World Superbike Champs - Ducati fights back

“In race 2 I was right behind Haga and Corser when I went into the last chicane and lost control of the rear of the bike and there was nothing more that I could do. It was a real pity but I will try and make up for it in front of the Italian fans at Misano.”

Chris Vermeulen (Winston Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR) was the top finishing Honda rider on two occasions at Silverstone’s International circuit, taking fourth places after two tough and eventful races for all the Honda protagonists. Pierfrancesco Chili (Klaffi Honda CBR1000RR) was the next best Fireblade rider, securing a fine brace of fighting fifths.

Vermeulen, the 2003 World Supersport Champion, could not get into a position to get away with the leaders in either race, and sits third in the championship.

"I was behind James Toseland in the early parts of the race but it just seemed to take me longer to get past the other riders than it did for him. I got hit by someone in the infield section in the first lap of race two and then Laconi crashed right in front of me on the second lap, Both those incidents cost me time and let the others get away. I was pushing very hard though, right to the end of the race, but every time I put in a quick lap I didn’t seem to close the gap at all.”

Chili was pleased with the progress of his bike, knowing that he could not seriously challenge for podiums in either race.

“I think we were OK, we improved our positions and maybe the guys in front had different rear tyres. When I tested this tyre maybe I did not have the right suspension. It was not 100% but I was starting to have much more feeling for the bike and in the second race I pushed as much as I could to get the best result possible. I had cramp in my leg in the middle of the race, so I had to relax and breath. My battle was a personal one.”

Muggeridge could not regain his Monza pace, but kept his concentration for two points scoring finishes.

“We made some changes after race one and the bike definitely felt better. But around ten laps from the end the grip just seemed to drop off – especially at the hairpin and again at the exit of the chicane. It made changing direction pretty difficult but the bike was holding a better line through the faster sections.”

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