The 2011 FIM Superbike World Championship makes the long trek down to the southern tip of Portugal for the final round of the season this coming weekend at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve. The Portuguese circuit, which joined the WSB calendar in 2008, is back as season closer once again this year after a break in 2010 when it hosted round 2.
Although the title is already in the hands of Carlos Checa, who sealed the deal at Magny-Cours, the last round still offers numerous points of interest. The first is represented by the return of Max Biaggi. The Aprilia Alitalia rider, who suffered a broken bone in his left foot at the Nürburgring, an incident that put paid to his hopes of winning the title again, comes back at the track where he scored a double win in his successful 2010 season.
In the battle for third place in the championship, the ‘Pirate’ will have to deal with Eugene Laverty who is two points ahead of him in the standings. The Irishman, together with his team-mate Marco Melandri, who clinched the runner-up slot, is making his final appearance for the Yamaha World Superbike team, as the Japanese manufacturer will officially withdraw at the end of the season, but unlike the Italian Laverty has not yet confirmed his 2012 plans.
Leon Haslam, the rider who will share the BMW Motorrad Motorsport garage with Melandri next year, is moving on from an encouraging Magny-Cours round, that saw him finish third and fourth in the two races. Haslam has also had some measure of success at Portimao, having twice finished second last year.
Jonathan Rea on the other hand is preparing to wipe out the memories of a disastrous French Round, where he crashed in race 1 and then had an electronics problem in race 2. The use of the new ride-by-wire system on his Castrol Honda CBR1000RR from Imola onwards has in any case given a competitive boost to the young northern Irishman, allowing him to challenge once again for the leading positions.
For Michel Fabrizio the situation is more complicated following a negative end to the season. The Italian, who has only scored 11 points in the last four rounds, will clearly be looking for some good results at a track that saw him winner two years ago.
The Alstare man will not be the only Suzuki rider on the track this weekend as Yoshimura Suzuki reappears on the scene for the third time this year following two outings at Phillip Island and Miller Motorsports Park. Once again Australian Joshua Waters hopes to continue the Japanese team’s good progress.
Following a few problems at Magny-Cours, Ayrton Badovini (BMW Motorrad Italia) wants to get back on track to finish what, for the young Italian, has been an extremely positive season. His fellow Italian Roberto Rolfo (Kawasaki Pedercini) will however have to miss the final round after an incident on his bicycle at home that led to him picking up a broken kneecap.
Making his debut in the Superbike World Championship at Portimao will be Davide Giugliano, who won this year’s FIM Superstock 1000 Cup with the Althea Racing Team: the young Italian will be in the same garage as world champion Carlos Checa, and with Ducati Corse’s Ernesto Marinelli on hand as his race chief.
Points (after 12 of 13 rounds): 1. Checa 467 (2011 Champion); 2. Melandri 360; 3. Laverty 283; 4. Biaggi 281; 5. Haslam 216; 6. Camier 194; 7: Guintoli 179; 8. Haga 170; etc. Manufacturers: 1. Ducati 491 (2011 Champions); 2. Yamaha 415; 3. Aprilia 399; 4. BMW 261; 5. Kawasaki 209; 6. Honda 162; 7. Suzuki 162.
World Supersport
After Chaz Davies’ title win for the Yamaha ParkinGO team the race is now on for second place in the championship. With Davies’ exhibiting unrivalled speed and consistency all year, his main rivals have had more tortuous seasons, the net result of which is that no less than five of them could end up second in the championship, after the final round in Portugal on October 16.
Second place is currently held by Fabien Foret (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda), a rider with a win to his credit at Imola. His 144 points are eight more than Kawasaki ‘twins’ Broc Parkes and David Salom (Provec Motocard.com Kawasaki). Each of these two riders has 136 points, with Parkes ranked higher currently as he has taken a win in 2011, at Misano, while Salom is looking for his first ever victory. That winless situation is the same one faced by Sam Lowes (Parkalgar Honda) who has come close more than once but is still looking for a top score in his full rookie season. Currently on 129 points, he needs a lot of cards to fall his way on the final day of high speed poker to take second place overall, but the young British riders is determined to go for it in any case.
The last rider who is looking at an admittedly remote chance of second is Luca Scassa, Davies team-mate. Being 23-points behind Foret, Scassa would have to win, then see his other rivals have disastrous racedays for the only Italian rider in the top six to make it a Yamaha ParkinGO 1-2 at the top of the table. Having won three races already, Scassa is certainly capable of doing it again in the final day of school.
Points (after 11 of 12 rounds): 1. Davies 181 (2011 Champion); 2. Foret 144; 3. Parkes 136; 4. Salom 136; 5. Lowes 129; 6. Scassa 121; 7. Ellison 83; 8. Marino 78; etc. Manufacturers: 1. Yamaha 226; 2. Honda 214; 3. Kawasaki 177; 4. Triumph 36.
Superstock 1000
In the absence of newly-crowned champion Davide Giugliano, who has been rewarded by Althea Racing with a promotion into Superbike for the final round of the season, Danilo Petrucci (Barni Racing Ducati) is called upon to defend the runner-up slot from Lorenzo Zanetti (BMW Motorrad Italia). Just seven points separate the two Italians, while Sylvain Barrier, Zanetti’s team-mate, and Niccolò Canepa (Ducati Lazio MotorSport) are right behind.
Canepa, who won this title in 2007, is the only top 5 rider not to win a race this year, but he will not be the only one hoping for success at the final round. These include Lorenzo Baroni (Ducati Althea), Andrea Antonelli (Honda Lorini), Australian Bryan Staring (Kawasaki Pedercini), German Markus Reiterberger (BMW Garnier alpha Racing) and South African Sheridan Morais (Kawasaki Lorenzini by Leoni).
Points (after 9 of 10 rounds): 1. Giugliano 171 (2011 Champion); 2. Petrucci 144; 3. Zanetti 137; 4. Barrier 112; 5. Canepa 109; 6. Baroni 70; 7. Antonelli 67; 8. Reiterberger 64; etc. Manufacturers: 1. Ducati 215 (2011 Champions); 2. BMW 173; 3. Kawasaki 83; 4. Honda 75; 5. Yamaha 16.