World Superbike / Supersport 2005 - Round Seven - Brno

A NEW WALK DOWN AN OLD STREET: Brno is not a new circuit on the SBK calendar, as the venue was used for top-level Superbike racing in 1993 and most recently in 1996. The circuit is acknowledged worldwide as a modern classic, with its seemingly geometric modern outline revealing little of its complex and challenging nature. The succession of chicanes is taken at high speed, and the frequent climbs and drops along the circuit’s length make Brno a wonderful riding experience for competitors in any class of racing.

HISTORY UPDATED: There is a long and proud history of racing at the Brno circuit and it has been updated and modernised many times, the last renovation, in 1987, being the most radical. The current circuit is a child of the old communist times, but a blessed one, with extensive facilities and a truly glorious spectator venue, with numerous corners visible for spectators despite their choice of vantage point.

LOCAL KNOWLEDGE: Such is the long period of time since the last Brno SBK experience, several teams took the opportunity to nominate Brno as a test track, and thus the likes of the factory Ducati squad has tested at Brno recently. Single make tyre suppliers to the championship, Pirelli, thus have a good working knowledge of the Brno surface, and lap times are expected to be particularly keen from the first session to the final race on Sunday.

CORSER HAS HAPPY BRNO MEMORIES: The 1996 season was a momentous one for current championship leader Tory Corser (Alstare Corona Extra Suzuki). Riding for Ducati in his championship-winning year, he took both wins at Brno in 1996, and thus he has good reason to look to the Czech race as a potential venue for another race win. Currently 73 points in the lead, with exactly half the season completed, Corser is in an enviable championship position, but the knowledge that he has not won a race since the opener at Monza, way back in May, has given his main competitors a ray of hope.
Corser’s 2005 team-mate Yukio Kagayama has slipped up in the championship race recently, and the full-time SBK rookie now sits fourth overall, 106 points behind his team-mate.

VERMEULEN SECOND OVERALL SO FAR: Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR rider Chris Vermeulen moved into second position in the overall championship chase at the previous Misano round, thanks to a brace of second places which brought his total of podium finishes this year to six. With an uphill struggle on his hands to catch the fleeing Corser, he nonetheless pegged back some points at Misano. Karl Muggeridge, a rookie in the 2005 season but World Supersport Champion in 2004, is Vermeulen’s team-mate and despite some problems at the start of the year he has now entered the top ten.
An impressive Honda line-up of talent in 2005 sees Pierfrancesco Chili (Klaffi Honda CBR1000RR) eighth in the championship, his prodigiously talented team-mate Max Neukirchner 12th.

DUCATI REGAINS UPPER ECHELONS: 2004 Champion James Toseland (Ducati Xerox 999F05) and 2004 runner-up Regis Laconi (Ducati Xerox 999F05) have battled their way through some rough patches this year, but have now taken back their share of the high ground in the championship. Laconi has been particularly impressive at the last two rounds, having taken three wins from four attempts, while Toseland has recovered from being tenth overall at one stage to a fighting fifth on the eve of Brno. Lorenzo Lanzi and Fonsi Nieto (both SC Ducati 999RS) are another two high class Ducati entries worth watching, with each having scored an individual best of a fifth place in their rookie SBK seasons.

YAMAHA COMING BACK: An often traumatic 2005 season for the Yamaha teams in the championship sees the highest-placed R1 competitor Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia) the only Yamaha man in possession of a podium finish, one third place at Silverstone. Norick Abe (Yamaha Motor France IPONE) and his recently injured team-mate Sebastien Gimbert have put a lot into their rookie seasons, but with little by way of individual glory to show for it.

KAWASAKI PUSH HEADED BY WALKER: Chris Walker (PSG-1 Kawasaki ZX-10R) has been the top ZX-10 runner this year, taking a podium finish at Valencia and making progress when the opportunities arise. His team-mate Mauro Sanchini sits inside the top 15 places, while another Italian rider, Giovanni Bussei (from the Bertocchi squad), sits in an impressive 13th place.

PETRONAS GOING FORWARD: Steve Martin and Garry McCoy have had expectedly difficult 2005 season races on the somewhat outgunned 900cc Petronas three-cylinder machines, but the more recent races have been occasionally more productive for them. Martin rode into the top 20 overall after the Misano round, while his Aussie countryman McCoy had his best race meeting of the year at Valencia, scoring three championship points in one race.

SUPERSPORT: After a season largely dominated by the Winston Ten Kate Honda riders Sebastien Charpentier and Katsuaki Fujiwara the recent Misano round proved the sharpest test yet for would-be champion Charpentier. With his team-mate Fujiwara third Fabien Foret (Team Italia Megabike Honda) pushed him all the way in the Misano race. It was a welcome sight for the neutrals, who have now witnessed Charpentier take four of the race wins, with Fujiwara the victor in the other two. Yamaha Motor Germany rider Kevin Curtain and Broc continue to push hard on their R6 machines, with Curtain third and Parkes fifth. Gianluca Nannelli (SC Ducati 749R) is still by far the best Ducati rider in show, taking his big twin to podium status already.

The biggest event on the SBK calendar, Brands Hatch, follows on the heels of the Czech adventure, on August 5-7. Consistently hosting the largest crowds in World Superbike, Brands is an unmissable event on the British sporting calendar.

Sunday - WSBK Race 1 - WSS Race - WSBK Race 2 - - Team reports - Corser - Ducati - FG Sport - FPR - HRC - Ten Kate - Muggas - Yamaha - Vermeulen - Coxhell

Saturday - WSS Grid - WSBK GRID - Reports - Corser - Ducati - Coxhell - FPR - Muggas - Ten Kate - Yamaha

Friday - WSS FP1 - WSBK FP1 - WSS QP1 - WSBK QP1 - Reports - Corser - Ducati - FG Sport - FPR - Muggas - Ten Kate - Yamaha

Previews - Aussies - FG Sport - Pirelli - Ten Kate - Yamaha - FPR - Suzuki - HRC - Ducati

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