Xerox Ducati's Noriyuki Haga is to undergo surgery on a fractured vertebrae he suffered during in a crash at Coppice during the second World Superbike race at Donington Park. He was airlifted to Derby hospital where a team of surgeons will carry out surgery on his back injury and also evaluate a possible broken wrist and shoulder blade.

UPDATE...it's good news!
Noriyuki Haga, Ducati Xerox Team rider and current leader of the World Superbike Championship, was transported to the Emergency department of Derby City Hospital by helicopter at about 5pm yesterday afternoon, after having been victim of a massive high-side during Race 2 at Donington Park. The Japanese rider, accompanied by doctors from the Clinica Mobile, was seen by Doctor Rajan and once extensive tests and un urgent CAT scan were carried out, Dr. Rajan declared that the fracture to one of the vertebrae that had shown up on the X-ray taken at the circuit’s Medical Centre was actually a very old fracture and must have been caused during another much earlier incident, years previously. This fracture has, over time, sealed without medical intervention and doesn’t present a problem.

After a stable night in the Pre-Op assessment ward of Derby City Hospital, Noriyuki Haga will undergo surgery this afternoon to insert a plate and screws in his right forearm, to set a fracture to the right ulna. He is continuing to experience pain in the left shoulder blade, and so although no serious damage has yet been detected, doctors will investigate further to understand the cause of the pain. The only injury needing immediate treatment at this time is the broken ulna.

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At 5pm Monday afternoon Haga underwent successful surgery at the Derby City Hospital. Having fractured the ulna in his right arm in yesterday's crash at Donington Park, Noriyuki today had a plate and screws inserted to set the bone. The surgical team deemed the surgery a success and there were no unforeseen complications. Prior to the operation, medical staff took a closer look at his right shoulder blade and an x-ray unfortunately confirmed that he has multiple fractures to his left scapula. The scapula will not necessitate surgical intervention and the bone should knit itself back together in time; this complication should not prolong Noriyuki’s recovery time. The Japanese rider should be discharged from hospital tomorrow (Tuesday) and he and his family will fly back to Italy so that Noriyuki can begin the necessary physiotherapy treatment.

The Ducati Xerox rider will not participate in the next tests at Imola but it is foreseen that he will compete in the next round at Brno.

Ben Spies (Yamaha World Superbike) pulled off another amazing double triumph in the ninth round of the Hannspree FIM Superbike World Championship in front of 61,000 spectators at Donington Park. The Texan has now reduced the 48 point gap at the top of the table to 14 from Noriyuki Haga (Ducati Xerox), who crashed in race 2, picking up a broken vertebra in the process. Haga’s Italian team-mate Michel Fabrizio was third in race 2 and is now 51 points behind. Aprilia had a good first race, with Max Biaggi second at the finish, while the best of the numerous British platoon present at Donington was Leon Haslam (Stiggy Racing Honda), who finished second to Spies in race 2.

SPIES AN BIAGGI LOCKED TOGETHER AT THE FRONT IN RACE ONE

Race 1
Spies continued to steamroller his way to the wins in World Superbike as he took his ninth victory of the year in the first race. After setting his eighth pole in qualifying, the Texan rider dominated the 23-lap race but was shadowed all the way by Max Biaggi (Aprilia Racing). The Italian ran faultlessly in second until the final lap, when Ben upped the ante to power to the chequered flag, but Biaggi also encountered a fuel problem a couple of hundred metres from the flag and risked losing out on second. This was Biaggi’s first podium since Qatar. Third went to points leader Haga, who limited the damage in a race where he was not in a position to challenge for the win. In the all-British battle for fourth place, Haslam got the better of Shane Byrne (Sterilgarda Ducati). Aprilia’s excellent performance was completed by a sixth place for Shinya Nakano. Home idol and Misano winner Jonathan Rea (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) could only finish in seventh, ahead of John Hopkins (Stiggy Racing Honda). Michel Fabrizio (Ducati Xerox) had a gear change problem and could only finish 12th, while Ruben Xaus scored one point for BMW.

Ben Spies: “It was a tough race for us, Max was there the whole time and we were both able to do quick laps. I got a bit of a gap then made a couple of mistakes and he got back on me. The last three laps I rode as hard as I could, we got down to the 30s, then I couldn’t hear Max coming into the chicane on the last lap so knew something was wrong and I took the last corners easy. We can’t be too conservative now, we have to claw back and get a whole lot of points in a couple of races.”

Max Biaggi: “I am very happy with this result after a very hard decision we made in free practice and qualifying. Yesterday we found a way to go fast and we made the right choice in tyres and the balance was correct. In the warm-up we had some problems but for the race we fixed most of them. Just on the last lap at the last chicane we had some trouble, I don’t know what, the bike just stopped and then went back again in the last few metres before the flag. I think I deserved second!”

Noriyuki Haga: “I tried to do my best but the front two guys were very fast. I tried to catch up for the victory but I had to settle for third position. Of course during the laps I tried to push and catch them up but it was quite difficult. Our package was quite different but for the next race we try to change something to improve the riding of the bike.”

THIRD FOR HAGA - AND FOGGY TURNS UP!

Race 2
Spies also dominated the second race, but this time without any pressure from his rivals. The Yamaha man immediately pulled away at the start to pick up a seven second lead, which he administered easily to pick up his tenth win of the year. Spies’ double coincided with a disaster for Haga, who crashed out of second place on lap 5 while trying to make up ground on the leader. The Japanese rider was taken to hospital in Derby with a fractured vertebra and other injuries. Race 2 saw a British rider on the podium, thanks to Haslam, who held off Fabrizio. With the outcome of this race, the Italian keeps alive his title chances. Byrne put on another good show, finishing fourth ahead of fellow Brit Tom Sykes. Xaus again scored points for BMW, this time with a positive ninth place. Both Aprilia riders crashed out, Biaggi suffering a hairline crack in his right foot in the process, but remounting to finish 21st, while John Hopkins (Stiggy Racing Honda) did not make it to the start of race 2, the still-injured American totally exhausted after his race 1 efforts

Ben Spies: “It was a picture perfect weekend, I know Haga had a big crash and hope he’s OK. That’s not the way you want to do it but you’ve got to capitalize when things go wrong. The track was definitely hot in the second race and a little bit slick so we made some changes to the bike that made it better. Fortunately we didn’t have to push to the absolute limit but it all worked great today.”

Leon Haslam: “We’ve been struggling for the past few rounds with unknown circuits and I really wanted to get on that podium today. I feel good, obviously feel sorry for Haga because I was pushing him hard and I was pretty happy to get second. In the first race I was really suffering from chatter but everyone in the team has been behind me all weekend so a big thanks to them.”

Michel Fabrizio: “Today Ben was very fast and it was impossible to catch him. In the first race I had a problem with the gear change, while in the second I had a great battle with Haslam. I am very happy with the result, but very sorry for Haga and his crash.”

Points (after 9 of 14 rounds): 1. Haga 308; 2. Spies 294; 3. Fabrizio 257; 4. Rea 177; 5. Haslam 167; 6. Biaggi 155; 7. Sykes 141; 8. Smrz 115; 9. Checa 114; 10. Byrne 113. Manufacturers: 1. Ducati 383; 2. Yamaha 337; 3. Honda 273; 4. Aprilia 162; 5. Suzuki 131; 6. Bmw 70; 7. Kawasaki 47

World Supersport
Coventry man Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha World Supersport) had a terrific homecoming race at the Donington circuit as he shrugged off the broken ankle he picked up in qualifying to take a dominant fourth win of the year. His chief rival in the title battle Eugene Laverty (Parkalgar Honda), together with Joan Lascorz (Kawasaki Provec) tried hard in the early stages, but the Irishman crashed at the Melbourne Hairpin and the Spaniard had to take second best after Crutchlow upped the pace in the final part. Laverty rejoined and worked his way back up the field from 22nd place to fifth overall. It was a great result for veteran Australian Garry McCoy, who gave Triumph its first ever podium in Supersport. Kenan Sofuoglu (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) could only finish fourth and is now 64 points away from the top of the standings, while team-mate Andrew Pitt fared even worse to finish in tenth. Gianluca Vizziello (Stiggy Racing Honda) scored his best result of the year in seventh behind Barry Veneman (George White Ten Kate Honda).

Points (after 9 of 14 rounds): 1. Crutchlow 185; 2. Laverty 157; 3. Sofuoglu 121; 4. Lascorz 106; 5. Pitt 79; 6. West 75; 7. Foret 63; 8. Aitchison 61; 9. McCoy 55; 10. Pirro 49. Manufacturers: 1. Honda 191; 2. Yamaha 185; 3. Kawasaki 117; 4. Triumph 69; 5. Suzuki 30

SUPERPOLE
Ben Spies (Yamaha World Superbike) soon got back to his Superpole winning ways with his eighth pole of the year in nine races at Donington Park in the UK. The 24 year-old Texan was the only rider to dip under 1’30” in the final run, which was conditioned by a light rain shower that prevented his rivals from responding, and he ended up in the top slot with a time of 1 minute 29.846 seconds. After a difficult weekend at Misano, the Aprilia Racing team had a superb qualifying day, with both of their riders getting onto the front row, Max Biaggi in second and Shinya Nakano in fourth. The final front row slot went to British rider Shane Byrne (Sterilgarda Ducati), who also had the satisfaction of being the first Ducati 1098 on the grid.

Ben Spies: “It was a good session for us, but we almost got caught out. I was one of the last to leave the garage and as soon as I went out of pit-lane I could see the drops starting to come, so I had to really attack the warm-up lap to make sure I got around and get relaxed in case it started raining. The first sector was brilliant, but then the rain started to come and I had to be careful not to touch the paint. It was good to get pole, this circuit has a short start for turn one so it’s good positioning. The bike’s working well on race tyres so we need a good start tomorrow.”

Max Biaggi: “In the last session I was really lucky because no one expected any drops and then it really started to rain. I started soon because I had nothing more to learn after what I had done in free practice and I thought I must put my head down and go as fast as I can. Second place is good for us, for tomorrow I’m quite OK, maybe not exactly the way I wanted to be but OK. It’s great to be here, I like this track, my bike could be a little bit better but I think I can go well tomorrow.”

Shane Byrne: “I think we got a little bit lucky because the bad weather came in quickly. Fortunately we got through the first Superpole session without using qualifying tyres, but I was kind of hopeful of a good result anyway. We’ve been doing a lot of work on both bikes this weekend and we ended up with them going in different directions, but I’m happy with the direction that we’ve been going since America and Misano. I’m delighted with getting the first front row of the season for myself and the team.”

Shinya Nakano: “Like Max said we had some luck today, but so far this is my best qualifying performance in Superbike. On Friday we were struggling but things went much better today and I am looking forward to racing here at the Donington Park track.”

The factory Ducati Xerox team had to settle for the second row, with Michel Fabrizio qualifying ahead of Noriyuki Haga in fifth place. In the second Superpole run the Italian powered to a new Donington Superbike best lap with an amazing time of 1 minute 29.664 seconds. The first Honda on the grid was the Hannspree Ten Kate version of Carlos Checa, who almost didn’t make it into Superpole after taking twentieth place in qualifying. Riders who failed to make the final session cut included Leon Haslam (Stiggy Racing Honda), by just 0.003 seconds, Tom Sykes (Yamaha World Superbike), the rapidly improving John Hopkins (Stiggy Racing Honda), and Misano winner Jonathan Rea Hannspree Ten Kate Honda). Both BMW men, Troy Corser and Ruben Xaus, easily made it into Superpole and will start from row 4, while British Superbike points leader Leon Camier (Airwaves Yamaha) had a disappointing session and could only qualify in 17th place.

Times: 1. Spies B. (USA) Yamaha YZF R1 1'29.846; 2. Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1'30.080; 3. Byrne S. (GBR) Ducati 1098R 1'30.535; 4. Nakano S. (JPN) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1'30.671; 5. Fabrizio M. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'30.734; 6. Haga N. (JPN) Ducati 1098R 1'31.023; 7. Checa C. (ESP) Honda CBR1000RR 1'31.342; 8. Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R 1'34.797; 9. Haslam L. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 1'30.159; 10. Sykes T. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 1'30.229; 11. Hopkins J. (USA) Honda CBR1000RR 1'30.272; 12. Rea J. (GBR)Honda CBR1000RR 1'30.387; 13. Lavilla G. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 1'30.612; 14. Ellison J. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 1'30.816; 15. Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 1'30.916; 16. Xaus R. (ESP) BMW S1000 RR 1'31.12

World Supersport
Not even two crashes and a bone fracture in his left ankle following Friday practice could stop Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha World Supersport) from notching up his sixth pole position of the year in nine races. The points leader did not get off to the best start in this afternoon’s qualifying, crashing out for the second time this weekend, but he returned to the pits and a few minutes later was out on the track again to make his decisive move. The result was a new Donington Supersport circuit record in 1 minute 31.701 seconds. Such was Crutchlow’s domination that his nearest rival for the title, Eugene Laverty (Parkalgar Honda), was half a second behind, with an excellent Joan Lascorz (Kawasaki Provec) seven-tenths off the pace and the final front row man Kenan Sofuoglu (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) over one second behind. Mark Aitchison (Honda Althea) was well up the grid in fifth place, ahead of Garry McCoy with the first of the Triumphs and Massimo Roccoli (Honda) once again up at the front on the Intermoto Czech Honda. Fabien Foret (Yamaha World Supersport) could only manage the third row, while 2007 champion Andrew Pitt’s below-par weekend continued as the Hannspree Ten Kate Honda man starts from row 4.

Times: 1. Crutchlow C. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R6 1'31.701; 2. Laverty E. (IRL) Honda CBR600RR 1'32.222; 3. Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'32.481; 4. Sofuoglu K. (TUR) Honda CBR600RR 1'32.818; 5. Aitchison M. (AUS) Honda CBR600RR 1'32.846; 6. McCoy G. (AUS) Triumph Daytona 675 1'32.879; 7. Roccoli M. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 1'33.062; 8. Fujiwara K. (JPN) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'33.120

Michel Fabrizio (Ducati Xerox) confirmed himself to be one of the quickest men currently around as he powered his 1098 round the 4.023 km circuit in a time of 1 minute 30.775 seconds in Donington’s first qualifying session. Lapping just four-tenths of a second off the record held by Troy Bayliss, the Italian was the only rider to dip under the 1’31” mark on a dry track after the initial rain showers. Next up, but four-tenths behind, was the first of the numerous British riders in the 31-strong field, Leon Haslam (Stiggy Racing Honda), followed by Texan rookie Ben Spies (Yamaha World Superbike), a fraction slower. The final provisional front row grid slot went to the surprising Gregorio Lavilla (Guandalini Ducati), who knows Donington well after several seasons in BSB.

Fifth quickest time went to one of the race favourites, Shane Byrne (Sterilgarda Ducati), who also had a harmless crash in the session. Excluding Fabrizio, the top 17 riders are all separated by one second. So far points leader Noriyuki Haga (Ducati Xerox) has failed to shine and he could only manage tenth, three places ahead of Max Biaggi with the first of the Aprilia RSV4 machines. It was a difficult day for the Misano race 2 winner Jonathan Rea (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda), the Northern Ireland youngster ending up with a sore back after crashing in free practice and setting 15th quickest time. The two BMWs, once again showing encouraging signs in the wet conditions, found the dry pace more difficult and Ruben Xaus and Troy Corser could only finish 17th and 20th respectively. The latest arrival in World Superbike, Blake Young (Alstare Suzuki) was 28th on his debut, while John Hopkins (Stiggy Racing Honda) set a positive time despite still not being fully fit

Times: 1. Fabrizio M. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'30.775; 2. Haslam L. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 1'31.191; 3. Spies B. (USA) Yamaha YZF R1 1'31.294; 4. Lavilla G. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 1'31.401; 5. Byrne S. (GBR) Ducati 1098R 1'31.436; 6. Camier L. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 1'31.454; 7. Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R 1'31.584; 8. Lanzi L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'31.705; 9. Checa C. (ESP) Honda CBR1000RR 1'31.736; 10. Haga N. (JPN) Ducati 1098R 1'31.760; 11. Sykes T. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 1'31.838; 12. Ellison J. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 1'31.890; 13. Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1'31.913; 14. Hopkins J. (USA) Honda CBR1000RR 1'32.007; 15. Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 1'32.103; 16. Kagayama Y. (JPN) Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 1'32.139

World Supersport
Points leader Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha World Supersport) got his Donington weekend off to a terrific start with the quickest time of the day of 1 minute 33.323 seconds, knocking half-a-second off the previous record set in 2007 by Katsuaki Fuijiwara. Crutchlow was also the victim of a crash in the early stages but after a quick check at the medical centre Cal resumed his record-breaking pace. The second slot went to the talented youngster Joan Lascorz (Kawasaki Provec) from Spain, three-tenths behind. Eugene Laverty (Parkalgar Honda), Crutchlow’s chief rival in the title fight, was another couple of tenths behind, with Fabien Foret (Yamaha World Supersport) in fourth place. 2007 champion Kenan Sofuoglu (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) was fifth, but his team-mate Andrew Pitt could only manage 12th while fellow Aussie Garry McCoy took the ParkinGo Be1 Racing Triumph to an encouraging eighth place.

Times: 1. Crutchlow C. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R6 1'33.323; 2. Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'33.650; 3. Laverty E. (IRL) Honda CBR600RR 1'33.871; 4. Foret F. (FRA) Yamaha YZF R6 1'33.928; 5. Sofuoglu K. (TUR) Honda CBR600RR 1'34.175; 6. Fujiwara K. (JPN) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'34.219; 7. Aitchison M. (AUS) Honda CBR600RR 1'34.578; 8. McCoy G. (AUS) Triumph Daytona 675 1'34.986

THE RACE
Ben Spies (Yamaha World Superbike) and Jonathan Rea (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) scored the two wins in a memorable day of racing at the Misano World Circuit in Italy. In front of 65,000 spectators Spies took his eighth seasonal win in the first race, while Rea grabbed his maiden Superbike win in the second. The Ducati Xerox pairing of Michel Fabrizio, third and second in the two races, and Noriyuki Haga were also key players in the day’s action, and the Japanese rider now has a 48 point lead over Spies and 55 over his team-mate.

Race 1
Spies scored the win in the first race of the day, held in flag-to-flag conditions, which saw the riders starting on a wet track but taking the flag in the dry. Half-way through the 24-lapper, which had been totally dominated by Shane Byrne (Sterilgarda Ducati), the entire field started to pit to change bikes and tyres. Spies was the rider who judged things to perfection, the Texan immediately finding the right pace in the dry and going on to win by almost 8 seconds from Byrne. Third place saw a fantastic scrap, with Fabrizio making his 1098 machine as wide as possible on the final lap to hold off the rapidly catching poleman Jakub Smrz (Guandalini Ducati). Fifth place went to Haga, who limited the damage on a track that is not one of his favourites, the Japanese rider passing his compatriot Yukio Kagayama (Suzuki Alstare) in the final stages. Rea was the first Honda to the flag in a race that saw him start from the back of the grid and pick up a ride-through penalty. Tenth place went to Superbike rookie Matthieu Lagrive (Honda Althea), behind Shinya Nakano (Aprilia), while team-mate Max Biaggi was in difficulty in these conditions and could only finish 13th.

Ben Spies: “It was a hard one, we knew from the start it was going to get dry and in that first half hats off to Shakey, he rode great. I had the feeling in the rain that I wasn’t quite happy but I tried as hard as I could to stay close to Michel. My box showed me that some riders were starting to come in for a change so I said that it was time to get in now. It was a hectic race, pretty eventful, not a great race but I was happy to pull this one off.”

Shane Byrne: “That was a fantastic race. It’s a shame it didn’t stay wet for a little bit longer because I had a really big lead at one point. I wasn’t sure what to do with the tyre situation and all the time the lead was going up, and I didn’t know whether to stay out or not. I switched bikes with about seven laps to go and the first two laps were really difficult. Ben had done a couple more dry laps than I had, he passed me and there was no way I was going to get him. It was a fantastic result for the team at their home circuit, they’ve all worked really hard.”

Michel Fabrizio: “That’s not a bad result, it was a great battle with Jakub for the final podium slot. When I saw that on the big screen that he was getting closer and closer, I knew that I had to invent something special on the last lap. I was unable to find the best possible feeling immediately with the dry tyres and I slipped back a bit but I’ve had a lot of bad luck in recent years at Misano so I’m very happy to get onto the podium.”

Race 2
The second Superbike race saw talented young Brit Jonathan Rea take his first ever win after a spectacular scrap with Fabrizio that set the last laps of the race alight. The final podium slot went to points leader Haga, who took advantage of Spies' second race mishap, the Texan only managing ninth after being slowed by a clutch issue. Smrz picked up another fourth place after passing Carlos Checa (Honda) on the final lap as the Spanish rider's tyres went off. Byrne was once again up amongst the front-runners and he finished the second race in sixth place. The first Yamaha to the finish was the R1 of Tom Sykes, seventh ahead of Leon Haslam (Stiggy Racing Honda). The Aprilias of Biaggi and Nakano both finished in the points, together with the Suzukis of Kagayama and Nieto, while Xaus and Corser (BMW) and Parkes and Hacking (Kawasaki) all failed to finish in the top 15.

Jonathan Rea: “To win my first race in Italy here is really special for me before my home round next weekend at Donington. As everybody’s aware we switched suspensions, and tried them for the first time on Monday at Magny-Cours and the team all did a marvellous job to get me to win the race here so this is really special for them as well. I got settled into my own rhythm and Michel came past but he couldn’t outbrake me and that spared my bike from doing all the running. I could pass where I wanted to pass and I saved it to the last lap. I’m really over the moon with the win!”

Michel Fabrizio: “In race 2 I didn’t have a perfect feeling with the front and Rea’s Honda accelerated better out of the corners than me. It’s a pity I didn’t win today but two podiums are my best result on this track and knowing that I did my best makes me happy. I’m just a few points behind Spies in the table and maybe I can start thinking about the title now although I realize that to be a serious candidate I have to keep on getting good results and even win a few races”.

Noriyuki Haga: “Race 2 was much better than the first one: I got a good start but then Johnny and Michel passed me and it was hard to keep their pace, maybe because they’re much younger than me! Seriously though we have taken home some good points and that’s important because Misano is not one of my favourite tracks. Now I’m looking forward to racing at Donington where in recent years I’ve always had good results.”

Points (after 8 of 14 rounds): 1. Haga 292; 2. Spies 244; 3. Fabrizio 237; 4. Rea 167; 5. Biaggi 135; 6. Haslam 134; 7. Sykes 130; 8. Checa 109; 9. Smrz 108; 10. Kiyonari 98. Manufacturers: 1. Ducati 351; 2. Yamaha 287; 3. Honda 240; 4. Aprilia 142; 5. Suzuki 128; 6. Bmw 62; 7. Kawasaki 41

World Supersport
Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha World Supersport) got the better of Eugene Laverty (Parkalgar Honda) in an exciting Supersport clash at Misano. The points leader just had the edge in a two-part race, which was red-flagged due to oil on the track, beating his rival in a sprint to the line. With his third win of the season Crutchlow has a 14 point lead over Laverty, and the fight now looks to be between these two as Kenan Sofuoglu (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) picked up a DNF with a crash while running third. The Dutch team’s forgettable weekend was completed with a crash for Andrew Pitt, while the Australian was leading in the early stages. Massimo Roccoli (Intermoto Honda) rode a great race to step onto the podium on a track where he won in 2006. The Italian held off Joan Lascorz (Kawasaki Provec) on aggregate after a late charge by the Spanish rider. Australian Mark Aitchison scored a convincing fifth for the Honda Althea team, ahead of Katsuaki Fujiwara (Kawasaki Provec) and Anthony West (Stiggy Racing Honda), while poleman Michele Pirro (Yamaha Lorenzini) had to retire from eighth place with a technical problem.

RESULTS

PREVIEW
After the overseas double-header in South Africa and USA, the Hannspree FIM Superbike World Championship returns to European soil for the start of the second half of the 2009 season. Round 8 of 14 will be held this weekend at the Misano World Circuit on Italy’s sun-kissed Adriatic Riviera, with the event holding the denomination of San Marino Round. The circuit in the Romagna region, a stone’s throw away from world-famous seaside resorts Rimini and Riccione, measures 4.226 km and has been the venue for 17 editions of the championship. It underwent a major restyling in 2007 with changes to the layout and sense of direction, which is now clockwise.

Misano is a circuit where Ducati has always dominated. The Italian manufacturer has taken its twin-cylinder machines onto the podium 26 times in 34 races, leaving the other manufacturers with the crumbs: Honda 3 wins, Aprilia 2, Yamaha, Suzuki and Kawasaki 1. As for riders, the most successful at Misano is three-times world champion Troy Bayliss with 6 wins, while Giancarlo Falappa, Regis Laconi and Ruben Xaus all have three apiece. Out of all the riders who have won at Misano, only two will be on the track this coming weekend, the BMW pairing of Troy Corser (2 wins) and Xaus, who was the last to take a victory, in race 2 twelve months ago. Both Régis Laconi (Ducati DFX) and Max Neukirchner (Suzuki), who have also won at Misano, the German in race 1 last year, are currently out of action with injuries.

HAGA’S MISANO JINX – The splendid double win by Ben Spies (Yamaha World Superbike) at Miller has reopened the title battle, which after South Africa appeared to be heading the way of Noriyuki Haga (Ducati Xerox). The Japanese rider, bruised and battered in the Utah Round, still has a healthy lead over his rivals (53 points over the American and 64 over team-mate Michel Fabrizio), but is arriving at a circuit that is his ‘pet hate’ seeing as he has never won there. In 18 appearances, Haga has only scored three podiums at Misano, his best being in 2007 when he finished runner-up in race 2 behind Bayliss, while in the first he ended up on the ground after a contact with Max Biaggi, while they were fighting for second place.

TWO’S COMPANY – Both Spies and Fabrizio are aiming to take away further points from the championship leader and they arrive at Misano as the riders most in form. The Texan doesn’t know the circuit but so far has always demonstrated that he has no problems in this area, and he is backed up by an ultra-competitive Yamaha YZF-R1. As for Fabrizio, the rider from Rome has made a quantum leap in quality recently, proving that he can fight for the win at every circuit, and he will be aiming high this time around.

MISANO OUTSIDERS – At Misano, Superbike can often produce some major upsets and the heat will surely have a major effect on men and machines. The outsiders this weekend include Max Biaggi (Aprilia Racing), who has been putting together a string of top 5 results recently. The RSV4 machine is getting closer to the top and the Italian will surely be a difficult opponent for everyone. The Noale manufacturer should bring some new material to Misano and Biaggi will be hoping to upset the applecart in front of his home fans.

ON THE WAY UP – The Honda riders are now emerging as front-runners as well after a difficult start to the season. Jonathan Rea, Ryuichi Kiyonari, Carlos Checa (Ten Kate) and Leon Haslam (Stiggy Racing) have all been on the podium at least once and the Miller race showed that the CBR 1000 RRs are not that far away from the level of Ducati and Yamaha. All eyes will in particular be on Rea, who is fast becoming a true contender. Progress is also being recorded by Kawasaki, who will enter American Jamie Hacking once again in place of the still convalescent Makoto Tamada as team-mate to Broc Parkes.

SUZUKI AND BMW – The Suzuki Alstare team will again be present at Misano without the injured Max Neukirchner, who is expected to be back for Brno at the end of July. The team’s progress will continue to revolve around Yukio Kagayama, who is not exactly 100% fit after crashing in the USA, and Fonsi Nieto who is struggling to find the best possible feeling with the GSX-R 1000. Attention will also be focused on the BMW Motorrad team, which had a difficult time overseas, but the German squad has had an opportunity to analyze everything back in the factory workshop and both Corser and Xaus will be looking for improvements this weekend.

SUPERSTOCKERS ARE BACK – After more than one month’s break, both Superstock classes re-join the weekend programme. In the Superstock 1000 FIM Cup Claudio Corti (Suzuki Alstare) leads the way with two wins out of three, but Xavier Simeon (Ducati Xerox Junior Team), three times runner-up, is just one point behind. Potential candidates for victory also include Maxime Berger (Ten Kate Honda) and Javi Fores (Pedercini Kawasaki), while a surprise could come from Italian Davide Giugliano (MV Agusta). In the 600 class the logical favourite is Danilo Petrucci (Yamaha Trasimeno), with two wins in three races, but the Italian will undoubtedly have to watch out for his British rival Gino Rea (Ten Kate Honda), level on points at the top, Frenchman Jeremy Guarnoni (MRS Yamaha), Belgium’s Vincent Lonbois (MTM Yamaha) and Marco Bussolotti (Yamaha Trasimeno), who will be hoping to turn his so far below-par season around with a good result at Misano.

With just a day to go before the eighth round of this year’s HANNspree FIM Superbike World Championship, a series of collateral activities involving riders, teams and public have been confirmed in the build-up to this weekend’s San Marino event. PR activities for the protagonists of the WSB championship get underway on the morning of Thursday 18 June with the traditional pre-event press conference organized in the historic centre of San Marino, where riders representing the seven manufacturer supported teams (Max Biaggi, Aprilia; Ruben Xaus, BMW; Noriyuki Haga, Ducati; Carlos Checa, Honda; Broc Parkes, Kawasaki; Yukio Kagayama, Suzuki; Ben Spies, Yamaha) will be introduced to the San Marino authorities and meet the national and international press. The 7 riders will subsequently try their hand at a crossbow mini-tournament and inaugurate the exhibition “San Marino Superbike Expo”. The appointment is scheduled for 11.15 in the office of the Secretary of State for Tourism and Sport of the Republic of San Marino.

Later in the afternoon the Open Paddock in the Misano World Circuit will give fans an opportunity to get close up with their Superbike and Supersport heroes, as the riders take part in the traditional autograph session in the SBK Paddock Show. Entry is free of charge and the autograph session lasts from 2pm until 5.30pm. The intense pre-Misano media day comes to an enjoyable end in the evening at Bagno Romina 8&9 (Pierfrancesco Chili’s lido at Misano Adriatico) with a Beach Tennis Challenge involving top riders (Michel Fabrizio, Ben Spies, Tom Sykes, Ruben Xaus, Leon Haslam, Karl Muggeridge, Jonathan Rea and Jakub Smrz) who will each be teamed up with a professional beach tennis player. The tennis action gets underway at 6pm, and it will be followed by a canoeing challenge between WSBK riders, beach tennis players, media and an Infront/sponsors team.

...and again at Pierfrancesco Chili’s bathing establishment, an initiative called “DediKated to SuperBike” has been organized by the Italian rider for media and friends. DediKated to Superbike is in memory of the late Japanese rider Daijiro Kato, who lost his life in 2003 and who spent much of his free time in and around Misano.

After missing Kyalami and Miller due to the consequences of his crash at Monza, Brendan Roberts (Guandalini Ducati) will not be taking part in the Misano round this weekend. His place will again be taken by Spain's Gregorio Lavilla. Gregorio tested the Guandalini Ducati 1198 at Misano in April during the CIV domestic championship round, which will give him a good base to work from in Friday's opening sessions. "Misano is a track that I like and last year the Ducatis went really well", commented Lavilla. "Here the performance of the engine will not be so important and I hope that my results will be better. For sure the fact that I tested the bike here a couple of months ago will be a help and it'll be the first time that I can start the weekend without being at a disadvantage to the others."

Jakub Smrz returns from the USA galvanized by a top 10 position in the standings. His consistency in the last few races is the result of the improvement the Czech rider is making this season and his aim at Misano is to get as many points as possible. "In the next few races I would like to continue to get as many points as possible" said Smrz. "Misano is really a great track and last year I went very well here. I'd like to continue with my aim of fighting for the leading positions but in the last race, for example, I was slightly limited by the bike's slow speed. My team has done a lot of work to improve the engine performance and I hope to take advantage of that at Misano. This year in Superbike everything is possible and I hope to be able to get a few podiums in the remaining rounds of the season".

It's all change for the Althea Honda team from the Misano round onwards as Matthieu Lagrive replaces Tommy Hill in Superbike while Italian Superbike championship leader Flavio Gentile comes in for Lagrive in Supersport. Unfortunately, the first part of the season wasn't very successful for either Hill and the team so together with Tommy the team decided to terminate its relationship. To replace the English rider the Team management chose Matthieu Lagrive not only because he knows the team and technical staff very well, but also because the French rider has a great experience with high­powered bikes as he is a five time Endurance World Champion. With Matthieu the team really hopes to be able to gather the fruits of their hard work and they hope that Lagrive will demonstrate that Honda Althea team can obtain in Superbike the same good results as he did in Supersport.

Matthieu Lagrive: "This will be my first race with Honda Althea Superbike team. I never raced in Superbike before and so I will have to familiarize with my new CBR 1000 RR starting from Friday's free practices. I have already raced with an Honda CBR 1000 RR, but in Endurance races and so I know this will be a completely different bike. I know the team's technical staff and I'm sure they'll help me adapt quickly to the new bike. I'm happy because I'm starting a new and exciting experience in Superbike with a very clever and skilled team. Hopefully we'll reach some very good results".

WORLD SUPERSPORT
The Miller round saw Kenan Sofuoglu (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) right back in contention, and now there are three men fighting for the world title: the Turkish rider, together with points leader Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha World Supersport) and his closest rival Eugene Laverty (Parkalgar Honda). This trio of riders must be the favourites for the victory, together with Andrew Pitt (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda), who won here last year and who also won his only Superbike race here as well. Joan Lascorz (Kawasaki) is called upon to give a further demonstration of his progress this season, while two Italian riders to watch at their home track include Michele Pirro (Yamaha Lorenzini) and Massimo Roccoli (Intermoto Honda), who scored his only World Supersport win at Misano in 2006.

Barry Veneman has managed to secure funding to lease 2008 specification Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR machines to continue racing in World Supersport. After his Hoegee Suzuki team withdrew from racing after the MMP race, his future looked in doubt, but it is understood Veneman has rented a race support vehicle and technical expertise from the team, in addition to the CBR600RR machines that Kenan Sofuoglu and Andrew Pitt raced in the first couple of races of 2009, before their latest bikes came on line. It is very much Barry's own operation, despite the technical support given by his fellow Dutchmen from Ten Kate.

Also in Supersport, the Althea team have decided to give Flavio Gentile an opportunity to race at Misano to show his talent and skills also in the Supersport World Championship. Flavio is currently participating with the Honda Althea Team in the Italian Superbike Championship and is leading the standings.

Flavio Gentile: "I'm really happy to be here and I know my team will help me to quickly adapt to the new bike. I'm lucky because I can start this new interesting experience from Misano, which is actually my favorite circuit. I have always obtained good results here and I think I will be able to challenge hard this time as well. I want to enjoy myself and take this opportunity to do my best for Honda Althea team and for my sponsors".

Steve Plater began his Isle of Man TT campaign on Saturday May 30th when he interrupted his weekend of racing at Thruxton in the British Supersport championship to fly over to the island in time to take part in the first evening practice session. Although the session was untimed the Woodhall Spa ace was the second fastest rider though the Sulby straight speed trap with a blistering speed of 185.9mph. Conditions were perfect on the island and Steve was greeted by blue skies and warm sun. Steve got his first taste of action shortly after 7pm when he took the HM Plant Honda Superbike out for a blast around the 37.73-mile TT course. He completed four laps of the gruelling mountain road course and was clocked through the Sulby Straight speed trap at 183.9mph. “I enjoyed my first practice. Conditions were near enough perfect except for the abundance of flies and bugs that attached themselves to the bike and my visor."

After flying back to the UK that night, the next day on the Sunday he claimed a fine second place for HM Plant Honda at Thruxton in round four of the Fuchs/Silkolene British Supersport championship but relinquished his series lead to race winner Billy McConnell who now holds a slim, two point advantage over Plater. “Second place will do for me today,” said Plater. “If we had another lap I would have made it through to the front but it wasn’t to be. Its been a busy weekend for me having to fly back and forth to the Isle of Man for TT practice and to be in a position to claim second place at Thruxton is a good result for me given the circumstances. “I am running in second place and only two points away from the series lead. Once the TT is out of the way I will be in a position to concentrate all my attention on the British championship and hopefully secure both the race win and series lead next time out.”

It had been a hectic weekend for the Woodhall Spa ace, but once back on the island the ever-smiling rider was able to get a good night’s sleep in order to be fully fit for Monday’s evening of racing. “I was really tired and once I had a shower and a meal with my wife and two daughters I switched the phone off and just crashed out. This morning I feel refreshed and ready to tackle the 37.73-mile mountain course and spent most of the afternoon with the HM Plant Honda team going through our plans for the week.”

First up on Monday evening Plater was out for two laps of the course on the HM Plant Honda Supersport bike and posted a fastest lap time of 18m38.67s – 121.419mph – to jump straight into fifth place on the leaderboard. He then switched to the HM Plant Honda Superbike where he put in a further two laps of the course, the faster of the two laps being 18m.14.54s – 124.096mph – which took him to seventh place on the leaderboard. Conditions at the TT were considerably better on Tuesday evening with a blustery breeze and some patchy cloud cover that helped keep the flies away and bring some welcome relief to the riders and their machines. He went out on the Padgett’s Honda Fireblade in the Superstock practice first and posted a couple of strong laps, the best giving him a lap time of 18m 12.11s – 124.372mph which was the sixth fastest time of the evening. He then hopped onto the HM Plant Honda Supersport 600 bike and shot off to take in a further two laps where he posted a fast time of 18m 42.62s – 120.992mph to put him into fifth place in that class on the night.

We were warned before we set off to take extra care at Ballaugh as the hot weather has caused the tarmac to melt on the approach to the bridge. But everything went fine; I am riding the Padgett’s Honda in the Superstock class but still under the banner of HM Plant Honda. Like most other riders I am suffering from blisters on my hands, it’s a TT thing, we are on the bike so long and on public roads the friction over the bumps does cause a few problems – but nothing I can’t handle. The bikes are all running well and I am now getting to grips with the course again. I am a lot happier and now know where I am going and feel more comfy on the bike. I seem to be getting dialled in to the TT circuit as opposed to the short circuit so that’s a big help. Apart from the racing I am doing loads of PR with the HM Plant Honda team. It is nice to be able to meet the public, listen to their views and answer any questions they may ask.”

Roads closed bang on 6pm in preparation for Wednesday evening practice. Conditions are perfect again with blue skies, bright sunshine with a little cloud cover and a slight breeze. Once practice got underway around 6.30pm Steve soon got dialled in and, from a standing start posted a lap time of 17m 51.62s – 126.75mph. He went on to better that and produce his personal best time for his three year TT campaign of 128.453mph with a lap time of 17m 37.42s that is only a whisker away from the outright course record and third fastest time of the session. He then took the Padgett Racing Honda Fireblade out for two laps of the course, his best time being 18m 17.82s – 123.726mph in the Superstock class. With time still left in the solo session Plater embarked on a final lap with the Superbike but the time does not reflect his true performance as he was hindered by yellow flags at Ginger Hall because of an accident and then again at the 33rd milestone because of oil on the track.

“I spent a bit of time going through things with the team this morning and then had a bit of lunch with the family and then spent the afternoon just getting ready for the night’s practice. It was quite cold earlier today and it looked as if we were in for a cooler evening so thought I might need a pair of long johns but all of a sudden the sun came out and it’s lovely now. The low sun is a bit of an issue again but it’s the same for everybody so it’s no big deal. All three of my bikes are fine, they are not a million miles away but we are just trying to fine tune a number of things, try different tyres and get myself even more into TT mode. I was much happier on Tuesday and found my way around so felt more relaxed. We had a pretty good night tonight and I learned a lot from it. I did get a good lap time in but really that’s not what we are here for, its only practice and it’s more about finding a good set up and being smooth and clean rather than posting the fastest lap. I took the Superbike out after the team had made more adjustments and my job was purely to analyse the changes ahead of Thursday practice.”

Thursday evening saw Plater again put in some fast laps on the HM Plant Honda Superbike to better his personal best time set the previous day with a new time of 128.952mph, also registering a scorching 191.7mph through the speed trap at Sulby – and that was from a standing start! Plater just completed one lap on the Superbike before heading out to give the HM Plant Honda 600cc Supersport machine a run where he completed two laps of the 37.73-mile mountain course, his best lap being the second where he registered a speed of 123.397mph. His final outing was on the Padgett’s Honda Fireblade in the Superstock class where he clocked up a fastest lap time of 123.338s on the first of the two laps. He completed five laps of the TT course in total coming into the pits at the end of the session for a welcome rest!

“We had a good evening tonight. I managed to get out on all three bikes at some stage during the practice session and everything was A-OK. Apart from the racing it’s been a constant round of PR appearances and photo calls. It has been a hectic week and it looks set to continue into Friday as we have more PR with the team then.”

Speaking on Friday afternoon Plater said: “The weather forecast isn’t too great for this evening, it’s been spitting with rain and a bit cooler and overcast today but at the moment it’s dry so lets hope we can get a few more laps in tonight. The forecast for Saturday is a bit dire, it says heavy and continuous rain – if that’s the case then we won’t be racing as the visibility won’t be good over the mountain. Let’s hope they have got it wrong as we need a nice clear day to provide us with some excellent racing.”

By the end of Friday practice, Steve had set the fastest lap when he scorched around the 37.73-mile mountain road course in a time of 17m 50.03s – 126.938mph and he now moved to the top of the aggregate practice times. He had already proved to be the fastest man on the track in the Superstock class as he was quickest on his first lap, posting a time of 18m 01.10s – 125.638mph from a standing start. He bettered that on his flying lap with the Padgett’s Racing Honda Fireblade before switching to the HM Plant Honda Supersport machine where he completed two laps to end up in second place in that class on the night. The second of the two Supersport laps was spent chasing down William Dunlop who was ahead on time by a small margin. On the run across the Mountain Mile Plater edged nearer and was only a fraction slower at the Bungalow and by the time they reached Cronk ny Mona he was ahead on time. But a slow run from there to the finish line saw Dunlop regain the lead and Plater finished the session just over two seconds adrift in second place.

“I wasn’t aware that I was that close, but it’s no big deal because after all it is only practice. It’s the race that counts and if I am that close to the win in the race then I will be well happy.”

With stormy weather approaching the Isle of Man it was announced that Saturday’s racing would be postponed until Monday with the six lap Superbike TT hopefully starting around 11am. Come the first Superbike race on Monday the 8th June and Steve rode to a fine second place in the six-lap race, finishing just 18 seconds away from his teammate John McGuinness thus making it a one-two for HM Plant Honda in the opening race of the festival. Steve had been hanging around over the weekend as the race, which should have got underway on Saturday was postponed because of bad weather. He said: “It’s been a long wait since the end of Friday practice really. I did go for a ride around the course late last night to check out a few things with the corners and now I just want to get on with it and get going in the race. The rain will have cleaned up all the rubber up so we won’t have the grip we had last week but it’s the same for everyone so it’s not a problem. Not that it’s going to be slippery but just not quite so much grip. It will be nice to get my first race under my belt and out of the way.”

Steve began the race from seventh place-the riders set off at 10 second intervals-and by the time he reached the first check point at Glen Helen he was already up into fifth position and at the end of the first 37.73-mile lap he was up to fourth. On his flying lap – lap two - Steve scorched around the course and set his fastest ever lap with a speed of 130.122mh and moved up to third place before pulling into the pits for his first re-fuelling stop. His pit crew got him back out there very quickly while McGuinness was held up and as they set off for lap three, Plater had a slim five second lead on the run to Glen Helen. But McGuinness upped his pace and regained the lead which he held throughout the remainder of the six laps. Plater was not far behind and at one stage got within seven seconds of his teammate. The commentators were amazed by his riding skills and commented on his smooth negotiation of the Ramsey Hairpin each time around. Lap three saw Plater move into second place to pull out a substantial gap on fellow Lincolnshire rider Guy Martin and the three continued in this formation to the chequered flag at the end of six gruelling laps.

“I didn’t feel I was pushing too hard. To be honest I just wanted to safeguard my second place and try to get HM Plant Honda the one-two.  It was a bit windy in places and catching me out at times and also not so much grip this morning. But the track is going to get better as long as the rain stays away. 1m 30.122s lap – yeah that will do for now” he quipped. At the press conference Steve said: “I pretty much had a speed in my head that I wanted to set and it was really just to improve my lap times from last year. I am happy with 130mph but as the week goes on the speeds are going to get faster if it stays dry. I was happy with the way I rode. I was a little bit slow on the first lap but I still can’t get my head around getting up in the morning and getting out of the motor home and going like a lunatic up the main roads!”

The next day Steve rode to fourth place in the first of the two Supersport Junior TT races where he claimed his first TT victory in the class at last year’s event. Just prior to the start of the race Steve said: “It is going to be a close race today. I will just try and settle into it earlier than I did in the Superbike race yesterday and enjoy the first lap a little bit more. I just want to go around on my own if possible and do my own thing.” But as Steve set off on his first lap he wasn’t as quick as anticipated and was down in 10th place at the first check point of Glen Helen. But he settled into his race and by the time he began the second lap he was up to seventh position. A quick stop for refuelling at the end of lap two saw him edge ahead on time to fifth position and he began to power the HM Plant Honda Supersport machine faster and faster, reeling in Keith Amor who was well ahead on the road but had only a few seconds advantage over Plater on time.

As they entered the final lap Plater was just six seconds away from fourth place and then promoted up to that position when race leader Bruce Anstey ran out of fuel and coasted to a halt just a few miles from the finish. Steve continued on his way to the chequered flag to seal fourth place and although not the result he wanted he was encouraged by the fact that he posted his fastest lap of the week in the class with a time of 125.81mph on the final lap. “It’s not the result I wanted. It was disappointing for me and HM Plant Honda to be so near to the podium but not make it up there. I followed Guy Martin for a long time during the race and, still being a relative newcomer, I was able to learn something from him. (Guy finished the race in 2nd place.) I tried a few different things on the final lap, which was my best lap, so hopefully that will set me in good stead for the second Supersport race later this week."

A FLY-SPATTERED STEVE AT ST. NINIANS (Pic GLYNNE LEWIS)

Nothing if not consistent, Steve rode a sensible race to seal fourth place on the 9th of June in the Junior TT for HM Plant Honda, his third in as many races. The weather played its part in the results as rain left parts of the circuit drenched while other sections were bone dry. The officials delayed the start until the rain cleared and after a long delay which left the riders kicking their heels for over three hours the race finally got underway at 2pm. Being a relative newcomer to the TT course Plater was a little nervous as to how the damp conditions would affect his performance and said: “I think everybody is a little nervous as to how wet it is between Appledene through to Ballaugh and I think we will see some very different lines. But we will just have to suck it and see and approach it with a bit of caution.” As the race finally got underway the times at the first check point at Glen Helen reflected the wet conditions with sector times down considerably. Plater went through the sector fairly quickly but was more cautious than some of the more experienced riders and was eighth fastest through Glen Helen and also Ramsey check point. But he made up ground on the mountain where the rain had not affected the roads and completed the lap in seventh position.

As he began the second lap the Woodhall Spa ace was still cautious on the approach to Glen Helen and lost time, dropping back to ninth but by the time he came in for his refuelling stop at the end of the lap he was up to sixth place. Lap three saw him move up to fourth and begin to reel in Conor Cummins on time and on the final lap Plater was up to full speed and completed the race in fourth place, just three seconds away from Cummins who was third and five seconds behind Bruce Anstey who took second. The final lap saw Plater claim the fastest lap of the race with a time of 18m 03.3s – 125.384mph and it was also announced that he has won the TT Supporters Club Trophy which is awarded to the rider posting the fastest aggregate time in the two Supersport 600 races.

“It was very wet out there and a lot of flies as well so I wasn’t willing to push any harder. The conditions did get better as time went on but it didn’t dry completely so we had to proceed with caution through the wet bits. I am a bit disappointed as I was only three seconds away from third and five seconds from second place.”

FINALLY...Steve Plater saved his best for last as he powered the HM Plant Honda to victory in a record breaking Senior TT at the Isle of Man TT Festival at the end of the fabulous "Two Weeks In June". The race was run over six laps of the 37.73-mile course and Plater took the win, the race record and the Joey Dunlop Trophy in just his third year of racing at the infamous public roads course. The world famous race was delayed by half an hour because of some light rain around the course but it soon dried out and the feature race of the week was started by Murray Walker OBE in bright sunshine and perfect conditions. When the riders arrived at the first check point of Glen Helen Plater slotted straight into second place behind his HM Plant Honda teammate John McGuinness and the pair steadily pulled clear of the rest of the field. But events took a dramatic change on lap four when McGuinness retired at Crookshanks with a broken chain. That left Plater with a clear lead over Manxman Conor Cummins and although Cummins did pull back a couple of seconds on the penultimate lap, Plater upped the anti and made sure of the win, extending his advantage to 19.54 seconds at the chequered flag.

As well as the race win, Plater posted his fastest lap of the two week festival with a flying lap of 130.490mph, bettering the record from last year set by McGuinness – although before he retired from the race McGuinness recorded a new lap record of 1m 31.578s. Steve also picked up the inaugural Joey Dunlop Trophy for the rider with the best overall results of the week with 84 points.

An emotional Steve Plater said: “It will perhaps sink in later tonight just exactly what I have achieved; its stuff dreams are made of. It’s unfortunate that John went out but that’s what happens in racing. He would have been there at the end for sure, but I was just trying my hardest to do a really good out lap as Neil Tuxworth has been whinging and whining at me all week for being an old lady on the first lap! That’s what I was concentrating on and then just seeing how the result went from there. I was watching my pit boards as I knew Connor was only about 10 seconds away from me, my dad was doing the boards at Ramsey so he will be desperate to get back now, bless him. It seemed like 40 miles from the Bungalow down to the finish on that last lap, it was endless. I won the Junior TT last year because the bike that actually took the chequered flag first was illegal and therefore disqualified, which was unfortunate for Bruce Anstey as he was a very strong rider but I did take over five seconds out of him on the last lap so I am happy with that win and that’s that. This achievement today will finally sink in next week as I have to turn my attention back to short circuits and the British Supersport championship. I just need a bit of Plater time on my own to take it all in. But I said to the guys at HM Plant Honda, as soon as the chequered flag falls here I will be thinking about winning at Snetterton next Sunday.”

This fantastic win brings Plater’s tally of results to five this week, a win in the Senior, a second place in the Superbike and fourth in the Superstock and the two Supersport races – a remarkable achievement for the Woodhall Spa ace in only his third year of competing at the TT.

STEVE PLATER - KING OF THE MOUNTAIN (Pic Stephen Davison)

THE ONE TROPHY THAT MEANS SO MUCH - TO THE WINNER OF THE LEGENDARY SENIOR TT

Visiting yet another circuit for the first time, Cudlin steadily gained pace in practice, before posting the 9th quickest time in qualifying, securing his second Superpole berth in the last 3 races. Although his Superpole lap was described as “a bit of a mess from start to finish” Cudlin would eventually start from 8th on the grid for both 13 lap races. “Qualifying went well for us and I managed to use Jamie Hacking for a good tow around the place. He definitely knows where he’s going, where as I’m still learning with every lap. I think that’s why my Superpole lap was so average, I was all on my own.” Cudlin explained after Superpole. Rain engulfed the Road America circuit for Saturday’s opening leg, and an action packed race ensued. In deteriorating conditions, Cudlin showed a cool head as chaos played all around him. Steadily working his way forward as the conditions claimed more victims, Cudlin showed increasing speed and was in a strong position when a pace car ‘froze’ the race order. As the pace car finally left the circuit, a 2 lap shootout brought the crowd to their feet as sparks flew in the final moments of the race.

BUDDY, CAN YOU SPARE A PARADIGM?

Cudlin made a strong surge forward, battling elbow to elbow with Hacking, Eslick and Knapp in torrential conditions. As the final lap flag waved, Cudlin broke from Hacking and Eslick and planned his move on Knapp for 4th. In a brilliant pass in the final turn Cudlin advanced to 4th but the Buell was too strong to the line, relegating the Aussie to 5th across the strip. It was the team’s best finish to date and Cudlin’s first top 5 in his short AMA career. “The race was tricky in those conditions and it became a real battle for survival. When the final safety car made an appearance, I knew it’d come down to a shootout at the end so I really wanted to capitalize on that. You either sink or swim in those conditions and luckily we stayed afloat and brought it home. 5th is a great result for us, in just my 3rd race for the team. I think it shows a glimpse of the potential we’ve got for the remainder of the season.” Cudlin grinned. Although clouds threatened a repeat of Saturday’s conditions, the rain stayed away and ensured a dry second race. With high hopes of a repeat performance of Saturday’s result, Cudlin gridded up for the rolling start, however as leading riders slowed dramatically before the line, Cudlin was forced to brake heavily to avoid a collision at the start of the race. This proved a pivotal moment in Cudlin’s race as the young Aussie watched his terrific grid position fall away as he was swallowed up in the Daytona Sportbike pack. Back as far as 25th in the opening turns, Cudlin crossed the strip 22nd for the first time around, shaking his head furiously as he passed his team on the pit wall. In a race long struggle that saw Cudlin stuck in a drafting pack of riders, Cudlin could only advance to 17th by the finish, securing enough points for 10th overall for the weekend. “Race 2 was definitely disappointing for me, but just proves how important the starts are at a circuit like this. I’m not a fan of the rolling start, and I got caught out by the concertina effect. From there it was just a battle to move forward in a pack of drafting riders. It was a frustrating race but we’ll take it on the chin and move forward from here. We’ve shown we can run with the top guys this weekend and I plan to do that more often from now on.”

Cudlin and the Paradigm Racing Team will take part in the 2 day official AMA test at Mid Ohio this week, in the lead up for their next AMA appearance at Round 8 in July.

Ben Spies (Yamaha World Superbike) annihilated the opposition in the Utah US Round of the Hannspree FIM Superbike World Championship at Miller Motorsports Park, picking up his second double win of the year in his rookie SBK season. In front of 47,300 spectators the Texan again reopened the title battle in a championship that following Kyalami appeared to be firmly in the hands of Ducati. Noriyuki Haga (Ducati Xerox), who crashed heavily in practice, ran the two races in a bruised state, finishing ninth and eighth. The Japanese rider lost ground to Spies as well as to his team-mate Michel Fabrizio, who finished third and second. With the season now at its mid-point Haga leads on 265 points, with Spies up to 212 and Fabrizio on 201.

IT'S GETTING EASIER TO SPOT AMERICAN SPIES...

Race 1
Spies dominated the first race to cut the gap at the top of the table, as Haga could only finish in ninth place, losing 18 points in the process. The race was interrupted on lap 7 after a crash involving Australian Karl Muggeridge (Celani Suzuki), who only came away with a few bruises. Spies powered away again in the second part to win by a comfortable margin on aggregate times. Behind Spies finished Spain’s Carlos Checa (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda), last year’s double winner, and third place went to Fabrizio who was slowed by two poor starts. It was a good day for Ten Kate Honda as Ryuichi Kiyonari and Jonathan Rea came home in fourth and fifth position respectively. Max Biaggi started from row 4 but worked his way up to sixth position at the flag on his Aprilia RSV4 machine.

Ben Spies: “We’ve been working on our starts a bit and this is a long straightaway and I really needed to get a good one here. After the restart it was tough because I really wanted to win on the road and couldn’t take too many risks to keep Carlos at bay. I just wanted to cross the line first even though I had a six-second cushion.”

Carlos Checa: “From the beginning Ben was too strong today. I didn’t have so much grip in the first part but then we adjusted the tyre pressure and it was better in the second. The Honda is working well here, we have a good base from last year and we used that benefit to get at a certain level and get a good result. We needed this result because it has not been so good for us since the start of the year.”

Michel Fabrizio: “It’s a pity about the second start, I felt a bit like a ping-pong ball, because I was under attack from all sides by three of four other guys. Luckily, I managed to stay upright. Afterwards I managed to run at my own pace and get onto the podium for a good result.”

Race 2
The second race was similar to the first, with the three-times AMA Superbike champion Spies taking the lead at the first turn and never relinquishing it. Fabrizio this time got off to an excellent start and was second at the first corner, the Italian managing to keep Spies in his sights for over half the race before settling for the runner-up slot. Checa crashed out on lap 4, leaving the battle for the final podium place to be fought out between Rea, Leon Haslam (Stiggy Racing Honda), who crashed out on the final lap, and Biaggi, competitive in the race after problems in qualifying. Kiyonari, Jakub Smrz (Guandalini Ducati) and Shinya Nakano (Aprilia Racing) all finished ahead of Haga in eighth. It was an encouraging race for Kawasaki, with Parkes and Hacking often running inside the top 10, but BMW again had a difficult time of things with Xaus and Corser finishing outside the top 15.

SPIES LEADS CARLOS CHECA IN RACE ONE

Ben Spies: “That was a tough race, I almost feel like I robbed Michel because he rode fantastic. I tried to set a good pace but a pace that was comfortable and every time he took a tenth out I had to put a tenth back to keep him at bay. Then in the last six laps I pulled the pin and held it to the end. It’s good to get a double win here, unfortunately we know Haga’s not 100% but you’ve got to capitalize on the weekend and we made up some points.”

Michel Fabrizio: “It was a good weekend, I tried every way possible until five or six laps from the end to give some problems to Ben but in my attempt to catch up to him I pusher a bit too hard and finished the front tyre so there was nothing I could do.”

Jonathan Rea: “The guys have put a great bike under me this weekend, we’ve done some good development, but I’ve never had to race as slow as I could for third place because I had a few problems with the front and the front tyre. Ben and Michel put on a great run at the front, I couldn’t go with them. I could see a big gaggle of riders behind me, and thought I’d keep something in reserve until the end but I couldn’t see what happened with Leon’s crash. Anyway it was my second podium in two rounds so I’m very happy."

Noriyuki Haga: 9th/8th
"I did not have a very good feeling with my bike in Race 1. It was very hot out there and I can’t say I was having an easy time. We changed the setting a little for the second race but I still wasn’t able to fight for the podium despite the fact that it was only a few seconds out of grasp. Unfortunately many riders were just stronger then me today. I am not 100% of course after my crash yesterday and I didn’t expect to win here today but I am happy to have taken points all the same, important points for the championship. I’ll get back in shape before Misano where I want to be back fighting for the win.”

Troy Corser: 15th/17th
"There’s no disguising that this has been a hard weekend for us all here at Miller. Although we had some difficulties during the weekend, my main problem today was my right shoulder. I damaged the ligament between the shoulder and the collarbone in the Monza crash and it has not recovered yet.  Race one was hard enough, but I just ran out of strength in race two and had a hard time keeping going. Every time I braked or changed direction, I felt that there wasn’t enough strength to move the bike and that tired me out. I also had some problems with the tyre moving on the rim in race two and that didn’t help us either. Since Monza, the bikes have been on the road (well plane actually) to Kyalami and then on to USA, so it’ll be good to get them back to the workshops, analyse what’s been going on and then make the right improvements. Hard work for sure, but I’ve no doubt we’ll get there."

Ruben Xaus: 21st/16th
"We didn’t think that this season would be easy, but perhaps today was harder then it should’ve been. Of course we began the races from the last rows of the grid and that made life difficult. Towards the end of the first race my lap times were consistent and good and pretty close to the guys fighting for top ten places. My bike didn’t feel right in race one, but it felt better in race two, but my grid position held me up. Between race one and race two my mechanics did a superb job by changing engines in such a short time and I want to thank them for the good and fast work - especially because the bike ran perfectly."

Yukio Kagayama: 12th/12th (With two broken bones in his right foot and ankle, a damaged shoulder and thigh, Team Suzuki Alstare Brux rider Yukio Kagayama defied the pain and brought his GSX-R1000 K9 home in both races. Kagayama couldn't walk without the aid of crutches.)
"I am very sore and very tired after these races today. I had pain-killing injections in my right foot and that allowed me to race. Once I was on the bike, the pain was not so great, but what did hurt was my shoulder, back and thigh. Now I want a good, long rest! In race one, I began to get a better feeling with the bike after about seven or eight laps and the tyre was working OK as well. It was difficult changing direction, because of my right foot, and going through the chicanes was also a bit of a problem, but I wanted to finish the race and so kept going. I had some more injections before the start of the second race, but I didn't make such a good start and was 17th at the end of the first lap. My bike also had some chattering from the rear end and I couldn't push hard. It was very tough and physical today, but I'm happy I managed to finish both races today."

Fonsi Nieto: 16th/13th
"Every time I go out on the bike, I understand it more and the feeling gets better. I was happy to get into Superpole this weekend and that shows that I am improving all the time. I have been out of racing for seven months, so I have to get back up to race pace again, but now that I am beginning to get more comfortable with the bike, it's all getting better and better. Francis Batta has given me this great opportunity and I want to repay his faith, and that of the team, by continuing to improve and get better results.

Points (after 7 of 14 rounds): 1. Haga 265; 2. Spies 212; 3. Fabrizio 201; 4. Rea 133; 5. Biaggi 126; 6. Haslam 122; 7. Sykes 113; 8. Kyonari 96; 9. Checa 93; 10. Smrz 82. Manufacturers: 1. Ducati 311; 2. Yamaha 253; 3. Honda 206; 4. Aprilia 129; 5. Suzuki 113; 6. Bmw 60; 7. Kawasaki 41

World Supersport
Kenan Sofuoglu (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) emerged the winner from the thrilling final lap of a race-long battle between four riders and three different makes: Honda, Yamaha and Kawasaki. With just one lap to go the 2007 champion first passed points leader Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha World Supersport), and then three turns from the chequered flag made a decisive move on Eugene Laverty (Parkalgar Honda), who had led from the start. For the Turkish rider it was the 13th win of his career, and the 67th for Honda in Supersport. The Ten Kate Honda rider is now back in contention in the points standings, third on 108 points behind leader Crutchlow on 135 and Laverty on 126. Kawasaki Provec scored a good fourth place with Joan Lascorz, who started from pole. Gianluca Nannelli (ParkinGO Triumph ) crashed out of the battle for fifth, which eventually went to Fabien Foret (Yamaha World Supersport), but Garry McCoy held the Triumph flag high with a positive sixth place. Seventh went to 2008 champion Andrew Pitt (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda), who started from the final row of the grid.

Eugene Laverty: “I didn’t expect Kenan to pass where he did, I was already in the corner and I am just happy we both stayed on. We could easily have both ended on the deck when he hit me – he bounced off me and stayed on. If I hadn’t been there he’d have kept going and ended up in the Salt Lake. Fair play to him though, he’s had bad moves made on him in previous rounds. Initially I didn’t see who had passed me and got on the gas straight away and then saw it was Kenan and breathed a sigh of relief it was not Cal Crutchlow. It was most important to beat Cal here and we did that so I am not too disappointed in the result.”

CRUTCHLOW, SOFUOGLU AND LAVERTY - SUPERSPORT

Points (after 7 of 14 rounds): 1. Crutchlow 135; 2. Laverty 126; 3. Sofuoglu 108; 4. Pitt 73; 5. Lascorz 73; 6. West 66; 7. Foret 55; 8. Aitchison 50; 9. Pirro 48; 10. McCoy 39. Manufacturers: 1. Honda 158; 2. Yamaha 135; 3. Kawasaki 84; 4. Triumph 46; 5. Suzuki 30