Preview - Suzuki

Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra rider Yukio Kagayama and Troy Corser are set for this weekend’s World Superbike Championship eighth round at Brand Hatch fresh from their double victory in the Czech Republic.

Kagayama took Brno by storm, winning both races - his first ever WSB double. And despite problems in qualifying, World Champion Corser put in a couple of solid finishes taking a fifth in race one and a fourth in race two.

The duo are ready to carry on the good work at Brands Hatch, an event that is now much more than just another round in the calendar. The British circuit’s unique setting and layout always provides close-quarter action and it is arguably the best-attended event in the calendar.

Last year Corser won the first race and finished second in the other with Kagayama scoring a lowly pair of ninths. But this year, both riders will be going all-out for podium places, with Kagayama particularly eager to do well in front of all his British fans.

Troy Corser:
“Brands is not just another round of the championship anymore - it’s an event! The place has a fantastic atmosphere because the crowd are so close to the track and sometimes you can almost feel them breathing down your neck! It’s quite a technical track and not the easiest place for overtaking, so a good grid place is pretty much crucial. I wasn’t happy with Brno so Brands will be a good chance for me to get some good results and keep up the momentum in the championship. Obviously we all need Bayliss to make a slip-up or two, but otherwise there’s going to be a very big battle for second spot.”

Yukio Kagayama:
“I was so happy after Brno and now I am looking forward to Brands Hatch so much because of the years I raced in England. I have many British fans and I want to do well for them - not like last year! Brands is a special place and maybe the best WSB event of the year because of all the fans and the big atmosphere. Now that I am almost back to full fitness I want another couple of good results at Brands Hatch. I am not sure that it will be possible to do another double, but I will be trying my hardest - as usual.”

ALSTARE AND FORET SPLIT

After an amicable meeting on 31st July, Team Alstare Suzuki and Fabien Foret have decided to end their partnership for the 2006 Superbike World Championship season with immediate effect.

Foret and Team Alstare feel that the results, to date, did not reflect either of their aspirations: Foret had some problems adapting to the different nature of a Superbike and, because further development of the bike has already been planned, it has been decided that Max Neukirchner will ride the GSX-R1000 from Assen onwards.