After the first two races in Australia and Qatar, standout performances by Japan's Noriyuki Haga (Ducati) and American Ben Spies (Yamaha) are already defining the 2009 Hannspree World Superbike Championship season as one of the most exciting in years. The third round of WSBK has the riders headed to the Ricardo Tormo circuit in Valencia, Spain, where Max Biaggi (Aprilia), Max Neukirchner (Suzuki), Leon Haslam (Honda), five-time track winner Troy Corser (BMW) and World Superbike newcomer John Hopkins (Honda) are expected to provide a heated competition for the reigning leaders. This will be the tenth consecutive year of Superbike racing at the Ricardo Tormo track, the first true motorcycle racing stadium built in Europe. Valencia is known for its tricky technical configuration where precise set-up is needed to finesse the many alternating corners. The track is in a unusual counter-clockwise direction, with 9 left and 5 right-hander turns leading onto the one long (846 m) main straight. Due to the track's heavy use in motorsports it often develops unpredictable surfaces that cause varying levels of grip, so expect rider skill and bike traction to trump straight-away speed. Practice and qualifying sessions start Friday, April 3rd, with Superpole scheduled for Saturday at 3:00 PM and the two 23-lap Superbike races on Sunday at 12:00 PM and 3:30 PM. The first two rounds of the 2009 World Superbike Championship have proven there are plenty of talented riders in the field, with the deference between a podium finish and not scoring resting heavily on the fitness of the bikes. However, at the much tighter Valencia track we expect rider skill to play a more definitive role in shaping the team outcomes.

Ducati 1198
Noriyuki Haga knew the world would hold high expectations for him this year as he transitioned from Yamaha to Ducati, replacing the retiring 2008 champion Troy Bayliss. Not disappointing, the 34 years-old Haga has ridden consistently well, with the poise and talent expected from a veteran. With one win and three second place finishes he leads the point standings and carries Ducati to the top of the manufacturer's board. Nitro-Nori has three WSBK victories in Valencia, having won races in 2008, 2004 and 2000 and visiting the podium on a string of occasions. He remains the safe bet for another top finish this round.

Haga: “Valencia is one of my favorite tracks and I know I can go well there. I like the layout, with its many tight corners. The Ducati was fast there last year with Troy and so I hope I can be back on the podium again this weekend with the 1198. Consistency is key this season and with the competition that we face, we need to make every single race count, taking as many as points as possible.”

Meanwhile, fellow Ducati Xerox teammate Michel Fabrizio is looking to reclaim his preseason pace-setting form after slipping to eleventh place after traction control and rear tire problems lead to a set of disappointing DNFs at Qatar.

Fabrizio: “I was extremely disappointed to come away from Qatar without points; to have two DNFs in one weekend is a big setback when the competition is so tough this season. I have to rectify this with a strong performance at Valencia. I like the Spanish track, even if my results in recent years don’t demonstrate this, and I feel fit and ready both physically and mentally, so I would say that I am quietly confident.”

Ninth placed Regis Laconi, who has not had a win since 2005, hopes to repay DFX Corse's faith by placing on top in the first European round. However, the usual advantage bestowed from the Ducati’s legendary top-end power will not be as beneficial this round as Haga, Fabrizio, and Laconi face a much more technical track in Valencia. Haga's stiffest competition should come from Yamaha R1 Racing Team's Ben Spies.

Yamaha YZF-R1
A rookie to World Superbike, but not to winning in a competitive field, the American Ben Spies arrives after taking the last three AMA Superbike championships from the previously unstoppable Mat Mladin. Ben Spies, also known as Elbowz, has taken the World Superbike Championship by storm in the first two rounds of the series, winning the last three races to finish ten points behind Haga coming into Valencia. His lap times suggest he would be at the top of the standing if not for the misfortune that forced him off the track in the first race at Phillip Island. Valencia's corners are well suited to Elbowz riding style and his Yamaha YZF-R1 has been more consistent through the turns than the Ducati 1198.

Fellow Yamaha teammate Tom Sykes has top-10 finishes in all four races this season. Though he lacks the confidence-building podium performances that Ben Spies has, he shares the race-winning YZF-R1 that should keep him close to the font this weekend.

Spies and Haga will be the riders with the most momentum coming into the weekend, yet neither is resting on their laurels as their main rivals seek to improve their machines and redouble their efforts as the series moves to Spain.

Aprilia RSV4
Max Biaggi is a strong potential contender for first place finishes now that he has demonstrated the brand new Aprilia RSV4 is capable of competing with the best. Biaggi had a discouraging opening weekend at Phillip Island, but came back strong in Qatar, putting the RSV4 on the podium in third place, twice. Aprilia has greatly improved upon the handling of the RSV4 between the first two rounds, which should give Biaggi added confidence for a strong run in Valencia.

Biaggi's teammate Shinya Nakano has also been ranking well with the new RSV4, recently taking 4th and 7th place at Qatar.

Nakano: "We improved a great deal with respect to Phillip Island and Biaggi showed everyone the RSV4’s potential. Valencia is next, and it’s a track that I am familiar with. It’s also where I rode an Aprilia for the first time, even though that won’t put me at an advantage since the bike is a lot different now.”

Honda CBR1000RR
Honda will add more talent to the riding field when American John Hopkins makes his Superbike debut at Valencia. When the Kawasaki MotoGP team that Hopkins planed to ride for collapsed, Stiggy Racing Honda picked up the 25 year-old from southern California to replace Italian Roberto Rolfo. Hopkins had shown considerable improvement the last few years, with a fourth place finish in the the 2007 MotoGP championship. Hopkins has been in Spain this week test riding the Stiggy Honda CBR1000RR in an effort to familiarize himself with the feel of a Superbike on Pirelli tires. He has a lot of potential to play a major role in the championship, but it may take him a couple raced to find his Superbike legs.

Hopkins: "I am really happy with the testing we have done in Almeria. The first impression of the bike and my new team is really good. The size of the motorcycle makes a big difference, it feels good to be able to move around on the bike again. I am looking forward to racing in Valencia this weekend and feel I am coming well prepared, despite not having had a lot of time on-track yet. I know the Valencia track well and should be able to put in a good performance."

Hopkins new Stiggy Racing teammate Leon Haslam remains the highest placed Honda rider, fifth in the standings with 36 points. Despite having terrible starts in each of the last races, and being run off the track in race one of Qatar, Haslam has shown his determination by still placing eleventh in both races. His race pace on his Honda CBR1000RR was outstanding and suggests he could easily place in the top five. Now with a little extra test time in tow, Haslam is confidently looking forward to the Valencia round.

Haslam: "We have tested some new parts for the bike in our one-day test in Almeria and have been able to test a wet set-up for the first time this year. All in all I am really happy with the progress we made so far and feel confident for the next race. If I can have some good practice time on the track and qualify well, we can definitely set some good results in Valencia."

Jonathan Rea, last year's runner-up in the Supersport World Championship, has fought through a frustrating start to World Superbike racing the Ten Kate Honda, with tire problems and qualifying mistakes hampered his results in the first two rounds. Nonetheless, Rea is looking forward to competing at Valencia, a circuit that he believes will suit his bike – and tires – better.

Rea: “I'm pretty sure we'll be able to rely on some better tire consistency now we're back in Europe, and that will suit the CBR much better. So, we'll continue to work hard and I'll be aiming for the podium this weekend."

Britain’s Tommy Hill has scored points in three of the four opening races this year on the Althea Honda CBR1000RR despite the bike's persistent chatter problems. Spanish fans will be also be rooting for Ten Kate Honda's Carlos Checa, who came close to the win last year at Valencia and who has now fully recovered from a recent shoulder injury. However, his bike has also been experiences chatter problems that will need to smooth out before entering the unyielding Valencia track.

Checa: “I had quite bad chatter again in race one. We thought we had eliminated this problem after Phillip Island, but it was back and gave me quite bad arm pump. Unfortunately, it was even worse in race two and I also had a bad start, which meant I had to try to pass many other riders. With the problems we had, I didn’t really have the confidence to push as hard as I wanted. We’ll work on everything before we get to Valencia and hope for better things there.”

Ryuichi Kiyonari is hoping to land Ten Kate Honda its first podium in 2009 by continuing his momentum after a fourth place finishing at the last race . His team is also working hard to ensure better results this go-around.

Suzuki GSX-R1000
Team Suzuki Alstar Brux's Max Neukirchner came out of Philip Island second place in the points standing, but a wreck in race one and long recovery to 6th place in race two left the German in a distant third after Qatar. Neukirchner is a good candidate to bounce back this weekend in Valencia; he has never won here, but Neukirchner holds the track qualifying record, and came very close last year.

Neukirchner: “I had too many crashes in Qatar and I don't want that to happen again in Valencia. Last year in Valencia I was on the verge of taking my first ever WSBK victory until the very last corner of the very last lap, then I was hit by Carlos Checa and crashed, breaking my collarbone in the process. As that happened in the first race, it meant that I also missed the second race, so it wasn't a good end to what had been a very good weekend up to that moment. Valencia is quite a technical circuit and one that is quite hard physically because you hardly get any chance to rest on a lap. But I like the track and my goal is to finish both races and get on the podium.”

His fellow Japanese teammate Yukio Kagayama fared poorly at Qatar when he was hit by another rider in race one and electronic complications slowed him to 15th place in race two.

Kagayama: "The last round in Qatar was also not so good for me and so I want to do much better in Valencia. The track is not a difficult one, but it is not an easy one either because is quite tough on the body. It is the kind of track where you must be very fit and concentrate strongly every lap. I like it though and want to get my season back on track by being able to chase the podium again."

Now that Team Suzuki is back in their own workshop they are concentrating on getting the GSX-R1000 race bikes ready for a strong performance at the Ricardo Tormo Circuit. Team BMW Motorrad Motorsport also hopes to capitalize on the extra expertise they can garner from their home base in southern Germany to improve upon their bikes by this weekend.

BMW S1000RR
BMW undoubtedly faces an uphill battle this season having never fielded a superbike team before, but Valencia offers them the opportunity to have the same breakthrough weekend that Aprilia had at Qatar's Losail. With five career wins and four poles at the Tormo Circuit, Troy Corser has plenty of experience at this track, and his performance at Losail was encouraging; despite falling back to 9th late in race 2, Corser confidently ran in the top five until his tires started to fade. With Aprilia’s performance in Qatar, the pressure is on at BMW to get their brand new machine on the podium as well. Corser has his best shot yet at making that happen for the Beemer.

Corser: "For us, as a new team, the first two rounds were tough, but I am really pleased with what we did. There’s a lot to do of course, but I think we showed a lot of people that we mean business. If it wasn’t for the new Superpole system, I’m sure I would’ve qualified higher up the grid and that would have probably meant better results. Being so far from the workshops has been a real disadvantage for us all, but now we are back in Europe, I’m sure that we’ll make a lot of progress. The long flyaway has certainly opened the eyes of a lot of the team members, but everybody is working great and the good progress will continue for sure.” 

Ruben Xaus, Corser's lanky Spanish Teammate, will be the other native being cheered on by the Valencia crowd. He won race 1 here in 2007 and certainly has the potential to do so again.

Kawasaki ZX-10R
Coming into Valencia the Kawasaki's World Superbike Racing Team only has room to improve upon its poor showings in the first two rounds. The 27-year-old Australian Broc Parkes managing to net a handful of points last time out, however, 32-year-old Japanese Makoto Tamada was sidelined following a practice crash. The team is working hard to make the machines more competitive following tests in Valencia, and both Parkes and Tamada feel confident that progress will be made in the first European round.

Parkes: "It's been great to test in Valencia prior to the race next weekend. We've tried and tested so many things and had quite a few positive things to report back. The bike should be better over a race distance but we still have a lot of work to do on set-up but I'm getting more and more comfortable on the bike each time I ride it. We are all working hard, the team and myself, and we're confident that we can aim for some points in the races and being in the top ten would be a bonus."

Tamada: "I missed the race at Qatar and also the test this week so I can't wait to get back on the track at Valencia. My injuries were not as bad as I first suspected. I am recovering every day, and I will be ready and fit for the Valencia race. It is my intention to get points at Valencia, and get back what I missed at Qatar."

If the action of the first two rounds of World Superbike is any predictor, Valencia should provide a pair of races on par with the level of excitement fans have already come to expect this season. Chances are that Spies, Biaggi, and Haga will battle for the top spot, but there could be a couple of surprises on the podium.


CIRCUIT DATA:
Name: Circuit de la Comunitat Valenciana Ricardo Tormo
Country: Spain
Circuit length: 4.005 km
Pole position: Right
Corners left: 9
Corners right: 5
Length of race: 23 laps / 92.115 km

LAP RECORDS: Best lap: Hodgson (Ducati), 1'35.007 (2003). Superpole: Neukirchner (Suzuki), 1'33.805 (2008).

2008 RESULTS: RACE 1: 1. Lanzi (Ducati); 2. Bayliss (Ducati Xerox); 3. Corser (Yamaha) RACE 2: 1. Haga (Yamaha); 2. Bayliss (Ducati Xerox) 3. Checa (Honda)