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World SuperSport 2001 - Round 10 - Assen - Quotes

Paolo Casoli - 1st - "Mission accomplished for me. Before the start of the race I knew all I had to do was control where Pitt was and after the first race I was about 1.7 seconds ahead of him. From then on I rode to stay ahead of him, knowing that it was not really necessary to win. But at half distance I realised that my tyres were in good condition, so I attacked again and won the race. It's obviously very good to go into the final round with a better lead than I came here with."

Andrew Pitt - 2nd - "I felt comfortable in the first part of the race before the rain came so I was disappointed it had to be stopped. After the re-start we were looking good again, until near the end when the wet weather came back. When (Jamie) Whitham got past me on the last lap I tried to get him back, but I almost came off doing it. I thought I'd finished third when I went over the line, but when I got back to the pits they told me I was second so that was a bonus. The last lap was really hard. It's difficult when you're going so hard in the dry and then you have to switch your brain off and slow down such a big amount because of the conditions. It was slippery, but at least I made it home. We lost some points on (Paola) Casoli today, but we're still in with a shot at the championship. I think Imola should be good for the Kawasaki. We've had a good test there. I've had a consistent season and I've been on the podium a few times, but I want to win one of these races. That's what we're looking for at Imola."

James Whitham - 3rd - "I really didn't know I was challenging for the podium places in the second part of the race. I thought in my mind that I would be fifth or something, even after I tried hard and passed Pitt at the final chicane, but I've not a very big mind! I'd like to say that I had the situation well under control but I can't! I'm really happy to be on the podium for the team and the fans from Britain who come here every year. I've been coming to Assen for 16 years and I love this place so it's always fun to race here."

Jörg Teuchert - 4th - "I did everything I could to stay in contention for the championship win but it was just not possible. It would maybe have been better for me not to have the race stopped because I was only three seconds behind Casoli and closing on him, despite my injured finger. I did my best but just like last year the problem was not really here but the previous race in Oschersleben, when I was taken out. Now it will take an even bigger miracle than last year to let me retain my title."

Christian Kellner - 11th - "For me that was no good. After the race was stopped I got into a fight with Iain Macpherson and because of that I could not break away to get with the leading group. It has not been my best season this year but I want to go to Imola with confidence that I can do well."

Vermeulen - 16th - "I went hard at it from the start and that probably gained me those places but once I was out on my own it was difficult to get the fast laps in. I was chasing a group in front but there was little I could do to catch them. I changed to my spare machine after the original race was stopped, my best machine didn't quite feel right so I took a gamble on the other machine. It was OK but I just didn't have the confidence to push that little bit harder."

Muggeridge - DNF - "I’m very disappointed, but there was nothing I could do to get out of that situation. I had a really good start and the first two laps looked very promising and they bike felt good and fast. I guess all we can do is to forget that weekend and look ahead to the last round which hopefully brings us a bit more luck."

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