Ten Kate Reviews Day Two at Assen | World SBK – WSS
- From: TRS Media | Published: April 25th, 2009 - 11:39 am
Carlos Checa set the seventh fastest time in this afternoon’s Superpole session to earn himself a place on the second row for tomorrow’s fourth round World Superbike championship races at Assen in Holland.
The Spanish ace, who finished twice on the podium in last year’s races, set his best time of the weekend during the Superpole session, in which the top 20 riders are reduced to 16 and then eight to determine final grid positions.
Pole position was taken for the fourth time by WSBK rookie Ben Spies, with Jakub Smrz, Leon Haslam and Noriyuki Haga completing the front row slots for tomorrow’s two 22-lap encounters.
Checa’s Hannspree Ten Kate Honda team-mate, Jonathan Rea, endured a luckless day with machine breakdowns and a crash leaving him on the third row in 11th place on the grid.
Carlos Checa – P7, best lap 1’38.115 (Superpole 2)
Well the base setting of the bike is now quite good, after the changes we made have given me a better connection. Everything is working quite well and I am already six or seven tenths faster than last year’s race pace. We have been going in the right direction and, although there is still a little chatter which we must work hard to reduce, it is much less than before. We have changed the engine mapping and I am running with a longer exhaust this weekend, but we still need to improve handling on corner entry and to find more rear grip. But the good base means we should only need to make small changes now.
Jonathan Rea – P11, best lap 1’38.510 (Superpole 2)
It’s been a tough day, really. First we had a breakdown this morning, which was followed by a crash on some oil or dust from an earlier crash. That cost us a lot of time but we were still pretty confident going into Superpole, especially after finishing second in the free practice just before. Then in Superpole two, I had some electrical problem with the number one machine and my confidence was not so good on the spare bike. However, the set-up feels much stronger than it’s been for a while, so I’m really looking forward to the races. It’s going to be tough getting anything from where I’m starting, so I’ll need someone looking down and smiling on me tomorrow.
Ronald ten Kate – team manager
Jonathan’s problem in Superpole was a sensor failure, which forced him to swap to his second bike. At least he has pretty good race pace and a couple of good starts could see him up there. Carlos has done well over the weekend so far and I think he’s the guy with the most 1’39s laps on paper. For tomorrow, I strongly believe he will be at the front immediately. We’re definitely in a better position than we were in Valencia, but Superpole didn’t quite bring us what we expected today.
Ryuichi Kiyonari will start from the fourth row of the grid in tomorrow’s two fourth round World Superbike championship races after qualifying in sixteenth place today.
Pole position was taken by American Ben Spies, as Kiyonari was forced to use his spare Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade, having crashed his main bike in free practice, just before the final Superpole shoot-out.
Kiyonari went out in Superpole 1 on a race tire and then put in a faster lap on a qualifier to progress to Superpole 2. However, on his first flying lap, a small mistake forced him wide at turn one and the Japanese rider struggled thereafter.
Ryuichi Kiyonari – P16, best lap: 1’39.059s (2nd qualifying)
The crash in free practice was at the worst time – just before the Superpole began. The data shows that I went into the final chicane a little too fast and used more brake than usual. The damage was too bad to repair in time for Superpole so I had to use the spare bike. Although the bike had nearly the same setting, my feeling was completely different and I had no confidence in the front. Then I made a mistake on my first flying lap in Superpole 2 and that was it. I don’t like the time attack format of Superpole and, again, I have had a bad Superpole, but it’s the same for everyone. I will try my best in the races tomorrow for the best results I can get for the team.
Ronald ten Kate – team manager
Kiyo-san’s Superpole was pretty much finished before it began when he crashed his number one machine in free practice. His second bike didn’t give him quite the same confidence in the front and so he finds himself on the fourth row. He has shown what he can do though, so with a couple of good starts, he is capable of some solid results.
WSS
Kenan Sofuoglu will start tomorrow’s fourth round 2009 World Supersport race from the front row of the grid after setting the third fastest time in today’s final qualifying session at Assen in Holland.
The Turkish ace – winner of the 2007 world title – will line-up alongside pole sitter, Cal Crutchlow – with whom he shares the championship lead – Joan Lascorz, and fellow Honda rider, Eugene Laverty, for the 22-lap encounter around the famous Dutch circuit.
Sofuoglu’s Hannspree Ten Kate Honda team-mate and reigning World Supersport champion, Andrew Pitt, took tenth place on the grid, leaving that until his very last lap of qualifying. The Australian continues to work on improving the front end handling of his CBR600RR.
Kenan Sofuoglu – P3, 1’40.998s
My main problem has been the combination of corners after the back straight where it’s difficult to turn the bike – it’s costing me about half a second, which is almost the difference between me and pole position. But Crutchlow is very strong, so it will be a big fight tomorrow. At least I am on the front row, which gives me the best chance to win again. I am very positive about our chances but, like every Supersport race, there will be a long battle for victory.
Andrew Pitt – P10, 1’41.653s
We’ve definitely made some progress since Valencia, but I’m still finding it difficult to hold a line while turning the bike on the throttle. Before I went out for that final push I was lying in about P17, I think, and I was pretty much right on the limit through the whole lap. We’ve been trying everything to make it easier to do the time, but it’s not there yet, and we’ve had a couple of electronic glitches, too. But we’ll have a couple of things to try in the morning and they will hopefully point us in the right direction.
Ronald ten Kate – team manager
It’s the tale of two sides of the garage at the moment. The changes we’ve made to the new CBR600RR seem to be working for Kenan and his crew has found the right direction for him to go in. It’s good to see him on the front row to give himself the best chance of winning. With Andrew, we’re still struggling to find a decent set-up and still have a lot of work to do. However, he won the race here last year from ninth on the grid, so we know what he can do!
