World Superbike 2008 - Round Nine - Brno (Czech Republic)

World Superbike 2008 - Round Nine - Brno (Czech Republic)

Day 3 Report - Ducati

A thrilling race day for the Ducati Xerox Team as Troy Bayliss stormed to victory, to take his maiden win at this particular track in Race 1 before following it up with another win in Race 2. Team-mate Michel Fabrizio meanwhile enjoyed a battle against fellow Italian Max Biaggi in both of today's races, triumphing in both cases to take extremely well deserved third and second places on the podium. Fabrizio also achieved a new fastest lap during race 2. Niccolo' Canepa, competing in his first ever Superbike races today, had a difficult day, having suffered all weekend from set-up issues. In Race 1 tyre wear meant that he finished in thirteenth position and the same problem unfortunately resulted in a DNF for the young rookie in race 2.

Troy Bayliss' achievements here at Brno have rewarded him with 50 additional championship championship points, and so he now leads with 309, now 79 points ahead of Suzuki rider Max Neukirchner. Fabrizio's boost in points leaves him in eighth position, holding 147 points.

With Ducati Xerox riders stepping up to the podium after both races 1 and 2 today, Ducati has further increased it's lead in the manufacturers championship, now holding 373 points ahead of second-placed Yamaha (317 points).

Troy Bayliss (Race 1 - 1st, Race 2 - 1st)
"I am very happy and of course it's increased my championship lead which is great. I rode two really good races. I struggled a little at the start of Race 1 but once I started to pull away in the closing stages I began to relax a bit. My Ducati has worked perfectly and was a pleasure to ride so a big thank you to my team as we just got everything right today. The tyres did the job too and we didn't seem to suffer from the tyre wear that affected some of the other front-runners. In race 2 the other guys were coming fast towards the end, and I didn't have much left to give, but I held on and am extremely happy with the result. Well done to Michel too who rode two great races here today."

Michel Fabrizio (Race 1 - 3rd, Race 2 - 2nd)
"These were two great but difficult races today! During the second half of both races 1 and 2 I was able to increase my pace and in both cases this meant that I caught up to Max (Biaggi) before having to battle it out with him in the final stages for the podium places. Before the start of Race I I thought it would be the front tyre I would need to worry about but that turned out to be fine and it was actually the rear that was pretty worn out by the end. In the second outing it seems that I fell asleep mid-race before waking up again, in the sense that I continued to get faster during the latter stages, making my fastest lap just three laps from the finish. I predicted that I'd be caught up with the two Troys and Biaggi and that turned out to be the case. I am very happy with the results."

Niccolo' Canepa (Race 1 - 13th, Race 2 - DNF)
"I am a bit disappointed, certainly. All weekend we have suffered from set-up problems. Today we had issues going race distance. This morning the bike went well for the first fifteen laps and I was able to ride hard at the same pace as the front-runners but then unfortunately the front tyre was totally worn. I couldn't do much about it and you could see after the race that it was totalled destroyed. Between the two races we tried to make some modifications but things got worse and the tyres were showing wear after only a few laps. When the brakes began to play up too I decided to retire as it was risky to continue to make fast laps in that way."

Superstock

Brendan Roberts (Ducati Xerox Junior Team) and his 1098R now lead the World Superstock 1000 championship after the young Australian rode a gutsy race to take a second place finish. Domenico Colucci completed his race in the points zone, in eleventh position.

Roberts rode perfectly, navigating his way through a technically very challenging race. Fifth at the end of the first lap, he was trapped in the chasing group, which became a battle won by Berger as he began to get away. The confrontation with Polita, Antonelli and Simeon was difficult and meant that the riders were asking a lot from their front tyres. Despite a lack of grip at the front, Brendan prepared himself for the final push to complete a faultless last lap. Roberts is the new championship leader.

BRENDAN ROBERTS – “I knew that it would be a difficult race, and due to my bad start Berger was able to get away from me and the fight I was caught up in with Simeon, Polita and Antonelli meant that I lost some valuable time. From mid-race the front tyre began to suffer but I maintained my concentration in preparation for the final laps. On the last lap I was careful not to make any errors and took a precious second place finish. I leave Brno as the championship leader, a great satisfaction that I want to share with the team because they worked really hard all weekend.”

Domenico Colucci didn’t manage to perform as he had during the practice sessions. The Italian rider made a bad start and immediately lost several positions. It was therefore impossible to break into the front half of the field due the sheer number of riders in the pack. Domenico finally got past a few riders to take eventual twelfth place.

DOMENICO COLUCCI – “I am disappointed and really hoped for a better outcome. Unfortunately I made a bad start and was then forced to run quite wide on the first curve, an error that meant several riders got past me. There were so many of us that it was difficult to make passes. At the end of the race my pace had picked up and I began to catch up a few places which allowed me to earn a few more championship points. I hope to be able to repay the team with a good run at Brands Hatch.”