HONDA RACING INFORMATION FIM SUPERBIKE / SUPERSPORT WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND 11 SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 15 ISTANBUL PARK, TURKEY PREVIEW HASLAM OUT TO MAKE FAST PROGRESS IN TURKEY The FIM Superbike World Championship will arrive at the former MotoGP venue of Istanbul Park in Turkey for the first time ever as the 5.340km circuit hosts the 11th round of the 2013 series on September 15. Leon Haslam (Pata Honda World Superbike Team) will be back in action to try and secure his first podium finishes of the season after an encouraging show of pace at the previous round in Germany. Jonathan Rea (Pata Honda World Superbike Team) suffered left femur fracture in the first race of the previous Nürburgring round and he will miss the Turkish event. Rea underwent an operation to plate his injured leg shortly after the end of the German race and although the operation went well Jonathan will need some time to make a full recovery. No official replacement for Jonathan has yet been announced. Having struggled with his own left tibia and fibula leg fracture this year, after a crash at Assen back in April, Haslam is making improvements in his stamina and performance with every passing week. Leon has no prior knowledge of the Turkish track but like all his peers he will have an extra-long 90 minute first practice session to complete before the first qualifying session takes place on Friday. In the championship standings Rea is seventh and Haslam 15th, with three rounds and six individual points scoring races to go after the Turkish event has been completed. The 5.340km Istanbul track, long by most modern standards, is located on the Asian side of the teeming metropolis that straddles the Bosphorus Strait. It features great variety in its six right-hand turns, a 720m main straight and eight left-hand turns. Designed by Hermann Tilke the Turkish venue owes its influences to a variety of existing circuits. Turns one and two are reminiscent of the Senna Esses at Sao Paulo while the fast turn 11 mimics Eau Rouge at Spa Francorchamps. There are several changes in elevation along its length with many blind entries, making it a particular challenge for any riders who will be making their first visit. For the Superbike class the next round of the 14-event championship season will take place in the USA, at Laguna Seca, which was last used for Superbike World Championship racing in 2004. VAN DER MARK AND ZANETTI HEADING EAST IN CONFIDENT MOOD In the 2013 FIM Supersport World Championship Michael van der Mark (Pata Honda World Supersport Team) will be heading to the 11th round of the year, at the new venue of Istanbul Park, aiming for more top three finishes in what has been an eventful rookie season. Having scored two early podium finishes van der Mark has taken himself to fourth in the rankings with three rounds remaining. Although he has never seen the Istanbul Park circuit close up he is confident that after a good practice and qualifying period he can stay in contention for a top finish at the 5.340km track. For Lorenzo Zanetti (Pata Honda World Supersport Team) his rookie season in this class has also taken him to the podium, at Monza in round four. Despite suffering from injuries in some races Lorenzo is ranked fifth overall just five points behind van der Mark. Unlike many in the WSS class, Zanetti has raced not once but three times at the Istanbul circuit, during his 125cc GP career. Jack Kennedy (Rivamoto Honda) is yet another strong Honda presence in the Supersport World championship who is arguably over-performing in what is his first year of international competition. Not quite on the podium yet, Kennedy is still a more than creditable seventh overall after ten rounds, having scored top ten finishes in all but two races so far, with a best of sixth after the Donington and Portimao races. Luca Marconi (PTR Honda), Raffaele De Rosa (Team Lorini Honda) and Roberto Tamburini (Team Lorini Honda) are all in strong contention in the championship fight, within one point of each other as they all aim to get inside the top 20 before season-end. Currently De Rosa in 19th overall, Tamburini 21st and Marconi 22nd. With team regular Gabor Talmacsi still injured Ronan Quarmby (PRORACE Honda) will come back to the class he used to ride in regularly in the 2012 season. The South African competitor had a great ride on raceday at the previous round in Germany, inside the top four for a time until his bike stopped on lap six, so he is aiming to replicate this kind of form all the way in Turkey. Danny Webb (PTR Honda) will have his second taste of WSS action this weekend and he will be joined by a host of fellow CBR600RRs, including Imre Toth (Racing Team Toth Honda), Alex Schacht (Racing Team Toth Honda), David McFadden (Team Honda PTR) and Balazs Nemeth (Complus SMS Racing Honda). Eduard Blokhin (Rivamoto Honda) and Nacho Calero Perez (Honda PTR) will be out to try and score their first points of the year in Turkey. There will be no Supersport race at the forthcoming Laguna Seca round of the Superbike World Championship meaning a return to action for the WSS riders at the Magny Cours event, between October 4 and 6. HONDA RIDER COMMENTS: Leon Haslam (Pata Honda World Superbike Team) “Istanbul is a new track for me and I am looking forward to it. Last time out in Germany was the first time, in my opinion, that I could ride the way I wanted to ride this year. I had some issues in the race, which were not ideal, and this determined the results. But the pace was pretty good and I think we set the second fastest time the weekend in free practice two. The speed is coming back, which was a nice feeling to have. I am looking forward to all the next few races so that I can get back to where I know I can be. I think a few riders have ridden the Istanbul track before but by Sunday all of us should be up to speed. There are a couple of big long straights but the rest of the circuit looks very good and technical.” Michael van der Mark (Pata Honda World Supersport Team) "At the previous round I was not happy to have to come from so far back on the starting grid but I must be really happy in another way because our race pace was really good. The main thing we have to work on is to make better performances in qualifying. I think that has a bit to do with myself but also there are some new changes on the bike, which should also help. Our pace is always good for top five so I have to be starting from somewhere on the front two rows. We have had a lot of races already this year, including the Suzuka 8-Hours, so now there are only three races to go! It cannot be seen as a bad season so far but I am just a little bit disappointed because I got on the podium in the first two rounds but when you start at that level you always want to be back there each time. We have to forget those first two and start again to get more podiums from now on.” Lorenzo Zanetti (Pata Honda World Supersport Team) “When I look to Istanbul I think I am in a good position because I raced there for three years on 125cc GP bike; in 2005, 2006 and 2007. It is a good track and has a nice contrast, with big and fast corners and some tighter ones. It is a complete track and there are lots of changes of elevation. After morning warm-up at the Nürburgring we went back to a different solution for the front end and I ended up fighting for a podium, so we have decided to restart in Turkey with the same settings. As the team has no data for Istanbul we will begin with the same bike as we had in Germany, then we can decide what we need to change after we have completed some laps. After riding a Superbike last year I think I have learned the way the 600 works and I have arrived on a good level.” Jack Kennedy (Rivamoto Honda) "I suppose this weekend puts everyone on more of a level playing field for a change, and gives me a better chance, because most people will be in the same situation as me - not knowing the track. I will learn the circuit first of all and from my experiences this year I know I can learn tracks quite quickly. Our bike is now fairly close to its best but you always want to have more speed so you do not need to try so hard to make it all up in the corners." Ronan Quarmby (PRORACE Honda) “We had a good weekend in Germany and I set a fast time even in the first session. That gave me good motivation that I could do well on the weekend. It was a very good race until the bike stopped and it was just one of those things that can happen. The bike should be even stronger this weekend as the team have new engines. There should be more speed from the bike as well. The track is new to most people so that should be a good advantage as I know I can go well at new circuits.”
Posted on: Wed, 11 Sep 2013 05:58:29 +0000
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