Regis Laconi
Statistics: Misano
Source: WORLDSBK.COM | NEWS - Friday, 25th June 2010, 6:53 GMT• Matteo Baiocco retired in both races in 2009. He raced here three times in the Superstock 1000 championship, winning the 2007 edition in front of Xavier Simeon and Ilario Dionisi, while in the other two cases he didn't manage to reach the top-10. He didn't have any more luck either in the Supersport class from 2003 to 2005, when he finished sixteenth in his first race and then retired twice;• Max Biaggi was out of the first races both in 2007 and 2008, finishing on the podium in the second ones. Last year a low-key performance with a thirteenth and a tenth. Max was the poleman of the 1993 race of the now defunct 250 cc championship;• Shane Byrne came close to winning the first race last year, beaten by Spies and by a bad choice for the bike swap as the track was drying. He was sixth in race 2;• Carlos Checa has always scored points in Misano, his best result is a fifth in race 1, 2008 and race 2 last year. In 1993, at his fourth race in the 250 cc championship he started 30th and finished 20th;• Troy Corser among the active riders is the most consistent in Misano with fifteen podium finishes out of twenty-six races, five poles and two wins, obtained in the 2000 edition. His last podium here was scored in 2008, third in race 1. Last year he didn't manage to reach the points, retiring in race 1 and finishing 19th in race 2;• Cal Crutchlow won the 2009 Supersport race starting from second in grid and posting the fastest lap;• Last year Michel Fabrizio was able to make up for a poor record in Misano: in his first six races here he retired four times, while in the two races of 2009 was in the podium twice: third and second. In Superstock 1000 he won the 2003 race;• Noriyuki Haga has started twenty superbike races in Misano, but has never been able to win. Four podium placements for the Japanese, the last one in race 2 last year, third;• Leon Haslam obtained his best result in Misano in the second 2004 race, fifth, he came back here last year ending twelfth and eighth;• Vittorio Iannuzzo's last points scoring finish here was in 2006, race 1, with a fourteenth place. His best result was a seventh in the second 2003 race. He was second in the 2002 Superstock 1000 race behind Gianluca Vizziello and third in the 2005 edition. He enjoyed little luck in the Supersport class, an eighth is his best result (1999) out of five races run;• In his first eight races run in Misano, Lorenzo Lanzi always finished in the top-10, but last year he didn't manage to do better than 19th and 18th. His best result came in the first 2005 race: fifth. In the 2003 Superstock race he finished third behind Michel Fabrizio and Riccardo Chiarello;• Max Neukirchner was absent in the 2009 edition, but in 2007 and 2008 he always finished in the top-10, winning the first 2008 race;• Broc Parkes in 2009 was coming back to superbikes after an absence of six years and was seventeenth in both races. In Supersport climbed three times on the podium, with a second place behind Anthony West in the 2007 race;• Jonathan Rea won here his maiden Superbike race last year in front of the works Ducati pair Fabrizio-Haga. He climbed on the podium also in the 2008 Supersport race;• Luca Scassa finished in 20th the second race last year on his Superbike debut, he was third in the 2006 Superstock race behind Alex Polita and Ayrton Badovini;• Jakub Smrz has a good feeling with the Misano track, since he was able to record here his maiden fastest lap in 2008 and last year his maiden pole, breaking the record string of Ben Spies. Last year his best race results: fourth in both races;• Last year Tom Sykes finished both races inside the top-10: eighth and seventh, at his debut in Misano;• James Toseland ran fourteen races here, climbing on the podium twice in second: in 2003, race 1 and 2006, race 1. In MotoGP he was sixth in 2008 and tenth last year;• Chris Vermeulen was second behind Regis Laconi in both 2005 races, then he went to MotoGP, when he was second again behind Casey Stoner in the 2007 race;• Ruben Xaus obtained three wins in Misano, he is second amongst the all-time winners of the Italian track behind Troy Bayliss (6 wins). From 2003 to 2008 he always finished in the top-10, while last year he recorded a fourteenth and a sixteenth. OTHER NOTES ON THE MISANO RACES • In the last four races run here four different manufacturers have won the race: Suzuki with Neukirchner in 2008, race 1, Ducati in race 2 with Xaus, Yamaha with Spies in 2009 race 1 and Honda with Rea in race 2;• Kawasaki (1994 race 1, Scott Russell) and Aprilia (2000 double by Corser) have also won at Misano, so only BMW among the current manufacturers have missed out on the win here;• Ducati won 26 races out of 36 in Misano, unbeaten from 2001 to 2006 race 1. Recently they won three of the last six races and in 2009 the best-placed Ducati was second in both races. MILESTONES IN MISANO 1994 - First and only fastest lap for Piergiorgio Bontempi;1995 - First win and first fastest lap for Mauro Lucchiari, 50th pole position for Ducati by Carl Fogarty;1996 - First win, pole and fastest lap for John Kocinski on his first appearance in WSBK;1999 - 150th fastest lap for Ducati by Troy Corser, 100th podium placement for Carl Fogarty;2003 - 200th fastest lap for Ducati (Ruben Xaus), 50th podium appearance for Pierfrancesco Chili;2004 - First pole position for Steve Martin;2005 - 10th win for Regis Laconi;2006 - First win for Andrew Pitt in race 2;2007 - 40th career pole for Troy Corser;2008 - Troy Corser scored his 42nd pole, exactly twice as many as Fogarty and Bayliss. Maiden fastest lap for Jakub Smrz. Max Neukirchner in race 1 took a Suzuki to the win for the first time in Misano;2009 - Maiden pole for Jakub Smrz and maiden win for Jonathan Rea. SUPERSPORT FLASH DATA In Misano the following riders obtained their maiden Supersport win: Massimo Meregalli (1997), Ruben Xaus (1999), Christian Kellner (2000), Massimo Roccoli (2006). Roccoli's one is the last by an Italian rider in Misano. SUPERSTOCK 1000 FLASH DATA • First Supesrtock 1000 win for Ivan Sala (1999), Fabio Capriotti (2000), Gianluca Vizziello (2002), Lorenzo Alfonsi (2004);• Last year Maxime Berger took Honda to the top step of the podium at Misano. In the last four years four different manufacturers have won here: Suzuki in 2006 (Polita), Yamaha in 2007 (Baiocco), Ducati in 2008 (Polita) and then Honda;• Alex Polita is the only rider to have won twice in Superstock 1000 in Misano (2006 and 2008). SUPERSTOCK 600 FLASH DATA Yamaha won here in the odd years (2005, 2007 and 2009), while in the even ones the winners were Kawasaki in 2006 and Honda in 2008. Read article
Statistics from Misano
Source: WORLDSBK.COM | NEWS - Friday, 25th June 2010, 6:53 GMT• Matteo Baiocco retired in both races in 2009. He raced here three times in the Superstock 1000 championship, winning the 2007 edition in front of Xavier Simeon and Ilario Dionisi, while in the other two cases he didn't manage to reach the top-10. He didn't have any more luck either in the Supersport class from 2003 to 2005, when he finished sixteenth in his first race and then retired twice;• Max Biaggi was out of the first races both in 2007 and 2008, finishing on the podium in the second ones. Last year a low-key performance with a thirteenth and a tenth. Max was the poleman of the 1993 race of the now defunct 250 cc championship;• Shane Byrne came close to winning the first race last year, beaten by Spies and by a bad choice for the bike swap as the track was drying. He was sixth in race 2;• Carlos Checa has always scored points in Misano, his best result is a fifth in race 1, 2008 and race 2 last year. In 1993, at his fourth race in the 250 cc championship he started 30th and finished 20th;• Troy Corser among the active riders is the most consistent in Misano with fifteen podium finishes out of twenty-six races, five poles and two wins, obtained in the 2000 edition. His last podium here was scored in 2008, third in race 1. Last year he didn't manage to reach the points, retiring in race 1 and finishing 19th in race 2;• Cal Crutchlow won the 2009 Supersport race starting from second in grid and posting the fastest lap;• Last year Michel Fabrizio was able to make up for a poor record in Misano: in his first six races here he retired four times, while in the two races of 2009 was in the podium twice: third and second. In Superstock 1000 he won the 2003 race;• Noriyuki Haga has started twenty superbike races in Misano, but has never been able to win. Four podium placements for the Japanese, the last one in race 2 last year, third;• Leon Haslam obtained his best result in Misano in the second 2004 race, fifth, he came back here last year ending twelfth and eighth;• Vittorio Iannuzzo's last points scoring finish here was in 2006, race 1, with a fourteenth place. His best result was a seventh in the second 2003 race. He was second in the 2002 Superstock 1000 race behind Gianluca Vizziello and third in the 2005 edition. He enjoyed little luck in the Supersport class, an eighth is his best result (1999) out of five races run;• In his first eight races run in Misano, Lorenzo Lanzi always finished in the top-10, but last year he didn't manage to do better than 19th and 18th. His best result came in the first 2005 race: fifth. In the 2003 Superstock race he finished third behind Michel Fabrizio and Riccardo Chiarello;• Max Neukirchner was absent in the 2009 edition, but in 2007 and 2008 he always finished in the top-10, winning the first 2008 race;• Broc Parkes in 2009 was coming back to superbikes after an absence of six years and was seventeenth in both races. In Supersport climbed three times on the podium, with a second place behind Anthony West in the 2007 race;• Jonathan Rea won here his maiden Superbike race last year in front of the works Ducati pair Fabrizio-Haga. He climbed on the podium also in the 2008 Supersport race;• Luca Scassa finished in 20th the second race last year on his Superbike debut, he was third in the 2006 Superstock race behind Alex Polita and Ayrton Badovini;• Jakub Smrz has a good feeling with the Misano track, since he was able to record here his maiden fastest lap in 2008 and last year his maiden pole, breaking the record string of Ben Spies. Last year his best race results: fourth in both races;• Last year Tom Sykes finished both races inside the top-10: eighth and seventh, at his debut in Misano;• James Toseland ran fourteen races here, climbing on the podium twice in second: in 2003, race 1 and 2006, race 1. In MotoGP he was sixth in 2008 and tenth last year;• Chris Vermeulen was second behind Regis Laconi in both 2005 races, then he went to MotoGP, when he was second again behind Casey Stoner in the 2007 race;• Ruben Xaus obtained three wins in Misano, he is second amongst the all-time winners of the Italian track behind Troy Bayliss (6 wins). From 2003 to 2008 he always finished in the top-10, while last year he recorded a fourteenth and a sixteenth. OTHER NOTES ON THE MISANO RACES • In the last four races run here four different manufacturers have won the race: Suzuki with Neukirchner in 2008, race 1, Ducati in race 2 with Xaus, Yamaha with Spies in 2009 race 1 and Honda with Rea in race 2;• Kawasaki (1994 race 1, Scott Russell) and Aprilia (2000 double by Corser) have also won at Misano, so only BMW among the current manufacturers have missed out on the win here;• Ducati won 26 races out of 36 in Misano, unbeaten from 2001 to 2006 race 1. Recently they won three of the last six races and in 2009 the best-placed Ducati was second in both races. MILESTONES IN MISANO 1994 - First and only fastest lap for Piergiorgio Bontempi;1995 - First win and first fastest lap for Mauro Lucchiari, 50th pole position for Ducati by Carl Fogarty;1996 - First win, pole and fastest lap for John Kocinski on his first appearance in WSBK;1999 - 150th fastest lap for Ducati by Troy Corser, 100th podium placement for Carl Fogarty;2003 - 200th fastest lap for Ducati (Ruben Xaus), 50th podium appearance for Pierfrancesco Chili;2004 - First pole position for Steve Martin;2005 - 10th win for Regis Laconi;2006 - First win for Andrew Pitt in race 2;2007 - 40th career pole for Troy Corser;2008 - Troy Corser scored his 42nd pole, exactly twice as many as Fogarty and Bayliss. Maiden fastest lap for Jakub Smrz. Max Neukirchner in race 1 took a Suzuki to the win for the first time in Misano;2009 - Maiden pole for Jakub Smrz and maiden win for Jonathan Rea. SUPERSPORT FLASH DATA In Misano the following riders obtained their maiden Supersport win: Massimo Meregalli (1997), Ruben Xaus (1999), Christian Kellner (2000), Massimo Roccoli (2006). Roccoli's one is the last by an Italian rider in Misano. SUPERSTOCK 1000 FLASH DATA • First Supesrtock 1000 win for Ivan Sala (1999), Fabio Capriotti (2000), Gianluca Vizziello (2002), Lorenzo Alfonsi (2004);• Last year Maxime Berger took Honda to the top step of the podium at Misano. In the last four years four different manufacturers have won here: Suzuki in 2006 (Polita), Yamaha in 2007 (Baiocco), Ducati in 2008 (Polita) and then Honda;• Alex Polita is the only rider to have won twice in Superstock 1000 in Misano (2006 and 2008). SUPERSTOCK 600 FLASH DATA Yamaha won here in the odd years (2005, 2007 and 2009), while in the even ones the winners were Kawasaki in 2006 and Honda in 2008. Read article
Haga, Fabrizio and Bayliss conclude Ducati Xerox testing at Misano
Source: WORLDSBK.COM | NEWS - Tuesday, 15th June 2010, 13:15 GMTTesting concluded this evening for the Ducati Xerox team and riders Noriyuki Haga, Michel Fabrizio and Troy Bayliss. The three-day test session took place on Thursday, Sunday and today, with the first two days of testing coinciding with the first and last day of World Ducati Week, allowing the huge crowds of Ducatisti to witness an official testing session first hand. Noriyuki and Michel were on track on their factory 1198 bikes while Troy Bayliss, testing for the second time this season, rode the development machine, aided by Ducati's Superbike development team under the guidance of Ernesto Marinelli who, as well as undertaking the role of Team Manager, acted as Bayliss' race engineer once more on occasion of the tests. Also present for the tests were other Ducati privateer teams including World Superbike outfits Althea Racing with riders Carlos Checa and Shane Byrne, the DFX Corse riders Lorenzo Lanzi and Regis Laconi, as well as the Supersonic Racing Team with Italian rider Luca Scassa. The three Ducati Xerox riders completed five hours of testing on Thursday, registering some very fast lap times, maintaining a good rhythm despite the very hot conditions (which didn't drop below 30°C air and 40°C track temperature). By the end of this first day, Michel had recorded the fastest unofficial time of the Ducati Xerox riders, stopping the clock at 1m36.2. During Sunday afternoon's session temperatures were slightly lower but a light rain shower interrupted the short session. Both Noriyuki and Michel made some consistently fast laps and were satisfied with the progress made (while Bayliss elected not to ride). Today's test was private, with the WDW event having closed yesterday, and all three riders were on track all day, alongside private teams Althea Racing, DFX Corse and Supersonic. Pirelli provided some new tyres for Noriyuki, Michel and Troy to test but tyre test aside, most of the work involved preparation for the Misano SBK round, in which Noriyuki and Michel will participate at the end of this month. The team was satisfied with the times set, Bayliss 1m35.6, Fabrizio 1m36.0 and Haga 1m36.4, and return to the factory in Borgo-Panigale in a positive state of mind. Noriyuki Haga: "It's definitely been a useful test session, even though it was very hot! I enjoyed WDW, my first as a Ducati factory rider, but today we got the real work done, and I'm feeling more confident about the next Misano race. We tested the new tyre and we made various modifications to my bike through the day. All in all I think we can say it was a very positive test. Now we go home for a few days and then we are back here for the race!" Michel Fabrizio: "It was great to do some testing during WDW as the fans were able to see what goes on. Today was the only full day on track and we got a lot done in preparation for the race here in two weeks. It's been extremely hot but conditions will undoubtedly be similar for the race so it was definitely useful. I'm happy with the times; my best was a 1m36.2 which is fairly good in this heat, and I would say that we leave here in a positive state of mind, ready for the race in two weeks time." Troy Bayliss: "The testing's gone really well and with more time on track today the times improved quite a bit this morning. I'm happy with how it all went and hope my feedback can help Nori and Michel, but I'm also tired because we've had a lot to do during this edition of WDW, both on and off track! As I said during Saturday's WDW press conference, I have made up my mind and I won't be coming back to the racing but I will undertake one more Superbike test later this year, just before the Imola SBK round, as agreed with Ducati at the start of the season." Ernesto Marinelli: "It's definitely been an intense weekend, but also one of the best I've had. The whole team and the riders have worked hard, and the passion of the Ducatisti here never dwindled for a second, despite the sweltering heat that we had here every day. In the last few months we have had some difficult and frustrating times but the support and affection that every fan has shown this weekend has definitely given us a unique motivation. A huge thank-you to all the Ducatisti! The test was very positive and we are confident ahead of the race." Read article
Laconi wants to make racing return at Misano
Source: | Motorcycle Sport | World Superbikes - Monday, 14th June 2010, 14:30 GMTRegis Laconi has revealed to MCN his intention to race at the Misano round of the World Superbike Championship on 25th to 27th June. The Frenchman was badly injured in a practice crash at Kyalami last year where he suffered... Read article
Laconi wants to make racing return at Misano
Source: | Motorcycle Sport | World Superbikes - Monday, 14th June 2010, 14:30 GMTRegis Laconi has revealed to MCN his intention to race at the Misano round of the World Superbike Championship on 25th to 27th June. The Frenchman was badly injured in a practice crash at Kyalami last year where he suffered... Read article
Laconi wants to make racing return at Misano
Source: | Motorcycle Sport | World Superbikes - Monday, 14th June 2010, 13:52 GMTRegis Laconi has revealed to MCN his intention to race at the Misano round of the World Superbike Championship on 25th to 27th June. Read article
Laconi wants to make racing return at Misano
Source: | Motorcycle Sport | World Superbikes - Monday, 14th June 2010, 13:52 GMTRegis Laconi has revealed to MCN his intention to race at the Misano round of the World Superbike Championship on 25th to 27th June. Read article
Laconi back on track again for DFX at WDW
Source: WORLDSBK.COM | NEWS - Friday, 11th June 2010, 8:36 GMTDFX Corse, which switched back to Ducati in 2009, is one of the teams taking advantage of World Ducati Week currently being held at Misano World Circuit to put in some extra track testing time. The team is present with the rider it normally enters in World Superbike events, Lorenzo Lanzi, but also with a man who has experienced an important chapter of his long career with the Veneto-based squad: Regis Laconi. Following his dramatic crash during free practice at Kyalami in 2009, the Frenchman has now returned for an exploratory test to see his current state of form. Laconi has continued training on his bicycle all this time to remain fit, and after more than 70 laps with a best time of 1'37''800, he proved that his talent is still intact. But any thoughts of returning to racing for the moment are premature and totally groundless. The friendship that ties Regis to team manager Daniele Carli enabled the test to take place, for the joy of the thousands of WDW fans. Lorenzo Lanzi was back on his regular 1098 mount for the first time since Monza and was immediately back on the pace. After 45 laps the Italian had recorded a best time of 1'36''600, also setting a good race pace over the distance. Lanzi will be back on track on Sunday evening and then on Monday on a day reserved for the Ducati teams taking part in this year's championship. Read article
A look back at Kyalami
Source: WORLDSBK.COM | NEWS - Thursday, 13th May 2010, 12:40 GMT2009 - The start of the racing weekend at Kyalami was marred by a bad accident: Regis Laconi high-sided in free practice and was taken to hospital with fractured vertebrae. The early outlook was gloomy, but after the first night spent in an induced coma, Regis was partially woken up and he was able to move his arms and legs. In Superpole Ben Spies continued to impress, setting his sixth pole to equal the all-time sequence set by Doug Polen in 1991. Impressive was also the gap to the second classified, Fabrizio: one thousandth of a second, the smallest ever in Superbike history. At the start Haga was fastest off the line and took the lead in front of Spies and Fabrizio, but the latter was the man on the move, quickly passing the American and by the second lap he also passed his team mate to take the lead. In the early stages the leading group was made up of Fabrizio, Haga, Spies and Rea. The Honda rider lost contact after a handful of laps, and the leading trio went on without dramas until lap 12, when Haga took the lead from Fabrizio, with the Italian unable to maintain Haga's pace in the third sector of the track. Michel quickly fell into the clutches of Spies and this gave an advantage to Haga, who pulled away from the battling youngsters behind him. Spies was able to snatch second by lap 17, but his pace wasn't fast enough to leave Fabrizio, who kept on pressuring him. The Italian finally got the better of Spies, who made a small mistake on lap 21, giving second place to Fabrizio. Spies gave up his chase and in the final laps Haga, Fabrizio and Spies cruised to the end. Haga started well also in the second race and took the lead from Biaggi and Spies. The American was past Max by the next corner and set after Haga. During the first lap also Jonathan Rea was able to pass Biaggi and the leading trio carved out a small gap over the rest of the pack. On lap 2 Spies took the lead from Haga and the pair upped their pace, leaving Rea behind. The Honda rider was soon caught by Fabrizio, recovering from a bad start, but on the following lap the focus shifted to Spies, who broke his gear lever and was out of the race. On lap 4 Fabrizio passed Rea for second and sat behind Haga. The two Ducati works riders quickly pulled away from the rest, and arrived in formation at the last lap, when Fabrizio made two over-enthusiastic attempts to pass Haga, ending up by outbraking himself. The Ducati pair left Kyalami in the lead of the Championship, with Haga on 250 points and Fabrizio 165, while Spies was now in third with 162. 2002 - At Kyalami there was not much change in the finishing order from what the Championship had shown so far, as it was a two-man duel between Bayliss and Edwards. In race 1 Bayliss won in front of Edwards and Xaus, in race 2 in front of...Xaus and Edwards. All three were on Michelin rubber in a year where the tyre war was crucial for performance: the Dunlop riders were not so far behind, but not in a condition to fight for the win. Haga was a clear example: the Japanese rider started well twice and was even able to take the lead, but Bayliss only had to wait for the Dunlops to wear out and then he passed him and there were no further problems for the rest of the races. 2001 - Ben Bostrom took pole at Kyalami, but in race 1 Edwards was in a class of his own; Bayliss stayed with him for half of the race, then gave up the fight, leaving the American to cruise to the end. Third was Corser and fourth Bostrom, who in race 2 immediately took the lead at the start, while Edwards had to pass Bayliss and Corser before starting to chase him. Colin had another pace in Kyalami, caught Ben and managed to pass him, but suffered a mechanical failure soon afterwards and Bostrom won unchallenged, since Bayliss was not able to catch him and Corser was too far behind. Edwards' failure put the spotlight on Honda's poor reliability in the first two races: the American had lost a win and his team-mate Okada suffered three failures in four races (he was still at zero points after a clash with Laconi in Valencia that completed the series of retirements). Read article
Assen Statistics
Source: WORLDSBK.COM | NEWS - Friday, 23rd April 2010, 8:27 GMT• Matteo Baiocco finished fourteenth in race two last year, after a retirement in race one. In his three years in the Superstock 1000 championship he obtained his best result in 2006 with a fourth place, missing the lower step of the podium due to a last lap pass by Alex Polita;• Max Biaggi in his Superbike career has only finished once on the podium in Assen out of six races: a third place in race two, 2007. In the 500cc/MotoGP class he won in 2001 in front of Valentino Rossi and Loris Capirossi and added to that two more podium finishes out of eight races started;• Shane Byrne was in the points in both races last year with an eleventh and an eighth place. He wasn't so lucky in the MotoGP championship: he never scored points in the two races he ran for Aprilia and Proton;• Two podiums in 2008 and a seventh place last year are Carlos Checa's results in Assen in his Superbike runs. In the 500cc/MotoGP class he obtained his best result in Assen in 1997, when he finished second behind Mick Doohan;• Troy Corser ran twenty-six races in Assen, but never managed to climb on the top step of the podium. He scored three second places and a total of seven podium placements in the Netherlands, starting three times from pole. In the last three races run here he always finished tenth;• Michel Fabrizio climbed on the podium in third in his first Superbike race, back in 2006, then he never managed to double that performance, albeit finishing four times in the top-10. Both in 2008 and in 2009 problems with his arm influenced his performances: he had to retire twice in 2008 and last year he missed on a podium finish, being forced to slow down in the closing laps. Michel was third in the 2005 Supersport race behind Fabien Foret and Sebastien Charpentier and fifth in the 2003 Superstock 1000 race;• Noriyuki Haga won twice in Assen (2000 race two and last year, race two), he racked up ten podium placements and scored a total of 250 championship points in this track. The Japanese is second only to Carl Fogarty for podium placements in Assen (fifteen for Carl);• The current championship leader, Leon Haslam, is the man to watch on the Dutch track. Six races run here in Superbike and he never finished lower than seventh, scoring a podium placement in both last year's races, respectively in third and second. Last year he started from the front row with the third fastest qualifying lap;• Vittorio Iannuzzo is particularly unlucky in Assen: he withdrew two times in 2003 and 2008, three retirements and only one race finished, with a fifteenth in 2006, race one. Vittorio raced here also a total of six races in the Supersport and Superstock 1000 races, his best result was a sixth place in the 2002 Superstock 1000 race;• Lorenzo Lanzi finished in the top-10 the first five races he contested here, obtaining as best result a fifth in 2007, race one. The same year in race two he fell and in 2008 he had to withdraw due to problems with his arm;• Nine points finishes out of ten races for Max Neukirchner, who retired only in 2006, race two. The German started inside the top-10 in the last three editions and obtained his best result in 2008, race one, when he was third behind Bayliss and Checa;• Broc Parkes raced in Superbikes here in 2001 and 2002, finishing eighth in race two, 2002. In the Supersport championship he raced here five times, obtaining his best result in 2004 (fourth). Broc retired in the 2006 and 2007 races, respectively when he was leading and when he was running second. Particularly costly was the 2006 fall, when he was in the lead: a shoulder and three ribs broken and a punctured lung;• Andrew Pitt was fifth in both 2005 races and second in both races the following year, respectively behind Chris Walker and Troy Bayliss. Good performances also in the Supersport championship: a win in 2008 in front of Jonathan Rea and Joan Lascorz and three more podium placements, in 2001, 2004 and 2007;• Jonathan Rea was seventh and fifth in the 2009 races. In the 2008 Supersport race he missed the win by 0"014 seconds, beaten to the flag by Andrew Pitt;• Luca Scassa was able to score a point last year. In the 2006 Superstock 1000 race he finished fifth;• Jakub Smrz finished his last five Superbike races always in the top-10 obtaining a third in race two last year, starting from the second grid spot;• Two top-10 finishes for Tom Sykes in the only races run here last year: fourth and sixth;• James Toseland won twice out of fourteen races contested in Assen: in 2004, race one, in front of Pierfrancesco Chili and Regis Laconi and in 2007 race one, in front of Noriyuki Haga and Ruben Xaus. For him also five more podium placements and a pole, scored in 2007. In his two years in the MotoGP championship was ninth in 2008 and sixth in 2009;• Chris Vermeulen obtained outstanding results in Assen, winning three of the four races he contested here, starting both times from the front the front row. Chris' triple win spans from the second 2004 race and both 2005 ones. Curiously he defeated the same riders: James Toseland and Noriyuki Haga, second and third in 2004 race two and 2005 race one and third and second in race two, 2005. Chris managed to score pole in the 2002 and 2003 races of the Supersport Championship, finishing second behind Karl Muggeridge in the 2003 edition. In four years as a MotoGP driver his best result was a fifth obtained last year;• A win in 2003, race one in front of team-mate Neil Hodgson and four more podium placements are the results obtained by Ruben Xaus, who hasn't finished on the podium since 2007, last year he was fourteenth and eleventh starting from the twentieth grid spot after experiencing setup problems in qualifying. OTHER NOTES ON THE ASSEN RACES • Aprilia managed to climb on the podium only in 2001, race two, with Troy Corser and in 2002, race one with Noriyuki Haga, in both cases in third. Not one of the Aprilia riders has ever managed to qualify on the front row;• In the last four years Ducati have won five of the eight races run here, missing the top step of the podium in three occasions, in which they left the win to three different manufacturers: in 2009, race one, the winner was Spies on a Yamaha, in 2007, race one Toseland on a Honda, and in 2006, race one Chris Walker with the Kawasaki;• Honda have won ten times in Assen, their last win dates back to 2007 (Toseland);• Kawasaki obtained the last of their 35 superbikes wins here back in 2006 with Chris Walker;• Suzuki have never managed to win on the Dutch track: for the Japanese manufacturer only three podium placements, three thirds by Gregorio Lavilla in 2003, race two, Max Biaggi in 2007, race two and in 2008 by Max Neukirchner in race one;• Yamaha was back on the top step of the podium last year with Ben Spies after a wait that began in 2000 (Haga, race two). During this interval Yamaha was close to the win, obtaining five second places;• In the last four editions there were four different manufacturers on pole: Suzuki in 2006 (Corser), Honda in 2007 (Toseland), Ducati in 2008 (Bayliss) and Yamaha in 2009 (Spies). MILESTONES IN ASSEN 1992: Raymond Roche scored his 25th (and last) fastest lap. He was the first rider in history to reach this goal. Roche's record remained unbeaten until May 28th 1995, when Carl Fogarty equalled it in Donington;1993: 75th win for Ducati by Carl Fogarty in race 1. In the second race Fogarty took his 10th win;1996: 25th win for Honda by Carl Fogarty;2001: 100th pole position for Ducati (Troy Bayliss), the Italian manufacturer scored its 175th fastest lap in race 1 with Ruben Xaus;2002: first career podium for James Toseland;2004: 200th race start for Troy Corser, 10th pole position for Pierfrancesco Chili, the 125th for Ducati and the last one for the Italian rider;2005: first pole position for Chris Vermeulen;2006: first win (at the 131st start) for Chris Walker. First podium for Fonsi Nieto;2007: 50th podium placement for James Toseland;2008: 20th pole for Troy Bayliss, 40th front row start for Noriyuki Haga;2009: maiden podium for Jakub Smrz, the first rider from the Czech republic to climb on the podium in Superbike history. SUPERSPORT FLASH DATA • Honda have won the last eight races run here. The last one to win with a different bike was Paolo Casoli in 2001 (Yamaha). In the last two years this supremacy was broken only in qualifying, when the Yamahas of Parkes and Crutchlow started from pole in 2008 and 2009;• The only riders to have won twice in Assen are Karl Muggeridge, Fabien Foret and Kenan Sofuoglu;• The record man for podium finishes is Andrew Pitt, with four placements in the rostrum (2nd in 2001, 3rd in 2004, 2nd in 2007 and winner in 2008);• Fabien Foret scored a total of 108 championship points at the Dutch track. SUPERSTOCK 1000 FLASH DATA Maxime Berger is the man to beat here: he won both races in 2008 and 2009 at this track, the only rider in championship history who has won twice at Assen. IT HAPPENED AT VALENCIA • second straight pole for Cal Crutchlow, only fourteen days after his maiden pole, scored in Portimao. Cal is third in the ranking of the fastest riders which claimed their first two poles. The fastest was Marco Lucchinelli, which took his second pole only seven days after his maiden one (Sugo-Le Mans 1988). Second is Ben Spies with thirteen days (Phillip Island-Losail 2009) and third, together with Crutchlow there is Rob Phillis (Shah Alam-Manfeild 1990);• tenth front row start for Carlos Checa. It's his third straight front row, equalling his personal best scored from Monza to the Nurburgring in 2008;• Max Biaggi in Valencia equalled a peculiar record in Superbike history, the one related to the highest number of front row starts without obtaining a pole. Max obtained on the Spanish track his seventeenth front row start, equalling Fabrizio Pirovano's record, which ended his career with the same figure (182 races);• BMW scored their best result both in the starting grid and in the race, respectively a fifth and a fourth place with Troy Corser;• James Toseland was back on the podium for the first time since the Vallelunga race in 2007;• sixth Valencia win for Noriyuki Haga, the third absolute value for a single track. The highest value belongs to Carl Fogarty, with twelve wins in assen, then Troy Corser with seven in Phillip Island. Haga at the moment counts 42 race wins, exactly ten less than three-times world champion Troy Bayliss; Read article
