FG Sport

Fully wet track conditions for the first of two regulation qualifying sessions at Misano Adriatico provided a level, if somewhat slippery, playing field for the 28 World Superbike riders in attendance.

The culmination of their Friday rain dances saw a familiar name at the top of the time sheets, that of Regis Laconi (Ducati Fila 999 F04), a man who has almost made qualifying his own this year.

His first day best of 1:51.160 was fully 0.349 seconds better than his closest challenger, and was just one of many quick laps put in by a rider clearly on a mission at his team’s first home event of the year.

The wet conditions allowed those teams without the biggest power outputs a perfect opportunity to show what a good rider and chassis combination can provide, and the Petronas pairing of Chris Walker (Foggy Petronas FP-1) and Troy Corser (Foggy Petronas FP-1) launched themselves through the spray to second and third fastest times respectively.

After an impressive showing in Valencia, where Walker secured a podium finish, the Petronas team has become a force when conditions permit, with the high profile machine reaping more measurable rewards.

Only in its third meeting the Honda Fireblade of Chris Vermeulen (Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR) was an excellent fourth fastest in the wet, making it a twin, two triples and a four-cylinder in the top four positions.

Pierfrancesco Chili (PSG-1 Ducati) used his 998RS machine in the first session of the day, and eventually set the fifth fastest time, using his exact style and smoothness to make the top five in such challenging conditions.

Fast in wet or dry, Steve Martin (DFX Sterilgarda Ducati 99RS) was next in the listings, with Leon Haslam (Renegade Ducati 999RS) using his considerable experience – considering his youthful age – to run out seventh, just under two seconds slower than the charging Laconi.

Piergiorgio Bontempi (Zongshen Suzuki) had his best day of the season and went a deserved eighth fastest for the SBK rookie team.

Championship leader James Toseland (Ducati Fila 999F04) was disappointed to finish 13th on the first day, with Phillip Island race two winner Garry McCoy (Xerox NCR Ducati 999RS) 14th.

Noriyuki Haga (Renegade Ducati 999 RS), the winner of race two at the opening round in Valencia was in even worse trouble, finishing his first day 18th.

In the World Supersport Championship, a late lap in fully soaking conditions gave Katsuaki Fujiwara (Alstare Suzuki) the provisional pole position, from the Ten Kate Honda duo of Broc Parkes and Karl Muggeridge. The conditions for the Supersport riders got progressively wetter as time went on, but in a peculiar twist of events the best of them went faster than ever before.

Phillip Island runner-up Kevin Curtain (Yamaha Motor Germany) took fourth place on the stopwatch, with 1999 Champion Stephane Chambon fifth, ahead of local Honda rider and WSS regular Alessio Corradi.
Privateer Ducati rider Giovanni Bussei displaced factory pilot Lorenzo Lanzi by one position, with Bussei seventh.

World Championship leader Jurgen van den Goorbergh (Yamaha Italia) was a lowly 12th, 2003 race winner Fabien Foret (Yamaha Italia) in 21st fastest.

Final qualifying continues on Saturday 17th, with the risk of more inclement weather still hanging in the air.

Ten Kate Superbike

Unseasonably cold and wet conditions on the Adriatic coast of Italy continued into the afternoon's first Superbike qualifying session, as the impressive challenge of the Ten Kate Honda Superbike team took its latest steps in development. Already proven to be competitive in dry conditions, the Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR and Chris Vermeulen combination made another strong mark in the sand with their overall fourth fastest performance, with both machines being pressed into service at some stage.

Vermeulen's time of 1:52.010 was the best of his 19 laps, with the fastest lap of the session coming from Regis Laconi (Ducati) - a 1:51.160.

"That was all right considering the conditions," said Vermeulen. "The Superbike is a little bit different to ride in the wet than the Supersport bike, because it spins the rear wheel even in a straight line. The best thing is that the tyres aren't that much different from the ones I used in the wet in Supersport. If the conditions are the same tomorrow then we only need to make some small steps in set-up because we made so many bigger ones today."

Team Manager Ronald Ten Kate stated, "We need to learn as much as possible about the bike in the rain, because this is the first time we have had to go fast in the full wet. Towards the end we had quite a good setting, with Chris feeling happy to go fast on the bike. It's different to the Supersport machine in that it has more power and it makes for a different approach to the set-up."

Superpole takes place on Saturday afternoon, in its traditional time-slot of 16.00hrs, after the final regulation timed qualifying session in the morning.

Ten Kate Supersport

A wet first qualifying session on the Adriatic circuit of Misano delivered two top flight performances from the Ten Kate Honda pairing of Broc Parkes (Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR) and Karl Muggeridge (Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR). Muggeridge was on provisional pole for the majority of the session, but a late charge from Parkes, and an eventual fastest lap from Suzuki's Katsuaki Fujiwara, put him third fastest.

The weather was the main talking point of the first session, starting out wet and with increasing rainfall, getting theoretically more difficult as time went on. The track conditions, as the late improvements in lap time proved, maintained its grip qualities, much to the surprise of most.

Said Parkes, with a time of 1:51.253s, "We lost a bit of time in the early part of the session, as we made gradual improvements to the set-up. It got a lot better and we were able to make improvements at the end. I'm happy with that."

For Muggeridge, the day was a success, even if he didn't have everything his own way with his time of 1:51.266s. "Things went pretty well early in the session but I think we got a bit complacent," he stated. "The track was fully wet everywhere but the grip was good and wanted to push harder but thought better of it. I came into the pits because my visor fogged anyway, but then Broc and Katsuaki Fujiwara went ahead on times. I'm happy anyway, the front row was always my goal and I've sorted out why my visor steamed up. I aim more for the front row than pole now, because if we work on the bike set-up, and make it good, then we'll get pole anyway. But the race is the main thing."

Another excellent first day of qualifying for the Ten Kate team was of particular satisfaction to team manager Ronald Ten Kate. "After the first two races, now we know how to share knowledge better and faster and that's very good," he said. "I'm happy with the start of the weekend. Karl went off really well, very fast at the start, and at the end he did eight laps at a medium pace as a wet tyre endurance test almost and we were surprised how good the track conditions were."

Ducati Fila

Ducati Fila's Regis Laconi led the field in today's opening qualifying session for the San Marino World Superbike Championship round at Misano Adriatico, which was held in dreadful conditions. Team-mate James Toseland was not so fortunate, the British rider unable to get to grips with the wet surface and having to settle for thirteenth quickest time.

The afternoon session was hit by constant rain but the 28 year-old French rider outclassed the rest of the field, setting his lap times easily and confidently in the wet on the Santamonica circuit. Laconi dominated the hour from start to finish, recording a time of 1'51.160, three tenths of a second ahead of the surprising Petronas duo of Chris Walker and Troy Corser.

"I'm very happy because I know I'm normally always very fast in the wet" declared Laconi. "Before coming here I was quite afraid if it was wet after my performance at Valencia but today I was fine in my mind and could concentrate on setting a good time. With Ernesto Marinelli and the team we found a good solution and settings, I was able to push hard and I did 17 laps before coming into the box, but most of all I enjoyed riding in the wet out there today. I didn't want to make a mistake this time so I started slowly. I went out on my run, felt the grip was not so bad, started to know where the track was better or worse and then the feeling was good".

Toseland (Ducati Fila) was slightly disappointed with his performance in the wet but is confident he can improve tomorrow. "It's been a bit of a disappointing day but we had a few problems and I wasn't getting the feel there at all at the start of the session" declared Toseland. "We've just been working on it, we were getting there slowly but the session finished and we didn't get the bike really comfortable in these conditions and before you know it the day's over.

"If it's dry tomorrow, it's a completely new ball game but if it rains we'll be OK. The tyre I chose for the wet did quite a few laps and I went a second faster in the last outing so now we know which direction to go in, we'll be OK tomorrow" he added.

McCoy

Cold and bad weather in the first day of the third round of Superbike World Championship on the 4060 metre Santamonica circuit at Misano, Italy. Not brilliant results for the riders of Scuderia Xerox Ducati Nortel Networks during the first day of practice and qualifying.

"We haven't any experience with this bike and those tyres in wet conditions." - commented Garry McCoy - "In such wet conditions I have no feeling with the front, but the rear tyre seems to work okay. This situation isn't proper for my sliding style of riding and I'm not able to get the corner. So, in this way I'm not going out the Curvone corner fast and also the top speed is poor. Tomorrow morning we'll test a softer front tyre to look for better grip, so I hope to be able to enter the corner sliding as I'm used to."

Suzuki

Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra rider Katsuaki Fujiwara mastered tricky conditions at Misano today and took provisional pole position.

His time of 1:51.189 was enough to edge out the Hondas of Broc Parkes and Karl Muggeridge and was a tremendous boost after what has been a difficult start to the season. The team has worked hard since the last round in Australia and have completely altered the bike's set-up and the improvements have been met with a 'thumbs up' from all three riders today.

Katsuaki Fujiwara - Provisional Pole - 1m51.189 - "We started today with the same suspension settings as Australia, but changed the geometry of the bike a lot. Now the chassis feels a lot better and it is an easier bike to ride. The track has never been completely dry at any stage today, but I found the wet grip OK. Even in the wet I think that the bike has improved since the last round, so I am much happier. If the Suzuki GSX-R600 works OK in the wet, then it should be OK in the dry. I hope to find that out tomorrow , if it is dry! At the moment our top speed is not so good, but that's not so important in the wet. Control is much more important and I have got that today."

Stephane Chambon - 5th - 1m51.914 - "The changes to the bike's set-up have made quite a difference to the feel of the bike and I am pleased with the team's progress. The bike is easier to ride and I managed to set the fifth quickest time without any dramas, so that makes me happy. I didn't push very hard today - because of the conditions - so my time is OK. We'll have to see how the bike behaves if it is dry tomorrow."

Vittorio Iannuzzo - 14th in Superbike - "I had a big rear end slide on my fast lap and lost a lot of time recovering. Otherwise I would have been much higher up the grid for sure. The bike has definitely improved since Australia and it is better to ride. I love this track, because it's like a home circuit for me, so I want to be much higher up the grid after tomorrow and then make a good race on Sunday."

Troy Corser

Troy finished the first day of qualifying at Misano in third place, despite the difficult conditions. Overnight rain meant that the track was damp in places in the morning and Troy only got a chance to try some slicks right at the end of the session. At the end of it, Troy topped the leaderboard and was happy with the way his Petronas FP1 performed at the 4.060 kilometre circuit. Then, the rain came down and the afternoon timed session took place with a soaking wet track. Troy took it steadily and used the time to find a good set-up for his bike, but easily finished in the top three. Frenchman Regis Laconi (Ducati) posted the fastest time of the timed qualifying; with Troy's Petronas team Chris Walker second quickest. Completing the provisional front row of the grid is Chris Vermeulen (Honda).

Troy - 3rd - "Well I think that today was the best the bike has felt straight out of the box. It's funny because Misano can be quite slippery in the wet, but the bike and its power curve seemed suited to the corners here and I'm getting good drive out of them. At first, the wet grip doesn't seem so good, but it gets better lap after lap and my confidence grew and I was able to get my knee down OK. We changed the set-up from this morning and made it softer because of the rain. The rear tyre initially didn't have much feel, but it improved the longer I stayed out there. At the moment, I'm pretty happy because if the bike works OK in the wet, then it should work OK in the dry. At the moment, I'd still prefer a dry race - because it's safer - but I don't really mind if it is wet or dry."

Karl Muggeridge

Honda CBR rider Karl Muggeridge set the third fastest time in this afternoon’s first qualifying session of the 3rd round of the World Supersport Championship here at a rather grim looking Santamonica circuit in Misano, Italy.

Being used to usually a very hot event at Misano Adriatico in June for the last few seasons, the Supersport paddock got quite a surprise with the Italian round being moved forward to April and pretty cold temperatures and rain. Will be interesting to see how the spectators react to this new schedule and the weather.

Nevertheless, back to racing, the Ten Kate Honda team, tried out their wet settings for the first time this season and so far so good they seem to work pretty well. For today, Muggas got out there, just to get a bit a feel for this track in the wet and too see how much grip they got. With his time of 1’51.266 he was holding provisional pole for most time of the session.

Muggas comments: “The bike is working quite well in wet conditions but I’m sure if it will dry up for the next couple days we can improve the chassis a fair bit and will have some work to do. I done my time pretty early in the session and thought it would be good enough for provisional pole as it was 1.3 seconds faster than second best. So we went out again later into qualifying pretty relaxed, just to get a few more laps on the tyres and not planning to push. Looking back at the session now, we probably should have had a go regardless towards the end and should have pushed a bit harder to get a better time which could have secured provisional pole, especially as the weather doesn’t look like it will be improving for tomorrow.”

Hopefully it will dry up for one of tomorrow’s session, so they boys can also work on a good race set-up as the weather might swap around for Sunday.

Foggy Petronas

Foggy Petronas Racing riders Chris Walker and Troy Corser qualified on the provisional front row of the grid after a wet first day of the third round of the Superbike World Championship at Misano, Italy.

Chris finished the afternoon session second behind championship favourite Regis Laconi while Troy, who had headed the morning's free practice times in drier conditions, was just behind his team-mate in third.

Both riders, using Pirelli tyres in wet conditions for the first time, gradually improved their afternoon times to close the gap on Laconi to 0.449 and 0.805 seconds respectively.

With more unsettled weather forecast for Saturday qualifying and Sunday's two races, team owner Carl Fogarty was understandably delighted with the first day performance of his two riders.

He said: "That was down to two riders riding very well. Wet weather is always a great leveller but the bike still has to be set-up well and work well. I have said before that Chris and Troy and two of the best, if not the best, riders in the championship so now it is up to us to give them a bike that matches the others in the dry. But, while the bike is not as fast as the others, long may it continue to rain!"

Chris said: "I just went through the normal process of getting a wet setting by playing with the ride heights and found a setting where I had more feel. And it didn't feel so bad this morning when the conditions were semi-dry. I don't enjoy riding in the wet but there is no saying that, with a colder track, conditions will be any better tomorrow, so I am very pleased to be second fastest. The area for improvement for tomorrow is to get more corner entry grip and a bit more feel on the brakes turning into corners."

Troy said: "We softened the set-up for the rain and tried a different rear and I was able to start to get into my rhythm. Once I got my knee on the ground I got more confidence, although I am still struggling with grip on the right hand side. My target was to get into the 51s and I knew I would be up there with that. I like this track and the bike is working well and, if the setting works in the wet, it should work well in the dry as well."