Aprilia SBK Superpole

The first Superpole of the 2010 SBK season held many surprises. Without a real favorite to win, it was Leon Haslam who turned in the best time at this very difficult Australian track at Philip Island.

And it was eleventh place for Max Biaggi with a time of 1:32:850, which he obtained in Superpole2. The Roman driver passed the first stage in seventh place, using his first available racing tire. During the second, he used the first qualifying tyre, but he was left out of the final eight by a tenth of a second.

Leon Camier ended up in the fourth row with a time of 1:32:293. The young English driver passed the SP1 in tenth position with the racing tires. During the second stage, Leon used his first qualifying tire, but was forced to return to the pits because he was blocked by the other drivers. So he re-entered the track with the second available racing tyre, but at the fourth turn he lost control of the front wheel and fell to the ground. He managed to get up and continue, but had no time left for a last attempt and re-entered the pits in sixteenth place.

Max Biaggi Speaks... SBK Superpole

"It's the same problem," declared Biaggi. "We suffer too much because of the rough terrain and it creates skips and annoying vibrations. So we can't take advantage of the bend angle and the ideal lines and therefore we don't use the power that we have available. Also, the new qualifying tires aren't helping us because, in order to last for several laps, they don't offer the necessary grip that we would need to make time. Just like last year, Philip Island has proven to be a difficult track for us, I can't drive as I should, and I lose those precious tenths of a second along the track."

Leon Camier Speaks... SBK Superpole

"I'm very sorry," said Camier. "I ran stronger with the racing tire than with the qualifying tire. In Superpole 2 I lost time with Toseland who blocked me on a good lap and I had to return to the pits. So I changed to the other racing tire and at curve 4, when I had already had a good intermediate time, I lost control of the front wheel and ended up on the ground. It's a real shame because with 2-3 tenths of a second less, I could have started off from the third row. This morning, the bike was working much better and I achieved good times, but there's still a lot of work to do for tomorrow's two races."

World Superbike (WSBK) Superpole Qualifying Times

1. Haslam L. (GBR) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1'31.229; 2. Fabrizio M. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'31.245; 3. Crutchlow C. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 1'31.642; 4. Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 1'31.671; 5. Guintoli S. (FRA) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1'31.696; 6. Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R 1'31.757; 7. Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 1'31.912; 8. Toseland J. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 1'32.019; 9. Lanzi L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'32.205; 10. Haga N. (JPN) Ducati 1098R 1'32.229; 11. Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 1000 F. 1'32.293; 12. Sykes T. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX 10R 1'32.398; 13. Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 1'32.430; 14. Vermeulen C. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX 10R 1'32.561; 15. Xaus R. (ESP) BMW S1000 RR 1'32.842; 16. Camier L. (GBR) Aprilia RSV4 1000 F. 1'32.895