WSBK – A new Baylisstic weekend! –

A new Baylisstic weekend !

WSBK - A new Baylisstic weekend! -

This weekend on the Czech track in Brno, the SBK and SSP Worlds riders competed in three anthology races: Bayliss regained his best level but had to fight hard to win while in Supersport, a rookie was imposed ! Details.

At the end of qualifying practice, Max Biaggi (Ducati Go Eleven) has the best time with an impressive time of 1 ‘58.965. The Italian was then the only rider to have dropped below the 1 ’59 mark, riding a 1098 whose grandmother – the 999 – had never shone on the Czech track (read)…

But it is ultimately Troy Bayliss (Ducati Xerox) who will start from pole, the Australian setting a record time of 1 ‘58.345 during the Superpole event! For the 22nd time in his career, the n ° 21 kangaroo has climbed to the top of the grid: it is once more than King Carl Fogarty … but 20 times less than Troy Corser !

The old crocodile (Yamaha Italia) will also start from 2nd place thanks to his excellent time of 1 ‘58.451. Third with a time of 1 ‘58.853, Michel Fabrizio (Ducati Xerox) beats Max Biaggi who did not manage to go back below 1’ 59 but still completes the first row.

At the head of the second row is the incredible Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda Ten Kate), yet qualified at a distant 16th place for the Superpole event! Next come Wild Card driver Niccolo Canepa, Fonsi Nieto (Suzuki Alstare) and stage local Jakub Smrz (Ducati Guandilini).

Max Neukirchner (Suz ‘Alstare) and Carlos Checa (Honda Ten Kate), Bayliss’ two direct rivals in the championship lead the third and fourth row respectively ahead of Yukio Kagayama (Suz’ Alstare), Ruben Xaus (Ducati Go Eleven) and Noriyuki Haga (Yam ‘Italia) for the first, Lorenzo Lanzi (Ducati RG Team), Karl Muggeridge (Honda DF Racing) and Ayrton Badovini (Kawasaki Pedercini) for the second.

David Checa from team GMT94 will start from 17th place just ahead of Shinichi Nakatomi from team YZF Yamaha (MG Competition). Regis Laconi (Kawa ‘PSG-1 Corse) will start from 21st place on the grid, Sebastien Gimbert (Yamaha GMT94) from 24th.

In Supersport, we must unfortunately report the heavy fall of Fabien Foret on Friday … Deprived of racing this weekend, the French rider will even have to observe a period of convalescence of at least three months: Sunday evening, the official Yamaha press release was in particular condition of two damaged vertebrae (C6 and C7)…

His teammate Broc Parkes (Yam ‘World SSP) will start from pole position ahead of Barry Veneman (Suz’ Software Hoegee). A very good performance from the Dutchman who hoists his Suzuki for the first time of the year on the 1st row completed by Joshua Brookes (Honda Stiggy) and Andrew Pitt (Honda Ten Kate).

On the 2nd row will be held Craig Jones (Honda Parkalgar), Marc Aitchison (Triumph Italia BE1), Jonathan Rea (Honda Ten Kate) and Vesa Kallio (Honda Benjan), followed in 3rd row by our compatriot Matthieu Lagrive (Honda Intermoto Czech) , Russel Holland and Gianluca Nannelli from the Honda Althea team and Didier Van Keymeulen (Suz ‘Software Hoegee).

Immediately behind – in 13th position – is our second French driver still on the track: Gregory Leblanc on his Honda CRS Grand Prix !

First Superbike race

The men on the front line all got off to a good start but at the end of this first straight line, Max Biaggi managed to take command in front of the two Troys – Bayliss then Corser -, Michel Fabrizio, Yukio Kagayama and Fonsi Nieto.

Behind these two Suzuki, Noriyuki Haga is fighting a third – that of Max Neukirchner – while in front, Corser overtakes his compatriot Bayliss and now threatens Biaggi…

The Italian and his 1098RS n ° 3 nevertheless completed the first lap in front of the R1 n ° 11 and the official Ducati n ° 21, which is just recovering from a good glide when accelerating out of the vibrator! Behind, the 2nd 1098F08 – the number 84 of Fabrizio – stands up to the Japanese 4-cylinders of Nieto, Neukirchner, Haga and Kagayama.

Corser takes advantage of the first pif-paf to take the lead … Shifted outside Biaggi in the first curve, he plunges inside Biaggi’s trajectory in the second: a typical Brno pass that Bayliss tries in the second chicane a few turns further … without success !

The show is superb: the three leading men are neck and neck and the width of the Czech track allows them to experience different trajectories from each other. Fabrizio is content to observe wisely, followed by Nieto and Neukirchner.

The rest of the peloton, however, is starting to fall behind, led by three Japanese riding three different Japanese: Haga on the Yam ‘, Kiyonari on the Honda and Kagayama on the Suz’. Niccolo Canepa, guest of the Ducati factory, is 10th ahead of Carlos Checa, Karl Muggeridge, Shinichi Nakatomi and Ruben Xaus.

In the 3rd lap, Biaggi manages to surprise Corser on the brakes. Bayliss tried to take advantage of this attack to take the lead in the chicane but Max and Troy remained in the lead. Behind, Neukirchner climbs back two notches: after passing his teammate Nieto, he steals Fabrizio his 4th place just before starting the straight line.

Corser regains control in the very bend where he lost them the lap before: under braking, motorcycles are equal and riders can make the difference! In this 4th lap, Regis Laconi fell, dragging with him in the gravel – but on his two wheels – the local of the stage Jakub Smrz.

We also note the abandonment of the most French of the Spanish: David Checa! "David’s first tricks were fantastic! Starting 17th, he overtook Smrz, the stage regional, Laconi and Xaus. But Biaggi’s teammate cannot stand the affront of a David boosted by a new engine development of MG Competition and a talent still intact. Xaus tempts the devil and takes David with him !", reports the official website of Team GMT 94.

On the 5th lap, the leading trio was joined by the German Neukirchner. Third in the championship, the young Max has the leader Bayliss in his sights while Checa is in 10th place … In a straight downhill, Neukirchner slows down on Bayliss: the Suz ‘n ° 76 climbs on the podium. !

Obviously very comfortable, Neukirchner pretended to attack Biaggi in many corners. Bayliss watches his teammate Fabrizio out of the corner of his eye without leaving his nemesis 76 with one sole. And finally it is Biaggi who carries an attack – fruitful! – on Corser.

The action at the head of the race goes up a new notch, and the pace drops as much, so much so that Fabrizio and Kiyonari are only a few lengths away from the fabulous quartet! Behind, Checa manhandles his CBR as much as he can but cannot get rid of Haga.

On the 8th and 9th laps, the leaders temporarily buried the hatchet: Biaggi, Corser, Neukirchner and Bayliss very quickly regained a small second ahead of Fabrizio and Kiyonari! Nieto follows more than a second, ahead of Haga, Checa and Canepa by a few tenths…

It was halfway through the race that Troy Bayliss woke up: slowly but surely, Neukirchner lost ground on Corser and Biaggi. "We had a big problem in the 1st round: it was impossible for me to put the throttle early enough out of the turn", will notice the Suzuki pilot.

Kangaroo n ° 21 and his factory Ducati therefore leap in front of the German and go hunting. This is short-lived: in a few sequences, the Ducati n ° 21 has caught up with the Yam ‘n ° 11 and the Ducati satellite n ° 3..

On the 11th lap, the trio at the start of the race is almost reformed. Biaggi still leads in front of Corser but Bayliss in his 1098F08 is much faster. On the contrary, Fabrizio in his factory Ducati loses two places in a single lap, to the benefit of Neukirchner and Kiyonari !

The fight is raging for 4th place and Fabrizio has not said his last word: just before tackling the straight line for the 12th time, the Italian climbs in front of the Japanese Ryuichi and sticks the German Max. In front of poor Biaggi loses two places: Corser makes him outside under acceleration and Bayliss makes him inside under braking !

On the climb, just before the last chicane, Fabrizio recovers his 4th place. In front, the festival continues: it’s Corser’s turn to be overtaken by his two acolytes in the same bend! At the 13th passage in front of the pits, the two Ducatis – n ° 21 followed by n ° 3 – lead in front of Yamaha n ° 11.

But when braking at the end of the straight, Corser passed Biaggi. The Australian crocodile does not want to let the kangaroo escape, which seems to want to increase the pace. Behind a superb fight opposes Neukirchner to Kiyonari. And it is Fabrizio who is reaping the benefits: Ducati n ° 84 separates from Honda n ° 23 and Suz ‘n ° 76, heading for Ducati n ° 3…

Six laps from the end, the two Troys widened the gap on Biaggi who could not avoid the return of his compatriot Fabrizio … and of Kiyonari housed in the wheel of the second official Ducati! Neukirchner meanwhile returned the gas and will have to settle for 6th place.

Sebastien Gimbert, the only French representative in the race, made a mistake. Unlike his teammate David Checa, Seb does not benefit from the latest engine upgrades and the n ° 194 hits Aoyama and his CBR … "So in 19th position, a slightly too generous attack results in a fall on the 15th lap of the race", regrets his team…

In two laps, Bayliss broke the suspense and built a lead of a few lengths over his compatriot Corser. "When Troy passed I tried to follow him but he had a little more grip coming off the corner", Corser will explain.

Fortunately for the show, Fabrizio returns to Biaggi and spices up the end of the race: three laps from the checkered flag, the two Italians begin to exchange their respective places, under Kiyonari’s nose. !

On the penultimate lap, Bayliss increased his lead to almost two seconds. Corser is alone in second position but the third step of the podium remains accessible for Biaggi and Fabrizio, Kiyonari being too far to attempt an attack.

On the last lap, Fabrizio overwhelmed Biaggi several times without being able to lock his overtaking and he had to wait for the penultimate chicane to take 3rd position! Fifth, Kiyonari signs Honda’s best result for this round and the best result for a Japanese rider. Haga is 6th just ahead of Neukirchner.

First round SBK Brno:

Pilot Team Time Tours
1 Bayliss T. Ducati Xerox 40 ‘22,724 20
2 Corser T. Yamaha Motor Italia + 1,468 20
3 Fabrizio M. Ducati Xerox + 3.272 20
4 Biaggi M. Ducati Sterilgarda Go Eleven + 3,475 20
5 Kiyonari R. Honda Hannspree Ten Kate + 3,791 20
6 Haga N. Yamaha Motor Italia + 9,120 20
7 Neukirchner M. Suzuki alstare + 9.358 20
8 Checa C. Honda Hannspree Ten Kate + 11,787 20
9 Kagayama Y. Suzuki alstare + 17,228 20
10 Sofuoglu K. Honda Hannspree Ten Kate + 17,705 20
11 Muggeridge K. Honda DF Racing + 22,347 20
12 Nakatomi S. Yamaha YZF + 25,563 20
13 Canepa N. Ducati Xerox + 25,699 20
14 Nieto F. Suzuki alstare + 34,064 20
15 Lavilla G. Honda Ventaxia VK + 36,545 20
Gimbert S. Yamaha France GMT 94 18
Checa D. Yamaha France GMT 94 3
Laconi R. Kawasaki PSG-1 Corsica 3

Superpole: 1 ‘58.345 – Bayliss – Ducati
Best round of the round: 2 ‘00.298 – Bayliss – Ducati (17th lap)
Best lap in previous race: 2 ‘00.674 – Corser – Yamaha (2007)

Supersport Race

Joshua Brookes is the quickest to extinguish red lights while poleman Broc Parkes is slow to react. Thus, Brookes and Pitt brake head-on to tackle the first corner, followed very closely by Craig Jones, Jonathan Rea and the rest of the horde. !

Brookes takes command ahead of Pitt, Rea, Veneman, Jones, Parkes, Harms, Aitchison and Lagrive. This order remains unchanged during the first loop but Jones takes advantage of the braking at the end of the pit straight to climb to 4th place ahead of Veneman.

Four CBRs therefore lead the race ahead of a GSX-R – rarely such a party in this category – and an R6. These six leading motorcycles gradually stand out from the rest of the peloton without creating a sensation … Until Rea overtakes Brookes: the rookie of the Ten Kate team takes the controls !

Andrew Pitt imitates his teammate a few turns later on entering the double right, and Jones takes advantage of Brookes’ slight gap to pass him in the second right too! "I think the full tank made the bike tricky to handle and I couldn’t stay with the leaders", admitted Brookes.

It was not long before Craig Jones passed Pitt and climbed to the second step of the podium. And the English did not stop there: excited, Jones posted himself outside Rea on the very last corner of the 3rd lap and managed to overtake the Irishman just before the timing line! We had to dare but the Honda Parkalgar rider was not rewarded: in the lead in acceleration, Craig found himself 3rd under braking behind Pitt and Rea…

Going unnoticed, Barry Veneman won a place: he is 4th ahead of Brookes and Parkes. We also notice that the peloton is resisting: led by Aitchison’s Triumph, the second blades are no longer behind the six leading men. !

On the 5th passage in front of the pits, Pitt still leads but under braking at the end of the straight line, Rea and Jones pass him in front. The English are lodged in the aspiration of the Irish but must do it twice to settle in the lead of the race.

Always so motivated, Jones chooses a much tighter trajectory than there are two laps at the end of the last chicane: after having held the dragee high at Pitt on the outside, it is inside Rea that Craig and his Honda Parkalagar win under acceleration !

Jonathan Rea delayed his braking more than Craig Jones, regained the lead in the entrance to the first corner of the 6th lap but had to widen in the middle of the turn and left the field open to Jones. The duel continues in the following chicane: Rea doubles, pulls aside and lets Jones pass !

Behind the two animators at the start of the round, Pitt observes, Veneman hangs on and Parkes approaches. It was then that Rea made a mistake: in too much braking, "Johnny" straightens, totally misses the rope and starts again in 6th place. !

Craig Jones therefore enjoys a slight lead over Andrew Pitt, Barry Veneman, Broc Parkes, Robbin Harms, Jonathan Rea and Joshua Brookes. Moments later, Marc Aitchison made a mistake: he lost the front wheel of his Daytona 675 and could not avoid slipping into the gravel trap. Nannelli inherits his 8th place, Lagrive of 9th.

In the 8th lap, the rise of Honda n ° 65 (Rea) benefits Harms who manages to overtake Parkes. Jonathan Rea continues to embellish the race with superb overtaking but also with deviations from trajectories … In front, Jones is much cleaner but he cannot separate himself from Pitt and Veneman.

At the halfway point, the leading trio turns conscientiously but the fastest man is none other than "rookie" Jonathan Rea! In three rounds, Ten Kate’s colt nestles in the backsplash of Veneman’s Suz ‘.

Seven laps before the end, under braking at the end of the straight, Rea overtakes Veneman. The Suzuki rider is no longer in the rhythm and Harms in his turn overtakes him a few turns later … Four Honda are therefore installed at the front of the race. !

But a lap later, a CBR was forced to retire: it was Craig Jones’ n ° 18! The British driver raised his hand before entering the penultimate chicane of the circuit: fortunately, Pitt and Rea posted in his aspi avoided him and the other competitors had time to adapt their trajectories. All the pilots go up one place !

Johnny Rea steals an additional one – the only one he can take – and finds the lead of the race despite his blunder! Pitt and Harms are just behind and very quickly, the Danish passes in front of the Australian. Then In the next lap, it is Pitt who finds himself in the lead ahead of Harms and Rea !

The Hondas are in good shape, and Brookes’ one leaves Veneman and Parkes behind in this leading group. Two laps from the checkered flag, four Honda’s again occupy the first four places: under braking on the straight, Harms took the lead ahead of Rea, Pitt and Brookes.

From the first chicane, Rea brakes the new leader but Harms responds tit for tat! Whoever will have the last word: for the moment Jonathan Rea! But Andrew Pitt takes the second step of the podium just before starting the last lap and his experience – he was world champion in 2001 – could well allow him to secure a third victory in a row…

"I felt that I could not fight with the other pilots, at the exit of the turns the others left me behind"said Parkes, who still managed to overtake Veneman’s Suzuki. At the same time, Harms’ Honda made its own…

"I was third ready to go on the last lap and my plan was to overtake the front two just before the hill but before I could do anything something on my bike didn’t go", will tell later the brave Danish, forced to abandon !

In front, the two Ten Kates escape to fight for victory. Jonathan gives us a superb slide – scared ?! – in the braking where he had lost precious places a few minutes before … But the Irishman keeps his CBR on his trajectory and Pitt is quite incapable of attempting an attack.

It is the same on the last portion of the circuit: Jonathan Rea wins his first World Supersport victory, two hundredths ahead of his team-mates Andrew Pitt but almost a second and a half ahead of Brookes … The two Ten Kate riders recorded their best lap in the race in the very last loop !

"I want to thank Andrew: we worked together as a team to find the tire set that would work for us throughout the race.", insists Jonathan who did not expect to win here … And awaits" his "Brands Hatch and Donington Park events on a firm footing to return to the championship again !

"I was hoping to get on the podium but I was already at the limit", will regret Broc Parkes who finished 4th on his R6, ahead of Barry Veneman and his GSX-R, Gianluca Nannelli, Russel Holland and Matthieu Lagrive and their three CBRs…

Andrew Pitt thus increases his lead in the championship to 20 points … Fabien Foret absent and Broc Parkes 4th in the race, it is now Joshua Brookes who acts as his direct opponent: 133 points against 101. Broc Parkes (100 pts ) therefore remains 3rd overall ahead of Fabien (97) and Jonthan Rea (92).

With its second consecutive treble, Honda still leads the constructors’ championship more widely: 190 points, or 52 more than Yamaha (138 points). Triumph is 3rd with 51 points ahead of Suzuki (47) and Kawasaki (40).

SSP Brno race:

Pilot Team Time Tours
1 Rea J. Honda Hannspree Ten Kate 37 ‘35.093 18
2 Pitt A. Honda Hannspree Ten Kate + 0.020 18
3 Brookes J. Honda Hannspree Stiggy + 1,433 18
4 Parkes B. Yamaha World Supersport + 1.853 18
5 Veneman B. Suzuki RES Software Hoegee + 2,237 18
6 Nannelli G. Honda Hannspree Althea + 12,032 18
7 Holland R. Honda Hannspree Althea + 12,221 18
8 Lagrive M. Honda Intermoto Czech + 12,787 18
9 Kallio V. Honda Benjan racing + 15,334 18
10 Roccoli M. Yamaha World Supersport + 15,780 18
Leblanc G. Honda CRS Grand Prix 11
Drill F. Yamaha World Supersport

Pole: 2 ‘03.203 – Parkes – Yamaha
Best lap in the race: 2 ‘04.062 – Pitt – Honda (18th lap)
Best lap in previous race: 2 ‘06.089 – Sofuoglu – Honda (2007)

2008 SSP World Drivers Ranking:

Pilot Team Points
1 Pitt A. Honda Hannspree Ten Kate 133
2 Brookes J. Honda Hannspree Stiggy 101
3 Parkes B. Yamaha World SSP 100
4 Drill F. Yamaha World SSP 97
5 Rea J. Honda Hannspree Ten Kate 92
6 Lascorz J. Honda Glaner Motocard.com 81
7 Jones C. Honda Parkalgar 80
8 Harms R. Honda Hannspree Stiggy 50
9 Roccoli M. Yamaha Lorenzini 40
10 Veneman B. Suzuki RES Software Hoegee 38

26

Leblanc G. Honda CRS Grand Prix 5

Second Superbike race

Bayliss retains the advantage ahead of Corser and Biaggi, while Fabrizio was stuck on the grid a little longer. So the Italian must let Kagayama pass in front of him but manages to control the attack of Neukirchner.

From the first chicane, however, Fabrizio returned to the "1st line" just behind Biaggi who was already slightly behind the two Troys. Behind the four men we find Kagayama, Neukirchner, Xaus, Nieto, Laconi and Carlos Checa.

Hardly had the first lap completed that Corser attacked and took the lead. Biaggi and Fabrizio hang on, as does Kagayama who now distance a few lengths from the peloton led by Xaus.

Well started, Regis Laconi is the victim of a violent highside and must give up. For the fourth consecutive time, the French Ninja n ° 55 will not cross the finish line but will only have one "slight pain in the wrist"to deplore…

"I had reached 11th place which was pretty good given my 11th place on the grid", declared Regis who, entered too hard in a turn, lost control of the rear when accelerating on the outside – often slippery – of the track…

Troy Corser, on the other hand, seems determined to go first under the checkered flag! In the middle of the 3rd loop, the crocodile is half a second ahead of the Bayliss kangaroo, but the latter makes the junction again in the second portion…

The fastest man on the track is then Max Neukirchner: 5th behind Biaggi and Fabrizio, the German does not want to leave too big points for Bayliss … Suddenly, the gap is quickly widened on Kiyonari who was himself rid of Kagayama and Checa.

In the 5th lap, the Corser – Bayliss – Biaggi trio discreetly pulls away from Fabrizio, put under pressure by Neukirchner. It is moreover at the 6th passage in front of the pits that Suzuki n ° 76 passes in front of Ducati n ° 84 and begins its ascent – expeditiously! – to the podium.

As in the first round, the young Max gradually rises in speed and threatens his Italian namesake. Max – the Roman Emperor – is glued to the wheel of Bayliss but seems unable to take the best on the Australian. It is therefore a little stuck behind the double champion.

In the ascent to the pit straight, Neukirchner passes Biaggi. The Suz ‘rider is faster than the two Ducati riders and certainly wants to challenge the Yamaha rider for his lead … Behind, Fabrizio is slightly behind, joined by Kiyonari.

Carlos Checa is then alone in 7th position ahead of Kagayama, Nieto and Haga who never ceases to delight the public: last party from the pits on his mule – his 2nd motorcycle -, Nitro Nori goes back one by one to his competitors in his explosive style inimitable !

After an excellent start, David Checa and his R1 n ° 94 will also be fighting within this group: "for ten laps David delighted us as he was even 11th, following a bunch of drivers battling for 8th place", will relate the team of Christophe Guyot.

At the end of the 9th straight line, Troy Bayliss brakes Troy Corser and turns in the lead. Right behind them, Max Neukirchner clings, just like Biaggi! Behind the fantastic four of this weekend, Fabrizio must fight hard against Kiyonari and hold on.

Halfway through the race, three duos only a few lengths apart monopolize the attention: the two Troys then fight for victory, the two Max for the podium and Michel and Ryuichi for glory! Behind we see that Carlos Checa has disappeared, leaving his 7th place to Nieto who has a lot to do with the two best friends of the paddock: Kagayama and Haga !

The following lap, the whole physiognomy of the race is changed: the Troys and Maxs regroup and it is now Kiyonari – just in front of Fabrizio – who tries to catch up with them! Xaus for his part is the victim of a mechanical problem and must give up.

At the 12th lap, it is now a trio that leads the race – Bayliss ahead of Corser and Biaggi – ahead of another newly created trio composed of Neukirchner, Kiyonari and Fabrizio … But by the end of the race, anything can still be done. change many times !

However, the classification remains unchanged for two laps: Bayliss and Corser remain inseparable, Biaggi follows them closely and with less than two seconds, Neukirchner retains the lead of the second group. And it is finally Fabrizio, six laps from the end, who decides to take matters in hand !

The n ° 84 and its 1098F08 overtake the Honda n ° 23 in quick succession then the Suzuki n ° 76 before launching in pursuit of the 1098RS n ° 3 … In front of this one, the Yamaha n ° 11 lost the ‘aspi of the 1098 n ° 21 … Clearly for the uninitiated: Bayliss takes the powder escamper in front of Corser and Biaggi, while Fabrizio separates from Kiyonari and Neukirchner !

Four laps from the end, the winner of the 1st round climbs out of reach of his opponents and flies towards the double: it will be the third of the season for Bayliss after Phillip Island and Assen! Unable to keep up with the Baylisstic rhythm of the No.21 Ducati, Corser and Biaggi roll wheel after wheel…

Then two laps from the finish, Biaggi and Corser start rolling fairing against fairing! The two fanatics engage in superb overtaking, brush against each other, touch each other, fight … and get in the way! So that Fabrizio who did not ask for so much, quickly found himself under their pots !

Michel Fabrizio visibly fanned by the struggle he has observed for two laps tries an interior on Corser in the "snip" of the last chicane of the penultimate lap! It does not pass and in the "paf", Troy C better placed keeps his 3rd place … But the young Italian does not give up and remains outside Corser !

When accelerating, Fabrizio finds himself stuck between the Yamaha n ° 11 and the grass but the n ° 84 still does not give up … In the straight line, the 1098 takes advantage of a better momentum to overtake the R1 and at the following braking, the official Ducati rider retains the advantage over the official Yam ‘.

Three Ducatis are therefore on the podium: the n ° 21 driven by Bayliss has the almost assured victory but as regards the second place, everything remained to be played between the n ° 3 of Biaggi and the n ° 84 of Fabrizio…

To observe, the Go Eleven team’s 1098 seems more efficient than the Xerox team’s official: Biaggi passes very smoothly while Fabrizio twists his Ducati in all directions to try to grab the last pitches that separate him from the second step of the podium !

Turn after turn, however, Michel swoops down on Max and in the penultimate chicane Fabrizio can attack Biaggi, an attack crowned with success! In the last pif-paf, Biaggi tries to put the brakes on his younger brother but must widen in the change of angle…

Bayliss won this second round in front of his teammate Fabrizio and Max Biaggi. Proof is made that if the Ducati 999 could not compete in Brno against the 4-cylinder, the 1098 themselves, give a hard time to the Japanese !

According to Max Neukirchner moreover, the big problem of this weekend did not come from his Suzuki or his tires but from the fact that the Ducatis! "They were fast, they could go full throttle as soon as they wanted and beat all our 4-cylinders under acceleration.", will summarize the German.

Corser’s R1 crossed the line shortly after, far ahead of Neukirchner, Kiyonari, Haga and Nieto. On the French side, it is again the berezina: fall for Laconi, clutch problem for Gimbert … And David Checa who finishes two tenths of the points … !

According to the GMT94, it was a traction problem that stopped David’s good race: "as we were unable to complete the first run, we started with the same rear tire while all our competitors took advantage of their experience from the first run to put on a type C tire instead of the type B", specifies the French team on its site…

In the championship therefore, Troy Bayliss comfortably increases his lead: he totals 309 points (out of 450 maximum) against 230 for Max Neukirchner. Troy Corser (218) takes advantage of this Czech stage to climb from 5th to 3rd place ahead of Carlos Checa (215) and Noriyuki Haga (210).

On the manufacturers side, Ducati (373 points) still leads ahead of Yamaha (317), Suzuki (277) Honda (247) and Kawasaki (64).

Next meeting for the World Superbike: August 1-2-3 in England on the Brands Hatch track !

Second round SBK Brno:

Pilot Team Time Tours
1 Bayliss T. Ducati Xerox 40 ‘16.436 20
2 Fabrizio M. Ducati Xerox + 0.928 20
3 Biaggi M. Ducati Sterilgarda Go Eleven + 1,259 20
4 Corser T. Yamaha Motor Italia + 1,785 20
5 Neukirchner M. Suzuki alstare + 3.942 20
6 Kiyonari R. Honda Hannspree Ten Kate + 7.910 20
7 Haga N. Yamaha Motor Italia + 11,297 20
8 Nieto F. Suzuki alstare + 11.375 20
9 Kagayama Y. Suzuki alstare + 13.103 20
10 Sofuoglu K. Honda Hannspree Ten Kate + 18,978 20
11 Smrz J. Ducati Guandalini + 19.106 20
12 Rolfo R. Honda Hannspree Althea + 20,556 20
13 Lanzi L. Ducati RG Team + 21,775 20
14 Lavilla G. Honda Ventaxia VK + 26,372 20
15 Nakatomi S. Yamaha YZF + 26,922 20
16 Checa D. Yamaha France GMT 94 + 27.109 20
Gimbert S. Yamaha France GMT 94 14
Laconi R. Kawasaki PSG-1 1

Superpole: 1 ‘58.345 – Bayliss – Ducati
Best round of the round: 1 ‘59.979 – Fabrizio – Ducati (18th lap)
Best lap in previous race: 2 ‘00.298 – Bayliss – Ducati (2008)

2008 SBK World Drivers Ranking:

Pilot Team Points
1 Bayliss T. Ducati Xerox 309
2 Neukirchner M. Suzuki alstare 230
3 Corser T. Yamaha Motor Italia 218
4 Checa C. Honda Hannspree Ten Kate 215
5 Haga N. Yamaha Motor Italia 210
6 Nieto F. Suzuki alstare 161
7 Xaus R. Ducati Sterilgarda Go Eleven 148
8 Fabrizio M. Ducati Xerox 147
9 Biaggi M. Ducati Sterilgarda Go Eleven 146
10 Kiyonari R. Honda Hannspree Ten Kate 115
11 Kagayama Y. Suzuki alstare 96
12 Lanzi L. Ducati RG Team 83
13 Lavilla G. Honda Ventaxia VK 78
14 Smrz J. Ducati Guandilini 77
15 Muggeridge K. Honda DF Racing 64
18 Laconi R. Kawasaki PSG-1 Corsica 36
23 Checa D. Yamaha GMT94 7
24 Gimbert S. Yamaha GMT94 7

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