World Superbike 2008 - Round Four

World Superbike 2008 - Round Four - Assen

Day 3 Report - Pirelli

ROUND 4 – ASSEN – 27th APRIL 2008 – RACE REVIEW

27th April 2008, Assen (The Netherlands) – After a weekend of records at Valencia, thanks to the Pirelli tyres which used to improved the lap records in all the classes, Assen delivered another great performance from the Pirelli tyres.

In the SBK class the riders use a qualifing tyre and Bayliss set the new record in Superpole with the incredible time of 1’38.420, having set an even better one in final free practice, 1’38.355.

No qualifying tyres were needed for a new pre-race record from the Diablo SUPERCORSA tyre, and Broc Parkes. In the two Stock classes DIABLO SUPERCORSA produced records, with Corti in the 1000 class (a time of 1’41.576 which could let him race in the SBK class) and Petrucci in the 600cc class.

In SBK the first row was Bayliss, Haga, Xaus and Corser.

Race1:
AIR HUMIDITY 39% AIR TEMPERATURE 19°C
TRACK CONDITION Dry TRACK TEMPERATURE 23°

After Pole and a new record, Bayliss took the holeshot on his Ducati.

The race pace was impressive, with Troy trying to escape from Kagayama and Neukirchner.

The race ended too soon for Xaus and Haga, touching each other and then crashing.

Almost all riders went for a hard rear and front tyre and only Bayliss and Checa tried a soft front. This granted Checa a good race, recovering many places, and allowed both leading riders to have a really strong pace for all the race distance.

Bayliss took the win and the 25 points, starting to enjoy a greater gap over the other main title hopes, who still put on a good show at Assen.

Second place went to Checa followed by Suzuki riders Neukirchner and Kagayama. There was a new race lap record for the Pirelli DIABLO SUPERBIKE tyres thanks to Neukirchner’s third lap, overtaking Haga’s previous record.

Race Standings

Rider Bike Team Race time
1 Bayliss Ducati 1098 F 08 Ducati Xerox 36’50.907
2 Checa Honda CBR1000 RR Hannspree Ten Kate Honda +2.132
3 Neukirchner Suzuki GSX-R1000 Team Alstare Suzuki +2.179
4 Kagayama Suzuki GSX-R1000 Team Alstare Suzuki +10.919
5 Corser Yamaha YZF R1 Yamaha Motor Italia WSB +11.051

Race2:
AIR HUMIDITY 31% AIR TEMPERATURE 22°C
TRACK CONDITION Dry TRACK TEMPERATURE 31°

A great race ended an impressive weekend for SBK in general.

With weather and temperature situations similar to race one, almost every rider replicated their race one tyre choices but Checa (a harder front), Smrz (a softer front), and Biaggi (a softer front) changed. At the rear everyone used race one’s hard solution.

At the green light the fastest starter was once again Troy Bayliss,, followed by Xaus and Haga, who soon caught him, and started to follow closely on his tail.

Behind the two leading guys, and battling with Xaus, were Neukirchner, Kagayama and Checa - again performing a great comeback after not starting from the front row.

Bayliss and Haga raced at an impressive pace: Bayliss set his fastest lap at the 17th time of asking but most of all they went the whole race with impressive laptimes. Haga never gave an inch to Troy, who finished the 22 laps race with a last lap of 1’40.144 and won the race despite his and determined Haga’s bikes being right with each other.

Pirelli DIABLO SUPERBIKE tyres collected an impressive sequence of records again but the most impressive result was the great show put on in all the races.

On the podium, Bayliss preceded Haga and Checa, who passed Xaus on the last lap. Fifth place for Neukirchner after a race one podium cancelled out his unlucky weekend in Valencia.

The next race will be at Monza but before that there will be a press conference, organized at the Pirelli headquarters in Milan, which will be broadcast on www.pirellityre.com on Wednesday 8 May. It will feature many riders, representing all the different classes.

Race Standings

Rider Bike Team Race time
1 Bayliss Ducati 1098 F 08 Ducati Xerox 36’46.238
2 Haga Yamaha YZF R1 Yamaha Motor Italia WSB +0.082
3 Checa Honda CBR1000RR Hannspree Ten Kate Honda +6.336
4 Xaus Ducati 1098 RS 08 Sterilgarda Go Eleven +7.575
5 Neukirchner Suzuki GSX-R1000 Team Alstare Suzuki +8.011

Championship Standings

Rider Bike Team Points
1 Bayliss Ducati 1098 F 08 Ducati Xerox 178
2 Checa Honda CBR1000RR Hannspree Ten Kate Honda 108
3 Corser Yamaha YZF R1 Yamaha Motor Italia WSB 89
4 Nieto Suzuki GSX-R1000 Alstare Suzuki 85
5 Xaus Ducati 1098 RS 08 Sterilgarda Go Eleven 81
6 Haga Yamaha YZF R1 Yamaha Motor Italia WSB 67
7 Neukirchner Suzuki GSX-R1000 Team Alstare Suzuki 66
8 Biaggi Ducati 1098 RS 08 Sterilgarda Go Eleven 54
9 Lavilla Honda CBR1000RR Ventaxia VK Honda 48
10 Lanzi Ducati 1098 RS 08 R. G. Team 42

AIR HUMIDITY 34% AIR TEMPERATURE 20°C
TRACK CONDITION Dry TRACK TEMPERATURE 27°

The 2008 Assen race was definitely one of the most impressive ever. From the first to the last lap many overtakes were put in, with riders swapping positions and lines constantly.

The main protagonists of this show were Rea and Pitt, taking it in turn to lead the race. The only other rider able to take the lead was Lascorz – the championship leader – who ended up third behind them the race. Fourth position was Foret’s, after a slow start but a great race, with many passes. At the end the battle ended with five riders in three tenths, demonstrating how close this class really is.

Race Standings

Rider Bike Team Race time
1 Pitt Honda CBR600 RR Hannspree Ten Kate Honda 36’10.751
2 Rea Honda CBR600 RR Hannspree Ten Kate Honda +0.014
3 Lascorz Honda CBR600 RR Glaner Motocard.com +0.150
4 Foret Yamaha YZF-R6 Yamaha World SSP Racing +0.201
5 Parkes Yamaha YZF-R6 Yamaha World SSP Racing +0.283

Championship Standings

Rider Bike Team Points
1 Lascorz Honda CBR600 RR Glaner Motocard.com 70
2 Pitt Honda CBR600 RR Hannspree Ten Kate Honda 50
3 Parkes Yamaha YZF-R6 Yamaha World SSP Racing 49
4 Foret Yamaha YZF-R6 Yamaha World SSP Racing 46
5 Brookes Honda CBR600 RR Hannspree Stiggy Motorsport 43
6 Rea Honda CBR600 RR Hannspree Ten Kate Honda 41
7 Jones Honda CBR600 RR Parkalgar Racing Team 39
8 Harms Honda CBR600 RR Hannspree Stiggy Motorsport 28
9 Vizziello Honda CBR600 RR Berry Racing 26
10 Lagrive Honda CBR600 RR Intermoto Czech 20

AIR HUMIDITY 46% AIR TEMPERATURE 18°C
TRACK CONDITION Dry TRACK TEMPERATURE 20°

With a temperature lower than yesterday’s practice Pirelli DIABLO SUPERCORSA SC2 tyres still offered the best performance in every condition. Pirro’s fastest lap (his second) was a masterpiece to reduce the gap with Corti, who started in first position and took the lead - until the 10th lap when he crashed, after missing the racing line in the chicane.

Berger (Honda) immediately took advantage of the situation and then the lead heading up Pirro (Yamaha) and Simeon (Suzuki). Three different bikes were on the podium underlining Pirelli DIABLO SUPERCORSA SC2’s great level of adaptability on all the different machines.

The leader of the championship is now Berger and he will be representing the Superstock 1000 class in the pre-event press conference of Monza, broadcast on Thursday 8 may at noon on www.pirellityre.com.

Race Standings:

Rider Bike Team Race Time
1 Berger Honda CBR 1000RR Hannspree IDS Ten Kate 22’24.450
2 Giugliano Yamaha YZF R1 Yamaha Lorenzini by Leoni +0.904
3 Simeon Suzuki GSX-R 1000 Alstare Suzuki Corona Exta +2.848
4 Polita Ducati 1098R Sterilgarda Go Eleven +4.811
5 Antonelli Honda CBR 1000RR Althea Racing AX 52 +5.481

Championship Standings:

Rider Bike Team Points
1 Berger Honda CBR 1000RR Hannspree IDS Ten Kate 34
2 Simeon Suzuki GSX-R 1000 Alstare Suzuki Corona Exta 32
3 Pirro Yamaha YZF R1 Yamaha Team Italia 30
4 Giugliano Suzuki GSX-R 1000 Cruciani Moto Suzuki Italia 28
5 Polita Ducati 1098R Sterilgarda Go Eleven 26

AIR HUMIDITY 32% AIR TEMPERATURE 21°C
TRACK CONDITION Dry TRACK TEMPERATURE 30°

Superstock 600 riders often offer a good show and tough races which have been raising the visibility of this class.

Petrucci crashed at the first corner and abandoned the race.

Four riders then started to lead the race, creating a gap between them and the followers. They were Linfoot, Vostarek, Lonbois and Beretta, who managed to end the race in this order.

One more new record was set by Pirelli - the fastest race lap by Dan Linfoot on the 6th lap, thanks to his DIABLO SUPERCORSA SC2 and his Yamaha YZF-R6.

New Championship standings are the result of a dramatic start to the season.

Race Standings:

Rider Bike Team Race Time
1 Linfoot Yamaha YZF R6 Beowulf Racing 17’40.133
2 Vostarek Honda CBR600RR Intermoto Czech +3.188
3 Lonbois Suzuki GSX-R600 MTM Racing Team +5.707
4 Beretta Suzuki GSX-R600 Cruciani Moto Suzuki Italia +6.454
5 Baz Yamaha YZF R6 Yamaha Junior Team +7.023

Championship Standings:

Rider Bike Team Points
1 Linfoot Yamaha YZF R6 Beowulf Racing 41
2 Baz Yamaha YZF R6 Yamaha Junior Team 36
3 Beretta Suzuki GSX-R600 Cruciani Moto Suzuki Italia 26
4 Vostarek Honda CBR600RR Intermoto Czech 25
5 Petrucci Yamaha YZF R6 Team Trasimeno 20