Haga is feeling confident headed into Assen. With 135 out of a possible 150 points, there's no reason he shouldn't.
Noriyuki Haga and Ben Spies lead the SBK battle to Assen for the fourth round of the Hannspree FIM Superbike World Championship on April 26. The championship front-runners will face off in what promises to be a memorable weekend of racing. Here’s what readers can expect.
Ducati Xerox’s Noriyuki Haga has seen his best ever start to a season, having secured three wins and three second places. The Japanese ace heads into Assen as the apparent breakaway leader, leaving second-place American Ben Spies trailing by 40-points. Nitro Nori has traditionally enjoyed successes at Assen TT, but following the Dutch circuit’s controversial redesign he has recorded an unimpressive four DNFs from the last six starts. Expectations for Haga’s success will be higher now that he rides a Ducati 1198. Ducati has won 22 out of the 34 World Superbike races held at Assen, including Troy Corser sweeping last year’s round.
Spies and Haga are tied with three race wins each, but with two botched races Spies will be playing catch-up at Assen.
The performance of Yamaha’s Ben Spies will also be closely watched. Following a slip-up during the first race at Valencia the American bounced back to take runner-up to Haga. Since then he has clocked the fastest times at the Monza test course in Italy, proving he still can produce a winning edge over his competitors. Assen will be a fresh venue for the American Superbike Champion and his Yamaha YZF-R1. Haga’s lead is likely out of reach for Spies this round, but chipping away at the gap now will leave less work for Elbows in the ten rounds that follow.
This season’s World Superbike Championship is chalked full of riders capable of winning individual races. Suzuki’s Max Neukirchner has had an up and down year with the GSX-R1000, but still holds third in the point standings thanks to two podiums. Neukirchner took a podium in Race 1 last year at Assen, so if history repeats itself we should see the German vying for the front with Haga and Spies. The Suzuki Alstar Brux team is also based out of the nearby city of Liege, making it possible to throw all their resources behind what they hope will be their first win of the season.
Haga’s Ducati Xerox teammate Michel Fabrizio comes into Assen with extra momentum and a boost of morale after taking second and third in Valencia. The young Italian is now poised to steal third form Neukirchner. Michel has been on the Dutch podium in 2005 and 2006, but had double DNFs last year due to reported pain in his forearms. A podium at Assen would go a long way in repairing Fabrisio’s thus far inconsistent riding record.
After a poor showing in Valencia Max Biaggi (3) needs a morale booster for the fledgling Aprilia RSV4 crew.
Fabrizio’s Italian compatriot Max Biaggi has also been challenged with riding consistently this season on the Aprilia RSV4. Biaggi’s poor Superpole performance hindered the advancement of his campaign at Valencia after a surprisingly strong start to the season for the new Aprilia team. He will be determined not to make the same mistake twice as he seeks to recapture Aprilia’s prowess.
Britain’s Leon Haslam meanwhile has had a sensational start for the Stiggy Racing Honda team, with a third place at Phillip Island and two fifths that earned him fifth overall in the standings. Consistent point scoring form has given the Brit a total of 58 points, meaning he is only seven points off a top three placing.
The Ten Kate Honda team will be racing near their home in the Netherlands where they look to turn around their disappointing season start with the help of recent mechanical and electronics changes in the CBR1000RR. Jonathan Rea (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) is just inside the top ten in the standings after the success of his top-five ride in Australia was largely negated by a DNF and 13th in the last round in Valencia. Rea is one point ahead of Ryuichi Kiyonari (Ten Kate Racing Honda CBR1000RR) and two ahead of his own team-mate Carlos Checa. Checa rode well last year at Assen and has done a consistently good job of qualifying in the new-look Superpole, taking second row starts each time.
John Hopkins would like to show up the defunct Kawasaki MotoGP team with a couple strong performances in WSBK.
John Hopkins will be the other notable Honda rider to watch at Assen. He finished a lackluster 11th and 12th in Valencia, but the former MotoGP rider plans prove that he is more than just a novelty in the World Superbike series, having stated his intention to win races this season. The question of whether the MotoGP rider can contend with World Superbike veterans and former British and American Superbike Champions remains to be settled.
Although Troy Corser and Ruben Xaus are veterans at the Assen circuit, it will be their first time there with the new BMW S1000RR. Troy and Ruben have been two riders who have suffered in the new Superpole qualifying system, starting all three of the rounds from way down the grid. It would be interesting to see what would happen if either or both could qualify on the first two rows for Sunday’s races. BMW is going the extra mile at the track and work shop to give their riders that chance.
World Superbike’s starting grid will start out one rider fewer at Assen. For economic reasons, the PSG-1 Corse team has dropped the young Ayrton Badovini from the team. Batteo Baicco will now be the sole rider for the privateer Ducati team.
Noriyuki Haga – Ducati Xerox - 1st in championship, 135 points:
"Assen - it's a tricky circuit. I preferred the old layout of the track, like most people, but don’t dislike the new version. My history there has been rocky, up and down to say the least! I’m looking forward to riding this track on the 1198, it should be interesting. We know that the Ducati performs there as Troy won both races last year, we had a good fight in Race 2 I recall, and so it should be another good weekend; Checa and Neukirchner went well there last year and they, as well as Spies and I, are likely to be running at the front, so we should see more great racing.”
Ben Spies - Yamaha World Superbike Team - 2nd in championship, 95 points:
"I'm feeling good and looking forward to getting back in the swing of things. I left Valencia not too happy but feel better after we had a good test at Monza. I think we found a little something there which is good. It's great to go to another track we don't know and learn the circuit, see how we get on and still be up front on Sunday. It should be a fun weekend."
Max Neukirchner - Suzuki Alstare – 3rd in championship, 65 points:
"Assen is not the same as it used to be and the first section now is very different to what it was before. It is not a bad track, but it's just not as fast and flowing as it used to be and so some of its appeal has gone. Last year, I took a third in the first race and a fifth in the second, so it was quite a good day for me - especially as I had broken my collarbone in Valencia in the previous round.”
Michel Fabrizio – Ducati Xerox - 4th in championship, 60 points:
"I like the track and I have had some relatively successful weekends there. Unfortunately last year was not one of those times and I had a disastrous weekend, problems with my arm led to two DNFs, a race day to forget! I’m feeling really fit and healthy now so I’m ready to fight with the frontrunners for the podium spots at Assen this season; I need to consolidate, or better, improve on, my current position in the standings as Nori and Spies are already a long way ahead of the rest of the pack.”
Haslam has steped up to the plate as the points earner for Honda this season. He will be a fan favorite with Britain being but a quick ferry ride from the Netherlands.
“I am really looking forward to the next race in Assen. I have raced on the old circuit before, and I’m keen to try out the new parts of the track, especially the first section. There is always a really good English fan base in Assen as well. We have some parts for the bike to test this weekend, which will hopefully further improve the bike.”
Jonathan Rea – Honda – 10th in championship, 33 points:
“After what’s been a sluggish start to the season, we needed to look at making some changes to the bike to improve the feeling. The guys have found some pretty positive developments back at base and I was able to try them out last week. The feeling with the throttle is much better now and that was the main area of concern. Assen is a great place, for a number of reasons, and I got my first podium with the Supersport team there last year. The circuit should suit the bike better than Valencia anyway, and we’re all in a really positive frame of mind.”
Carlos Checa – Ten Kate Honda – 12th in championship, 31
“I wasn’t able to test the improvements to the bike but we have had some detailed discussions and I’m happy with the developments that the team has made. There are one or two other additions to the bike for this weekend and I’m confident that what we have planned should work well at Assen. Like a lot of other riders, I prefer the old layout of the circuit, but it’s still a nice track and I was on the podium twice last year, so it’s a great place to have the team’s home round. I was at the workshop for an open day last weekend and, if the weather is as good as it was then, it should be a great event.”
Corser will try to stick the BMW S1000RR toward the front of the a crowded and talented WSB field.
“Assen used to be a real ‘riders’ track, but it is not the same anymore. It’s not bad track, but it just doesn’t flow like it used to and that could be a bit of a problem for us. At the present stage of the bike’s development, it seems that the bike is working better at tracks that flow, instead of stop/start circuits. Obviously, we are working very hard on getting the bike good at all types of tracks, but it just takes time and laps. We’re getting there for sure and, if we can get a good Superpole and start from near the front end of the grid, I’m sure we can improve our results.”
John Hopkins – Honda Ten Kate – 18th in championship, 9 points
“The first round of the championship was a challenging experience. I had not been on a bike for a few months and then came pretty much straight into the series and had to do two races in a row. I consider these first races to be part of the learning experience, but I have proved that I can do the lap times and am eager to go for a good result in Assen this weekend."
