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Silverstone Sees Lascorz And Sykes in Action Again
WSBK, Silverstone, Great Britain, 26 July 2011
Two official Kawasaki riders will be going for glory this weekend at Silverstone as Joan Lascorz and Tom Sykes set out to get into the leading mix in each race at the revamped British venue. Silverstone is a home event for not only the Paul Bird Motorsports-operated team (based in Cumbria) but also Sykes, who is in his second year in the official outfit. Sykes, originally from Yorkshire but now living relatively close to Silverstone, is particularly keen to get back to top form at is home race. He has recently completed a short test at the hilly and narrow Cadwell Park circuit in England, to try out some chassis settings in an effort to save some set-up time once he gets to Silverstone.

Joan Lascorz moved into the position of top ranked Kawasaki runner at the previous round at Brno, stepping one place above Sykes to 13th overall in the process. The immediate aim for Lascorz is climbing his first ever WSB podium but two strong finishes would help him eradicate memories of the crash at this track last year, which cost him the chance of going for the WSS championship. His injuries held back many of his preparations for his assault on the WSBK class this year but Joan is now settling into the Superbike role well, having already posted two top five race finishes in what is a particularly tough season.

Team regular Chris Vermeulen will not be racing at Silverstone as a fall at Brno cut short his raceday in the Czech Republic and he has been advised to sit this meeting out to be fully race fit for the next WSBK round at the Nürburgring on September 4.

The Pedercini Team is mounted on Kawasaki machines again in 2011 and they will field Roby Rolfo and Mark Aitchison at Silverstone, with Rolfo two places above his team-mate, in 17th place overall.

At 5.9km in length the Silverstone circuit is not only one of the longest used in modern day racing it is also one of the fastest, with best average lap speeds of 168kmph – well over 100mph being put in last year. The pits and paddock complex are now situated in the new Silverstone ‘Wing’, a fact which even British riders like Sykes may take some time to get used to after so many seasons using the former paddock buildings.

Joan Lascorz: “I like this track and last year I expected to make a very good race in Supersport, if I hadn’t had my mishap. Let's see this year how it goes with the Ninja ZX-10R. We are forming a greater understanding, race by race, of the reactions of the bike. From the Kawasaki side they always try to give me the bike I need and they are working hard after every race. From my side I am trying to adjust my riding style to make the best of the tyres and the bike and I am also working hard to keep my body fit. In particular, what we need to improve is how to open the gas correctly and also how to explain to my crew chief the important reactions of the bike. I am trying to understand what the really important aspects are to let me go faster and which are the ones I have to remove from my riding style. Our goal now is try to stay between tenth and fifth in the races as often as we can and, maybe even more importantly, to qualify well and make a good starts to learn from the most experienced riders.”

Tom Sykes: “I am in highs spirits at the moment and looking forward to the Silverstone weekend. It is a massive circuit and really enjoyable. It has a fast average speed and it is very flowing in nature. I hope we can pick up the pace and have a result like we had in Misano and Aragon. I like to stop the bike, turn it and when I open the throttle I want to open it hard. I see no reason why we cannot go to Silverstone and pick up our game. The test we had at Cadwell last week was an eye-opener! I had just come from Brno and I think it must be four times the width of Cadwell, so it felt so fast to be running on a track so narrow. We tried a couple of things and got a bit of a direction on where I would like to improve the bike. It was good to get a couple of hours of track time to help us make the most of our practice time this weekend. Silverstone is only 30 minutes from my house now, so it is even closer to home. I want to put on a good show in Britain and having friends and family there is just another nice little added ingredient to race weekend. I want to have two strong results this weekend.”

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WSS Double Act Looking Forward To Silverstone
WSS, Silverstone, Great Britain, 26 July 2011
Broc Parkes and David Salom approach the eighth round of the Supersport World Championship with confidence after a short test in Spain delivered an improved race set-up. Broc is still second in the championship despite the misfortune of two recent no-scores, while David is only one point and two championship positions behind his team-mate.

Parkes has never been off the front row in qualifying this year and took pole at Motorland Aragon. He scored a race win at Misano and has another two podium finishes to his name so far, leaving him 36 points from the lead, on the same points total as Fabien Foret but ranked second because Broc has scored a win this season.

The first Provec Motocard.com season for Salom on the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R has seen David take his first podium in the class and take pole start in Australia, but it is his good consistency of performance that has taken him to fourth.

Once again Massimo Roccoli and Vittorio Iannuzzo will compete for the Lorenzini by Leoni Kawasaki Team, with Roccoli now 11th in the rankings and Iannuzzo 14th.

Including Silverstone, five rounds remain in the closely contested WSS championship, but after the race in the UK there will be a month long break in race action.

Broc Parkes: “I am looking to get past the results of the previous two races and I feel a lot more confident now after we had a test in Spain last week. We had to iron out a few problems that we were having. I have just been trying to get back the bike feel I know, the good front-end feel I had. It is slowly coming back to me and it was good to have a test to try a few things we wanted to the other day. David and I both made good progress there and I am looking forward to going to England to race.”

David Salom: “Silverstone is a good circuit and it is very fast. I think one or two of the other bikes can also be fast at this track and for Chaz Davies and Brno race winner Gino Rea it is their home race. I am sure they will be good there and very motivated. We had a test at a small circuit in Spain last week and it went well. The new components we tried are very good and now we will see if we will use them at Silverstone. I am approaching this race fit and with a strong mental attitude. I’m feeling good for this race and I am certainly ready to go for more podium places this year.”

christian cassella also has a wildcard for the supersport race, he blew his engine up that he had specially built for the race, so he's having to run his sstk 600 engine instead!!

all i can say it go aitcho and go parkes!!

Lascorz Seventh In Race One, Luckless In Race Two
WSBK, Silverstone, Great Britain, 31 July 2011
Joan Lascorz rode brilliantly in race one from 19th place on the grid to take seventh place, and was only stopped in race two by a water leak caused by a collision with another rider. Lascorz made short work of passing other riders in the midfield once he had recovered from a start that saw him 19th on lap one, then get to seventh place on lap ten of 18. He maintained this placing to the flag, to go 11th in the championship, on 97 points.

In race two Lascorz collided with James Toseland as three riders ran off track in the first lap, and unknown to Joan his machine lost all its coolant water. He went out on lap seven when his bike overheated.

Tom Sykes was forced to miss the race on Sunday at Silverstone, being unable to start due to the beating his body had taken in a free practice crash on Saturday. Sykes is now concentrating on getting himself fit and ready for the next round, at the Nürburgring on September 4.

Pedercini Team rider Mark Aitchison was running well in race one when a problem with his brakes saw him run wide and then fall, but he scored two points for 14th in race two. His team-mate Roberto Rolfo was 13th in race one, but retired from race two.

Joan Lascorz: “We had one good result and one unlucky one, but my bike felt even better in the second race than the first one. It was unfortunate that Toseland collided with me because his footpeg went into a water hose on my bike and it ran the cooling system dry, which meant I could not finish. I think I could have had a top six if that had not happened. I was seventh in race one and that is not so bad having qualified 19th. We have to improve in qualifying but it is good to know that I can make a good race pace on the bike when things work out.”

Tom Sykes: “I woke up feeling like I had been run over by a bus and because we do not want to cause any further potential damage to my ankle we decided not to race. I also have a lot of pain and stiffness in my neck, back and shoulders. After qualifying on the fourth row because I could not make it into Superpole, I was not going to get anything too much out of this weekend, and the risk was a little too much. I do not want to speculate on my ankle injury until I see a specialist tomorrow.”

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Salom Second And Parkes Sixth
WSS, Silverstone, Great Britain, 31 July 2011
David Salom started from pole and was only a second from winning a 16-lap race at Silverstone, having battled with the leading riders almost until the end of the race. Broc Parkes was sixth. The Kawasaki Motocard.com Ninja ZX-6R riders found the competition tough in the early laps, with some top names like Robin Harms, Sam Lowes and Gino Rea crashing or running off the circuit. The race settled into a pattern of Parkes vying for a top six finish which he achieved, and Salom looking capable of the win once he and Fabien Foret had caught up to the early leaders.

Lorenzini by Leoni Kawasaki team rider Massimo Roccoli had a great run through to fifth place, and in doing so went tenth in the championship. His team-mate Vittorio Iannuzzo scored a point for 15th.

In the European Superstock 600 race American rider Joshua Day won a thrilling contest that saw five riders inside the same second across the line. The Revolution Racedays Kawasaki rider became the sixth different competitor to win in six races so far. He is now third in the rankings, only 18 points from the leader Romain Lanusse.

David Salom: “A good result for us. Right at the very end I had the same tyre performance as Chaz, both very good. I tried hard in the braking zones but Chaz is very strong in braking and it was not possible to make a pass. I passed at one stage but he got me back again. I think it was possible to win, but only if I had been right at the front straight away. My race pace was good and I’m happy for the team because we worked very hard. Second position in the championship now, which is very good for me this year, but Chaz is quite far ahead. I still think it is possible to fight for the championship. It will be difficult, but we have four races left and I think I am the only rider to have finished in the points in every race so far.”

Broc Parkes: “We struggled in the race big time and didn’t have the pace all weekend. It was damage limitation really, a matter of seeing what I could do in the race. For some reason our set-up is not working the way we want it. I could do the same consistent lap time but to have the pace to get to the front I could not pass people. Sixth was not so good for our championship push but we came out of here with some points and we have to improve and go into the last part of the season and see what we can do.”