Meregalli (Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team Manager):
"We will start the race weekend in Vallelunga the same way as we finished the test there in July, because we were happy with that test. We will use the electronic suspension again, because we have had good results with it. We will also bring some small changes in terms of engine parts. Nothing too radical, but still a small step forward. I think we can look forward to going to Vallelunga with good expectations of success, particularly after the strong test results and our usual high level of motivation to succeed. We know our bike can work well around Vallelunga, and at any other circuit."
Parkes prepared for championship run-in
Broc Parkes (Yamaha World Supersport Team) has a clear goal to get back into championship contention at the forthcoming Vallelunga race, with three rounds remaining in the overall series.
The Australian rider is well placed to make his mark again after a strong testing performance at this venue close to Rome earlier in the summer, proving that he and his YZF-R6 can be a potent force at yet another circuit in 2008. So far Parkes has one win and two further podium finishes to his credit, as he sits fourth overall in the pre-Vallelunga standings.
Last year Parkes was fourth in the corresponding event, on the previous version of the R6, but this year he will be aiming for nothing less than a podium finish, and ideally the win at the 4.110km circuit.
Eugene Laverty will once more be with Parkes as he replaces injured regular rider, Fabien Foret. It will be his second race for the team in 2008 and the Ulsterman was 12th at the previous Donington event.
Massimo Roccoli (Yamaha Team Italia Lorenzini by Leoni) is looking forward to another home round with understandable relish. Last year he was unable to finish the race and having missed the Vallelunga test this year, he will be looking to find a strong set-up early to keep up his charge for an overall top ten finish.
Parkes is fully ready for his Roman weekend after some poor luck in recent weekends, and ultimately wants to win his second race of the year.
"I am looking forward to Vallelunga because we had such a good test there in July. We were very close to setting the best time, but the main thing was that we found a good race set-up on the second day. The last round at Donington didn't go the way we wanted, so we will be out to get ourselves back into the top end of the championship again. I really want to get a good result. The Vallelunga track layout is a little bit tough but it is also a bit of a rider's track. When everything is working well anything can happen there."
Laverty:
"I have never ridden at Vallelunga but the team has been there for a two-day test so they have some information for the bike. That means I should be able to just jump on and concentrate on learning the track by myself. It seems to be a bit more like a typical British track and the first section, the fastest part, looks really interesting."
Wilco Zeelenberg (the Yamaha World Supersport Team Manager):
"Our test there was very positive and it should allow us to start race weekend in a good way. Then we need to carry on the good work right through to raceday. We struggled at the last race at Donington but Broc was really fast here in the tests. We checked out the Donington data and all the equipment seems to be fine but I think we suffered from a lack of dry track time for Broc and our bike. Our bike was backing-in a bit under braking last time out, but I see no problems like that for Vallelunga because we were very fast and consistent in testing. Gearing is critical at the fast parts of the Vallelunga circuit, we made good progress with fast cornering during the tests. Eugene is back with us again and he did well at Donington. He rode with his head as he got used to the bike in dry conditions and showed he can be fast."
