A GOOD RACE PACE AND SPOTS ON THE GRID AMONG THE TOP RIDERS MAKE THE APRILIA A KEY PLAYER IN THE RACES TOMORROW.
Misano, 21 June 2014 – It was a Superpole with record times, characterised by extremely close gaps among the strongest riders which will make the Aprilia RSV4s ridden by Melandri and Guintoli key players for the races tomorrow (decked out for the occasion in “1987” style to commemorate the first Aprilia world championship win right here on the track in Emilia Romagna).
The riders on the front two rows are all within a half second (521 thousandths) of one another. Guintoli finished with the third best time and Melandri with the fifth best. Even the private Aprilia RSV4 ridden by Elias took a solid position on the second row with sixth place.
Besides the good placement on the starting grid, the excellent race pace demonstrated by Melandri and Guintoli contribute to the Aprilia team’s ambitions. The reigning Manufacturer World Champion team put excellent times on the boards during the two days of practice, but above all they showed consistency of performance that should allow Marco and Sylvain to be among the protagonists in the races tomorrow.
Sylvain Guintoli is confident after two days during which he tested many solutions in search of consistent speed and earned a spot on the front row of the grid: “This weekend we tested a lot of different settings to find the right balance. I think in the end we were successful and I feel good on the bike even if I did make a few mistakes on my fast lap. I could have done better, but the first row is still an excellent place to start with the first turn so close and a rather twisty first section of the track. For now we have done the RSV4’s special livery justice and it is important to remember the moments that have made Aprilia what we see today on the track”.
Fresh from his double win at the last round in Sepang (Malaysia), Marco Melandri concentrated on the bike set up that allowed him to dominate the races in Asia. Marco worked from those base settings, taking the best time in the last practice session on Saturday morning and then finishing fifth in the battle for Superpole: “This was definitely a good day for me. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to finish with my best in the qualifiers, especially in the last section of the track where I struggled a bit. In any case the second row is not bad. The front runners all have a good place at the race start. I’ll need to get off to a good start and set my pace straight away. It will be important not to make mistakes tomorrow and to find the right conditions for overtaking when necessary”.
MISANO – SUPERPOLE
1. Sykes (Kawasaki) 1’34.883
2. Giugliano (Ducati) 1’35.079
3. Guintoli (Aprilia) 1’35.106
4. Baz (Kawasaki) 1’35.254
5. Melandri (Aprilia) 1’35.316
6. Elias (Aprilia) 1’35.404
7. Davies (Ducati) 1’35.602
8. Rea (Honda) 1’35.675
9. Laverty (Suzuki) 1’36.043
10. Canepa (Ducati) 1’36.404
