The title fight between Xerox Ducati's
Noriyuki Haga and Sterilgarda Yamaha's
Ben Spies will be a must watch this weekend as the final round of
World Superbike takes place in Portimao, Portugal. With only 10 points separating the two frontrunners, it will definitely be an all-out brawl to the finish.
Will Ben Spies be able to "elbow" his way past Noriyuki Haga or will Nori hit the "Nitro"
button and take the win?
Unlike Spies, Nitro Nori may have the advantage of racing Portimao in the past, but during his 2008 visit to Portugal the
Ducati ace DNF’d the first race and finished 14th in the second. Haga said, "Last year at Portimao didn’t go to plan; I had some bad luck. This year I am in a better position and now everything comes down to this last event. My strategy won’t be any different from normal; I always go out with the aim to win and I always give 100%. I’ve finished second or third in the last five editions of the Superbike championship and so all I am missing is the title win, a title I hope to be able to bring home to Ducati and to Japan this weekend.”
Spies is not unfamiliar with Portimao, however, as the Texan started his Superbike career by topping the timesheets during the official preseason test in January. Out of 26 races this year, Spies has taken the top-spot 13 times and captured 10 pole positions. If the Sterilgarda
Yamaha pilot can cross the line first in both races, he will win the championship and boost his confidence for his wildcard entry in the November
MotoGP race in Valencia.
Xerox Ducati's other rider,
Michel Fabrizio, appears to have a firm grasp on third-place in the championship. So the question is, where will the Italian fit into the picture during the Portimao match and will his win at Imola (where he finished one position ahead of Haga) play a part in the final points' chase? When asked about the upcoming weekend, Fabrizio remarked, "I’m feeling confident and am reassured that the third position that I hold in the standings can’t be taken from me as fourth place Max is too far behind to catch up now. I hope Noriyuki can take the title for Ducati and I’ll be backing him all the way this weekend.”
"Without a championship to challenge for, the last few races have really been about concentrating on building our speed and carrying that through into winter testing. I’m aiming for a fun end to the season and will be going for two more good finishes to end the year on a high," said Jonathan Rea.
And while the top-two duke it out, there is still the matter of the other riders vying for positions in the final rankings for this year’s championship. Aprilia’s
Max Biaggi, who currently sits in fourth, holds a 14-point edge over Jonathan Rea on the Hannspree Ten Kate
Honda.
Yamaha’s Tom Sykes has a 10-point lead over Ducati privateer Shane Byrne with fellow 1098R rider Jakub Smrz trailing just five notches below the Brit.
British Superbike rider Sylvain Guintoli will make a 2009 Superbike debut aboard his new Team
Suzuki Alstare ride for the final race of World Superbike 2009. The Frenchman replaces
Max Neukirchner, who is still recovering from his big crash at Monza. Neukirchner will move to Hanspree for 2010 and Guintoli will be joined by Briton Leon Haslam.
Portimao Rider Quotes:
Jonathan Rea – Hannspree Ten Kate Honda:
"Last year, Portimao was my first race on a Ten Kate Honda Superbike and I really had a lot of fun. Although the track has quite a difficult layout, I really enjoy riding it and I’m looking forward to going back there. The bike is completely different to the one I rode last year and at the pre-season test, so we’ll be working from a much better starting point. Although it’s the final round, there’s still a chance for me to improve my overall position in the championship so we’ll be working really hard for that."
In 2008, Carlos Checa claimed his third second-place finish in Race 1 at Portimao.
"I had a good birthday last week when I did some trials riding with Toni Bou – Montesa Honda’s world champion – which was amazing! Last year’s races at Portimao were quite eventful but good for me, with a podium in the first race. It was looking good also for race two but I got caught in another rider’s crash and had to go off the track. Portimao is one of the best circuits on the calendar – really good fun and very special – so I hope to finish the season with some good results, as a farewell gift for the team. I’d like to thank them for a very enjoyable two years and for the opportunity to join the World Superbike championship. It’s a shame we were not able to fight for the title this season as we hoped, but I will try to make sure we finish with a good race."
Troy Corser - BMW:
"It seems to have been quite a long year, but I am satisfied with the progress we have made throughout the season and I am especially pleased with the
S1000 RR in the past few races. The series is so competitive and hard this year and often less then half a second is the difference between a good grid place and something further down the order. And if you don’t get a good grid position, you are always playing catch-up. If we took our race times from this year and put them into last year’s results, our bike would’ve been on the podium quite a few times, so that shows how much faster everybody is going this year. I am looking forward to Portimao and finding out what our engineers have come up with since the last round. I am hoping that another step forward has been made and that Ruben and I can finish BMW’s debut season on a high. "
Ruben Xaus commented on his physical state, "I am happy that I can race in Portugal because originally my doctors told me that I wouldn't race again this year after my crash in Brno. So, a big thank you to my physiotherapist and everybody at the clinic where I did a lot of rehabilitation and training."
"I cannot wait for Portimao because I really want to see what the guys have done to the bike since Magny-Cours and see if I can push it and myself to our best result of the year. My body is not yet 100%, but I will be stronger than I was at Magny-Cours and you need to be fully fit to ride these kind of bikes hard. Portimao is a very physical circuit, so I know that my body is going to get a pounding, but I am going to do my best and try and get my best finish of the year."
Sylvain Guintoli - Alstare Suzuki:
"I have never ridden at Portimao before, but I know that it is quite technical and there are many changes of elevation and lots of blind corners. That means that I will have to start off by learning which way the track goes and take my time getting to know that and my new team. The good thing is that I am under no pressure in Portimao and will be able to use the weekend to get to know the bike and the team before getting down to the hard work in the winter tests. I am going to do my best, of course, but I hope I can get on with the bike and the team quickly and also have some fun."
