Max Biaggi Italian fans: How fitting is it for an Italian rider like Max Biaggi to take a double victory at Misano the day after the circuit adopted the name Marco Simoncelli, and with his crewchief Aligi Deganello being Marco’s former crewchief? We don’t know if it is fitting or just a coincidence that the stars aligned this way today, but the Roman Emperor showed the world (and refuted the late Enzo Ferrari’s theory again) that being over forty and having two children doesn’t take away neither the passion nor the will to fighting against the odds of starting 10th on the grid and risking on tire choice (he picked the bigger 200mm softer tire) and this season he’s been highly consistent, while his title rivals have all made massive and costly errors.
The Aprilia rider now commands a comfortable 38.
5-point lead in the championship (Misano may result as the turning point in the championship title) with Jonathan Rea in second followed by Tom Sykes.
Marco Melandri dropped from second to fourth.
While Carlos Checa continues to be fifth in the standings, but another DNF today (his third in five races) has the reigning world champion 60 points behind BiaggiHere are some rider quotes following this seventh round and after the jump you’ll find the Race 2 highlight video:Max Biaggi (1st and 1st)“It was an amazing weekend, after Superpole which forced me to start from the third row, as we able to stay focused and express myself well during the race.
After the test sessions I chose a tyre which wasn’t the fastest as far as lap times go, but the one that gave me more confidence.
In any case I had to take some risks because there are very few places to overtake here, but in the end I was successful and I’m leaving Misano with an incredible double win.
I’d like to thank the guys on the Team who always work well and I would like to dedicate this victory to my girlfriend Eleonora and my son Leon, who was here at the track for the first time to see me race.
” Carlos Checa (2nd and DNF)“Considering our position on the grid, and the fact that it’s not at all easy to make passes at Misano, the result in race 1 was pretty good.
I admit that I didn’t expect to be up there fighting for the win today but I was able to make up ground, which was no easy task! Max was strong today, well done to him and to Davide who rode a fantastic race! Then what can I say about race 2? It seems like this season we are under fire from all sides.
Marco pushed me out through the corner, which is strange as he’s normally more careful but anyway that’s how it went.
It’s a real pity as I could have made another good race and taken important points.
”Davide Giugliano (3rd and DNF)“I’m really happy with how race 1 went.
We’re gaining experience race after race and I’m trying to put everything that the team and Ducati has given me to good use.
I knew that the last phase of the race would be more difficult and I was right; I started to have grip issues and got a little nervous when I saw Carlos and Max right behind me! I’m really happy with the result, and the fact that it comes here at Misano.
On the other hand, I’m really sorry about what happened in the second race.
I was lapping very fast and doing all I could to stick with the leading group.
Perhaps I pushed a little too hard and it was game over.
I apologise to my team, that has worked so hard for me this weekend, to the fans and I’m also sorry for how Carlos’ race came to an end.
”Tom Sykes (4th and 7th)“To be honest race one was not too bad after we have had a difficult weekend trying to find traction with the bike in hot conditions.
We have done a great job in the first part of the year and we know where we can improve.
In race one we did what we needed to do to finish top four.
I’m satisfied with race one best four and eight seconds off.
It was certainly good compared to last year.
Track temperatures went up considerably for race two and unfortunately because we have been struggling with bike setting we had to concentrate on this.
We were very limited on track time for tyres and the main focus for us was to improve the bike to get the result.
In race two we made the wrong tyre selection.
We did not have the tyre experience to gamble on another tyre choice.
Rea chose a different tyre and look what happened to him.
If we had done the same we would still be in the same ballpark.
Others made bigger mistakes today.
So, we lost a few points but I’m still third in the championship after a bit of a hard weekend.
”Jonathan Rea (5th and 2nd)The first race was quite strange and I was comfortable at the front in the first part, but then the tyre went off so quickly and dramatically and it was all I could do to bring it home in fifth.
I had to ride a perfect race in the second outing because from about lap nine I had ‘+0, Haslam’ on my board and that went on for the whole race.
In the beginning of that race I got stuck behind Tom [Sykes] and Giuliano was being quite aggressive, so I got out of my rhythm a bit.
But I stayed calm and re-grouped and made a nice pass on Tom.
I made no mistakes but Leon stayed very close so he gave me a lot of pressure.
I rode the best last laps that I could and it’s good to finish second here after struggling in the last couple of years.
Now summer has arrived, I’m happy that our bike is working on the softer ‘A’ tyre and my guys are working calmly in the box.
To get back on the podium at a circuit where we struggled so much before is good.
I’m looking forward to going to Aragon now – it’s exciting, because it’s going to be a new circuit for me and I always enjoy that challenge.
Leon Haslam (12th and 3rd)“It was another weekend where we challenged for the podium.
In race 1 we were unlucky with the tyre, we could not do anything.
We were fighting for a podium position but then had a tyre issue and dropped three to four seconds a lap.
The tyre was unrideable, so to get four points I was quite happy with but also frustrated because after these strong first laps we did not get the podium in race one.
But we did it in the second one.
Between the races the boys were working hard; we changed the set-up and made a different tyre choice.
This tyre was definitely a lot better.
It was a good battle with Johnny.
I thought I had the pace to overtake him but it seems it took me too long to get past Tom and the other guys.
And Johnny was quicker than me in a couple of corners which made overtaking very difficult.
He did a perfect race and we had to settle for third, which I don’t like doing.
But I am happy to be back on the podium and a big thanks to BMW.
Now we are heading to Aragón for two more days of testing.
We will try to fine-tune a few things and get some more mileage on the different tyres.
”Marco Melandri (DNF and 4th)“In race 1 we used the smaller rear tyre, and the grip level was quite ok.
Suddenly, after nine or ten laps the grip level dropped down.
It took only another couple of laps and the tyre was gone completely.
It was impossible to continue riding, so I decided to come back to the garage.
In race 2 we used the bigger rear tyre.
I originally preferred this tyre but we only had one to ride before the races.
When we tested the bigger tyre in practice, we had more chattering than with the small one, but did not have the opportunity to fix this issue.
As a result we focused on the small tyre for race 1.
For race 2 we took the risk to go for the bigger tyre.
The bike felt much more consistent and the grip level was much better but unfortunately the chattering was still really bad, so overtaking was tough.
On lap 4 I was behind Carlos.
I tried to pass him in turn four where I felt strong in braking.
We were side by side, so I expected him to see me, but when we started to flick into the corner he seemed not to realize that I was next to him as he touched my leg with his shoulder and he lost the front.
I am very sorry.
Carlos is a great guy and a fair sportsman.
Here in Misano I raced with a special helmet design.
We will organize an auction on eBay in the next couple of days and donate the money to the people in Emilia Romagna who suffered as a result of the earthquake.
Just follow me on Twitter and you will find out more about the details.
”Eugene Laverty (7th and DNF)“Today was a very bad day at the office.
I finished a lowly 7th in Race1 and then crashed out of Race2.
We chose the wrong front tyre and it didn’t offer enough grip in the higher temperature.
We have a test coming up in Aragon so we’ll work hard to get back on the pace of the front guys”.
Loris Baz (DNF and 8th)“I had a problem in race one, with the electronics in the gear shifter, after five laps.
I tried to ride without it for ten laps but it became a bit risky, so I came in.
I knew I had a good race pace so I think in race one I could have finished between tenth and 12th, something like that.
In race two I tried to start a bit better, which I did not do! Then I tried to go faster in the first few laps and then our race pace was really good, so I could come back to Laverty, Tom and some other riders.
I was comfortable where I was so I did not want to make a stupid mistake trying to overtake Tom.
For me eighth is really good.
I would have like to try and pass Tom but I did not want to take any risks.
”Leon Camier (10th and 15th)“I know the results don’t look great, but I’m pretty happy with our potential today – especially race two.
We made a bit of a gamble with the settings in race one, because the conditions were quite a bit cooler than they had been, but the settings weren’t spot on and the grip wasn’t too good, so the tyres wore out pretty quickly.
I rode as hard as I could, kept a consistent pace; and finished 10th.
The bike felt really good in race two and I was lapping quickly from the start.
I made a lot of progress and was enjoying myself passing people.
Everything felt comfortable until a tip-off in turn four.
I think I might have gone in a bit slower and tighter than normal and the front suddenly folded and down I went.
I got back on the bike and, a lap later, I was just four-tenths-of-a-second slower than my previous best lap.
During the race I set times equal to all the top guys except Biaggi.
I was the fastest rider in sector four, second in sector five and third in sector one that shows how well the FIXI Crescent Suzuki was going – probably the best it’s been all year! I feel really positive after today and now all we have to do is nail Qualifying and we’ll be up there fighting with the fast guys for sure.
” Ayrton Badovini (11th and 5th) “Ending the round with a fifth place is positive because it matches the improvements we made during the weekend.
I could have done better though, but in the early part of the race I lost touch with the leading pack as I was trying to pass Sykes.
In the final laps I waited a little bit too long to try and go for the fourth place, and once the first attempt didn’t go as planned I was not able to get back close enough for another try.
Anyway I’m happy with the improvement we showed here at Misano.
In Race one I was doing well but the tyre we used did not allow me to be incisive until the end.
Michel Fabrizio (14th and 6th)“We managed to turn things around in a weekend that up to today had been tough.
In race two I gave my best to get an acceptable result, considering how the first two days went.
We have a test scheduled before the next round and that will allow me to work race-wise quietly.
”Hiroshi Aoyama (16th and 12th)It’s been another difficult weekend for me.
In race one we struggled a bit and I got stuck with some slower riders.
When I got past the gap to the next group was too big and the tyre started to lose a lot of grip.
In the second race it was difficult to feel the bike, maybe because of the higher temperature.
It was a hard race but we got some points in the end.
It was not so bad but position-wise I’m not so happy.
I’ll try to think about what can do to make it better for the next race in Aragon and I will do my best there.
John Hopkins (17th and 14th)“I can’t say that I am too happy with the results, but I am happy because I’ve done 48 laps today in hard conditions with no problems and I’m regaining my confidence.
I didn’t make a particularly good start in race one and then got held up in traffic.
It took a bit of time, but once in the clear I tried to stay consistent throughout the race.
My lap times at the end of the race were good, so it’s a pity that I lost touch at the start.
We made some quite big changes to the bike for race two and I felt an improvement straight away.
Starting races from the fifth row of the grid is never easy – especially when the competition is so tough.
To make matters worse, Mercado high-sided right in front of me early on and he and his bike hit me and forced me off the track and into the gravel.
I recovered, rejoined the action and then spent the rest of the race playing catch-up.
Once again I was running pretty good lap times, but unable to make as much progress as I would’ve liked because of my grid position.
”