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Stiggy Racing Honda>> Strong race ends in Miller gravel for Haslam

June 04 2009




Superbike World Championship
Stiggy Racing Honda

Round 07, Salt Lake City
Sunday, May 31st
SBK Race 1 + 2

The first Superbike race for the seventh round of the championship was red-flagged after just 5 laps into the 21-lap race at the Miller Motorsports Park today.

The re-started race left another 16 laps to tackle. Leon Haslam had qualified in 12th position, but struggled to find flow throughout the race. He launched a tough performance and managed to bring his bike back home in tenth position, while temporary teammate Jake Zemke took 18th place at the line. Ben Spies took the win in the aggregated race in front of his home audience.

The second Superbike race was saved from the red flag, but accounted for an even bigger number of crashes, including Leon Haslam.

Haslam started from a 12th position on the grid, but gained three positions on the first lap. He got handed another position after an unfortunate crash by last-year's double Miller winner Carlos Checa, and gains another one as Shane Byrne runs wide and drops to the back of the field.

From then on it is hard work for Haslam, as he pushed his Stiggy Racing Honda forward through the field and finds himself in the middle of a seven rider group on the hunt for front runners Michel Fabrizio and Ben Spies. But Haslam was on the pace, and first moved himself past Haga before putting the pressure on Kiyonari. He set his fastest lap, and launched himself into the top five in the second half of the race, where he then battles for third place with the Honda pairing of Riyuchi Kiyonari and Jonathan Rea.

Haslam first puts the pressure on Kiyonari and decides the outcome of the battle by claiming fourth place in the first sector on the 15th lap. Rea is the next in line to lose his position to Haslam, but the latter then struggles to find enough acceleration in his bike on the long straight of the Miller track. Haslam out breaks Rea going into the first corner, but the fellow Honda rider quickly reclaims his ground. Haslam tails Rea into the final lap of the race and rides on the limits of his bike's potential when tragedy hit and he undeservedly crashed out in one of his strongest performances to date, with just half a lap left to the flag.

The crash of Haslam moved Jake Zemke into the top 15 as he took his first WSB point home for the team. Ben Spies took another win in the second race, followed by Michel Fabrizio in second and Jonathan Rea in third.

Leon Haslam, Race 1 - 10th, Race 2 - DNF:
" It has obviously been a bit of a disappointing day for us, finishing the first race in tenth position and then a DNF in the second one. I rode really good in the second race, and I should have been in third place here. As I tried to make a pass on Jonny [Rea], I hit the curb and ended up on the gravel. I am disappointed with my results, but then again, the pace I have been running and everything else is working just fine. We have a few more issues that we will have to work on for the next round, but fingers crossed we should be at the rostrum every weekend from now on. I am feeling very well on the bike and what it can do, so bring on Misano. "

Jake Zemke, Race 1 - 18th, Race 2 - 15th:
" The cornering of the bike became a lot better and enabled me to get around the track a lot easier in the second race. The set up was better this race, even though we developed even more chatter. We started off the weekend well, but we were going backwards with the settings on Saturday. The team came up with solutions before the race, that made us run the lap times closer to what we should be doing. I am happy that Stiggy [Johan Stigefelt] gave me the change to ride here. Hopper [John Hopkins] has been around all weekend and is looking good, so he should be back for Misano. I would like to wish John, Leon and the team the best of luck for the rest of the season. It has been a great pleasure to work with this team."

Johan Stigefelt, Team Manager:
" Leon had a fantastic race here today and deserved to be on the podium. He was riding on the limit of his bike, and then hit the curb on the last lap. It's just bad luck, but that's racing. After the result in the first race we came back, like we always do. It shows how well the team works and how strong we can be. Jake was struggling in the qualifying sessions, but rode a good second race. It is good for his team, as they have worked hard to prepare him a good package throughout the weekend. We know that some of the tracks we come to will prove hard for us in the beginning, but we have been developing our bikes fast at every track. I am looking forward to the next round in Misano, at the track we know well."

Results Race 1:
1. B. Spies
2. C. Checa
3. M. Fabrizio
10. L. Haslam
18. J. Zemke

Results Race 2:
1. B. Spies
2. M. Fabrizio
3. J. Rea
15. J Zemke
DNF. L. Haslam

Championship standings:
1. N. Haga, 265 points
2. B. Spies, 212 p
3. M. Fabrizio. 201p
6. L. Haslam, 122 p
      
Stiggy Racing Honda is sponsored by Hotbodies Racing and uses our windscreens on all of their bikes. Hotbodies Racing specializes in manufacturing high-performance parts for high-performance sportbikes, and is the North American distribution of KR Tuned performance parts. Hotbodies Racing is the market leader in Undertails, Huggers, Windscreens, Flush-Mount Signals, Megaphone Exhausts and full-race Bodywork. Hotbodies Racing supports the sport with sponsorship around the world and encourages dealer and distributor inquiries. For more information visit: www.HOTBODIESRACING.com.