FIM Superbike World Championship - Round 3 - Assen
Monday 23 April: A huge crowd at Assen were treated to changeable weather, red flags, crashes and treacherous racing conditions. The sun was out just before Race 2 which had already been declared a wet race - dry lines were everywhere.
Superbike Race 1: Guintoli wins his first for his team and himself
An incredible first race, eventually
run over nine fully wet laps, was won by Sylvain Guintoli from Team
Effenbert - Liberty Ducati. This was his first ever victory in this
category of racing. His margin of advantage was 2.6 seconds, from a very
determined rookie rider Davide Giugliano (Althea Racing Ducati) and his
team-mate Carlos Checa.
Their fight for the podium places
was just one of many highlights in the wet race, after the first
attempted contest had started out dry, but was halted when several
leading riders fell as the rains came down. By regulation a whole new
race was declared and the only influence the first leg finishing order
had was to determine grid places for the 'real' second race.
In fourth place in an all Aprilia racing battle, Max Biaggi beat Eugene Laverty. Early leader Leon Haslam fell and no-scored.
Superbike Race 2: Rea overcomes hand injury to score popular Assen win
A great ride from Jonathan Rea (Honda
World Superbike Team) saw him overcome the pain of a hand injury
suffered earlier in the day to win his first race of the year, at his
team's home track. He also scored the first win for Honda in 2012.
Race one winner Sylvain Guintoli
(Team Effenbert Liberty Racing Ducati) was second after his team-mate
Jakub Smrz dropped back from his long time race two lead after choosing a
wet front tyre. Smrz eventually crashed while trying to pass a lapped
rider.
The battle for third went to Eugene Laverty (Aprilia Racing) his first podium of 2012.
His team-mate Max Biaggi is now
leading the championship after finishing eighth in race two, one point
ahead of Carlos Checa (Althea Racing). Checa gambled on rain tyres but
as the track dried and the rain stayed away, he had to come into change
his tyres and he ended up 17th - out of the points. Tom Sykes (Kawasaki
Racing Team) dropped back from a potential podium finish to go sixth,
and stay third in the overall championship fight, 13 points from Biaggi.
The
Effenbert Liberty Racing Team announces that Brett McCormick, following
the disastrous crash in race two this afternoon in Assen, after checks
in the circuit medical center, has suffered a trauma to cervical spine, a
facial trauma with a hematoma to the eye sockets as well as a fracture
of the fifth finger of his right hand, and he was sent to Assen hospital
for further evaluation.mThe result of more checks carried
out showed that there was a fracture to the fifth and sixth cervical
vertebrae, apparently without neurological complications, so Brett has
now been transferred to Groningen hospital, where it will be decided how
to stabilise the injuries.
Supersport: Lanzi and company make history.
Lorenzo Lanzi (PRORACE Honda) took his
and Honda's first race win of the 2012 season in his first ever Honda
Supersport ride. In fully wet conditions, Lanzi moved up to the lead and
pulled away, lapping everyone up to 12th place.
Kenan Sofuoglu (Kawasaki DeltaFin
Lorenzini) was second, some 12 seconds behind Lanzi, with the first ever
Russian rider to take a Supersport podium, Vladimir Leonov (Yakhnich
Racing Yamaha) third.
Broc Parkes (Ten Kate Honda Racing
Products) was fourth, and Triumph rider Alex Baldolini (Power Team by
Suriano) fifth - placing four different manufacturers inside the top
five places.
With many of his rivals crashing
out, Sofuoglu shares the championship lead of 45 points with
non-finisher Fabien Foret (Kawasaki Intermoto Step). Third on an
unchanged 31 points is Sam Lowes (Bogdanka PTR Honda) who fell while
leading today.
Superstock 1000: Barrier wins again for BMW.
Sylvain Barrier (BMW Motorrad Italia
GoldBet) won a tricky Superstock contest held in cold but mostly dry
conditions, which was eventually red-flagged due to oil on the track.
The intended 13 lap race distance
therefore became eight. It was Barrier's second win of the year, after
his victory at Imola. Team-mates Lorenzo Savadori (Barni Racing Team
Italia) and Eddi La Marra (Barni Racing Team Italia) took their Panigale
machines to second and third respectively, close behind the French
rider. Loris Baz (MRS Kawasaki) went fourth in race during which some
big names were forced out by falls or technical issues.
In the championship Barrier has a perfect 50 points, with Baz second on 33 and La Mara third on 32.
EJC opener at Assen - Pasek wins
Polish rider Adrian Pasek won the
opening round of the KTM European Junior Cup at Assen, the series open
for 14 to 19 year-olds from all over the world. In eight supporting
rounds to World Superbike, the youngsters will get their hands on
identical KTM Duke 690 machines provided directly by the Austrian
manufacturer. The one-make tyre supply comes from Pirelli, the same as
the four production-based categories.
In the seven-lap race, held on a
dry track, Pasek finished ahead of Dutchman Rob Hartog, nephew of the
legendary 500cc rider of the 1970s, Wil Hartog. The podium was completed
by another Polish rider Artur Wielebeski.
