Superbike

Winston Ten Kate Honda’s Karl Muggeridge and Chris Vermeulen set the third and fourth fastest times respectively in this afternoon’s first qualifying session for Sunday’s ninth round World Superbike championship races at Assen in Holland.

Britain’s James Toseland took provisional pole position with series leader, Troy Corser, second fastest as Winston’s Australian pairing of Muggeridge and Vermeulen searched for the ideal racing set-up for their Honda CBR1000RRs at the revised 5.9km Assen circuit.

Ronald ten Kate – team manager: “I think that’s a pretty good start to the weekend for us. Both riders were quickly up to speed after the break following the last round at Brands Hatch. We still have some improvements to make on both sides of the garage but the consistent weather and dry weekend that’s been forecast will help us to work on those areas. We’re not quite there yet but the guys are up there where it matters and will be looking to go even better tomorrow.”

Karl Muggeridge – third fastest, 2m05.136s - “I put in a qualifier and the lap wasn’t bad but it wasn’t that good, either. I walked away knowing it was pretty average but it was on an old front tyre so I wasn’t exactly barrelling in everywhere. I put in a lot of laps on race rubber, which feels good and the lap times were still pretty good towards the end; so, with some more things to try tomorrow, we should be there or thereabouts. I’m looking for a bike that I can still race when grip levels begin to drop off and that’s what we’ve been concentrating on today. I’m happy with the new section of the circuit here – it still flows but I see it as another passing opportunity.”

Chris Vermeulen – fourth fastest, 2m05.445s - “I’m pretty happy with the way things have gone today. I didn’t use a qualifier in that session and my best lap was done with a race tyre that was nine laps old. I wasn’t happy with the set-up at the start of the session but the guys worked really well in the right direction to get the bike working better. For sure, there’s still a way to go but I think we’ll find it tomorrow when I think the times are definitely going to get faster. To be honest, I’m not a fan of the revised circuit – I think it’s taken something away from Assen but everyone has to ride it so it’s not a problem.”

Supersport

Winston Ten Kate Honda’s Sébastien Charpentier underlined his season-long domination by setting the fastest time in this afternoon’s opening qualifying session for Sunday’s ninth round World Supersport championship race at Assen in Holland. The Frenchman set a time of 2m08.683s around the revised 5.9km Assen circuit, just one tenth of a second faster than his nearest challenger, Michel Fabrizio, on another Honda.

Charpentier’s Winston Ten Kate Honda team-mate, Katsuaki Fujiwara, set the fourth fastest time this afternoon, despite crashing towards the end of the 45-minute session. The Japanese ace had spent most of the session in second place and is confident of further improvement tomorrow.

Ronald ten Kate – team manager: “Everything was going pretty well until Kats crashed and, although there were a few minutes left in the session, he went for a check-up at Clinica Mobile. I don’t think it will affect his performance tomorrow, when I’m sure he’ll be able to improve his current position. With Sébastien we’ve just been trying to put in as many laps as possible on what we think will be his race tyres for Sunday. We’ll have a few softer options left tomorrow to try to better his provisional pole time. It’s good to see the boys doing well in front of all the guests here at our home round.”

Sébastien Charpentier – fastest, 2m08.683s - “There’s a lot of riders out there doing some strange things. They are all riding around in groups and no-one seems to be doing their own thing. I very nearly high-sided trying to pass one group and hurt my ribs a little. Otherwise I didn’t push to the maximum today and just used a softer tyre for one lap. We’ll try some different chassis settings tomorrow but the bike feels OK at the moment. We’ve already chosen the front tyre and have two or three rear options for tomorrow. But a lot depends on the weather, of course. I’m enjoying the weekend so far – very relaxed and the atmosphere in the box is as good as ever.”

Katsuaki Fujiwara – fourth fastest, 2m09.679s - “Yes, big high-side coming out of the long left-hander onto the back of the circuit. My take off was good, but my landing not so good. I’ve taken some skin off my little finger and my neck is a bit sore, so I thought I’d go and get it checked rather than go out for the last five minutes. I’m pretty happy with progress and I was fastest in the first sector on the lap that I crashed, so I’m up to speed. I was confident of a good time and I’ll be able to do it tomorrow.”