Haga wins and Corser scores a podium

Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team rider Noriyuki Haga could not have had two bigger contrasts in his raceday at Valencia, taking a superb win in the second 23-lap contest, but crashing out of the opener at high speed. His team-mate Troy Corser was rewarded for a consistent first race ride with a podium finish in third, and then went on to score a fighting fifth in race two. Corser's podium came in a race where 20 riders finished and there were many high profile incidents. Corser was a lonely third eventually, some seven seconds from the win. Haga crashed out of race one, losing the front at the first corner on lap four as he tried to make up for qualifying 10th in Superpole. In race two Haga led for the second half of the race, and his margin of victory over championship leader Troy Bayliss was 1.551 seconds. Corser, who had been pushing hard throughout and got tangled up with Ruben Xaus for some time, found it impossible to keep his early pace and finished eight seconds from his team-mate. Shinichi Nakatomi secured a fine 11th place in the incident-strewn first race, then finished 16th in race two. David Checa (Yamaha GMT94) followed up his qualifying place of 14th with a point for 15th place, while his team-mate Sebastien Gimbert (Yamaha GMT94) was involved in a three rider crash on lap two of race one and did not start race two, as he only had one machine at his disposal here. Noriyuki Haga (DNF and 1st, 6th - Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team) "I was upset after race one because I was not expecting to lose the front at that point and I felt the bike was working OK. In the early laps of race two I was a bit worried because I had to use my second bike and I had to get my confidence back in the front. It was OK and when I understood that it was possible to win I pushed hard and didn't make any mistakes, which kept Bayliss behind me." Troy Corser (3rd and 5th - Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team) "We got a podium in race one but we were lucky. We have struggled with grip, more on the rear and when we spin we don't seem to push. It's OK for the tyre to spin but it didn't have any forward momentum coming off the corners. It feels like I am trying to ride the bike too hard yet not getting the optimum results we want." Massimo Meregalli (Team Manager, Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team) "We got two podiums this weekend and despite having some troubles in practice and qualifying those are two reasons why our optimism yesterday was deserved. Even if Nori fell in race one, I think in the end we can be very positive about his race two performance." Martial Garcia (Team Manager Team YZF Yamaha) "I was happy with the first race because Nakatomi was only 19 seconds behind the winner and that's progress. We are definitely getting closer to the performance of the top guys and we were only about one second per lap slower than Haga in race two." Christophe Guyot (Team Manager Yamaha GMT94 Team) "We had to stop Sebastien from riding in race two because we only had one bike for him this weekend and the Le Mans 24 hours is coming up soon, so we had to prioritise that. Davide scored a point at home so we are all happy for that." Round 3: Valencia, Spain Track length: 4005m Opened: 1999 Fastest Superbike lap: 1:33.805 (Max Neukirchner, Suzuki) Lap record: 1'35.007 (Neil Hodgson, Ducati) Last year's winners: Ruben Xaus (Ducati) and James Toseland (Honda) Race 1 - 23 Laps Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Lorenzo Lanzi, Ducati, ITA, 37'1.894 2, Troy Bayliss, Ducati, AUS, 0'2.987 3, Troy Corser, Yamaha, AUS, 0'7.287 4, Fonsi Nieto, Suzuki, ESP, 0'11.992 5, Carlos Checa, Honda, ESP, 0'12.824 6, Karl Muggeridge, Honda, AUS, 0'13.125 7, Gregorio Lavilla, Honda, ESP, 0'13.191 8, Regis Laconi, Kawasaki, FRA, 0'13.906 9, Makoto Tamada, Kawasaki, JPN, 0'17.254 10, Roberto Rolfo, Honda, ITA, 0'18.606 11, Shinichi Nakatomi, Yamaha, JPN, 0'19.858 12, Kenan Sofuoglu, Honda, TUR, 0'23.350 13, Russel Holland, Honda, AUS, 0'23.577 14, Jakub Smrz, Ducati, CZE, 0'24.082 15, David Checa, Yamaha, ESP, 0'26.611 16, Max Biaggi, Ducati, ITA, 0'41.168 17, Ayrton Badovini, Kawasaki, ITA, 0'44.405 18, Luca Morelli, Honda, ITA, 0'57.045 Race 2 - 23 Laps Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Noriyuki Haga, Yamaha, JPN, 37'3.590 2, Troy Bayliss, Ducati, AUS, 0'1.551 3, Carlos Checa, Honda, ESP, 0'2.903 4, Ryuichi Kiyonari, Honda, JPN, 0'7.277 5, Troy Corser, Yamaha, AUS, 0'8.051 6, Yukio Kagayama, Suzuki, JPN, 0'9.223 7, Ruben Xaus, Ducati, ESP, 0'10.164 8, Max Biaggi, Ducati, ITA, 0'10.614 9, Regis Laconi, Kawasaki, FRA, 0'17.234 10, Fonsi Nieto, Suzuki, ESP, 0'18.100 11, Gregorio Lavilla, Honda, ESP, 0'18.288 12, Lorenzo Lanzi, Ducati, ITA, 0'18.826 13, Michel Fabrizio, Ducati, ITA, 0'21.770 14, Jakub Smrz, Ducati, CZE, 0'22.872 15, Kenan Sofuoglu, Honda, TUR, 0'25.224 16, Shinichi Nakatomi, Yamaha, JPN, 0'25.224 17, Roberto Rolfo, Honda, ITA, 0'25.509 18, David Checa, Yamaha, ESP, 0'25.615 19, Russel Holland, Honda, AUS, 0'26.503 20, Karl Muggeridge, Honda, AUS, 0'35.171 21, Ayrton Badovini, Kawasaki, ITA, 0'53.240 Best Lap Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time Noriyuki Haga, Yamaha, JPN, 1'35.131 Rider Standings 06/04/2008 Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Points 1, Troy Bayliss, Ducati, AUS, 128 2, Fonsi Nieto, Suzuki, ESP, 80 3, Troy Corser, Yamaha, AUS, 72 4, Carlos Checa, Honda, ESP, 72 5, Ruben Xaus, Ducati, ESP, 68 6, Noriyuki Haga, Yamaha, JPN, 47 7, Max Biaggi, Ducati, ITA, 44 8, Lorenzo Lanzi, Ducati, ITA, 42 9, Max Neukirchner, Suzuki, GER, 39 10, Michel Fabrizio, Ducati, ITA, 37 11, Gregorio Lavilla, Honda, ESP, 32 12, Ryuichi Kiyonari, Honda, JPN, 30 13, Kenan Sofuoglu, Honda, TUR, 22 14, Karl Muggeridge, Honda, AUS, 20 15, Yukio Kagayama, Suzuki, JPN, 18 21, Shinichi Nakatomi, Yamaha, JPN, 7 22, David Checa, Yamaha, ESP, 5 23, Sebastien Gimbert, Yamaha, FRA, 3 Manufacturer Standings 06/04/2008 Pos., Manufacturer, Points 1, Ducati, 140 2, Yamaha, 95 3, Suzuki, 86 4, Honda, 73 5, Kawasaki, 22 ---------- RACE REPORT - 06/04/2008 Foret second at Valencia and Parkes second on points Fabien Foret secured a battling second place for the Yamaha World Supersport Team at Valencia today in a delayed race at the 4.005km circuit in Spain. In addition to Foret's podium, which looked unlikely after he suffered a big crash and slight concussion on Friday, his team-mate Broc Parkes went second in the championship overall by taking fourth place after a solid race. Although neither rider felt that they had the perfect set up to maximise grip on the ever-changing Valencia circuit, each was able to secure important points on yet another day when many of the pre-season favourites made no scores. Foret had Craig Jones for company close behind for much of the 23-lap race that started 40 minutes later than schedule to allow for track repairs from an earlier Superbike crash. Broc Parkes was in line for a podium finish for most of the race and set the race's fastest lap until he was forced to slow because of a reduction in front tyre grip. In the championship, after three rounds, Parkes takes second position with a total of 38 points, while Foret is now third overall, on 33. Despite being 18th on lap one starting from 7th position, Massimo Roccoli (Yamaha Team Italia Lorenzini by Leoni) was seventh in the race today. He was looking to charge into the top five for some time but had to settle for seventh due to a lack of front tyre grip. Yamaha Spain rider David Salom finished 16th and just out of the points. Fabien Foret (Positon: 2nd - Time: +0'1.125 - Yamaha World Supersport Team) "I was much better physically today, just a little tense because I knew that I really could not crash and lose points, especially after a no-score in Qatar in round one. I didn't make a great start off the line but in the first couple of corners I just went around some other riders and soon I was about fifth or sixth. I was able to put together a good race and hold off Craig Jones, who pushed me very hard. In the championship we have taken some good points but I could really do nothing about winning the race today." Broc Parkes (Positon: 4th - Time: +0'10.514 - Yamaha World Supersport Team) "Although fourth is not a bad result, today wasn't my day. I chose the wrong front tyre and that was a big problem in the middle of the race because I had no front grip. I tried to bring it home on the podium but even on the rear I didn't feel I had the perfect set-up. I tried to go with the guys in second and third but I had to settle for fourth, because I didn't have the pace. I saw a lot guys who chose the same front tyre as me go down and I can understand why. I'm second in the championship anyway, so that is a good confidence booster for us all." Wilco Zeelenberg (Team Manager, Yamaha World Supersport Team) "It was a bit of a hot race here and it was really important not to crash as a lot of people went off without any warning. You can lose a lot here and I think we won a lot, because of what we did and because of some other guys falling. Our riders did well to wait and see what was happening, that was our target for the first five or six laps. Second and third in the championship is a good finish to our race weekend." Massimo Roccoli (Position: 7th - Time: +0'19.636 - Yamaha Team Italia Lorenzini by Leoni) "I had a terrible start but I made up a lot of places very quickly. About half way through the race my front tyre was finished so I had to slow down and lost any more chance I had of a better finish." Race 1 - 23 Laps Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Joan Lascorz, Honda, ESP, 37'58.607 2, Fabien Foret, Yamaha, FRA, 0'1.125 3, Craig Jones, Honda, GBR, 0'1.530 4, Broc Parkes, Yamaha, AUS, 0'10.514 5, Gianluca Nannelli, Honda, ITA, 0'17.492 6, Jonathan Rea, Honda, GBR, 0'17.602 7, Massimo Roccoli, Yamaha, ITA, 0'19.636 8, Angel Rodriguez, Kawasaki, ESP, 0'19.694 9, Chris Walker, Kawasaki, GBR, 0'25.230 10, Mark Aitchinson, Triumph, AUS, 0'25.702 11, Katsuaki Fujiwara, Kawasaki, JPN, 0'32.370 12, Gianluca Vizziello, Honda, ITA, 0'33.370 13, Matthieu Lagrive, Honda, FRA, 0'34.706 14, Vesa Kallio, Honda, FIN, 0'39.956 15, Miguel Praia, Honda, POR, 0'40.227 16, David Salom, Yamaha, ESP, 0'40.357 17, William De Angelis, Honda, ITA, 0'41.411 18, Arnaud Vincent, Kawasaki, FRA, 0'53.810 19, Andrew Pitt, Honda, AUS, 0'56.968 20, Didier Van Keymeulen, Suzuki, BEL, 0'59.575 21, Gergo Talmacsi, Honda, HUN, 1'13.069 22, Luka Nedog, Honda, SVN, 1'27.385 23, Attila Magda, Honda, HUN, 1'29.031 Best Lap Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time Broc Parkes, Yamaha, AUS, 1'37.590 Rider Standings 06/04/2008 Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Points 1, Joan Lascorz, Honda, ESP, 54 2, Broc Parkes, Yamaha, AUS, 38 3, Fabien Foret, Yamaha, FRA, 33 4, Joshua Brookes, Honda, AUS, 33 5, Craig Jones, Honda, GBR, 32 6, Andrew Pitt, Honda, AUS, 25 7, Robbin Harms, Honda, DNK, 25 8, Jonathan Rea, Honda, GBR, 21 9, Gianluca Vizziello, Honda, ITA, 18 10, Gianluca Nannelli, Honda, ITA, 17 11, Massimo Roccoli, Yamaha, ITA, 16 12, Chris Walker, Kawasaki, GBR, 16 13, Matthieu Lagrive, Honda, FRA, 14 14, Garry McCoy, Triumph, AUS, 10 15, Barry Veneman, Suzuki, NED, 10 19, David Salom, Yamaha, ESP, 8 Manufacturer Standings 06/04/2008 Pos., Manufacturer, Points 1, Honda, 70 2, Yamaha, 58 3, Triumph, 20 4, Kawasaki, 17 5, Suzuki, 10 ---------- RACE REPORT - 06/04/2008 Corti fifth after 13-Lap thriller Yamaha Motor Italia Junior Team rider Claudio Corti scored a strong fifth in the first race of the 2008 season, after an exciting three rider fight for the last podium place that lit up the final few laps of the race. Corti, now also a test rider for the Yamaha Motor Italia World Superbike Team, took his near-stock Yamaha YZF-R1 to the limit in the final few turns, but in a contest that could have went any of three ways he finished just behind Xavier Simeon and Alessandro Polita. Sylvain Barrier riding for the YZF Yamaha Junior Team scored two point in his opening race, starting from 20th position and finshing in 14th. Claudio Corti (Position: 5th - Time: +0'7.680 - Yamaha Motor Italia Junior Team) "I'm satisfied with fifth place because it is a long season and my goal is the championship, not one race. We had some problems with the front fork settings and the bike felt a little sensitive on the straights sometimes. Third would have been possible but I was not helped after colliding with Simeon.It was a tight and great fight in the last few laps but unfortunately I could not finish third." Sylvain Barrier (Position: 14th - Time: +0'24.896 - YZF Yamaha Junior Team) "I had a good start and I was 12th in the early stages. I tried to have the same rhythm than my opponents but I had a difficult feeling with the tyres. I had some chattering on the back. I liked a lot to race with the other riders." Race 1 - 13 Laps Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Brendan Roberts, Ducati, AUS, 21'17.585 2, Davide Giugliano, Suzuki, ITA, 0'3.795 3, Xavier Simeon, Suzuki, BEL, 0'6.865 4, Alessandro Polita, Suzuki, ITA, 0'7.272 5, Claudio Corti, Yamaha, ITA, 0'7.680 6, Michele Pirro, Yamaha, ITA, 0'11.646 7, Maxime Berger, Honda, FRA, 0'13.281 8, C Seaton, Suzuki, AUS, 0'17.294 9, Barry Burrell, Honda, GBR, 0'17.487 10, Michele Magnoni, Yamaha, ITA, 0'18.254 11, Fabrizio Perotti, Suzuki, ITA, 0'19.910 12, Freddy Foray, Yamaha, FRA, 0'24.142 13, Kenny Foray, Yamaha, FRA, 0'24.451 14, Sylvain Barrier, Yamaha, FRA, 0'24.896 15, Yoann Tiberio, Kawasaki, FRA, 0'24.934 16, Raymond Schouten, Yamaha, NED, 0'25.955 17, Matteo Baiocco, Yamaha, ITA, 0'27.450 18, Filip Backlund, Suzuki, SWE, 0'31.520 21, Danny De Boer, Suzuki, NED, 0'36.987 22, Matt Bond, Suzuki, GBR, 0'41.607 24, Marko Rohtlaan, Honda, EST, 0'42.871 25, Marko Jerman, Yamaha, SVK, 0'45.216 26, Denis Sacchetti, MV Agusta, ITA, 0'51.360 33, Robert Gianfardoni, Yamaha, ITA, 1'16.455 Best Lap Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time Brendan Roberts, Ducati, AUS, 1'36.610 Rider Standings 06/04/2008 Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Points 1, Brendan Roberts, Ducati, AUS, 25 2, Xavier Simeon, Suzuki, BEL, 16 3, Alessandro Polita, Suzuki, ITA, 13 4, Claudio Corti, Yamaha, ITA, 11 5, Michele Pirro, Yamaha, ITA, 10 6, Barry Burrell, Honda, GBR, 7 7, Freddy Foray, Yamaha, FRA, 4 8, Sylvain Barrier, Yamaha, FRA, 2 Manufacturer Standings 06/04/2008 Pos., Manufacturer, Points 1, Ducati, 25 2, Suzuki, 16 3, Yamaha, 11 4, Honda, 7