Superpole three

Tom Sykes 1’35.043

Eugene Laverty 1’35.814

Kawasaki’s Tom Sykes claims another pole position, after he dominated every one of the World Superbike Superpole qualifying sessions this afternoon. The Huddersfield lad only needed one lap to reach the top of the timesheets after the Brit clocked an impressive lap time of 1’35.043.

Pata Honda’s Jonathan Rea left it to the final minutes to claim his fastest lap, pushing him up from the mid-pack to second on the grid for tomorrow's double header at Assen. Producing a time of 1’35.639, the Isle of Man resident overtook Aprilia’s Eugene Laverty who claims the final spot on the front row.

Laverty’s team-mate, Frenchman Sylvain Guintoli was ceremonially nudged on to the second row, as he could not emulate the lap times of his Irish team-mate. Kawasaki’s Loris Baz was determined to make it on the second row, and with a last lap dash in the dying seconds of the session found himself sandwiched between Guintoli and Althea Ducati’s Davide Giugliano.

GoldBet BMW’s Marco Melandri could not manage the fast lap times of Sykes and Rea, and has to contend with starting from the third row alongside Ducati Alstare’s Carlos Checa, who could not improve on his good form from Superpole two, and Red Devils Roma Aprilia rider Michel Fabrizio.

Superpole two

Tom Sykes 1’35.312

Carlos Checa 1’36.122

Sykes once again dominated the second Superpole session, and reached the top of the time-sheets on his first lap. Guintoli’s final lap threw him up to second, overtaking Checa’s fastest lap of 1’36.122.

Laverty was not far off the pace and was comfortably just inside the top five, with no threat of elimination for the Irish rider. Rea was just about safe to make it into the final Superpole session, with the eighth fastest time.

Even though Fixi Crescent Suzuki’s Jules Cluzel tried in vain to get out of the drop zone in a mad last-lap dash, it was not enough, and the French rider alongside Ducati Alstare’s Aryton Badovini, and M-R Racing Ducati’s Max Neukirchner were eliminated.

ELIMINATED

Jules Cluzel

Aryton Badovini

Max Neukirchner

Superpole one

Tom Sykes 1’36.242

Jonathan Rea 1’36.461

Sykes made a staggering start in the first session and found himself at the top of the time-sheets after only one lap, which is where he remained till the chequered flag appeared. Althea Aprilia’s Davide Giugliano was on form again and safely planted himself well inside the top three, followed closely by Rea who was only two tenths of a second behind fellow Brit, Sykes.

It was not a good Superpole for GoldBet BMW’S Chaz Davies, the Welshman who did the double at Aragon last week only completed three laps and made his way back to the garage, where during that time riders like Neukirchner and Cluzel were able to pull themselves out of the drop zone.

Davies was eliminated alongside HTM Racing’s Ivan Clementi and Grillini Dentalmatic’s Vittorio Iannuzzo; the latter never made it out of the drop zone. Davies will now have to start from the fifth row tomorrow.

ELIMINATED

Chaz Davies

Ivan Clementi

Vittorio Iannuzzo

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