Brno (Czech Republic), Sunday 11th July: a day of mixed fortunes for Michel Fabrizio and the Ducati Xerox Team on the Czech circuit of Brno today; a technical problem forced the Italian to retire in race 1 but he fought back to take a well deserved podium in race 2, after battling against Ruben Xaus (BMW). Noriyuki Haga on the other hand, starting from fifteenth on the grid, rode two strong races and made up many positions to close sixth and fifth.
Noriyuki Haga made a great start in the first race, carving his way through the field to move up from fifteenth on the grid to sixth by the end of the first lap. He chased Sylvain Guintoli for the first few laps and then Ruben Xaus but, although he got close, he was unable to pass the BMW. In the last part of the race he started to suffer from tyre wear and fought to the line to maintain sixth position, just ahead of James Toseland. Michel Fabrizio found himself caught up in traffic at the first corner and was in thirteenth position on the opening lap. Over the next five laps he made a good recovery as far as eighth place but unfortunately, as he was beginning to gain on Toseland, he suffered a mechanical problem with the engine and, finding he could not change gear, he was obliged to retire to the garage during the twelfth lap.
Race 2 took place on a much hotter track (60°C) and this time both Ducati Xerox riders made strong starts, particularly Noriyuki who by the second lap had already made up nine positions. Michel got past Xaus on lap five to take third place, leaving Ruben fourth ahead of Noriyuki in fifth. The Roman rider continued to fight against Xaus who pushed hard to get ahead once more in lap nine but on the fifteenth lap the Spanish rider made a mistake and fell, putting paid to his podium chances. Fabrizio, already too far behind race leaders Max Biaggi and Jonathan Rea, did not give up and continued to push to ensure himself of a podium spot after the disappointment of race 1. Noriyuki, who changed to the a r A type rear tyre for race 2 (a softer tyre than the C used in race 1), was doing everything he could to hold fourth place but two laps from the end Toseland got by, and the Japanese rider closed fifth.
After this ninth World Superbike round, Haga continues to lie in fifth position, holding 172 points, while his team-mate Fabrizio is eighth with 147 points. Ducati is third in the manufacturers standings with 276 points.
Noriyuki Haga (Race 1 – 6th, Race 2 – 5th)
“I made a strong start in Race 1 but it was difficult to catch Xaus. My tyres were not bad during the first half of the race but nevertheless I couldn’t push as I wanted to and Xaus remained there in front of me. In the second race we changed the tyre but maybe it doesn’t suit my riding style because I didn’t feel so stable and it didn’t give me enough feeling. Having said that, I was able to make up several positions and fifth, even though I hoped to do much better, wasn’t bad considering my grid position.”
Michel Fabrizio (Race 1 – DNF , Race 2 – 3rd)
“In Race 1 I realised straight away that I had a problem because I wasn’t able to push and then the bike started to vibrate a great deal. At a certain point I wasn’t able to put the bike into gear and so had to come back to the box. It’s a shame because I was gaining on Toseland and thought I could run a good race, maybe even reaching the podium. Race 2 went much better. I defended myself and am satisfied with the result, though I was sorry for Xaus of course.”
RESULTS: Race 1 – 1. Rea (Honda); 2. Biaggi (Aprilia); 3. Crutchlow (Yamaha). Race 2 – 1. Biaggi (Aprilia); 2. Rea (Honda); 3. Fabrizio (Ducati Xerox)
CLASSIFICATION: Riders – 1. Biaggi (Aprilia) 352; 2. Haslam (Suzuki) 284; 3. Rea (Honda) 203; 4. Checa (Ducati) 189; 5. Haga (Ducati Xerox) 172; 6. Toseland (yamaha) 160; 7. Corser (BMW) 149; 8. Fabrizio (Ducati Xerox) 147;
Manufacturers – Aprilia 358; Suzuki 305; Ducati 276; Honda 214; Yamaha 206; BMW 163; Kawasaki
