After a disastrous weekend at Monza, Troy Corser is now looking forward to getting back to his winning ways at Donington Park in England. The East Midlands track is fast, flowing and universally liked by all the WSBK regulars and always seems to provide good racing. 

After Monza, Troy should've rested his right shoulder ­ injured when he crashed in the first race - but instead he took part in two days of extensive testing at Misano. He put in a huge number of laps trying out different set-ups and tyres. Part of this test was in preparation for the race at Misano in June and part was to keep on improving the 2001 Aprilia RSV1000.

Corser - "Monza was a big, big disappointment. Poor finishes are one thing, but no points is even worse and I cannot afford to have another weekend like that. I don't know whose fault the crash was in the first race. I think Frankie got in a bit too hot and long and I had nowhere to go - though I guess he might see it differently. Unfortunately my bike was too badly damaged to continue or otherwise I would have tried to get it started and carry on. In the second race, I had a bad tyre problem and had to pull in. At Donington last year, we were still learning about the bike and the tyres and it wasn't a very good race for us - but this year will be different. We've got heaps more experience with the Aprilia and our whole set-up is so much better. I like the track and I think the Aprilia will go very well there. Donington is a chance to get back on the winning trail and that's
what I'll be going for."

Castrol Honda's Colin Edwards and Tady Okada are confident of winning in Sunday's sixth round of the World Superbike championship at Donington Park, GB.

The 1000cc VTR-mounted pair arrive at Donington needing victories to improve their championship chances. Reigning champion Edwards is third in the series, 30 points off the lead but believes two wins at Donington on Sunday is a realistic ambition.

"I really need those two wins and the 50 points that go with them and I want to win on Sunday as much as I've ever wanted to win," says Edwards, a race winner at Donington in each of the last two years.

Okada is 13th in the championship after a disappointing start to a debut season in World Superbike for the Japanese rider. "I'm racing at quite a few new circuits this year but Donington Park isn't one and I'm pleased to be going there again," Okada explains. "I've had a lot of good races there in the past and I'd love to continue that trend with at least a couple of podium finishes on Sunday."

For Troy Bayliss this weekends marks a return to the country for which he has many great racing memories, having won the national title there in 1999. He’ll still be on a "high" from scoring the double in Monza just two weeks ago but will be looking to stretch his championship lead a little further.

"I have never won a race at Donington, but I set pole and won the British SBK title here so now it’s time to put the record straight,” said the championship leader. “Donington is a really ‘physical’ track but that won’t be a problem for me because I’m really fit. Most of the top guys are fit anyway but some of the riders out there get tired quickly and slacken off a bit. In the past the Michelin tyres have had some good races at Donington and I’m sure it’s going to be a successful weekend. The Ducatis always go well at Donington and I can’t wait to race there”.

His team mate, Ruben Xaus will be an interesting package around this highly technical circuit and, with the wealth of knowledge that his mentor, Carl Fogarty, will have available for him, he’ll have little excuse not to perform.  

"I hope to continue my Monza form”, said Xaus. “Although I made an error, I feel much better now that we are in Europe and the feeling with my 996R Factory is improving all the time. Donington is a ‘technical’ track and you have to keep an eye on the British ‘wild-card’ riders. I hope to go well here on Sunday and continue to progress in my first year of SuperBikes”.

After a week’s rest and treatment, Ben Bostrom (Ducati L&M) will be getting back onto his 996R Factory bike for the first time since his crash in the first Monza race. The 27-year-old Californian rider missed race 2 with a dislocated shoulder and a severely swollen knee after losing his bike under braking for the Parabolica but is eager to make up for lost time at Donington. 

“I was really looking forward to racing at Donington”, said Bostrom, “but I could have done with another couple of weeks recovery time after my crash. Once I’m on the bike tomorrow however, there shouldn’t be any problems and we’ll see how this weekend goes. The Donington track is really cool, last year I finished 14th and 7th so if we continue at this rate, I’ll probably win a race on Sunday!”, he joked.

Pierfrancesco Chili - "After Monza, I am really pleased with the progress we have made with the bike and I am glad I was finally able to show how fast the bike can go. I am really looking forward to the next round at Donington since I got two podiums last year and I will definitely be aiming to do the same this year."

Stephane Chambon - "My sixth position at Monza was my best result so far this season. Each time I ride the 2001 Suzuki GSX-R750, I become more confident and learn more about the bike. We are making steady progress, but I want more progress, quicker ­ like all racers! Last year, I won at Donington, on a Supersport bike, and this year I will be looking to finish as high as possible - hopefully on the podium."

GSE Racing's Neil Hodgson and James Toseland are all fired-up for this weekend's round of the Superbike World Championship (WSB) at Donington Park in the UK.

After a series of mixed results reigning British Superbike Champion, Hodgson will be hoping to kick-start his season in front of an expected crowd of more than 70,000 and boost himself further up the championship points tally.

Hodgson enjoyed two major successes at Donington Park in 2000. As a wildcard rider, he finished third and first to claim overall victory at the WSB event. He then wrapped up the British Superbike Championship at the final round after a sensational, season-long dual with Chris Walker.

"It's inevitable that memories of last year will return," said the 27-year-old from Burnley. "Winning the World Superbike race here was the best weekend of my life and I'm really looking forward to going back.  All through my career, I've always achieved the improbable at Donington and like last year's race, I haven't done anything special in preparation for this weekend. However, I know that I'm riding well, so I will be going with the same approach in the hope that it will be a turning point in my season.

"There are various reasons why I've not secured a podium finish this year," said Hodgson, who is eighth in the championship. "The plan for me this weekend is to be in the top five in every session and not to waste any laps. As always I'll be giving it everything. I'm aiming for a podium finish and my intention is to keep climbing the championship ladder. 

"I'm not feeling any more pressure than I did last year, and I know that I can handle it. Let's just hope that I can rise to the occasion and not let anyone down. There's no doubt that the adrenalin will be flowing and the fans will be cheering us on."

The new recruit with GSE Racing, the ever-improving James Toseland is excited about racing on familiar territory. 

"I'm really looking forward to Donington," said the 20-year-old World Superbike rookie. "I like the circuit and now that I've got a good feel for the GSE Racing Ducati, I'll be able to have a real go this weekend."  Click here to take a hot lap of Donington with Neil Hodgson.

As usual, there will be a strong contingent of good local 'wild card' riders trying to put one over the regulars.  This year we have John Reynolds, Steve Hislop, Sean Emmett, Michael Rutter, and Paul Brown trying to upset the World SuperBike regulars.

World Superbike practice gets under way at 10.45am on Friday with the opening qualifying session the same day, at 2.45pm, for one hour. After Saturday morning's qualifying session, SuperPole at 4.00pm, decides the starting grid for Sunday's two races, which start at 12noon and 3.30pm.

World Superbike championship points after five of 13 rounds: 
1 Troy Bayliss, Australia (Ducati) 150, 
2 Troy Corser, Australia (Aprilia) 122, 
3 Colin Edwards, USA (Castrol Honda) 120, 
4 Akira Yanagawa, Japan (Kawasaki) 79, 
5 Ben Bostrom, USA (Ducati) 74,
6 Pier-Francesco Chili, Italy (Suzuki) 74, 
7 Gregorio Lavilla, Spain (Kawasaki) 68, 
8 Neil Hodgson, GB (Ducati) 58.

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Last year at Donington - Race 1 - Race 2