Troy Bayliss:
"It’s a very good start to the season for the team, exactly what we needed! Overall I’m very happy with the results. In race 1 I didn’t make the greatest start and so it took me a while to make it to the front of the pack. The last eight laps were a bit of a battle against Max but I was finally able to get past him and, although I made a couple of small mistakes, I was pretty comfortable and took the win. I would have loved to take another podium in race 2 but it wasn’t to be and I come away from this round leading the championship by 2 points so I can’t exactly complain. Now I’m ready to move on to Phillip Island where I hope to have another great weekend."
Troy Corser:
“We made a tyre change between race one and race two just to be on the same tyres as everyone else. But it wasn’t better it was worse. There was just no grip after a while and you can’t race when you can’t push hard. I’m really disappointed after getting Superpole yesterday, and it was obvious we had the speed to be competitive. That’s about all I can say.”
Noriyuki Haga:
“Not such a great day after we started so well in each race. In the first race Biaggi took my front tyre and what can I say, it was a mistake. In race two I was following Troy and saving my time until the end but after nine laps I had chatter from the rear, then more the next lap, then it started moving, then there was no grip and I could not push any more. My wrist is sore so I have to rest that before the next race.”
Fonsi Nieto:
"This is my first WSBK win and my first race win since Donington in 2003! Yes, It’s been a long, long while. I’ve worked very hard in this championship and today I reaped the reward of all the hard work. Today my Suzuki Alstare bike was faster then the Ducatis, but I definitely raced with my mind today. I used the same bike, with the same set-up in both races, though I did have the traction control on a harder setting in the first race and the bike was not as comfortable to ride as it was in race two. There was only five degrees difference in temperature between the two races, but the bike felt different in both races! In the second race, I was able to conserve my bike and the tyres and finish strongly and that’s why I won. I would like to thank all the people who had faith in me and have supported me these past years. And I’d like to thank Francis and Patricia Batta, the whole team and Suzuki for all their help. I know there are people out there who didn’t think I could be a winner, but today I proved them wrong!"
Max Neukirchner:
"It was a really good feeling leading the first race for so long and I felt pretty comfortable doing it. I made a good start and led from the lights more or less and then I just kept my head down and found I was in the lead without too much of a problem. I have been suffering from some kind of a cold or something and, with about eight laps to go, I didn’t feel in very good condition. At the same time, I started getting lots of slides and the two things together allowed some riders to pass me and I ended up 5th. In race two, I changed to a softer tyre, but the grip didn’t feel so good. I made a little mistake on the brakes and I lost touch with the leaders and it was not possible to catch them again. All in all, it’s not a bad start to the season, but it could’ve been better."
Yukio Kagayama:
"In race one, I firstly suffered a problem with tyre chatter after seven laps and the grip level also went down. Later in the race, I had some vibration exiting the turns, so it was difficult to push very hard. I just kept going as fast as I could and tried to get the best result I could."
Max Biaggi: “Race 1 was fantastic. Unfortunately the final lap went as I didn’t wanted. I tried to pass Bayliss at the last bend but the front tyre was over and I couldn’t do that. In race-2 the power of the engine decreased and I had to slow down. Riding Ducati is really funny. I want to give my compliments to the team, we have to be happy about today’s performance. I’m really confident for the next race in Australia, where I’m sure I can better further”.
Ruben Xaus: “In race 1 I miss the pace of the first 5 laps. In race 2, after a weak start, I recovered to the leading pack and I fought for the victory. It was an extraordinary race with a lot of great battles. In the final laps the tyres were very damaged and I couldn’t stop Nieto who was faster on the straight. At the last bend I could try to pass but it would have been a risk and I preferred to finish second in order to open this season with great results."
Michel Fabrizio:
"I wasn’t happy with race 1 as although I didn’t have any problems with the bike I wasn’t totally comfortable with my leather suit. I think I could have gone better if it hadn’t been for that issue. Race 2 went much better and although I got a bad start I was able to move up through the field from ninth to fifth place. Anyway, we’ve made a good start and I am seventh in the championship after the first round so that’s a positive start for me and the team I would say."
Carlos Checa: “I feel comfortable overall
after my first races. We have to work on the
bike’s chassis, but considering the bike has only
just arrived and it’s our first race I’m quite
positive. I think we can become even more
competitive this year. I touched Kagayama on the
first lap of the second race when he tried to
overtake me and nearly crashed. There was no room
for the two of us and I had to go through the
gravel and start again from the back of the
field. Unfortunately this deprived me of my
chance to try and make it closer to the front.
The bike was feeling a lot better then it did in
race one. The lap times have proved that we can do a lot better.”
Kenan Sofuoglu: “My feeling is coming better
and now I am starting to understand the
Superbike. The biggest problem I have is that I
am too tired and at the end of the race I think
my pace dropped by half a second. I feel that I
already made a good step between the first and
second race so I am happy. Today I started from a
long way back on the grid and got a top ten, so I am happy.”
Roby Rolfo: “I wasn’t as satisfied with my
position in the second race as I was in the
first, but the lap times were better than in race
one. My start wasn’t the best and I didn’t feel I
had the rear grip to overtake as many riders as I
wanted to. We still have a lot of work to do but
we are going in the right direction.”
Ryuichi Kiyonari: “It’s been difficult to
make a good setting and we must make it better. I
had some problem with tyres, but it is also the
rider as I am not fast enough. My setting on the
bike is different from Carlos and from Kenan but
I am having lots of little problems in all areas
of the bike, which is making it difficult for me to go fast.”
Gregorio Lavilla: “Today I haven’t been
racing, I’ve just been riding. After ten laps
when I was chasing the group I had three big
front end slides and I had to slow down. We need
to understand the tyres in this class a lot
before we can start to make good results.”
WORLD SUPERSPORT
Craig Jones: “I think I was over-riding from the
mid section of the race. It was a shame Johnny
and Andrew went out, as it would have been a
different race. We struggled a bit later on with
the gearing we were running, but I made a little
mistake near the end when I had pulled myself
back to the tails of the other leading guys. The
bike has been competitive and as good as we could
expect after losing some time in qualifying. I’m
over the moon to be on the podium at this race
because we knew it would be hard.”
Josh Brookes: “Not too bad considering we
qualified 12th. I hung with the front guys as
long as I could but I felt were a bit off the
pace this weekend. For some other riders to not
finish played into my hands, but I hope the Ten
Kate guys are OK. We made a good strong race, by
making the best of our situation.”
Jonathan Rea: "I am very disappointed for not finishing my first Supersport race. My main aim was to finish and get some points on the board. I’m still struggling to understand the Pirelli tyre on the rear; I’ve crashed on it twice this weekend. I’ll have to watch the footage of this race and come back to Philip Island and find a new feeling. For sure when I push I am pushing hard and might have to change this a little. I’m also disappointed for the team and for Andrew as my mistake was his misfortune. I think we can take a way some positives as well though. We were up front when it happened and not struggling somewhere halfway the field. We had a good race pace and the bike’s set-up was good so we can go to Philip Island with a positive feeling and look forward to starting the next race."
