Jonathan Rea and Carlos Checa scored a win apiece at Assen today, in races held in dry and occasionally sunny conditions at this classic Dutch track. Rea was particularly happy to see his first victory arrive at his team's home circuit, after some tough times early in the season.
It is Checa, however, who can leave with the greatest satisfaction as he now has a clear points lead over Max Biaggi, 132 - 89. Max, the reigning champion, recovered from all his dramas at Donington last month with two assured second place finishes today and he got the reward of second in the championship overall, with his home race of Monza next up. Donington race winner Marco Melandri just missed out on a podium finish in race one at Assen but fell in race two and is now in third place overall, four points behind Biaggi. Rea is now fourth, on 79 points, as he and Checa swapped wins and third places, with Checa taking the final spot in race one and Rea third in race two.
Leon Haslam had two hard fights on his hands today, but he scored good points in race two for fifth place, the same position he holds in the championship fight with his new total of 68 points. Leon Camier (Aprilia Alitalia) set the fastest lap in race two to help him go fourth and he is now sixth in the championship.
Race 1
Rea overcame the early battles at Assen to record his and Honda's first win of the 2011 season, beating Biaggi by 0.7 seconds and championship leader Checa by 3.5 seconds in race one. Melandri (Yamaha World Superbike) overcame a slow start to claw his way back to fourth, just ahead of Michel Fabrizio (Suzuki Alstare). With Troy Corser (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) behind Fabrizio there were six different machines inside the top six places. Top Kawasaki runner was Mark Aitchison (Pedercini Team Kawasaki) in tenth. Leon Haslam, Corser's team-mate, survived a fast early crash to recover to a top-12 finish. Race one saw many falls and retirements, and only 14 riders finished the race, but in race two only two riders failed to finish.
Jonathan Rea: “First and foremost I’m proud to give Castrol Honda their first podium in the world championship this year. My crew worked really hard all weekend and we really made the right decision to develop a specific bike for the race because it paid off. I lead from the start, was wondering whether to let Max pass, but made the right decision and won the race.”
Max Biaggi: “I have to be happy with this result because of the way I finished free practice on Saturday afternoon. I had to use bike number 2 so it’s a good result. We changed something in the warm-up but for the race we came back to a set-up we thought was correct for me and I could do nice lap times and be consistent.”
Carlos Checa: “It was quite tough for me to keep the position at the beginning but finally I was able to pass the people from the second group and then I was trying to follow Laverty, overtook. Max and Johnny were too strong and it was difficult for me to catch them at the end. For us it’s a very positive result.”
Results: 1. Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 35'46.486 (167,589 kph); 2. Biaggi M. (ITA)Aprilia RSV4 Factory 0.739; 3. Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 3.572; 4. Melandri M. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R1 9.508; 5. Fabrizio M. (ITA) Suzuki GSX-R1000 9.892; 6. Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 11.120; 7. Laverty E. (IRL) Yamaha YZF R1 15.235; 8. Xaus R. (ESP) Honda CBR1000RR 30.081; 9. 86 Badovini A. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 32.071; 10. Aitchison M. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX-10R 35.000; 11. Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-10R 43.287; 12. Haslam L. (GBR) BMW S1000 RR 45.289; 13. Veneman B. (NED) BMW S1000 RR 45.298; 14. Sykes T. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX-10R 50.764; etc.
Race 2
A delayed start to the second Assen race made no difference to the outcome as Checa and Biaggi played a high-speed game of cat-and-mouse. Biaggi looking to have it wrapped up as he passed long time leader Checa, only for the Spanish rider to reassert himself on the final lap and win his fourth race of the year. A battle between Rea and Melandri ended when the Italian star fell, leaving Rea on the podium in third. Leon Camier (Aprilia Alitalia) was fourth, while a multiple rider fight for fifth went to Leon Haslam (BMW Motorrad Motorsport), from Laverty, Fabrizio, Haga, Smrz and Guintoli.
In the points standings Checa now leads by 132 to Biaggi's 89. Melandri is third on 85, Rea jumping to fourth with his new total of 79 points.
Carlos Checa: “It’s a fantastic result, the win was amazing. I put a soft tyre in for the second to get that that extra grip and at the end the tyre was good and responsive, this was the question mark. I was trying to put some gap between me and Max, but he was strong. I made a mistake and he passed me but then I overtook him again for the win.”
Max Biaggi: “Good performance for us, we made a very good set-up for the race after my crash yesterday. We tried to adapt, it wasn’t perfect, couldn’t find the tyre to match. I was fast enough to make a good race but not enough to win the race. Too much movement, it’s the maximum we could do.”
Jonathan Rea: “We had to dig deep in that last race but it’s been a good weekend for me and my team. I’m not sure but one of the Yamaha riders slowed me up at the start and the front guys got away. Then I was matching them for lap times but I ran into some tyre problems during the latter stages of the race. But the team worked well, I’m really satisfied and that’s exactly the confidence and momentum we need to take to the next races.”
Results: 1. Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 35'38.693 (168,199 kph); 2. Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 0.524; 3. Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 3.584; 4. Camier L. (GBR) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 5.913; 5. Haslam L. (GBR) BMW S1000 RR 16.916; 6. Laverty E. (IRL) Yamaha YZF R1 17.375; 7. Fabrizio M. (ITA) Suzuki GSX-R1000 17.740; 8. Haga N. (JPN) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 18.329; 9. Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R 18.378; 10. Guintoli S. (FRA) Ducati 1098R 18.404; 11. Sykes T. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX-10R 26.284; 12. Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-10R 27.053; 3. Berger M. (FRA) Ducati 1098R 38.614; 14. Xaus R. (ESP) Honda CBR1000RR 40.824; 15. Badovini A. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 40.953; 16. Rolfo R. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX-10R 40.982; etc.
Points (after 3 rounds of 13): 1. Checa 132; 2. Biaggi 89; 3. Melandri 85; 4. Rea 79; 5. Haslam 68; 6. Camier 50; 7. Smrz 49; 8. Fabrizio 47; 9. Laverty 35; 10. Haga 34; etc. Manufacturers: 1. Ducati 136; 2. Aprilia 106; 3. Yamaha 97; 4. Honda 79; BMW 74; 5. 38; 6. Suzuki 47; 7. Kawasaki 43.
World Supersport
Chaz Davies (Yamaha ParkinGO) took his first win in the WSS category after heading up a 16-lap race that was restarted twice after red flag incidents. Second was Fabien Foret (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) some seven seconds back, with third closely place contested but eventually taken by Broc Parkes (Kawasaki Motocard.com). Robbin Harms (Harms Benjan Racing Honda) went fourth, David Salom, Parkes' team-mate, was fifth, and Lorenzini by Leoni Kawasaki rider Massimo Roccoli ended up a fine sixth. James Ellison (Bogdanka PTR Honda) pushed himself to seventh. Only 19 riders crossed the line from a field of 30, with three riders injured in two separate accidents that brought out the red flags. Sam Lowes (Parkalgar Honda) suffered concussion and an injured shoulder, while Alex Lundh (Cresto Guide Honda) broke his wrist in a fall involving Marko Jerman (MD Team Jerman), who suffered many contusions and abrasions. In the championship standings, crashes from some of the leading contenders also closed up the points totals, with Davies' team-mate Luca Scassa still leading on 50, Parkes on 47, and Davies on 45.
Results: 1. Davies C. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R6 26'37.029 (163,816 kph); 2. Foret F. (FRA) Honda CBR600RR 7.236; 3. Parkes B. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX-6R 8.084; 4. Harms R. (DEN) Honda CBR600RR 8.191; 5. Salom D. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-6R 9.122; 6. Roccoli M. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 9.222; 7. Ellison J. (GBR) Honda CBR600RR 14.616; 8. Praia M. (POR) Honda CBR6000RR 32.623; etc.
Points (after 3 rounds of 12): 1. Scassa 50; 2. Parkes 47; 3. Davies 45; 4. Harms 37; Salom 34; Foret 20; Roccoli 19; Ellison 19; etc. Manufacturers: 1. Yamaha 75; Honda 52; Kawasaki 47; Triumph 9.
Superstock 1000 FIM Cup
In the opening race of the Superstock season Davide Giugliano (Althea Racing Ducati) held off a strong challenge from Danilo Petrucci (Barni Racing Team Ducati) to secure the win at Assen. Pole man Sylvain Barrier (BMW Motorrad Italia Superstock) slid back from his early challenge to go third. Lorenzo Baroni (Althea Racing Ducati) had an eventual clear fourth but Bryan Staring (Pedercini Team Kawasaki) had an impressive ride through from 12th on lap one to give the new Kawasaki Ninja a fifth in its race debut. Andrea Antonelli (Team Lorini Honda) was the top Honda rider, sixth, having been passed by Staring late on.
Results: 1. Davies C. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R6 26'37.029 (163,816 kph); 2. Foret F. (FRA) Honda CBR600RR 7.236; 3. Parkes B. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX-6R 8.084; 4. Harms R. (DEN) Honda CBR600RR 8.191; 5. Salom D. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-6R 9.122; 6. Roccoli M. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 9.222; 7. Ellison J. (GBR) Honda CBR600RR 14.616; 8. Tamburini R. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 14.658; etc.
Points (after 1 round of 10): Giugliano 25; Petrucci 20; Barrier 16; Baroni 13; Staring 11; Antonelli 10; La Marra 9; 10 Ten Napel 8; etc. Manufacturers: 1. Ducati 25 ; 2. BMW 16; 3. Kawasaki 11; 4. Honda 10; 5. Yamaha 4.
The Assen weekend also saw the debut of the European Junior Cup which saw 12 riders line up at the start on identical Kawasaki Ninja 250 machines. The first race win went to German Tom Busch ahead of New Zealand’s Daniel Mettam and American Brandon Kyee.