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Yamaha Raring to go after Summer Break |
Yamaha Raring to go after Summer Break
Eurospeedway circuit
This weekend sees the return of the World Superbike Championship after
the
traditional summer break and the Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team are fired
up and
raring to go. With Haga in second place and 66 points behind the current
championship leader, the team has worked hard during the weeks since the
last
round at Brands Hatch to ensure that the fight for the title will go
right to the
wire this weekend at the German circuit in Lausitz.
The Eurospeedway circuit is Germany's youngest track and was built in
Lausitz to
help rejuvenate the old mining area following the closure of many coal
pits.
Although the circuit was first conceived in the 1980s building work
didn't start
until 1998. Development of the circuit was dogged by financial crises as
well as
local petitions both for and against the track but it was finally opened
in August
2000 in front of an 110,000 strong crowd. The circuit is built on 370
hectares,
which is almost twice the size of Monaco and features seven different
track
layouts.
Prior to the summer break, the Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team claimed three
podium
positions at Brands Hatch, with Haga taking a second position finish
while Corser
took second and third. Yamaha also took their 150th WSB podium with
Corser's race
one second place.
Corser's best result at Lausitz to date is third, which he has achieved
twice, but
following a few weeks rest he is determined to improve on this result.
"It's been
good to have a rest from racing for a few weeks as it's given me time to
get some
training in. I now feel a lot more refreshed and am focused and raring
to go for
the last three rounds," Corser says.
"Lausitz is quite a different track to many of those on the calendar and
I like it
for that reason. It's a bit like an American track with the infield
section and
grandstands around the outside. From a riding point of view it's quite
challenging
for set-up and you also have quite an unusual turn at the end of the
straight
where you join the infield section," Corser says of the track. "This
weekend I'm
going all-out to win; I've gone well at Lausitz in the past and Nori's
previous
results there show that the Yamaha also goes well so it should be a good
weekend."
Haga has an impressive previous form at the German circuit with a pair of
second
places last year and a second and a third in 2005, as well as the
fastest lap of
both races that year, which gave him his 25th fastest lap of his WSB
career. "Last
year was a difficult race for me at Lausitz because I hurt my wrist
there in the
last practice session on the Saturday. I'd been doing some long runs and
was on a
final one when I almost high-sided twice which sprained my wrist. I had
to have
pain killing injections for the race which, in my opinion, hampered my
results,"
Haga says looking back to last year's race. "Even though I got two
second places I
feel I could've done better under other circumstances. The bike was good
then and
it's even better now so this weekend I'm determined for the race win."
Talking about his riding style, Haga says "During the summer rest period
I've
given much thought to how I can improve my riding and I'm going to be
trying a
slightly new riding style this weekend to see if it has any effect.
Don't worry;
the usual Haga-style will still be there though!"
World Supersport
This weekend also sees the season resume for the Yamaha World Supersport
Team and
Parkes is joined once again by Tommy Hill following his good performance
and fifth
place finish at Brands last month. The star of the Brands weekend,
though, was
Parkes who took his first victory of the season which puts him in fifth
championship place going into the 11th of 13 rounds.
The team actually returned from their summer break last week when they
attended a
test at Magny-Cours. Despite wet weather hampering the test, the team
gained some
good data and set-up options in addition to brushing away the cobwebs in
anticipation of the start of the final push to the season finale.
Parkes didn't race at Lausitz last year due injury sustained in a crash
at Assen
but he took second in 2005, proving his capability on the R6 at this
circuit. This
weekend he will be looking for a good result, not least because the
German round
is the home round for the Yamaha World Supersport Team. "Although I
didn't race at
Lausitz last year because of my Assen crash I've normally had good
results at this
circuit, including when I rode in WSB here in 2001 and 2002. The track
is good;
it's very technical and demanding because the corners are pretty tight
and there
aren't a lot of straights. It's also quite a tough track for hard
braking," Parkes
says. "Brands was a real boost to my confidence and, with good results
also in the
last three races, I'm looking to get some more wins before the end of
the season
and I'll be working towards one this weekend."
This weekend's race comes hot on the heels of Yamaha's announcement of
their WSS
rider line up for 2008. Parkes will continue to ride the R6 for the
Yamaha World
Supersport team and will be joined by Fabien Foret for next season. "I'm
really
excited to be staying with the team for a fourth year," Parkes says.
"I'm getting
back to peak fitness following my accident at Donington earlier this
season and
I'm getting to the point where I wanted to be originally. I really like
the team
and am positive I can do a good job for them next year. Foret is a
strong team
mate to have and it'll be good to have two of us in the team who can
push the
bike's development even further."
Tommy Hill is reunited with Parkes for this weekend; his second race
partnering
the Australian in the Yamaha World Supersport Team. Hill's first
appearance with
the team was last month at his home track in the UK where he brought the
bike home
in a credible fifth position. Tommy has been drafted in from the Yamaha
Virgin
Media Optima Loans British Superbike Team for this weekend's race
following a good
test session with the team last week at Magny-Cours.
"I've never been to the Lausitz circuit before so it's not going to be
easy this
weekend. I need to get to know the track before I can start to focus on
my times
but I learnt the Magny-Cours circuit quite quickly last week and the
team say that
circuit is harder than this one so I'm hopeful of being able to put in
some good
times by the second practice session," Hill says. "I'm looking forward
to working
with the team again - they are so professional and good to work with.
I'm also
keen to get back on the R6 again. I want to be on the podium this
weekend and
right now I don't see why I shouldn't be."
As a point of note Jason O'Halloran recently took the Australian
Supersport Title.
19-year old Jason was a guest rider for the Yamaha World Supersport Team
in Brno
in July, where he finished a credible 12th.
FIM Superstock 1000 Cup
Brands Hatch provided a dramatic race for the Yamaha Superstock riders
with Corti
taking third after a race-long battle for all three podium positions
while Van
Keymeulen was forced to retire after running wide off the track. Umbria
Bike rider
Matteo Baiocco maintained his championship lead despite finishing fourth
and
Corti's team mate, Pirro, struggled with some arm pain, eventually
finishing in
ninth.
This weekend Baiocco will be looking to increase his 12-point lead but he
will
have to watch out for Corti and Van Keymeulen, who won at Lausitz in
2006 and 2005
respectively. Pirro is hoping to have resolved his arm-pump issues in
order to
return to this season's previously good form. With only 51 points
between Pirro in
seventh and lead-man Baiocco, he is certain to be keen to finish on the
podium in
Germany.
Circuit Data
Track length: 4265m
Track opened: 2000
2006 WSB winners: Kagayama (Suzuki), Toseland (Honda)
2006 WSB fastest lap: 1'38.635 (Bayliss, Ducati)
WSB lap record: 1'37.623 (Bayliss, Ducati, 2006)
Circuit tel: +49 (0) 357 543 1110
Circuit website: www.eurospeedway.de
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