Magny Cours (France), Sunday 2 October 2011 – Carlos Checa (Althea Racing Ducati) was crowned champion at Magny-Cours by the time the first 23-lap race had been completed under glorious French sunshine, in front of 86,100 spectators. By the end of race two Ducati had also secured the Manufacturers’ title, thanks to Checa’s double win. Carlos has now won 14 races this year, including five doubles. Checa enters the final round at Portimao with 467 points while Marco Melandri (Yamaha World Superbike Team) has 360 points after scoring two second places today.
Eugene Laverty (Yamaha World Superbike Team) moved up to overall third with a total of 283 points, overhauling non-starter Max Biaggi (Aprilia Alitalia) who was ruled out of this weekend’s races because of his pre-existing foot injury. The final podium man in Magny-Cours was top BMW Motorrad Motorsport finisher Leon Haslam, who took third in race one and fourth in race two. Superpole winner Jonathan Rea (Castrol Honda) was in line to fight for a podium finish had he not had the misfortune to crash in race one and then have a technical DNF in race two.
Leon Camier (Aprilia Alitalia) was the top Aprilia finisher today, with a fourth and a sixth and top Kawasaki man was Joan Lascorz (Kawasaki Racing Team) who was eighth and then seventh, moving up to 11th overall. Michel Fabrizio (Suzuki Alstare) was only 12th and then a non-finisher in the races, having another tough weekend.
Privateer rider Sylvain Guintoli (Effenbert Liberty Racing Ducati) was in sparkling form again, with a sixth and a fifth, and Haslam’s team-mate Troy Corser had two solid ninth places.
Race 1
Checa won his first Superbike World Championship with an assured victory in the opening race. Once clear of long-time leader Laverty, Checa was unopposed and took his 13th race win and raised his points total to an unassailable 442. His only pre-race title rival Melandri was second after a late charge through to the podium. Haslam made his German based team happy with a top three finish, after his usual battling performance. Camier was a close fourth, with Laverty slowing to end up fifth.
Carlos Checa: “It’s a great moment, I want to say thank you to everyone who helped me from when I started racing until now, of course especially Genesio, Ducati and all the team. It’s a perfect moment to also win the race. I don’t know what to say, just that we need to focus for the next one. It’s a great emotion going through my mind.”
Marco Melandri: “It’s a big day for me, and I’m very happy about the race. I’m a bit disappointed about the first few laps but after that my rhythm was good and I made some nice passes, but I’d like to get some more wins before the end of the year.”
Leon Haslam: “We’ve not been on the podium too many times this year so we’ll take every opportunity. It was a good battle all the way, it always seems I’m battling with Marco and Eugene for that last podium slot. I’m just looking forward now, I’ve obviously signed up with BMW for next year so we’ll just keep progressing this year”
Results: 1. Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 38’16.465 (159,04 kph); 2. Melandri M. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R1 2.201; 3. Haslam L. (GBR) BMW S1000 RR 3.218; 4. Camier L. (GBR) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 3.796; 5. Laverty E. (IRL) Yamaha YZF R1 5.602; 6. Guintoli S. (FRA) Ducati 1098R 9.634; 7. Haga N. (JPN) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 9.814; 8. Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-10R 11.387; 9. Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 17.143; 10. Sykes T. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX-10R 24.523; etc.
Race 2
Checa took his 14th win of the season in fine style when he held off late charger Melandri. Third was long time leader Laverty who was only passed in the very late stages, in a strong and decisive move, by his team-mate Melandri. Haslam was unable to repeat his podium from race one, as he finished six seconds from the win in fourth place. Fifth place went to local man Guintoli.
Carlos Checa: “It’s a fantastic moment and now is the time to relax! Winning the title with a great weekend like this is unexpected. We felt comfortable and in the end I did what I like, race as fast as I can, and win. Now it’s time for some celebrations!”
Marco Melandri: “We tried some modifications at the front but didn’t improve like we thought. I was struggling a lot in the beginning but in the last few laps I was more comfortable on the bike and started to push. When I saw I could catch Eugene, I knew I had to pass him at the small hairpin under very hard braking, I’m sorry I was very strong with him!.”
Eugene Laverty: “I had to work hard for the podium, they were two very tough races, the first one didn’t go to plan, but in the second race it was nice to get out front, the push from the bike was good. I tried to stay with Carlos but I don’t think anyone could this year. I was close to second but Marco beat me to it. Portimao will be a decider to see if I can get third in the championship.”
Results: 1. Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 38’17.851 (158,945 kph); 2. Melandri M. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R1 1.267; 3. Laverty E. (IRL) Yamaha YZF R1 2.043; 4. Haslam L. (GBR) BMW S1000 RR 6.506; 5. Guintoli S. (FRA) Ducati 1098R 7.843; 6. Camier L. (GBR) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 8.360; 7. Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-10R 15.285; 8. Badovini A. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 15.549; 9. Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 16.278; 10. Haga N. (JPN) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 22.996; etc.
Points (after 12 of 13 rounds): 1. Checa 467 (2011 Champion); 2. Melandri 360; 3. Laverty 283; 4. Biaggi 281; 5. Haslam 216; 6. Camier 194; 7: Guintoli 179; 8. Haga 170; etc. Manufacturers: 1. Ducati 491 (2011 Champions); 2. Yamaha 415; 3. Aprilia 399; 4. BMW 261; 5. Kawasaki 209; 6. Honda 162; 7. Suzuki 162.
World Supersport
Chaz Davies (Yamaha ParkinGO) took the overall victory in the Supersport World Championship after finishing sixth, in a race won by his team-mate Luca Scassa. Sam Lowes (Parkalgar Honda) was second today with long-time leader Broc Parkes (Kawasaki Motocard.com) just holding off his rapidly advancing team-mate David Salom for third. James Ellison (Bogdanka PTR Honda) was fifth, as Davies eased to the title and a new total of 181 points with one round left to run. Fabien Foret (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) was only eighth today but remains second overall, in 144 points. Parkes is third in the points, on 136, tied with Salom.
Results: 1. Scassa L. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 37’48.052 (154,031 kph); 2. Lowes S. (GBR) Honda CBR600RR 1.582; 3. Parkes B. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1.749; 4. Salom D. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1.826; 5. Ellison J. (GBR) Honda CBR600RR 2.384; 6. Davies C. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R6 5.212; 7. Tamburini R. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 9.755; 8. Foret F. (FRA) Honda CBR600RR 11.268; etc.
Points (after 11 of 12 rounds): 1. Davies 181 (2011 Champion); 2. Foret 144; 3. Parkes 136; 4. Salom 136; 5. Lowes 129; 6. Scassa 121; 7. Ellison 83; 8. Marino 78; etc. Manufacturers: 1. Yamaha 226; 2. Honda 214; 3. Kawasaki 177; 4. Triumph 36.
Superstock 1000
In winning the race at Magny-Cours Danilo Petrucci (Barni Racing Ducati) did all he could to stop Davide Giugliano (Althea Racing Ducati) from being champion, but in finishing fifth Giugliano took the crown with one round to spare. A three way fight for second in the race between team-mates Lorenzo Zanetti and Sylvain Barrier (BMW Motorrad Italia Superstock), plus Niccolò Canepa (Lazio MotorSport) ended up in that order.
Results: 1. Petrucci D. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 23’48.111 (155,67 kph); 2. Zanetti L. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 2.734; 3. Barrier S. (FRA) BMW S1000 RR 2.801; 4. Canepa N. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 2.997; 5. Giugliano D. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 11.455; 6. Massei F. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 11.817; 7. Antonelli A. (ITA) Honda CBR1000RR 11.956; 8. Morais S. (RSA) Kawasaki ZX-10R 14.026; etc.
Points (after 9 of 10 rounds): 1. Giugliano 171 (2011 Champion); 2. Petrucci 144; 3. Zanetti 137; 4. Barrier 112; 5. Canepa 109; 6. Baroni 70; 7. Antonelli 67; 8. Reiterberger 64; etc. Manufacturers: 1. Ducati 215 (2011 Champions); 2. BMW 173; 3. Kawasaki 83; 4. Honda 75; 5. Yamaha 16.
Alfa Romeo France launch special Superbike-inspired MiTo
Alfa Romeo, top sponsor of the FIM Superbike World Championship for the sixth successive year, presented an Alfa Romeo MiTo Quadrifoglio Verde Limited Edition available only in 150 units, at the Magny-Cours Round. The car, the first ever to be dedicated to World Superbike, was on display in the Paddock during the entire race weekend and Alfa Romeo created an event on Sunday morning when the Alfa Romeo MiTo SBK Limited Edition did a demonstration race against a sports bike ridden by Kenny Foray.
Pirelli Official Tyre Supplier
“I would like to first congratulate the 2011 Superbike World Champion Carlos Checa, who this year has proven to demonstrate a great performance and consistency, as well as Davide Giugliano who in Magny-Cours earned his first world title in the Superstock 1000, and also to the Althea Racing team who supported these two world champions. My compliments also to Chaz Davies, another first time World Champion in the Supersport class on his ParkinGo Yamaha. Throughout the weekend the French circuit enjoyed a nice treat in the form of favorable weather conditions which in the past was commonly battered by days of rain and cold. The track temperature fluctuated between 32° and 42°C from Race 1 to Race 2. For this important event at Magny-Cours, as always, Pirelli made available several solutions for riders to choose from, making up a total of 4658 tyres. The Supersport class saw 3 solutions for the front and 3 for the rear, while in SBK we prepared a total of 4 front solutions and 4 rear. In the Supersport nearly all riders opted for the new Supersoft (SC0) rear matched with the new soft (SC1) front which uses Pirelli’s PTSM process. Virtually all Superbike riders preferred the new C solution (new SC1 development) that exploits the aforementioned PTSM compounding, and on the rear a similar C solution which should become the new SC2 production for 2012. It was truly a weekend full of emotions!” – Giorgio Barbier, Racing Director, Pirelli Motorcycle
Pirelli BEST LAP Awards:
SBK Race 1 – Carlos Checa (Althea Racing), 1’38.643 (Lap 4)
SBK Race 2 – Carlos Checa (Althea Racing), 1’39.136 (Lap 2)
Total BEST LAP (SBK): Checa C. (Althea Racing): 10, Biaggi M. (Aprilia Alitalia Racing): 5, Melandri M. (Yamaha World Superbike): 3, Haga N. (PATA Racing Team Aprilia): 3, Sykes T. (Kawasaki Racing Team Superbike): 1, Camier L. (Aprilia Alitalia Racing): 1, Fabrizio M. (Team Suzuki Alstare): 1
WSS – Roccoli M. (Lorenzini by Leoni), 1’42.507 (Lap 3)
Total BEST LAP (WSS): Foret F. (HANNspree Ten Kate Honda): 3, Lowes S. (Parkalgar Honda): 2, Scassa L. (Yamaha ParkinGO Team): 1, Davies C. (Yamaha ParkinGO Team): 1, Rea G. (Step Racing Team): 1, Harms R. (Harms Benjan Racing Team): 1, Ellison J. (Bogdanka PTR Honda): 1, Roccoli M. (Lorenzini by Leoni): 1
Stk1000 – Lorenzo Zanetti (BMW Motorrad Italia Superstock), 1’41.447 (Lap 3)
Stk600 – Joshua Day (Revolution Racedays Kawasaki), 1’44.870 (Lap 7)
