On Sat, 24 Feb 2007 12:14:00 +0100, MKS - 74 <mks74temp@gmail.com>
wrote:
>Teamkommentarer følger senere....
Team Stiggy -
Mixed results for team Stiggy Motorsport Honda in first race of the
year.
It was superb start to the season for Dane Robbin Harms, who finished
in 6th place in the opening round of this year’s Supersport World
Championship at Losail circuit, Qatar. After starting from 13th place
on the grid, and riding his no 2 bike, Robbin managed to fight his way
up through the field finishing sixth overall and third best Honda
rider - only 13 seconds behind race winner Kenan Sofuoglu.
Yoann Tiberio, unlike Robbin, did not have as lucky an end to the
weekend, as he was forced to retire from the race due to physical
problems. Staring from 9th place on the grid, Yoann had a good start
and quickly found a good pace but unfortunately, after a couple of
laps, he started to feel tired and began having difficulty focussing.
Robbin: Since I was on the 4th row, and in 13th place, I gave it all
in the start and the first couple of laps. As in the warm-up this
morning I used my no 2 bike as it was more comfortable and easy to
ride. I was trying to ride consistent lap times because I knew the
rear tyre would be a bit of a problem at the end of the race. All the
riders who finished in front of me have been here testing before, so
I’m quite happy with my 6th place as a first result. I’m really
looking forward to Phillip Island.
Yoann: Due to my health, I retired in today’s race. I have had fever
for two days and have been sick in my stomach. I tried to ride and
finish the race, but after a while I started losing my focus and I
could feel my blood pressure dropping each lap. The combination of my
health and the heat during the race was just too much, I had retire as
I didn’t feel safe out there anymore. I will return at Phillip Island
in much better condition.
Johan (Team Manager): I’m really pleased with Robbin’s result today.
He made a fantastic start and really pushed hard to fight his way up.
The bikes are working good, and we still have some work to do, but we
are definitely getting there. Unfortunately for Yoann he had to
retire, but I think he made the right decision to pull in as he was in
such bad condition. Now we will have to start focusing on the next
race in Phillip Island next weekend.
Ten Kate -
Victory for HANNspree Ten Kate Honda in season opener
HANNspree Ten Kate Honda dominated the season opener of the World
Supersport Championship at Losail International Circuit in Qatar today
with Kenan Sofuoglu storming to victory on the new CBR600RR. The young
Turkish rider fought a fierce battle for the race win. However,
team-mate and defending champion Sébastien Charpentier saw his hopes
dashed when he crashed out on the penultimate lap while leading the
pack.
The HANNspree Ten Kate Honda riders were involved in a three-way fight
for first place with Kevin Curtain from the outset. However, Sofuoglu
stole the lead on lap seven and proceeded to open up an advantage over
the Australian.
Charpentier was never far behind and by lap nine was swapping places
with Curtain for second position. On lap ten Charpentier once again
seized the advantage and made it stick. For the next six laps the
HANNspree Ten Kate Honda duo put in an impressive display of
inch-perfect riding to dominate the fiercely competitive 18-lap race.
On lap 16, Frenchman Charpentier grasped an opportunity to pass
team-mate Sofuoglu. However, the lead was short-lived as he made an
unfortunate mistake halfway round the 5.4km circuit on a left hand
hairpin and slid into the gravel after losing the front end of the
Honda. Charpentier’s season opener came to a premature end when he was
forced to retire from the race after being unable to restart the bike.
This opened the way for rising star Sofuoglu to pass the chequered
flag almost 3.5 seconds clear of second place contender Kevin Curtain
and more than six seconds in front of third place Katsuaki Fujiwara.
The HANNspree Ten Kate Honda team head to the next round in Phillip
Island with the championship lead on 25 points.
Ronald ten Kate, Team Manager:
“Of course I am really happy with Kenan’s result today. He rode very
maturely and gave us the result we were hoping for with the new Honda
– a win in the first race. My feelings are obviously a bit mixed
because we could have challenged for first and second places. Both
riders put up a good fight out there. It was a tough race and they
both wanted to win the first one. Unfortunately Sébastien lost the
front so he was out in the gravel. He couldn’t pick up the bike again
because there was quite a bit of damage. Instead of being down though
we are feeling happy because we have shown the potential of the new
bike and we have plenty of races ahead to develop the CBR600RR even
further. I am amazed to come away with a win at the first round and
I’d like to thank the riders, the tuners and the whole HANNspree Ten
Kate Honda team.”
Sébastien Charpentier:
“I am obviously very disappointed with the outcome of this race. I was
so close to the finish and I think we could have easily got a first
and second for the team, but I lost the front end and couldn’t recover
from it. This has happened now, so I just need to look forward to the
next round. It is only the first race and we have plenty of time to
make it up.”
Kenan Sofuoglu:
“I am really happy. I said yesterday that I wasn’t happy with the
times in qualifying but I didn’t worry because I knew I could be
better for the race. After three or four laps I knew I could challenge
Curtain and Sébastien. Then when Sébastien crashed I just had to keep
my place to take first position. I am really pleased with the result
and would like to thank HANNspree Ten Kate Honda for developing the
bike. Also a special thanks to my mechanics who have worked so hard to
bring the bike to this level. It’s a new season, a new bike, a new
sponsor and I couldn’t be happier.”
--
-Michael
Div. Aprilia RS250 og Honda CBR600+VF500-dele m.m. til salg på:
http://cbr600.dyndns.dk/