Race day - Nuerburgring
 BAYLISS
INCREASES HIS CHAMPIONSHIP LEAD WITH A PODIUM FINISH AT THE
NUERBURGRING
Another day of unstable weather conditions made for two
interesting races today at the Nuerburgring. Race 1 was restarted
due to rain, but then subsequently declared a dry race, and
saw Troy Bayliss (Ducati Xerox) caught up in a fantastic battle
for victory against Yamaha rider Noriyuki Haga. Haga eventually
took the win with Bayliss coming home in second and Neukirchner
in third. Team-mate Michel Fabrizio also got a great start
in Race 1 and battled for third place during the first half
of the race before gradually slipping back slightly to conclude
the race in eventual seventh position. In Race 2, Bayliss
again made a strong start and fought this time against not
just one, but both factory Yamaha riders, Haga and Corser.
The race was brought to its conclusion five laps ahead of
schedule due to rain, which meant that Bayliss and Fabrizio
concluded proceedings in fourth and sixth positions respectively.
Troy Bayliss has today further increased his championship
lead, now holding 227 points, ahead of Carlos Checa who remains
in second with 188 points, while Michel Fabrizio remains in
eighth place with 108 points.
Ducati continues to lead the manufacturers championship with
282 points ahead of Yamaha (251 points).
Troy Bayliss (Race 1 - 2nd, Race 2 - 4th)
"I've had a difficult day and have had to ride very
hard, too hard in Race 2. After seeing Nori's consistency
in this morning's warm-up I thought he was going to be the
man to beat today and that proved to be the case. After about
two-thirds of Race 1 I was doing everything I could to stay
with him and although at one point I thought I might be able
to take the win, in the end Nori won fair and square. My congratulations
go to him, he rode a great race, bearing in mind he broke
his collarbone just two weeks ago!
We made a small change to the bike set-up for Race 2 but
this didn't help and riding over the limit meant I made a
couple of small mistakes. I'm lucky to come away with more
of a points lead over Carlos but at the same time I've given
away points to Nori and Max (Neukirchner)... We will test
this week in Mugello and so we plan to work more on the settings
in order to be able to finish off the corners better because
that's where I'm struggling a bit at the moment."
Michel Fabrizio (Race 1 - 7th, Race 2 - 6th)
"All things considered we are happy with today's results.
In Race 1 I lost the front a couple of times which meant I
also lost my concentration a little during the final laps.
I finished in fourth, but the guys ahead of me all rode a
great race and so I am satisfied with the position I took.
In Race 2 I had a bit of a run-in with Xaus who touched me
as he passed. The way the race ended was a bit unusual but
anyway, at the end of the day I have earned another 19 points
which is of course the most important thing and although I
stay in eighth place in the classification I've significantly
increased my points total. Now we move on to Misano where
I hope for a great result in front of the Italian fans!"
RESULTS: Race 1 - 1. Haga (Yamaha); 2. Bayliss
(Ducati Xerox); 3. Neukirchner (Suzuki); Race 2 - 1. Haga
(Yamaha); 2. Corser (Yamaha); 3. Neukirchner (Suzuki)
CLASSIFICATION: Riders - 1. Bayliss (Ducati
Xerox) 227 ; 2. Checa (Honda) 188; 3. Neukirchner (Suzuki)
176; 4. Haga (Yamaha) 172; 5. Corser (Yamaha) 154; 6. Nieto
(Suzuki) 141; 7. Xaus (Ducati) 110; 8. Fabrizio (Ducati Xerox)
106. Manufacturers - Ducati 282; Yamaha 251; Suzuki 223; Honda
207; Kawasaki 64
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