HONDA World Supersport star Eugene Laverty is looking to back-up his win at the last round with a strong result at Valencia in Spain this weekend and add momentum to his Championship challenge.

Portuguese Parkalgar Honda ace Miguel Praia is keen to compete for the top 10 race positions at a circuit he likes after a strong result of 12^th in Qatar at the last round. The third round of the World Supersport Championship at Valencia starts at 1320 CET on Sunday, April 5^th and can be watched live on www.worldsbk.com. A new single practice session takes place on Friday with two qualifying sessions on Saturday in a cost-cutting exercise by the organisers.

Eugene

“I am looking to back-up my win with a solid result at Valencia. I am aiming for the podium and a win would be a bonus. The important thing is that I am mixing it with Pitt, Sofuoglu and Crutchlow in the race so that the Championship remains on target. Before the season Valencia was not a circuit I pinpointed to win the race, although with the speed of my Parkalgar Honda that is a possibility. I have raced a lot at Valencia and there shouldn’t be any major issues. It’s been a nice couple of weeks off since the last race and I’ve covered around 500kms on my bike and kept my training up. There has been a lot of media attention since winning the last race but I must confess I believed I could win and I’ve slept well since.”

Miguel

“I am very motivated for the Valencia race and have been training hard, I now weigh just 62kgs, the lowest weight I have raced at and the lowest weight I can remember since being a teenager. I am fully prepared and I feel me, the bike and my Parkalgar Honda team deserve to be in the top 10, which is the target for me. Valencia as a circuit is very different to Qatar and Phillip Island so it will be interesting to see how the bike works there but traditionally it has been a good circuit for us. I am really looking forward to the race this weekend.”

Simon Buckmaster, Parkalgar Honda Team Manager

“Eugene showed what he and the Parkalgar Honda are capable of last time out and now he needs to keep the pressure up. The team scored a podium at Valencia last year and we have good data on the circuit so we will be giving Eugene all the support we can. We are focusing on the long haul Championship title race now and we need good results at every circuit if we want to be in the reckoning when we come to our home circuit in Portugal in October. Miguel scored a point at Valencia in 2008 and is in a much better position in 2009. The top 10 is achievable for him and this could be the weekend he cracks it.”