Despite yesterday’s delays and slippery conditions during the opening practice sessions of World Superbike at Imola, Xerox Ducati's Michel Fabrizio managed to snag his first Superpole win ahead of Yamaha rider Ben Spies and Hannspree Honda's Jonathan Rea. Championship contender Noriyuki Haga qualified fourth.

After securing pole at Ducati's home track and in front of his fans, Fabrizio said, “I am extremely happy to take my first Superpole, and happier still to do it here at Imola on the Ducati. I really wanted it and, after Ben took it from me by a thousandth of a second back at Kyalami, this time I just took it from him."

Starting in Row 2, Czech Jakub Smrz rounded out the top five aboard his privateer Ducati. 

The Emperor, Max Biaggi, and temporary Aprilia teammate Marco Simoncelli finished a respective sixth and eighth on the grid giving Aprilia and the Italians fans a reason to celebrate.

Starting at ninth on the grid is BMW's Troy Corser, with the Aussie's teammate, Ruben Xaus perhaps feeling some strain due to recent injuries as he will start Sunday's race in 19th.

Rea’s teammate, Carlos Checa, who slipped from second in practice to 13th during qualifying, remarked, “The feeling with the bike is quite similar to the test but managing the power here is never easy, with the front wanting to come up all the time.”

Despite crashing during the first free practice and an unscheduled trip to the hospital, Yamaha’s Tom Sykes returned and finished 16th on the grid. Although not seriously injured, he did comment after the crash, "It was a big crash for me this morning, I thought I was feeling ok from it but in the afternoon session I felt a bit sick so the knock was a bit more than I first thought."


Rider Quotes:

Ben Spies - Yamaha - 2nd:
"It was a good session for us but I kind of blew it in the last section, making a big mistake and that cost us, but I'm on the front row which is where we need to be. All the top guys are on the front row, which is how it should be, none of us will be hanging around so let's hope we have some fun tomorrow."

Jonathan Rea - Hannspree Ten Kate Honda - 3rd:
"I didn’t really use the qualifier to its best effect in the first couple of laps and I wanted to go out and try again but fell short a little bit. The pace out there was fast today and, when I wanted to have another go, there just wasn’t enough tyre left. But we’ve got a good race setup for tomorrow and the guys have done a marvellous job. We’ve had so many new things to try and every week the package gets better and better. So, a big thanks to them, well done to Michel and Ben and I’m sure the racing will be pretty good tomorrow."

Noriyuki Haga - Xerox Ducati - 4th:
"We’ve gone well today and there are just a couple of small problems, suspension-wise, but we know the direction to take so it should all be fixed before the races. I just feel that I missed out by not participating in the tests but, anyway, a place on the front row is very positive and I feel I did a good job today. I’m going to get my shoulder looked at this evening so that I’m in a position to give 200% tomorrow.”

Shane Byrne - Sterilgarda - 7th:
"I'm happy with what we did today but at the same time a bit disappointed I didn't qualify in the front row. I really wanted to do well for the team but I probably tried too much and so I wasn't as effective in Superpole 3. However, the most important thing is what we'll do tomorrow but I'm confident because we really did a good job on the bike and our pace is very good".

Troy Corser - BMW - 9th:
"Of course, it is disappointing to miss out on Superpole 3 by such a small margin, but that shows just how competitive the championship is and the difference  between the second row of the grid and the third. But generally, things have gone pretty well this weekend, despite losing an hour yesterday, and we know which front tire we’ll use in the race tomorrow. The rear is a choice of two, so hopefully we’ll sort that one out in the warm-up tomorrow morning.

This circuit has three chicanes and these first gear corners do not suit our bike at present. It’s an area that the team know about, are working on and this problem will be fixed in the next engine spec. I feel that maybe our bike is the fastest out of the turns, but I can’t use the full power on the exit because it wants to wheelie. This is another area that will be sorted out soon, but at least the bike is easier to ride than it was earlier in the year and that means that I am enjoying myself again."

Carlos Checa - Hannspree Ten Kate Honda - 13th:
"I was in top ten, top five in all the practices but on my first pit exit on the qualifying tyre I made a few mistakes. When we put the second qualifier on we had some problems with the electronics cutting the power and I couldn’t find that last 0.5s that would have carried us forward. We’ll try something more in warm-up tomorrow but I need two good starts in the race because that’s another story to qualifying. It’s not an easy place to pass here, but if we can improve the pace a little, I think we can do something."

Yukio Kagayama - Suzuki - 17th:
"Seventeenth place on the grid is terrible and I am very disappointed because things had been going so positively and I was enjoying myself again. It is early days with our new suspension, but the signs are very positive and I was hoping that we would have a good Superpole. But running off the track ruined that and when I hit the tire wall and the engine wouldn't start, I knew it could be a problem. Now, once again, I have to make two good starts and ride my socks off, but I want to forget today's problem and think positively about tomorrow and the races."

Ruben Xaus - BMW - 19th:
"My first goal was to qualify for Superpole 1 and I did that, so that made me happy. But having done that, I wanted more and that was not possible today because I am not quite up to speed yet after nearly eight weeks off the bike. But the good news is that I feel good physically and I have no pain from my injuries. Even my arms were better today and now I just need time on the bike and work on understanding the improvements the team have made since I last rode it. For sure, the throttle connection is much better and the bike is easier to ride, but I am having some small problems braking and I have to work on that."

World Superbike Imola Friday Qualifying -

1. Fabrizio M. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'47.735
2. Spies B. (USA) Yamaha YZF R1 1'47.778
3. Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 1'47.834
4. Haga N. (JPN) Ducati 1098R 1'47.885
5. Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R 1'48.156
6. Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1'48.665
7. Byrne S. (GBR) Ducati 1098R 1'49.092
8. Simoncelli M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1'49.338
9. Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 1'48.971
10. Haslam L. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 1'48.992
11. Lanzi L. (ITA) Ducati 1098R 1'49.060
12. Nieto F. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 1'49.105
13. Checa C. (ESP) Honda CBR1000RR 1'49.168
14. Kiyonari R. (JPN) Honda CBR1000RR 1'49.340
15. Lagrive M. (FRA) Honda CBR1000RR 1'49.641
16. Sykes T. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R1 1'49.681