World Supersport 2004 - Round 1 - Valencia - Saturday Qualifying

Ten Kate Honda riders Karl Muggeridge and Broc Parkes stamped their authority on a cold and windy final qualifying session, securing first and second places on the grid respectively. Each was close to the track lap record, despite the far from ideal track conditions, with Muggeridge quickest of all with his 1:37.765. Parkes was almost on the same par, with his 1:37.910.

The gusting winds around the 4.005km circuit had abated from their previous day high, but a stiff breeze was still a handicap to all 29 prospective qualifiers for the opening race of the year.

It was smiles all around in the Ten Kate garage, irrespective of the weather, as Muggeridge's plan to take pole position paid off for the popular Aussie rider. "We've done a lot of laps around here in testing and the set-up of the bike is as good as we can get it," said Muggeridge. "It stops, goes and turns really well and the wind was less of a factor today. That made it easier to judge the line around a whole lap. I feel we're really ready for the race tomorrow."

For his team-mate, Parkes, day one of his latest WSS adventure was a real success. "The wind was still strong but not so gusty today," said Parkes, "I worked through most of the tyres I had kept back from yesterday and we've got a good race set-up, so we're ready for the race. I think it's pretty amazing that I'm on the front row in qualifying because I'm usually a much better racer than a qualifier."

"We have gone very well here in the winter tests, but in a way that has just meant more pressure on the shoulders of the riders," said Team Manager Ronald Ten Kate. "Today they proved that they could handle the pressure. We are very pleased that both riders got under the 1:38 barrier and so close to the absolute track record. We can't wait for the race."

The new USB Power Commander is already available for the ZX-10R, as is a powershifter