Assen (Netherlands), Saturday 16 April 2011 – Carlos Checa (Althea Racing) secured his third pole in three race meetings with a fabulous 1 minute 35.292 second lap in the final Superpole session, leading home Jakub Smrz (Effenbert – Liberty Racing Ducati) and Eugene Laverty (Yamaha World Superbike Team).
Checa had been only ninth in combined qualifying, even through the times were tight through the field, but left his best for last again and took pole by 0.268 seconds from Smrz. The final place on the front row for Sunday’s races was taken by Noriyuki Haga (Pata Racing Team Aprilia) meaning that three privateer riders earned places on row 1.
Carlos Checa: “We were struggling a little in Superpole 1 because we used a race tyre. We expected to be inside but it was crazy with a few riders in a few tenths of a second and you can be in or out just like that. Then we worked well with the qualifying tyre, in session 2 and especially the last one where I did a really good lap without any mistakes. It’s a great satisfaction for me but honestly it was quite hard!”
Jakub Smrz: “I wanted the pole today but I had some trouble with the tyres. The bike was good, but Carlos was very fast today. It’s good to be on the front two, the team and everyone did good work. I learnt that I was only 12th after Superpole 1 because I didn’t see the lap times, so I was lucky in the first one. Then I started pushing in the second session, but here it’s always very close and it’s never easy.”
Eugene Laverty: “It was an eventful session, we used the qualifiers up during the Superpole so in the end I had to use a softer race tyre, I surprised myself with the lap time when I saw it on the dash. That was great! I knew it was going to be enough for the front row, but it was tough. I could do times like that for a couple of laps but we’ve got some work to do for the races to make the bike more stable.”
Last year’s double winner Jonathan Rea (Castrol Honda) went fifth fastest, and world champion Max Biaggi (Aprilia Alitalia) was sixth. Top Kawasaki rider was Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team Superbike) but Marco Melandri (Yamaha World Superbike Team) lost his chance of pole by crashing in the final minutes and he now starts the races from the back of row two.
Leon Camier (Aprilia Alitalia) and Troy Corser (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) just missed out on the final period of Superpole qualifying but made it into the top ten. Joan Lascorz (Kawasaki Racing Team) went 11th after an incredibly close second Superpole session, but Leon Haslam (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) could not make the most of his qualifying tyres and went from a Superpole contender to 12th.
Competition has been so close at Assen that the top 15 riders were within one second after combined qualifying, and all 21 riders were grouped within 1.759 seconds pre-Superpole.
Times: 1. Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 1’35.292; 2. Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R 1’35.560; 3. Laverty E. (IRL) Yamaha YZF R1 1’35.580; 4. Haga N. (JPN) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1’35.920; 5. Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 1’36.138; 6. Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1’36.302; 7. Sykes T. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1’36.351; 8. Melandri M. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R1 1’37.036; 9. Camier L. (GBR) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1’35.903; 10 Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR; 1’35.954; 11. Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1’35.983; 12. Haslam L. (GBR) BMW S1000 RR 1’36.089; 13. Fabrizio M. (ITA) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1’36.148; 14. Xaus R. (ESP) Honda CBR1000RR 1’36.260; 15. Guintoli S. (FRA) Ducati 1098R 1’36.361; 16. Badovini A. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 1’36.920; etc.
World Supersport
Championship leader Luca Scassa (Yamaha ParkinGO Team) set the pole time in the Supersport class with a 1 minute 38.008s lap, his second such pre-race performance this year. Close behind was Sam Lowes (Parkalgar Honda) with the rest of the top riders a little way back and led by Broc Parkes (Kawasaki Motocard.com). The last rider on the front row was Fabien Foret (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda).
New young star in this class and Foret’s team-mate Florian Marino, was fifth in the grid rankings and Chaz Davies was sixth for the Yamaha ParkinGO team. Spanish competitor David Salom (Kawasaki Motocard.com) and Italian Roberto Tamburini (Bike Service RT Yamaha) closed out the second row, with 30 riders qualifying in total. Seasoned privateers Robbin Harms (Harms Benjan Racing) and Massimo Roccoli (Lorenzini by Leoni) rounded out the top ten.
Times: 1. Scassa L. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 1’38.008; 2. Lowes S. (GBR) Honda CBR600RR 1’38.289; 3. Parkes B. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1’38.647; 4. Foret F. (FRA) Honda CBR600RR 1’38.870; 5. Marino F. (FRA) Honda CBR600RR 1’38.945; 6. Davies C. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R6 1’39.007; 7. Salom D. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1’39.191; 8. Tamburini R. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 1’39.483; etc.
Superstock 1000
Sylvain Barrier (BMW Motorrad Italia STK) pushed his way to the front of the qualifying pack at Assen, ahead of three Italian riders. David Giugliano (Althea Racing), Danilo Petrucci (Barni Racing Team) and Luca Baroni (Althea Racing), all on Ducati 1098Rs, filled the final front row places for Sunday’s race, with local man Roy Ten Napel (Domburg Racing Honda) the top Fireblade rider. Next up was Andrea Antonelli (Team Lorini Honda) with the best Kawasaki rider so far proving to be South African favourite, Sheridan Morais (Lorenzini by Leoni). Morais was the last rider to qualify within a second of pole.
Times: 1. Barrier S. (FRA) BMW S1000 RR 1’39.208; 2. Giugliano D. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1’39.338; 3. Petrucci D. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1’39.470; 4. Baroni L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1’39.733; 5. Ten Napel R. (NED) Honda CBR1000RR 1’39.811; 6. Antonelli A. (ITA) Honda CBR1000RR 1’39.943; 7. Morais S. (RSA) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1’40.021; 8. Zanetti L. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 1’40.208; etc.
Superstock 600 – Race
The first Superstock 600 race of the season was a thrilling three-rider fight all the way, with Michael van der Mark (Ten Kate Junior Honda) holding off a last chicane charge from Romain Lanusse (MRS Yamaha Racing France) and a race-long challenge from Aussie Jed Metcher (MTM-RT Motorsports Yamaha). After 12-laps of intense competition the local 18-year-old rider enjoyed a margin of victory of 0.540 seconds from Lanusse, with Metcher almost snatching second place as an audacious move by Lanusse on van der Mark saw the Frenchman have to run wide and fight hard to keep second place.
Results: 1. Vd Mark M. (NED) Honda CBR600RR 20’23.765; 2. Lanusse R. (FRA) Yamaha YZF R6 0.540; 3. Metcher J. (AUS) Yamaha YZF R6 0.590; 4. Lombardi D. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 8.960; 5. Cocco F. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 10.854; 6. Calero Perez N. (ESP) Yamaha YZF R6 16.024; 7. Russo R. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 16.315; 8. Duwelz G. (BEL) Yamaha YZF R6 16.322; etc.
European Junior Cup
The new European Junior Cup for youngsters on Kawasaki Ninja 250 machines also produced its first pole sitter today, Australian Matt Davies getting the top slot ahead of Germany’s Tom Busch and Spain’s Ruben Fenoll.
