Pitt shines but Haga finds gloom in Assen

It was a day of mixed emotions for the Yamaha Motor Italia team in Assen. Andrew Pitt grabbed two superb second places to move up to fourth in the championship but team-mate Noriyuki Haga dropped down to third after he failed to finish either race.

The day's first race was wet and, with little more than 15 minutes rain testing in the morning warm-up, was to prove something of a lottery that caught out all of the main title contenders.

Starting from second on the grid, Haga found himself in fourth place at the end of the first lap, behind series leader Troy Bayliss (Ducati) and the Suzukis of Troy Corser and Yukio Kagayama. Despite the conditions the racing proved close, with Haga fearless on the brakes as he took the lead for the first time on lap six. One by one Haga's rivals crashed out, leaving the Yamaha rider with an 18 second lead over team-mate Pitt in second. Unfortunately Haga also succumbed to the conditions, losing the front end on lap 13 of 22.

That left Pitt in the lead, the Australian having worked his way diligently through after ending the first lap in seventh place. The Australian had found it hard to overtake, a situation caused as much by the proliferation of yellow caution flags as the slippery surface, but finally got past Michel Fabrizio (Honda) to take the lead on lap 13.

Pitt rode steadily as the conditions worsened, but by lap 15 wet weather specialist Chris Walker completed his charge from the back of the grid to take the lead going into the chicane. The Englishman went on to take his first ever world championship win, while Pitt used his head to take his fourth podium finish of the season.

Race two was run in dry conditions but proved to be short for Haga. The Yamaha rider had collided with Corser coming off the line but led into the first turn, only to be knocked off by another rider. With the accident also claiming Corser and championship contender James Toseland (Honda), Bayliss led from Pitt and Kagayama. Bayliss was able to make a break and take his 10th win of the year, while Pitt rode a superb race to take a comfortable second ahead of third placed Fonsi Nieto (Kawasaki).

Norick Abe   

Norick Abe used all of his experience to take fifth place on his Yamaha Motor France YZF-R1 in the opening race. The Japanese rider avoided the carnage to move steadily through the pack, although he was unable to equal his best result of the season after being passed by Nieto on the final corner. Team-mate and countryman Shinichi Nakatomi gained three points for 13th place, although there was disappointment for Sebastien Gimbert on the third Yamaha France machine. He crashed out of a top 10 finish on lap 10 and was unable to make the second race due to a back injury. Abe and Nakatomi also failed to score in the second race after retiring with a lack of grip.

Bayliss now leads the championship by 100 points from Toseland, who is two points ahead of third placed Haga. Pitt's 40 point haul in the Netherlands, the highest of any rider on the day, sees him move up two places, to fourth overall, with three rounds and six races of the championship remaining.

Andrew Pitt (Yamaha Motor Italia) "At half distance I really thought that I could have won that second race, but in the end the front tyre was gone and I had to settle for second. I'm really pleased with how its went today and I'd like to give special thanks to my team, because they worked very hard and gave me a great bike for the races. When Chris passed me in the first race I tried to stay with him but I think that I was destined to be second. Fortunately the grip is quite good here in the wet but there were a few parts that were unbelievably slippery, probably from the oil that got spilled in the morning warm-up. You just had to work out where you could push and where you couldn't and thankfully I was able to bring it home."

Noriyuki Haga   

Norick Abe (Yamaha Motor France) "My pace in the first race was not so good but I was lucky that many riders crashed in front of me. In the second race I made a good start but slipped back because the grip wasn't right. I went out of the points and pulled in because it was too dangerous to continue."

Shinichi Nakatomi (Yamaha Motor France) "Very difficult weekend. Conditions were very hard in the first race and I was pleased to make the finish and score points. In the second race there was a problem with the rear grip, I think the suspension settings caused the tyre to wear too quickly, and I had to retire."

Shinichi Nakatomi   

Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia) "A very bad day with many crashes. After crashing in the warm-up I had to ride my second bike for the first race. I had a good feeling with the bike but then I just lost the front without any warning. The second was also disappointing because I made a good start and was leading into the first corner. The next thing I knew another bike has hit me and I am out with Toseland and Corser."

Sebastien Gimbert (Yamaha Motor France) "My back is very painful but I have been to the hospital and the scans say nothing is broken. This is good news and with the Bol d'Or endurance racing coming up soon I hope I can make a speedy recovery."

Massimo Meregalli (Team Coordinator - Yamaha Motor Italia) "It's been a mixed day for us in Assen. For Nori it's been a bad day, losing 25 points in the first race and then getting knocked off in the second. Andrew, however, rode two fantastic races. He scored more points than anyone else and has moved up two places in the championship, so this is a good result for him. His points have also moved Yamaha up to second in the constructor's championship. This is also important because it proves to us that we have a very good bike and that the team is working in the right way. Now we've got to go to Lausitzring next weekend. We had a good test there recently and we're looking forward to going back."

Martial Garcia (Team Manager - Yamaha Motor France) "It's been a crazy day because it stared out well and finished bad. The biggest problem is Gimbert's injury. Nothing is broken but he will not make the Lausitz race because the most important thing for him is the Bol d'Or. Abe made a very nice race in the first but it was a bad choice of tyre in race two. The tyre is completely destroyed, and I have never seen anything like it. He used the 200, but Nakatomi used the smaller one and had basically the same problem. So we had a soft tyre and hard tyre and both had a problem. Maybe we did not adjust the suspension properly for the conditions."

Circuit Length: 4555 Temp: 22 Crowd: 61000 Weather: Changeable     2006 WSB Assen 03/09/2006 Race 1 - 22 Laps Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time 1 Chris Walker Kawasaki GBR 44'23.501 2 Andrew Pitt Yamaha AUS 0'4.965 3 Michel Fabrizio Honda ITA 0'24.130 4 Fonsi Nieto Kawasaki ESP 0'36.968 5 Norick Abe Yamaha JPN 0'37.178 6 Max Neukirchner Suzuki GER 0'37.324 7 Lorenzo Lanzi Ducati ITA 0'40.930 8 Roberto Rolfo Ducati ITA 0'41.857 9 Karl Muggeridge Honda AUS 0'53.382 10 James Toseland Honda GBR 0'55.869 11 Ivan Clementi Ducati ITA 1'39.835 12 Steve Martin Petronas AUS 1'59.724 13 Shinichi Nakatomi Yamaha JPN -1 Laps 14 Harry van Beek Suzuki NED -1 Laps 15 Vittorio Iannuzzo Suzuki ITA -5 Laps

Race 2 - 22 Laps Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time 1 Troy Bayliss Ducati AUS 40'0.000 2 Andrew Pitt Yamaha AUS 0'9.342 3 Fonsi Nieto Kawasaki ESP 0'11.648 4 Yukio Kagayama Suzuki JPN 0'12.743 5 Ruben Xaus Ducati ESP 0'12.811 6 Lorenzo Lanzi Ducati ITA 0'19.845 7 Alex Barros Honda BRA 0'29.241 8 Regis Laconi Kawasaki FRA 0'34.085 9 James Toseland Honda GBR 0'42.113 10 Michel Fabrizio Honda ITA 0'51.815 11 Steve Martin Petronas AUS 0'53.608 12 Roberto Rolfo Ducati ITA 0'56.132 13 Karl Muggeridge Honda AUS 0'57.168 14 Chris Walker Kawasaki GBR 1'1.056 15 Joshua Brookes Kawasaki AUS 1'34.429

Best Lap Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time Troy Bayliss Ducati AUS 1'40.767

 Rider Standings 03/09/2006

Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Points 1. Troy Bayliss Ducati AUS 332 2. James Toseland Honda GBR 232 3. Noriyuki Haga Yamaha JPN 230 4. Andrew Pitt Yamaha AUS 197 5. Troy Corser Suzuki AUS 193 6. Alex Barros Honda BRA 175 7. Yukio Kagayama Suzuki JPN 139 8. Chris Walker Kawasaki GBR 123 9. Lorenzo Lanzi Ducati ITA 115 10. Fonsi Nieto Kawasaki ESP 112 11. Michel Fabrizio Honda ITA 109 12. Ruben Xaus Ducati ESP 95 13. Norick Abe Yamaha JPN 88 14. Regis Laconi Kawasaki FRA 80 15. Karl Muggeridge Honda AUS 76 17. Shinichi Nakatomi Yamaha JPN 32 20. Sebastien Gimbert Yamaha FRA 18

Manufacturer Standings 03/09/2006

Pos. Manufacturer Points 1. Ducati 351 2. Yamaha 299 3. Honda 292 4. Suzuki 282 5. Kawasaki 181 6. Petronas 13

RACE REPORT 03/09/2006 Curtain takes championship lead in Assen   Kevin Curtain   

Kevin Curtain did a professional job in difficult conditions to take second place and the championship lead at Assen today, although there was disappointment for his Yamaha Motor Germany squad as team-mate Broc Parkes suffered serious injury after crashing.

The experienced Australian finished second in each leg of the two-part race to pull out a seven point lead over defending world champion Sebastien Charpentier (Honda). Charpentier took the chequered flag 'on the road' but finished fourth on aggregate time.

In wet conditions it was Curtain's team-mate Broc Parkes who took the lead and quickly pulled away. The Australian had hoped a good result would put him right in contention for the title after winning last time out in Brands Hatch but his day ended on lap three when he suffered a huge crash. The rider lost the rear of his machine and tumbled spectacularly into the gravel. Parkes was taken to hospital where the initial diagnosis suggests he has suffered three broken ribs, a punctured lung and an injured shoulder.

With Parkes out, Turkish rider Kenan Sofuoglu built up a big lead while Curtain slotted into a five rider battle for second. The Yamaha rider was battling with Kai Borre Andersen (Suzuki) when the red flags were brought out on lap 10 to allow medical staff to attend to an injured rider. Charpentier took the flag in a relatively incident-free second part, with Curtain and Sofuoglu content to ride sensibly and finish second and third on the road. Sofuoglu took the win, his first of the season, on aggregate time, with Curtain second, Andersen third and Charpentier fourth.

Curtain now leads the championship on 151 points to Charpentier's 144, with three races remaining. Parkes stays third, on 119.

Yamaha's other supersport riders faced mixed results in Assen. Yamaha Team Italia riders Gianluca Vizziello and Massimo Roccoli brought their YZF-R6s home in seventh and eighth places respectively, while Yamaha GMT94's David Checa ran strongly until being sidelined with an electrical problem in the second part of the race.

Kevin Curtain (Yamaha Motor Germany) "It was important to come here and get a good result for the championship. It's a shame for us that the race was wet, because we worked really hard all weekend to find a great set-up for the dry conditions. It was important not to throw it down the road and we can go to Lausitz in good spirits. I'm a lot more confident going to Lausitz than I was coming here, because we've tested there and have good settings while Assen was completely new to us with this bike."

Gianluca Vizziello (Yamaha Team Italia) "I'm happy with the result today and felt confident because I normally go quite well in the rain and had a good rhythm in the practice. It's important to have a good end to the season, to remain in the top 10 of the championship and to build up my confidence for next season."

Massimo Roccoli (Yamaha Team Italia) "I felt a lot better in the second part of the race as I learned a lot about how to ride this track in the wet conditions. With Tibero and Harms crashing I thought about the championship and rode for the points. I'm satisfied because I am not normally strong in the wet but have scored some good points today."

Terrell Thien (Team Manager - Yamaha Motor Germany) "When Broc was in the lead everything was looking OK but in the crash he had a bad head knock and other internal injuries. It is strange because it is great for Kevin to be leading the championship but tonight I my feelings are mixed, on one hand I am happy for Kevin but very sad for Broc."

Circuit Length: 4555 Temp: 22 Crowd: 61000

  2006 WSS Assen 03/09/2006 Race 1 - 21 Laps Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time 1 Kenan Sofuoglu Honda TUR 41'49.124 2 Kevin Curtain Yamaha AUS 0'4.581 3 Kai Borre Andersen Suzuki NOR 0'9.241 4 Sebastien Charpentier Honda FRA 0'9.489 5 Arie Vos Honda NED 0'29.994 6 Barry Veneman Suzuki NED 0'31.858 7 Gianluca Vizziello Yamaha ITA 0'54.312 8 Massimo Roccoli Yamaha ITA 0'56.085 9 Robbin Harms Honda DNK 1'9.735 10 Stuart Easton Ducati GBR 1'13.899 11 Maxime Berger Kawasaki FRA 1'21.451 12 Sebastien Le Grelle Honda BEL 1'26.458 13 Alessio Velini Yamaha ITA 1'32.137 14 Vesa Kallio Yamaha FIN 1'37.377 15 Gianluca Nannelli Ducati ITA 1'45.357

Best Lap Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time Kevin Curtain Yamaha AUS 1'55.516

 Rider Standings 03/09/2006

Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Points 1. Kevin Curtain Yamaha AUS 151 2. Sebastien Charpentier Honda FRA 144 3. Broc Parkes Yamaha AUS 119 4. Robbin Harms Honda DNK 94 5. Kenan Sofuoglu Honda TUR 92 6. Massimo Roccoli Yamaha ITA 86 7. Yoann Tibero Honda FRA 67 8. Johan Stigefelt Honda SWE 57 9. Xavi Fores Yamaha ESP 49 10. Gianluca Vizziello Yamaha ITA 46 11. David Checa Yamaha ESP 29 12. Simone Sanna Honda ITA 27 13. Katsuaki Fujiwara Honda JPN 22 14. Joshua Brookes Ducati AUS 21 15. Christian Zaiser Ducati AUT 21

Manufacturer Standings 03/09/2006

Pos. Manufacturer Points 1. Honda 202 2. Yamaha 188 3. Ducati 54 4. Kawasaki 49 5. Suzuki 28

RACE REPORT 03/09/2006 Corti takes second 1000cc win at Assen   Claudio Corti   

Yamaha Team Italia youngster Claudio Corti took his second FIM Superstock 1000 Cup win of the season in a thrilling Assen race.

The Italian had looked strong all weekend, placing his Yamaha YZF-R1 SP second on the grid and riding an intelligent race to fend off the challenge of British superstock champion Brendon Roberts (Suzuki). The pair enjoyed a fascinating battle which was settled once and for all when Roberts braked too late trying to make a pass as they went into the final chicane for the last time. Corti's win sees him close in on the top three of the championship. The Italian remains fourth in the standings but is now 17 points from third placed Luca Scassa (MV Agusta) with three races remaining. Alessandro Polita (Suzuki) finished third to extend his championship lead to 22 points over non-finishing pole sitter Ayrton Badovini (MV Agusta). Former European supersport champion Matteo Baiocco finished fourth on another Yamaha.

Claudio Corti (Yamaha Team Italia) "I am especially happy because I did not make a good start today. I was able to recover quickly though and when I got into the lead I had a good feeling that I could win. I knew that Roberts would try to pass at the last corner so I was aware of him and waiting for his mistake. It's a good result and now I will push hard and try to finish in the top three of the championship."

Circuit Length: 4555 Temp: 22 Crowd: 61000 Weather: Dry     2006 Superstock Assen 03/09/2006 Race 1 - 13 Laps Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time 1 Claudio Corti Yamaha ITA 22'58.130 2 Brendan Roberts Suzuki AUS 0'3.461 3 Alessandro Polita Suzuki ITA 0'5.718 4 Matteo Baiocco Yamaha ITA 0'6.094 5 Luca Scassa MV Agusta ITA 0'7.397 6 Enrique Rocamora Yamaha ESP 0'7.623 7 Gilles Boccolini Kawasaki ITA 0'8.007 8 Loic Napoleone Suzuki FRA 0'8.557 9 Ilario Dionisi Yamaha ITA 0'8.596 10 David Johnson Yamaha AUS 0'10.275 11 Sheridan Morais Suzuki RSA 0'16.091 12 Riccardo Chiarello Kawasaki ITA 0'16.188 13 Richard Cooper Honda GBR 0'16.396 14 Danilo Dell'omo Suzuki ITA 0'17.802 15 Herve Gantner Yamaha CHE 0'24.357

Best Lap Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time Luca Scassa MV Agusta ITA 1'44.800

 Rider Standings 03/09/2006

Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Points 1. Alessandro Polita Suzuki ITA 131 2. Ayrton Badovini MV Agusta ITA 109 3. Luca Scassa MV Agusta ITA 107 4. Claudio Corti Yamaha ITA 90 5. Enrique Rocamora Yamaha ESP 65 6. Matteo Baiocco Yamaha ITA 51 7. Denis Sacchetti Kawasaki ITA 45 8. Riccardo Chiarello Kawasaki ITA 43 9. Brendan Roberts Suzuki AUS 42 10. Richard Cooper Honda GBR 34 11. Alex Martinez Mas Kawasaki ESP 30 12. Sheridan Morais Suzuki RSA 29 13. Ivan Silva Kawasaki ESP 27 14. Loic Napoleone Suzuki FRA 24 15. Danilo Dell'omo Suzuki ITA 23

Manufacturer Standings 03/09/2006

Pos. Manufacturer Points 1. Suzuki 144 2. MV Agusta 129 3. Yamaha 108 4. Kawasaki 78 5. Honda 35