DIFFICULT QUALIFYING FOR RIZLA SUZUKI
 Tom
Sykes and Atsushi Watanabe both finished in uncharacteristic
positions today following a tough wet session on track at
Donington Park ahead of round four of the Bennetts British
Superbike Championship, with Sykes 13th and Watanabe 22nd.
The wet weather arrived just in time for the singular 50-minute
qualifying session following a dry free practice this morning
where Sykes was running in an encouraging second place.
The Rizla Suzuki technicians worked on the chassis on both
bikes to accommodate the tricky conditions; however Sykes
was struggling for rear grip. Towards the end of the session
he suffered a small crash at Coppice corner but walked away
unhurt, but there was insufficient time left in the session
for him to return to the track.
Watanabe, who is still getting to grips with the 2.5 mile
GP circuit, had similar concerns to his team-mate. He also
fell at Coppice with just eight minutes of the session to
go. He had been progressing up the time sheets until this
happened.
Race one takes place tomorrow at 1300 with race two at 1530.
Tom Sykes:
"I know in the dry we can be competitive but it will
be hard work as I'm starting from the fourth row of the grid.
My Rizla Suzuki has felt good all weekend and Donington is
a circuit I enjoy so I'm hoping we can pull something out
of the bag tomorrow."
Atsushi Watanabe:
"I'm not so happy with today. I have seen the DVD of
Donington Park and lots of riders crashed in wet conditions.
Now I'm one of those riders. I like the track and I will work
hard to get a result for my team. I don't want to be in 22nd
place as that is not for me."
Jack Valentine - Rizla Suzuki Team Manager :
"It was a good day until the rain came. We had a very
productive free practice three with Tom in second place just
0.486secs off pole and we were hoping for the same in qualifying.
We struggled for set-up in the wet conditions and both our
riders suffered crashes in the slippery conditions. We have
more work to do if it does rain tomorrow as we need to find
more rear grip. We will make some changes for warm-up and
go from there. If it is dry we have good settings and can
run at the front."
Qualifying results:
1: Shane Byrne (Ducati) 1:46.639
2: James Ellison (Honda) +1.048
3: Michael Rutter (Ducati) +1.462
4: Cal Crutchlow (Honda) +1.626
5: Michael Laverty (Suzuki) +1.628
6: Scott Smart (Kawasaki) +1.970
7: Leon Haslam (Honda) +2.190
8: Leon Camier (Ducati) +2.384
9: Gary Mason (Honda) +2.611
10: Karl Harris (Yamaha) +2.699
13: Tom Sykes (Rizla Suzuki) +3.276
22: Atsushi Watanabe (Rizla Suzuki) +5.810
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