MAX BIAGGI AND APRILIA WITH A DOUBLE WIN AT MISANO
Max Biaggi, after winning race 1, dominates race 2 as well.
Two extremely different victories: the first marked by "shoulder to shoulder" duels with his rivals in world championship racing, the second escaping at the front after just a few laps and setting a pace for twenty laps that none of the other riders in the race could match.
Max now leads the world championship with a 38.5 point advantage.
Misano, 10 June 2012 – There were two distinct Max Biaggis today at Misano, both winning on the Adriatic circuit during the seventh 2012 World SBK round.
After taking race 1, battling at every curve with the best riders in World SBK (he started from the tenth spot on the grid), Biaggi had the satisfaction of dominating race 2 in true Biaggi style, that is, demonstrating an unsustainable pace for all his rivals right from the start.
Starting once again from the third row, this time Max completed part of his masterpiece already in the first lap. Lying in fifth place after just a few curves, he rode his Aprilia RSV4 to third place by the end of the first lap.
Overtaking Rea in the second lap and then front runner Sykes in the third, Max literally widened the gap with a series of fast laps that led to an advantage of more than seven seconds. He was followed across the finish line by Rea and Haslam.
It was a long, beautiful, victorious ride that sealed an important day for the five time world champion and the Aprilia Racing Team. Now, at the championship halfway mark, Max strengthens his lead in the standings with 210.5 points. Behind him are Rea at 172 (- 38.5 points) Sykes at 164.5 (- 46), Melandri at 155.5 (- 55) and Checa at 150.5 (- 60).
At the end of the day Max Biaggi made no secret of his satisfaction: “It was an amazing weekend. After Superpole which forced me to start from the third row, as we able to stay focused and express myself well during the race. After the test sessions I chose a tyre which wasn't the fastest as far as lap times go, but the one that gave me more confidence. In any case I had to take some risks because there are very few places to overtake here, but in the end I was successful and I'm leaving Misano with an incredible double win. I'd like to thank the guys on the Team who always work well and I would like to dedicate this victory to my girlfriend Eleonora and my son Leon, who was here at the track for the first time to see me race”.
It was a decidedly bad day for Eugene Laverty who finished race 1 in seventh place and had to withdraw from race 2 after crashing out of eighth place.
“Today was a very bad day at the office. I finished a lowly 7th in Race1 and then crashed out of Race2. We chose the wrong front tyre and it didn’t offer enough grip in the higher temperature. We have a test coming up in Aragon so we’ll work hard to get back on the pace of the front guys”.
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FRIDAY PRACTICE AT MISANO ADRIATICO.
THIRD PLACE TIME OF THE DAY FOR RANKING LEADER MAX BIAGGI, WHO WILL ATTEMPT TO SHAVE OFF A FEW MORE PRECIOUS TENTHS OF A SECOND TOMORROW.
EUGENE LAVERTY SUFFERS WITH SOME GRIP ISSUES AND WILL NEED TO DO SOME WORK TO GET UP TO SNUFF FOR THE RACES.
Misano, 8 June 2012 – The Misano Adriatico Superbike weekend got underway with the first two Friday sessions. The free practice session in the morning had Max Biaggi and Eugene Laverty lapping consistently in order to adjust the RSV4 to the decidedly summer conditions of the circuit in Emilia Romagna. The final times of the session placed the Corsair in seventh place while Eugene put the fifteenth best time on the boards.
After the customary changes, the Aprilia riders took the track for the first qualifiers. Max, at the end of 16 timed laps, earned third place for the day, showing encouraging progress and consistent performance.
Max Biaggi has rather clear ideas about tomorrow: “We did some testing between the morning and afternoon sessions to try and find the beneficial points of this track, but without any great results. We had the biggest problems with the bike's balance, although the situation improved from about halfway through the second session. Like everyone else, we tested various tyre choices including some solutions which are new, but very similar. We've done about 80% of the work but we can still improve, especially where better traction is concerned”.
There were some difficulties for Eugene Laverty, who complained of poor grip after a few laps. In view of the races the rider from Northern Ireland knows that he'll have to work on long distance duration rather than his fast lap. Tomorrow Eugene and his mechanics will continue working based on the observations made today in order to move up in the rankings, which put them in thirteenth place today.
“We didn't get off on the right foot today. Already after the first few laps I'm struggling to get the grip I need out of the rear tyre and it isn't getting any better. The others are much more consistent, so we need to improve significantly for tomorrow. I don't have any radical changes in mind, but there are some small steps we can take in order to get close to an optimum set-up. Being quick on the fast lap isn't that important. The races are long and knowing how to manage tyre wear is essential”.
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WORLD SUPERBIKE AT MISANO ADRIATICO.
RANKING LEADER MAX BIAGGI IS READY FOR THE THIRD ITALIAN ROUND OF WORLD SUPERBIKE.
EUGENE LAVERTY WANTS TO RESUME HIS CLIMB IN THE RIDER STANDINGS FROM MISANO.
Misano, 6 June 2012 – The third and last, for this year, Italian round of World Superbike. The Misano Circuit will host the factory derivatives for the seventh round of the championship, which finds Aprilia Racing Team standard bearer Max Biaggi leading the rider rankings.
Coming from a double podium performance at Miller Motorsports Park, Max held onto the leadership with placement points, but he knows that he'll have to get back on the top step of the podium in order to harbour hopes of the world title. The circuit in Emilia Romagna could help the Corsair, who has always had good results on the Santa Monica asphalt, such as the double second place last year and the victories in 2010.
There is no lack of motivation for Max Biaggi: “Misano is definitely a good track for us. It remains to be seen how the others will perform in light of the new balance we've seen since the start of the championship. We are the ranking leaders thanks to consistently good placements, but we need to improve our bike, which seems to have lost technical power compared to our rivals. My expectations are high for the weekend in Emilia Romagna. I want to give our fans two good races”.
The Misano weekend is just as important for Eugene Laverty. After showing consistent growth astride his RSV4, the Northern Irish rider encountered some difficulties both in Donington and at Miller Motorsports. A good result is needed in order to confirm his feeling with the bike from Noale and to resume his climb in the rider standings, where he is currently lying in eighth place.
“We made big progress during practice at Miller and managed to cure the chatter issues which had plagued us all season. Unfortunately the races didn't go to plan and I wasn't satisfied with 5th and 6th place finishes. My aim from here on in is to be on the podium as I feel that's where we belong. I feel at home on the Aprilia and it's time for the results to start reflecting that”.
