Two Wheels

One man who has truly established himself as an all-time Superbike great since his series debut in 1997 is Troy Bayliss from Taree, NSW in Australia. Bayliss was something of a late starter, and he made his initial claim to fame in SBK racing, on a Suzuki as a wild card at Phillip Island in the mid-nineties.

For Bayliss, he is certain that showcasing himself well in the SBK races at home led to what would become much greater things. "I think honestly it was a very big help," said Bayliss. "I never won the Australian Superbike championship but finished second a couple of times. Even if you won the championship it did not mean you would get a ride overseas. So those wild card rides helped me and that is how I got noticed, basically. Always the top guys in domestic Superbike classes can be competitive at a world-class level. Then it is fine picking if you can actually win after that."

For Bayliss, Phillip Island is one of the great tracks, but it really did bring a unique pressure for him. "Phillip Island was always one of the hardest ones because I had so much more work to do, so many family and friends came there and so the whole thing was like a tough weekend! Sometimes the Aussies seem to pull out some great riders at their home track, but to race in the World Championship you have to be fast at every track. It was always good winning at Phillip Island but I felt just as much to win at Monza, Misano and anywhere else."

He is still enthusiastic about SBK racing, as his parting comment demonstrates. "Something that has always been in Superbike is the friendliness, the open pit and you can be a part of it. SBK has a good atmosphere and it is run by Italians. What I love about them, they are family oriented, friendly and the passion is very high."

Randy De Puniet continues to lead the MotoGP™ CRT field, while British rider James Ellison made his first laps on the ART prototype of the Paul Bird Racing team on the second day of the private test at Jerez.

Maurizio Flammini, President of Infront Motor Sports, signed a contract on February 15 to bring back the FIM Superbike World Championship to Indonesia, after a gap of 15 years, for five years starting in 2013. The contract was signed in the presence of Minister Dr. H.R. Agung Laksono (photo), who coordinates the work of five different ministries that include the Ministry of Sport, as well as numerous leading figures from the worlds of politics, sport and business.

The Indonesian Government will furthermore start up the promotion of the event by means of the creation of a government task force that will sustain the economic, logistical, promotion and administrative requirements of the organiser.

Maurizio Flammini declared: "We are proud of the growth of the Superbike calendar, which thanks to the inclusion of the latest rounds is obtaining a presence in countries of major importance for the development of our championship on a sporting and commercial level. After Russia, where Superbike has now arrived before any other world motorsport championship, thanks to more than two years of intense work in the Asian area, we have now been able to insert Indonesia, which has in the past already played host to a race of considerable success and appeal, in the calendar. Indonesia today is a country with the largest growth factors: GDP is more than one trillion dollars, with a 2011 growth of more than 6%, and the sale of bikes widely exceeds 7 million units per year. The Superbike race will therefore be a great opportunity for the motorcycle manufacturers present in our championship. We are also negotiating with the Buddh International Circuit in India, where the Formula 1 race was recently held, in order to complete a presence in Asia that in this case will be absolutely extraordinary".

It should also be added that Superbike, together with its sponsors, teams and entrepreneurs, will be able to benefit for the agreements that Maurizio Flammini, as President of FEDERLAZIO and PMItalia, organisations that represent more than 30,000 Italian firms, has started with the Indonesian Government to set up close collaboration between the companies of the two continents and the creation of B2B opportunities.

The Sentul Circuit has its own particular fascination, both due to its natural environment in the middle of a tropical forest, and due to its technical and design features.

Indonesia also makes up an extraordinary market for bikes, with a total of 7,400,000 units sold in 2010 and an estimated 10% increase for 2011, a figure that will shortly be available. In addition the Government also provides subsidies for fuel used for circulation on two wheels.

The date for the Superbike round will be decided shortly. The two possibilities being considered are at the start of the championship together with Australia, or the final round of the season.

Paolo Flammini, CEO of Infront Motor Sports, declared: "The arrival of the Indonesian round in the Superbike World Championship calendar confirms the growing interest in our series and undoubtedly helps to complete a championship that touches all the world's motorcycle markets and which continues to offer increasingly significant opportunities for the motorcycle industry, sponsors and media".

Australian Broc Parkes (Ten Kate Racing Products Honda) ended up at the top of the results sheet after two days of World Supersport testing with a time of 1 minute 34.585 seconds. On aggregate over four sessions on Monday and Tuesday Parkes was able to finish ahead of the Kawasakis of Kenan Sofuoglu (Deltafin Lorenzini) and Fabien Foret (Intermoto Step). Britain's Sam Lowes (Bogdanka PTR Honda) also put in a good overall run, after going quickest in the morning session.

The final session saw the red flags come out for Russian rider Vladimir Leonov who suffered a few cuts and bruises to his right elbow and left ankle in a crash but the Yakhnich Motorsport Yamaha man will make the race on Sunday.

The championship warm-up threw up a number of surprises. The first was 23-year-old Frenchman Jules Cluzel (PTR Honda), who has moved over from the mid-class GP category this year, and who was fifth quickest. The second was Vittorio Iannuzzo, back up amongst the front-runners once again with sixth quickest time on a three-cylinder Power Team by Suriano Triumph.

 

Times (Monday-Tuesday)

1 23 Parkes B. (AUS) Honda CBR600RR 1'34.585
2 54 Sofuoglu K. (TUR) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'34.604
3 99 Foret F. (FRA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'34.866
4 11 Lowes S. (GBR) Honda CBR600RR 1'34.957
5 16 Cluzel J. (FRA) Honda CBR600RR 1'35.131
6 31 Iannuzzo V. (ITA) Triumph Daytona 675 1'35.362
7 32 Morais S. (RSA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'35.701
8 34 Quarmby R. (RSA) Honda CBR600RR 1'35.824
9 38 Nemeth B. (HUN) Honda CBR600RR 1'35.873
10 19 Szkopek P. (POL) Honda CBR600RR 1'36.009
11 25 Baldolini A. (ITA) Triumph Daytona 675 1'36.085
12 20 Scholtz M. (RSA) Honda CBR600RR 1'36.217
13 65 Leonov V. (RUS) Yamaha YZF R6 1'36.256
14 10 Toth I. (HUN) Honda CBR600RR 1'36.410
15 52 Pesek L. (CZE) Honda CBR600RR 1'36.439
16 55 Roccoli M. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 1'36.513
17 22 Tamburini R. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 1'36.559
18 3 Metcher J. (AUS) Yamaha YZF R6 1'36.798
19 69 Jezek O. (CZE) Honda CBR600RR 1'36.832
20 64 Day J. (USA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'36.985
21 40 Jessopp M. (GBR) Honda CBR600RR 1'37.140
22 87 Marconi L. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 1'37.146
23 98 Lanusse R. (FRA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'37.679
24 61 Menghi F. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 1'37.703
25 13 Lombardi D. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 1'38.057
26 8 Antonelli A. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 1'39.507
27 27 Caiani T. (SUI) Honda CBR600RR 1'39.856
28 33 Polzer Y. (AUT) Yamaha YZF R6 1'39.938

 

Supersport records at Phillip Island
Fastest Lap: Fabien Foret (Honda) 1'34.941 (168.485 km/h) - 2011
Best Lap: Joan Lascorz (Kawasaki) 1'33.847 (170.512 km/h) - 2010

Tom Sykes was ultimately the man of the moment in two days of Superbike testing at Phillip Island, the Kawasaki man holding onto the top slot in today's warmer afternoon session that saw only two riders improve. Sykes's time of 1 minute 31.648 seconds remains the benchmark as the riders now gear up for the opening round of the 2012 FIM Superbike World Championship this coming weekend.

Second place overall went to 2011 champion Carlos Checa (Althea Racing Ducati), who ended up just a whisker behind. The Spaniard set the quickest time of the warmer afternoon session and then packed up for the rest of the day. Jakub Smrz (Liberty Racing Team Effenbert) was third on another Ducati 1098R, not far off the pace of the top 2, while Jonathan Rea (Honda World Superbike) was the only other rider to get into the 1 minute 32 seconds bracket.

Max Biaggi (Aprilia Racing) showed remarkable consistency as he took the fifth slot, while Marco Melandri (BMW Motorrad) failed to improve on day 2 and his time set yesterday was good enough for sixth. Superbike rookie Davide Giugliano (Althea Racing Ducati) crashed harmlessly for the fourth time in this test but was impressive enough for seventh, while Leon Camier (Crescent Suzuki) completed the top 8.

After five days of testing - private and official - the Superbike teams and riders now have a chance to wind down before opening round action begins on Friday.

Times (Monday-Tuesday)
1 66 Sykes T. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1'31.648
2 7 Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 1'31.652
3 96 Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R 1'31.800
4 65 Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 1'31.913
5 3 Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1'32.034
6 33 Melandri M. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 1'32.232
7 34 Giugliano D. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'32.319
8 2 Camier L. (GBR) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1'32.320
9 50 Guintoli S. (FRA) Ducati 1098R 1'32.347
10 91 Haslam L. (GBR) BMW S1000 RR 1'32.397
11 17 Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1'32.540
12 84 Fabrizio M. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 1'32.605
13 59 Canepa N. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'32.746
14 4 Aoyama H. (JPN) Honda CBR1000RR 1'32.910
15 121 Berger M. (FRA) Ducati 1098R 1'32.911
16 86 Badovini A. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 1'32.948
17 87 Zanetti L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'33.136
18 19 Davies C. (GBR) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1'33.358
19 44 Salom D. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1'33.385
20 67 Staring B. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1'33.418
21 25 Brookes J. (AUS) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1'33.623
22 18 Aitchison M. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 1'34.169
23 35 De Rosa R. (ITA) Honda CBR1000RR 1'34.341

Superbike records at Phillip Island
Fastest Lap: Troy Corser (Yamaha) 1'31"826 (2007)
Best Lap: Carlos Checa (Ducati) 1'30"882 (2011)

Sam Lowes (Bogdanka PTR Honda) went quickest in the first Supersport session on the final day of official pre-season testing. With a time of 1 minute 34.989 seconds, the 21-year-old British rider edged his way in front of Fabien Foret (Kawasaki Intermoto Step), Broc Parkes (Ten Kate Racing Products Honda) and Turkey's Kenan Sofuoglu (Kawasaki Deltafin Lorenzini).

Good progress was also recorded by the two Triumph 675 machines in the session, in particular by Italian Vittorio Iannuzzo (Power Team by Suriano), who moved his way into fifth with a time of 1'35"362, while Jules Cluzel also continued to make headway on the PTR Honda.

Andrea Antonelli (Honda Team Lorini) suffered a bruised right shoulder and knee when he crashed, while the session was interrupted for a few minutes after a kangaroo strayed onto the track.

Supersport - Tuesday 1st session
1 11 Lowes S. (GBR) Honda CBR600RR 1'34.989
2 99 Foret F. (FRA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'35.105
3 23 Parkes B. (AUS) Honda CBR600RR 1'35.192
4 54 Sofuoglu K. (TUR) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'35.339
5 31 Iannuzzo V. (ITA) Triumph Daytona 675 1'35.362
6 16 Cluzel J. (FRA) Honda CBR600RR 1'35.458
7 34 Quarmby R. (RSA) Honda CBR600RR 1'36.043
8 38 Nemeth B. (HUN) Honda CBR600RR 1'36.077
9 25 Baldolini A. (ITA) Triumph Daytona 675 1'36.085
10 65 Leonov V. (RUS) Yamaha YZF R6 1'36.256
11 10 Toth I. (HUN) Honda CBR600RR 1'36.410
12 55 Roccoli M. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 1'36.513
13 22 Tamburini R. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 1'36.674
14 32 Morais S. (RSA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'36.689
15 69 Jezek O. (CZE) Honda CBR600RR 1'36.832
16 52 Pesek L. (CZE) Honda CBR600RR 1'36.953
17 40 Jessopp M. (GBR) Honda CBR600RR 1'37.140
18 20 Scholtz M. (RSA) Honda CBR600RR 1'37.143
19 19 Szkopek P. (POL) Honda CBR600RR 1'37.218
20 3 Metcher J. (AUS) Yamaha YZF R6 1'37.350
21 64 Day J. (USA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'37.389
22 87 Marconi L. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 1'37.674
23 98 Lanusse R. (FRA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'37.679
24 61 Menghi F. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 1'39.058
25 27 Caiani T. (SUI) Honda CBR600RR 1'39.856
26 33 Polzer Y. (AUT) Yamaha YZF R6 1'39.938
27 13 Lombardi D. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 1'40.598
28 8 Antonelli A. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 1'42.041

The second day of official testing at Phillip Island started off with a surprise this morning as Tom Sykes powered his Kawasaki to the top slot. The British rider set a time of 1 minute 31.648 seconds on cooler tarmac early in the session to depose Althea Racing Ducati's Carlos Checa from the position he has held virtually since the start of last week's private testing. The reigning world champion's time was just 0.004 seconds slower than Sykes.

Closer to the front was another Ducati, the Liberty Racing Team Effenbert version of Jakub Smrz, who whittled his time down to 1'31"800. Fourth place went to Jonathan Rea (Honda World Superbike Team) who crashed at the fast Lukey Heights section of the track, but without any harm to the rider. Next up was Max Biaggi (Aprilia) who shaved a further tenth off his yesterday time to finish with a 1'32"034.

Meanwhile Leon Haslam, who crashed yesterday, has returned to hospital: the doctors are deciding if and how to operate on his right leg tibia fracture.

The afternoon session from 1330 to 1500 local time will end these two days of pre-race testing.

Superbike - Tuesday 1st session
1 66 Sykes T. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1'31.648
2 7 Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 1'31.652
3 96 Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R 1'31.800
4 65 Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 1'31.913
5 3 Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1'32.034
6 33 Melandri M. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 1'32.281
7 34 Giugliano D. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'32.319
8 2 Camier L. (GBR) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1'32.320
9 50 Guintoli S. (FRA) Ducati 1098R 1'32.347
10 17 Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1'32.540
11 84 Fabrizio M. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 1'32.605
12 59 Canepa N. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'32.746
13 4 Aoyama H. (JPN) Honda CBR1000RR 1'32.910
14 121 Berger M. (FRA) Ducati 1098R 1'32.911
15 86 Badovini A. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 1'32.948
16 87 Zanetti L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'33.136
17 44 Salom D. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1'33.385
18 67 Staring B. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1'33.418
19 19 Davies C. (GBR) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1'33.561
20 25 Brookes J. (AUS) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1'33.623
21 35 De Rosa R. (ITA) Honda CBR1000RR 1'34.341
22 18 Aitchison M. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 1'34.634

"After what seemed like the longest wait in history, our little girl Alessandra Maria finally arrived on Thursday February 16. Thank you all for the good wishes," the rider wrote in his Repsol blog.

With the opening round of the 2012 MotoGP™ season just six weeks away, several MotoGP CRTs shared the Jerez circuit today in a private test that continues through Wednesday.

John Surtees and Giacomo Agostini were among the 2012 inductees honoured at the Motor Sport magazine’s prestigious awards ceremony in London.

Last weekend the MotoGP rider participated in the sixth and final round of the GSeries BPA, a four wheeled championship race on ice.

Max Biaggi (Aprilia Racing) and Marco Melandri (BMW Motorrad) moved closer to Carlos Checa (Althea Racing) in today's second session of official testing at Phillip Island.

In the warmer afternoon track conditions the world champion was unable to improve on his best time of 1'31"947 set in the morning. Biaggi however improved by a fraction with a sequence of fast laps towards the end, all in the low 1.32s. Melandri also made good progress, ending up with a time of 1'32.232, a full second better than the time he set in last week's private test.

Leon Haslam, who crashed in the morning, did not take part in the afternoon run. Checks carried out in hospital diagnosed a fractured tibia in his right leg and the BMW man is considering having a screw put in to race in a few day's time.

In the overall timesheets, Haslam was sandwiched by two more Brits, Jonathan Rea (Honda World Superbike) in fourth and Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) in sixth.

Superbike Day 1 - overall
1 7 Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 1'31.947
2 3 Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1'32.132
3 33 Melandri M. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 1'32.232
4 65 Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 1'32.379
5 91 Haslam L. (GBR) BMW S1000 RR 1'32.397
6 66 Sykes T. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1'32.465
7 50 Guintoli S. (FRA) Ducati 1098R 1'32.768
8 59 Canepa N. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'32.836
9 96 Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R 1'32.848
10 17 Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1'33.005
11 2 Camier L. (GBR) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1'33.104
12 84 Fabrizio M. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 1'33.141
13 121 Berger M. (FRA) Ducati 1098R 1'33.246
14 34 Giugliano D. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'33.366
15 4 Aoyama H. (JPN) Honda CBR1000RR 1'33.479
16 87 Zanetti L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'33.566
17 67 Staring B. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1'33.704
18 44 Salom D. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1'33.812
19 86 Badovini A. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 1'34.234
20 19 Davies C. (GBR) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1'34.303
21 35 De Rosa R. (ITA) Honda CBR1000RR 1'34.400
22 25 Brookes J. (AUS) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1'34.667
23 18 Aitchison M. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 1'35.223

Australian Broc Parkes (Honda Ten Kate) went quickest in the afternoon session with a time of 1 minute 35.412 seconds as the track warmed up but the fastest rider of the day remained Fabien Foret (Kawasaki Intermoto Step). The Frenchman's morning time of 1 minute 35.140 kept him on the top slot. Fellow Kawasaki rider Kenan Sofuoglu (DeltaFin Lorenzini) confirmed that the ZX-6R machine will be tough to beat this year as he took the overall second place, followed by Parkes (photo).

Various PTR incarnations took the next two places, with Sam Lowes (Bogdanka PTR Honda) ahead of Frenchman Jules Cluzel, who is rapidly getting into the Supersport groove on the PTR Honda. Hungarian Balazs Nemeth (Racing Team Toth) took his Honda to an impressive sixth place overall, with Russian Vladimir Leonov (Yakhnich Motorsport Yamaha) also doing a good job to finish in seventh.

Supersport Day 1 - overall
1 99 Foret F. (FRA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'35.140
2 54 Sofuoglu K. (TUR) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'35.377
3 23 Parkes B. (AUS) Honda CBR600RR 1'35.412
4 11 Lowes S. (GBR) Honda CBR600RR 1'35.652
5 16 Cluzel J. (FRA) Honda CBR600RR 1'36.115
6 38 Nemeth B. (HUN) Honda CBR600RR 1'36.165
7 65 Leonov V. (RUS) Yamaha YZF R6 1'36.740
8 52 Pesek L. (CZE) Honda CBR600RR 1'36.784
9 32 Morais S. (RSA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'36.924
10 31 Iannuzzo V. (ITA) Triumph Daytona 675 1'37.102
11 55 Roccoli M. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 1'37.130
12 22 Tamburini R. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 1'37.164
13 25 Baldolini A. (ITA) Triumph Daytona 675 1'37.172
14 10 Toth I. (HUN) Honda CBR600RR 1'37.231
15 20 Scholtz M. (RSA) Honda CBR600RR 1'37.311
16 34 Quarmby R. (RSA) Honda CBR600RR 1'37.358
17 69 Jezek O. (CZE) Honda CBR600RR 1'37.714
18 19 Szkopek P. (POL) Honda CBR600RR 1'37.848
19 3 Metcher J. (AUS) Yamaha YZF R6 1'37.861
20 64 Day J. (USA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'38.237
21 98 Lanusse R. (FRA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'38.524
22 13 Lombardi D. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 1'38.573
23 40 Jessopp M. (GBR) Honda CBR600RR 1'38.676
24 87 Marconi L. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 1'38.819
25 61 Menghi F. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 1'39.231
26 8 Antonelli A. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 1'39.536
27 27 Caiani T. (SUI) Honda CBR600RR 1'40.877
28 33 Polzer Y. (AUT) Yamaha YZF R6 1'41.913

Carlos Checa continued his superb form in the opening session of Phillip Island official testing that marks the countdown towards Sunday's opening round in Australia. The Althea Racing man headed the timesheets at the end of the morning session, ending up with a time of 1 minute 31.947 seconds after 38 laps. Checa's time was just one tenth of a second away from the time he obtained here last week during private testing.

Max Biaggi (Aprilia Racing) was right behind Checa, the Italian going second quickest with a time of 1'32.136, while Jonathan Rea (Honda World Superbike), who tested privately here in January, was third in 1'32.381. Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) was fifth in the standings behind Leon Haslam (BMW Motorrad), who lost control of his S 1000 RR machine coming out of the final curve and crashed hard in the run-off area. Haslam was unable to stand up immediately and was then taken to hospital on the Island, where a small bone fracture in his right heel was diagnosed.

Today's second session will finish at 1730 local time.

Superbike - Monday first session

1 7 Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 1'31.947
2 3 Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1'32.136
3 65 Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 1'32.381
4 91 Haslam L. (GBR) BMW S1000 RR 1'32.397
5 66 Sykes T. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1'32.465
6 33 Melandri M. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 1'32.556
7 50 Guintoli S. (FRA) Ducati 1098R 1'32.768
8 96 Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R 1'32.848
9 17 Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1'33.023
10 2 Camier L. (GBR) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1'33.104
11 84 Fabrizio M. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 1'33.141
12 34 Giugliano D. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'33.366
13 121 Berger M. (FRA) Ducati 1098R 1'33.570
14 44 Salom D. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1'33.812
15 59 Canepa N. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'33.863
16 4 Aoyama H. (JPN) Honda CBR1000RR 1'34.225
17 67 Staring B. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1'34.388
18 86 Badovini A. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 1'34.440
19 87 Zanetti L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'34.782
20 25 Brookes J. (AUS) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1'34.922
21 19 Davies C. (GBR) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1'35.019
22 35 De Rosa R. (ITA) Honda CBR1000RR 1'35.164
23 18 Aitchison M. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 1'36.224

The World Supersport category started the ball rolling in official testing at Phillip Island this morning, just a few days before the start of the 2012 championship season. 27 riders went out on the track in the morning session in slightly cloudy conditions, but with 24° temperatures.

Kawasaki dominated the 90 minute session with the top two times for two former champions: Fabien Foret (Kawasaki Intermoto Step) and Kenan Sofuoglu (Kawasaki DeltaFin Lorenzini). The Frenchman lapped in 1'35.140, close to his own lap record (but set on a Honda) of 1'34.941. Turkey's Sofuoglu was a couple of tenths behind. Third quickest was Broc Parkes, the singleton Honda Ten Kate rider and anotehr of the favourites for the 2012 title.

Two East Europeans were next up, Balazs Nemeth (Team Toth Honda) in fourth and Lukas Pesek (PRORACE Honda) in fifth, while Jules Cluzel was the first of the multi-rider PTR operation in the timesheets in sixth.

Supersport will be back on track again at 1330 local time.

Supersport records at Phillip Island
Fastest Lap: Fabien Foret (Honda) 1'34.941 (168.485 km/h) - 2011
Best Lap: Joan Lascorz (Kawasaki) 1'33.847 (170.512 km/h) - 2010

Supersport - Monday 1st

POS NO. RIDER BIKE TIME
1 99 Foret F. (FRA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'35.140
2 54 Sofuoglu K. (TUR) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'35.377
3 23 Parkes B. (AUS) Honda CBR600RR 1'35.897
4 38 Nemeth B. (HUN) Honda CBR600RR 1'36.652
5 52 Pesek L. (CZE) Honda CBR600RR 1'36.784
6 16 Cluzel J. (FRA) Honda CBR600RR 1'37.048
7 31 Iannuzzo V. (ITA) Triumph Daytona 675 1'37.102
8 25 Baldolini A. (ITA) Triumph Daytona 675 1'37.172
9 11 Lowes S. (GBR) Honda CBR600RR 1'37.405
10 55 Roccoli M. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 1'37.520
11 20 Scholtz M. (RSA) Honda CBR600RR 1'37.766
12 19 Szkopek P. (POL) Honda CBR600RR 1'37.848
13 34 Quarmby R. (RSA) Honda CBR600RR 1'38.180
14 69 Jezek O. (CZE) Honda CBR600RR 1'38.206
15 22 Tamburini R. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 1'38.443
16 10 Toth I. (HUN) Honda CBR600RR 1'38.538
17 32 Morais S. (RSA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'38.689
18 87 Marconi L. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 1'38.993
19 40 Jessopp M. (GBR) Honda CBR600RR 1'39.284
20 98 Lanusse R. (FRA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'39.481
21 65 Leonov V. (RUS) Yamaha YZF R6 1'39.526
22 8 Antonelli A. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 1'39.536
23 13 Lombardi D. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 1'39.835
24 64 Day J. (USA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1'40.457
25 61 Menghi F. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 1'40.911
26 27 Caiani T. (SUI) Honda CBR600RR 1'41.319
27 33 Polzer Y. (AUT) Yamaha YZF R6 1'41.913

There is quite a simply vast list of Australian riders who have won SBK races in the past, whether at home or abroad, but one of the earliest men to make his name was Peter Goddard.

At both Oran Park and Phillip Island Goddard won World Superbike races at the very start of the championship itself and then went on to ride a vast array of machinery in various classes.

For Goddard the attraction of SBK was partly its accessibility for riders operating at a high level in domestic championships like he was in Australia. "It was such an accessible thing, and that is where it was excellent at the beginning. You could come in with a domestic team and be competitive. The worst thing back at the start was the different tyres everyone had. The best thing we have now is that everyone runs on the same tyres. This is the best thing. In all of my racing career the thing that made you or broke you was the tyres. Now that is not it at all and I compliment Superbike for doing this. That was a very important step to bring out good racing, It's the only way it can be."

For Peter, who was in demand as a technical guru in the later years of his career as much as he was for being fast as a rider, his vast accumulated experience led to a continuation of his SBK career, albeit with a clipboard and set of tools in his hands. "Staying in SBK meant I learned a hell of a lot and I always worked on my own bikes when I was younger anyway. I enjoy engineering and all that side of it." Goddard is now part of the BMW Motorrad Motorsport technical team, meaning his SBK career has spanned the class's whole term.

The Pata Racing team has been getting down to business in the recent private tests at Phillip Island, giving the Italian youngster Lorenzo Zanetti the chance to put in his first miles of 2012. The team were able to obtain a good base set-up for Zanetti who returns to a twin-cylinder mount for the first time since his time in Superstock 1000 in 2010 on a Ducati 1098.

Ending the first day with a time of 1'37.1, the team then worked on the electronics to give Zanetti the chance of getting his time down to 1'35.2 on day 2, with a further improvement marked down on the third day as he reached a benchmark of 1'34.7. Testing for Zanetti in his rookie SBK year will continue on Monday and Tuesday of next week.

"We left Italy in sub-zero temperatures and came here and it was high summer," said Zanetti. "Once we got down to work it was clear that the test was important to get rid of some of the ‘rust' accumulated over the winter and above all get used to the Superbike-spec Ducati 1098R. We did a lot of laps and by gradually improving the set-up we made progress without taking any risks. There's a lot of work to do and I'm still not 100% familiar with the bike but the feeling is positive and I'm looking forward to the future with optimism. We've now got a few days break and then two more of testing in which we can look to set an even better time. I'm happy with the work we've all done so far, from Monday onwards however the battle will be out on the track. I don't want to make any mistakes but I certainly won't be backing away from the challenge."

Eugene Laverty (Aprilia Racing) is in a fight to be fit for the first round of the season after his big crash on the final day of unofficial tests at Phillip Island recently.

Losing control into turn one after his brake pads had been ‘knocked back' by a violent wobble exiting the final corner of the previous lap, Laverty slapped both his hands and his head onto the ground hard in the crash. It was later confirmed that he has broken a bone in his left hand, had staved a finger on his right hand but his head knock has not proved to be of major concern.

Laverty had intended to fly home to get his hand injury seen to but he is expected to bring his own doctor over to Australia rather than go through the pain and stress of flying to Europe and then back to Phillip island again in a short space of time.

Said Laverty, "Beginning the season with an injury is far from ideal. The first round is next weekend at Phillip Island and I'm going to try my very best to make it onto the grid. It will not be easy but this is racing. On a positive note we'd enjoyed a very productive and successful test up until the crash. The Aprilia is working well and the team worked tirelessly throughout the test to improve our setting. If we can make it onto the grid for Round One then I believe that we can be strong."

Laverty has taken to the Aprilia very well since his first ride on the RSV4 at the end of last year, and if he is fit he is many people's tip for a podium first time out on the Italian machine.

During a press conference held in Lausanne (Switzerland) recently, the Kuja Racing team presented its new rider Thomas Caiani, to the mainly domestic-based press. Caiani will in fact be the only Swiss rider taking part in the FIM Supersport World Championship. After a brief run through his racing career, Caiani expressed his satisfaction about racing with the Italian team and his desire to improve on his Honda CBR600RR machine.

"We're now close to the start of the championship, which gets under way at Phillip Island on February 26th" declared Caiani. "Right from the start the team and I hope to score some good points in the standings, even thug there will be a lot of top riders fighting for the title. Racing in Supersport means a lot to me because competing at such a high level is a reason to be proud and it makes you want to give your everything. Thanks to everyone who believes in me, in particular Maurizio Cucchiarini and Michele Conti, who are always by my side: taking part in a world championship is very expensive and Kuja Racing have invested a lot in me, so now I hope to be able to pay them back soon with some good results. In the meantime I'm looking for some more sponsors who wish to join us in this adventure ".

Team Manager Michele Conti added: "Last season we decided to enter Caiani in the last two World Supersport rounds. For our fourth season in Supersport we have as a result decided to confirm him full time. We were impressed by his riding abilities, speed and potential that he can express on our bike. We think we have a good chance of getting into the points right from the early rounds, and our aim is to get into the top 10, even though the competition will be really tough. It'll be a difficult season, with 32 riders on the grid, but we have the potential and we'll try and exploit that to the full".

The Australian rider and his wife Adriana welcomed a daughter into their family yesterday. Alessandra was born Thursday at 9:55pm in a local hospital in Lausanne, Switzerland.