Max Biaggi takes the championship lead with a splendid victory in race 1 and a tenacious comeback in race 2. Two second places for Eugene Laverty, consistent and aggressive. Aprilia also rises to the top of the manufacturer standings.
Nürburgring (Germany), 9 September 2012 – A weekend to remember for the Aprilia Racing Team at the Nürburgring. The “single-brand” podium in Race 1 was the result of the perfect performance that the mechanics and riders put in during all the sessions.
Pole man Max Biaggi got off to a brilliant start, staying locked onto Sykes in the first few laps. With a furious pace, the Corsair overtook the Brit, succeeding in creating a significant lead which he maintained all the way to the chequered flag. The podium was completed with Laverty and Davies' Aprilias, a first for the Italian brand. With Melandri's crash contributing to the situation, Max started the second race as leader in the rider standings.
In Race 2, after a good start, Max took a devastating slide into the stones, but he managed to keep his RSV4 running and rejoined the race with his bike visibly damaged, trailing his rivals from a distance (26 seconds) in dead last position. From that moment on Max Biaggi dug deep and gave it his best, breathing life into a race from times gone by and coming back with courage and skill place after place to finish in thirteenth, adding three precious points to his championship. This now places him 9.5 points in front of Melandri, the closest contender who had a DNF in Race 2 due to a crash.
“We did a good job all weekend, reaching a truly satisfying set-up. In Race 1 I got off to a good start and then Sykes set a mad pace. When I saw him starting to slow I risked overtaking. I thought maybe it was a strategy he was using, but then the gap widened so I pushed hard until the chequered flag came out. It was a shame about the crash in the first lap of Race 2. I braked without overdoing it, but then I hit a bump and I couldn't do anything about the slide. I'm disappointed because after that I was riding well with a leading pace. Given what had happened, we contained the damage and we're leaving the Nürburgring with the leadership. It could have been worse, but we could also have done a repeat of the good result in Race 1. In Portimao we'll be starting almost from scratch. The battle is close, but we'll be in it until the end”.
Eugene Laverty also leaves the Nürburgring with a smile on his face. Two second places (in Race 1 behind his team mate and in Race 2 behind ParkinGO Aprilia rider Chaz Davies) mean that Eugene is now lying in a solid sixth place in the championship. The rider from Toomebridge demonstrated stability and speed, contributing to Aprilia taking the lead in the manufacturer rankings.
“Two great races, without a doubt. In Race 1 I was struggling at the beginning and the bike was sliding around a lot, so I had to wait a few laps before I could really start pushing. Toward the end I had to defend against Davies' attacks and I managed to hold onto second place. In Race 2 when Tom Sykes overtook me it cost me a few seconds but then I was able to recover and, with the contribution of Max and Melandri's crashes, I found myself within a shout of the podium. At that point I had to fend off Camier's attacks, but Chaz had already run away at the front. I'm quite happy with the two second places for Aprilia and I'd like to congratulate Davies on a well deserved victory”.
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A GREAT SUPERPOLE AT THE NÜRBURGRING FOR MAX BIAGGI – FIRST PLACE – AND FOR THE ENTIRE APRILIA RACING TEAM WITH LAVERTY ALSO ON THE FRONT ROW.
Nürburgring (Germany), 8 September 2012 - Max Biaggi takes his first Superpole of the season and the fifth in his SBK career on the legendary German track. The multiple world champion will start from the first spot on the grid tomorrow.
After coming through the first two Superpole sessions without any trouble whatsoever, even retiring to the pits with still a few minutes left before the chequered flag in the second, Max put forth his best effort in the decisive final session. With a couple sensational near-identical laps (1’53.855 and 1’53.904), the Roman took the first spot on the starting grid, also setting the track record and leaving Superpole specialist Tom Sykes behind him, followed by Marco Melandri and team mate Eugene Laverty.
Max's great result arrived after two days of sessions in which the Corsair certainly did not hold back, accumulating a large quantity of information and sensations along with his team. His pace is excellent and this puts Max in the right condition to make a good play for the races tomorrow which, in proper Superbike tradition, promise to be extremely close in any case, since the top six times are within less than half a second.
"Pole position is the result of a weekend where we have worked well – said Max Biaggi – focusing a lot on the set-up and taking maximum advantage of the practice sessions. I managed to avoid any mistakes on the fast lap and I'm also satisfied with our race pace. This doesn't mean that the races tomorrow will be easy – on the contrary – there are a lot of riders within a few tenths of a second, so I expect a truly heated Sunday where we will definitely be able to have our say".
Eugene Laverty put his mark on the Aprilia Racing Team's great performance, taking fourth place and a spot on the front row. Ninth in Superpole 1 and third in the second session, the Northern Irishman ended the day with 1’54.148 on the clock, which places him in the last spot of the front row. His good race pace should provide him with a shot at being a key player tomorrow as well.
"We made excellent progress yesterday and today. I knew I had a shot at the front row with the pace we had been building session after session. The top three riders in the championship standings are ahead of me, so that makes the result even more impressive. Tomorrow I expect to be competitive. Starting from the front row is always a good calling card".
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THE GERMAN WEEKEND STARTS OFF WELL FOR THE APRILIA RACING TEAM.
MAX BIAGGI, SECOND IN THE FREE PRACTICE SESSION AND SIXTH IN THE QUALIFIERS, LOOKS FORWARD TO TOMORROW'S SESSIONS WITH CONFIDENCE.
FRIDAY ENDS WITH THE FOURTH FASTEST LAP FOR EUGENE LAVERTY AT THE NÜRBURGRING.
Nürburgring, 7 September 2012 – The Aprilia Racing Team's German Friday gives the Italian team confidence for the rest of the weekend. On a sunny day that was just as pleasant as it was unusual for this latitude, Max Biaggi and Eugene Laverty got in some excellent sessions.
The Corsair, stopping the clock with the second fastest lap in free practice and sixth fastest in the afternoon qualifiers, worked on his race pace, garnering comforting sensations.
There is still room for improvement and Max knows that it will have to be filled down to the last tenth of a second. The final rankings after the two sessions showed an extremely tight gap in the top ten times. This is a situation which, especially during Superpole, will force the riders to push to the limits. The changes that the five time world champion and his team are planning will be aimed precisely at improving race pace so he can battle with the front runners.
"The sessions went pretty well today – confirmed Max Biaggi – We worked with a view to the races, trying to find the right pace. We didn't make any drastic changes between the morning and afternoon sessions, and even with the changes we made we didn't see any big differences. So to get even better tomorrow we'll opt for some bigger changes and see what that does to our times. We still need to shave a bit more off, because that's what our rivals will be doing".
Eugene Laverty didn't let a harmless slide in one of his first laps on the Nürburgring break his concentration. The Team continued working without further obstacles, showing consistent improvements which led to the fourth fastest time in the afternoon qualifying session. Eugene is confident, especially with the feeling he has achieved on his RSV4 and the weather forecast, finally dry and without any surprises.
“The first session didn't get off to the best of starts with a crash in the first laps. I cleared my mind and went back to work, finishing with the fourth fastest lap this afternoon. We have improved the feeling quite a bit as well as front tyre grip, which is something that had caused some problems. Now the bike's working well, so we just need to fine tune the set up in order to get a spot on the front row and ride two good races on Sunday”.
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THIRD LAST ROUND OF THE YEAR FOR MAX BIAGGI, IN THE THICK OF THE BATTLE FOR THE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP. EUGENE LAVERTY ARRIVES AT THE NÜRBURGRING READY TO CONTINUE HIS PROGRESS ASTRIDE THE RSV4.
Nürburgring, 5 September 2012 – After the Superbike début in Russia, the factory derivatives head for the round at the Nürburgring, the historic name that brings to mind the undertakings achieved by great champions on the old Nordschleife track. For Max Biaggi this will be a decidedly particular round, both due to the Championship situation and because it was precisely on this German asphalt that the Corsair suffered an injury in 2011 which effected the rest of his season.
With three rounds left in the Championship, Max is in the thick of the battle for the final victory. The difficulties of Silverstone and Moscow reopened the top end of the championship standings, but they were unable to dampen the tenacity of the five time world champion. At the Nürburgring Max Biaggi wants to get back to battling for the win.
"I've always liked the Nürburgring circuit, even if it played a cruel trick on us last year. After Silverstone and Moscow we are chasing the leaders now – an uncomfortable position – but we need to use this as motivation to get back to being competitive. Every round from here to the end will be a match point and the winner will be whoever manages to stay calm and focused. It goes without saying that even the slightest mistake is out of the question".
The Russian weekend ended with a crash, but Eugene Laverty garnered a good feeling in the races at Moscow Raceway. His sights ever set on the podium, the rider from Toomebridge seems to have reached a promising feeling with his RSV4 in the various conditions, and in Germany he will put forth his best effort to confirm this impression.
"The rain seems to have followed us everywhere lately and this weekend we return to Nurburgring, where we suffered monsoon rain during race two last year. Let's hope we don't get a repeat of those conditions! Nurburgring is a fun circuit to ride with so many cambered turns. All the changes of direction make it quite a physical circuit which I enjoy. We've been strong during the last three races but we haven't been rewarded with the results we deserve so I hope that everything falls into place this weekend in Germany".
