World Superbike Championship
Round five: Assen, The Netherlands - Event preview
HANNspree Ten Kate Honda leads the way to Assen
HANNspree Ten Kate Honda will head home to northern Europe
this weekend for the fifth round of the 2007 World Superbike
Championship in Assen. The thrilling fourth round in Valencia
saw James Toseland extend his series lead in one of the most
exciting races of the season so far.
The British rider racked up his fourth race win of the year
in a spectacular 23-lap battle with Noriyuki Haga and Max
Biaggi. The three rivals were rarely more than a second away
from each other as they fought for the top place on the podium.
In the end, Toseland was triumphant as he secured a 151-point
lead in the championship standings.
Team-mate Roberto Rolfo fought hard from 17th on the grid
to take tenth and 12th places in race one and two respectively.
The Italian is aiming to step up his campaign in The Netherlands
to bring in those all-important points for HANNspree Ten Kate
Honda's home race.
Ronald ten Kate, Team Manager:
"Assen is the home round of the team and we will have
over 400 guests on the race day, including all the wives and
girlfriends of the team members. For sure we are going to
give it 100% yet again. James has done really well at Assen
over the past few years, although last year it was wet so
it wasn't so good for him. However, the forecast for the weekend
is good so we are keeping our fingers crossed for that. The
fast and flowing characteristics of the circuit will suit
Roby's riding style a lot better so we believe he can get
a good result and do well for the home race."
James Toseland:
"So far we've won a race at every round so I'm hoping
to keep this going at Assen. It's more or less like a home
round for me with all the British fans that come over, and
of course it's the home race for the team so it should be
a good one. I'm really looking forward to the racing and hopefully
I can keep and extend my championship lead."
Roberto Rolfo:
"Things did not go so well for me in Valencia - the
feeling on the bike just wasn't there and I struggled to get
on the pace. I hope to be able to get back on track at Assen
because although this is a challenging circuit, I think it
will suit my style. We'll see how things go. I am looking
forward to racing at the team's home track as there should
be a lot of extra support in the crowd - it should be a good
weekend."
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