Stand in rider Simone Sanna (Megabike Honda CBR600RR) rode to within 0.242 seconds of the win at Misano, after 23-laps of tough competition in hot conditions. He led across the line after the first lap, and was always in contention, but could not quite get close enough to eventual winner Massimo Roccoli to pass before the finish line, after a signalling mix up. Sanna was drafted in to replace the injured Katsuaki Fujiwara (Megabike Honda CBR600RR) and had qualified second, before replicating that performance in race conditions. Kenan Sofuoglu (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR), starting from ninth, was up to fourth for a time but slipped back to finish eighth, with his stand-in team-mate Arie Vos (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR) 14th, scoring two points.

Once more Robbin Harms (Stiggy Motorsports Honda CBR600RR) rode effectively, to finish fifth, with his team-mate Johan Stigefelt (Stiggy Motorsports Honda CBR600RR) ninth. Monza race winner Yoann Tiberio (Megabike Honda CBR600RR) fell on lap six, after passing Sofuoglu up the inside at the Tramonto corner.

Sanna, now 14th in the championship thanks to the 20 points he scored today, knew he would be in with a good chance of a strong points score after qualifying.

“I'm really happy because I made a wonderful race in my return to the World Supersport Championship,” said a plainly delighted Sanna. “ At the end I believed I could attack Roccoli but a mistake with the pit board, which said two laps to go and not one, stopped me from trying. Despite this I'm satisfied, this is a big return for me and I want to thank all the guys in the team, Honda, and all the sponsors.”

Sofuoglu recovered from a pre-race bout of nerves to score eighth, and had a rider not fallen in front of him, losing him two places, his initial forward progress may have been maintained. He is now ninth overall, on 35 points.

“I started very well but it was I was really tired after five laps, but if I had condition today for sure I would have had a podium,” said Sofuoglu. “Until the seventh lap I was as fast as the guys ahead of me, but after that lap I had to slow down. I was very nervous before the race and that made me tense on the bike. I just have to learn to relax more and if I can do that, then no problem.”

Vos approached the Misano round with a long trail of recent races behind him, and that, as well as his 23rd place qualifying position, told against him.

"There was a lot of work to do because of the start position but I kept my place at the start and pushed hard in the first laps,” said Vos. “I tried to find a good rhythm, and stay focused for a long race. It think I pushed to the maximum today and if I had been offered 14th place before the weekend I would have said 14th place was not so good. But after the weekend, 14th place is not so bad. Before this weekend I have had seven consecutive races, so I was not so fit, because I had no breaks. The preparations were not so good, but I am very pleased to have been asked to ride for the team, and thanks to them."

Tiberio was well placed for another strong top five finish until his fall when he attempted to pass another rider.

“I had a not so good start but I took the other guys early in the race,”
said Tiberio. “I felt I could make a fantastic race and I was OK with the physical side of things. When I passed Sofuoglu I arrived into the corner too fast, I lost grip from the front tyre, and I went down. I’m very sorry for this mistake, because I know that this was a good race to take points for the championship.”

World Superbike Round 6 of 12

TOSELAND AND BARROS TAKE ONE SECOND PLACE APIECE

First James Toseland (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR) and then Alex Barros (Klaffi Honda CBR1000RR) scaled the podium at an overheated Misano, after a dramatic and often unpredictable race day in Italy. The 25-lap races were won by Troy Bayliss (Ducati) and Andrew Pitt (Yamaha), with Bayliss leaving Misano with an extended championship lead, after a crash-inspired double DNF for former closest challenger, Troy Corser (Suzuki).

Race One started in the best possible way for Superpole winner Toseland, running to the front early in the opening lap and leading for the first 10 of 25 laps. He was to keep second when Troy Bayliss passed to take the win.
Barros looked set for a potential podium at one stage, but was forced to slow towards the end of the race, taking fourth and a welcome 13 points.

Karl Muggeridge (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR) scored 11th and a still not 100% fit Pierfrancesco Chili (DFX Treme Honda CBR1000RR), 20th out of 22 finishers. His DFX Treme Honda team-mates, Gianluca Nannelli and Michel Fabrizio, failed to finish in the points, with Fabrizio crashing.

Race two was a dramatic event for Toseland, who could have scored his second win of the year, but for running off track after a rear wheel slide around the awesomely fast Curvone section, while chasing down Pitt.
Scrabbling to get back onto the track as soon as possible, after a high-speed rodeo ride through the gravel, his machine developed a vibration from then on, and he slowed to finish eighth.

Alex Barros was in dazzling form on his Klaffi Honda in race two, despite a slow start in the second race. Only 12th on lap one, he recovered composure and pace to take second, and was aided somewhat after first Corser, then championship leader and race one winner Bayliss fell, with Corser retiring and Bayliss finishing only 12th.

Fabrizio scored an excellent sixth in the second outing, with Muggeridge once more boxed in and only finishing 14th. Pierfrancesco Chili had to retire from race two. Nannelli crashed out of the second running.

Toseland now sits on 157 points, three from second place man Noriyuki Haga, and 97 from championship leader, Bayliss. Barros is fifth, on 146.

Barros, the top Honda scorer on the day, had a minor problem with a major affect in race one, but made up for it with a great ride to second in race two.

“Haga could only pass me because the bike had a small, sporadic problem on one corner in race one,” said Barros. “Race two was great; I enjoyed it very much and the team really set the stage for the podium today. The choice of tyres, and especially the front tyre was crucial for the race.”

Toseland had the memory of a fine race one almost wiped out by the disappointment of race two, but knew that he had given everything to the cause.

“I was slowly catching the leader Andrew Pitt going round the hairpin and I was going to line him up to pass down the back straight,” stated Toseland.

“As I accelerated out of the hairpin, into third, then fourth, the track kinks left and the rear just came round - and didn’t stop. So I ran off into the gravel. After that the bike started to vibrate, like the tyre had moved on the rim, so the left-handers were very difficult. I am disappointed for the team and myself, because that was a possible race win. Pitt was riding very well, but if I didn’t run on we could have been second in the championship, not just third. I gave it my all this weekend, got pole position, second place in race one, and I am just going to try like this until the end.”

Muggeridge paid the price for a difficult qualifying session, when he got caught out with the wrong settings for his new qualifying tyres. In the race, this determined the shape and size of his afternoon endeavours.

“Off the start, coming around for the first lap, I was already something like ten seconds down, and just got boxed everywhere, every time,” said Muggeridge. “Then you have to ride with the crazies at that point. They just try and ram up the inside every time. It was very hard and I had to use up my tyre to try and avoid them, so in the end I had no tyre left. We have a test for three days soon and that will be very important for us.”

Pierfrancesco Chili was disappointed to not finish but the reality of his weak physical condition, after a recent pelvic and shoulder injury, caught up with his determination to show well in front of his home fans.

“I was very tired after race one,” stated Chili. “I had to try and adjust the bike for race two. I only managed a few laps and I was so physically drained I had to pull in. It’s very disappointing but I could do no more.”

Michel Fabrizio had two opposite experiences at Misano, one sour, the other sweet. He now sits 16th overall, on 47 points.

“I lost the front at the Curva del Rio, but it was a Michel Fabrizio problem, not a bike problem,” admitted Fabrizio. “In race two I was very happy with the set-up and the result and it was fun to race with Toseland and Lanzi.”

Nannelli failed to score in either race, pulling out of race one and falling in the second.

“After a few laps I realised that the suspension set up was not right, so I had to stop,” said Nannelli. “In race two I crashed when I lost the front and that was that.”

The seventh round of the WSS and SBK championships take place at Brno, on July 23.