2008 Superbike World Championship
Round 4, Assen, NL
Circuit: 4.555 kms Crowd: 75,000 (3-day)
Conditions: Dry, hazy sun 19-22C
SUPERB PODIUM FOR MAX!
Team Alstare Suzuki rider Max Neukirchner took a superb third
place in the first race in Assen today. The young German was
a contender throughout the 22-lapper and finished strongly
in third behind series leader Troy Bayliss (Ducati) and Carlos
Checa (Honda). Max was also a podium contender in the second
race until a small brake problem forced him to slow. But he
kept charging hard and finished fifth to record his best weekend
of the season. Team Suzuki Alstare rider Yukio Kagayama took
fourth place in race one and then suffered a tyre problem
in race two which forced him down the order to sixth. His
team mate Fonsi Nieto had a weekend to forget, with a crash
and a DNF in race one and an eleventh in race two.
Max - Race 1: 3rd, Race 2: 5th
Race one was a fantastic race and a fantastic result for me.
I was always with the front runners and felt very comfortable
with them. I had some small problems with two right turns
and maybe it was because I was using the rear brake too much
that the front was moving round a bit. In race two, I think
I overdid the front braking and after ten laps had a lot of
problems with grip in the fast corners. So instead of pushing
too hard, I decided to ride safely and get as many points
as possible.
Yukio - Race 1: 4th, Race 2: 6th
Race one was better for me then race two because the bike
feeling was better. I made a small mistake in the chicane
and went into the gravel. I recovered OK but lost two positions
and after that it was hard to catch up again. I used the same
bike in race two, but the rear tyre feeling was not so good
and there was quite a bit of vibration or chattering. If I
tried to go any faster the vibration got worse, so I just
had to ride as hard as I could and finish the race.
Fonsi - Race 1: DNF, Race 2: 11th
This was a weekend to forget. I don’t why I highsided
and crashed in the first race because it happened without
any warning. I hit my left knee pretty badly and had to have
a painkilling injection so that I could start the second race.
But the problem was that there was not enough strength in
my legs to move the bike around and I had to use my upper
body instead - and that wasn’t so easy.
Results
Race 1: Bayliss (Aus-Ducati), 2 Checa (E-Honda), 3 Max Neukirchner
(D-Alstare Suzuki), 4 Yukio Kagayama (J-Suzuki Alstare), 5
Corser (Aus-Yamaha), 6 Smrz (CZ-Ducati), Fonsi Nieto (E-Suzuki
Alstare) DNF,
Race 2: Bayliss, 2 Haga (J-Yamaha), 3 Checa, 4 Xaus (E-Ducati),
5 Max Neukirchner (D-Alstare Suzuki), 6 Yukio Kagayama (J-Suzuki
Alstare), 11 fonsi Nieto (E-Suzuki Alstare),
Points: 1 Bayliss 178, 2 Checa 108, 3 Corser
89, 4 Fonsi Nieto 85, 5 Xaus 81, 6 Haga 67, 7 Max Neukirchner
66, 11 Yukio Kagayama 41,
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