PARKALGAR HONDA ace Eugene Laverty was one of only two riders to dip under the 1m 52sec barrier in qualifying for the seventh round of the World Supersport Championship at Miller Motorsports Park in the US, taking second on the grid.
Laverty has been consistently fast all weekend and was only bettered by Kawasaki’s Juan Lascorz who took pole position. Parkalgar Honda racer Miguel Praia will start from 14th after a crash in yesterday’s free practice. The race is on Sunday, May 31st, at 1925CET and can be viewed on Eurosport.
Eugene: “It was really good this morning as it was the first time this season that we topped a practice session – despite having won three races. We didn’t make many changes to the chassis, everything is working pretty well. The small changes we did make, along with using a soft tyre, allowed me to cut my lap times. I am learning the circuit and once we have my Parkalgar Honda in the ball-park, it seems the last few clicks and changes are critical to performance – we are bang on the set-up here and will be there for the race. We aren’t sure who has the race pace; maybe we will see in warm-up, it all depends on the tyres the others are using. I think it will come down to three of us – Juan, Cal and I.”
Miguel: “After my crash yesterday I am pleased to be riding. I am not 100 per cent but I am happy that I improved my lap times from yesterday. The fourth row is OK given the circumstance and I will go to bed early tonight and hopefully be feeling better tomorrow, as I want to do my very best in the race.”
Simon Buckmaster, Parkalgar Honda Team Manager: “A mega day and although Eugene didn’t get pole, he has a cracking set-up for the race. On the face of it there are not many riders capable of the same lap times as Eugene and he is looking good. Miguel is riding after his crash yesterday and did a good job getting 14th on the grid. He will rest tonight and should score points in the race. Anyone that knows me knows I am a big Chelsea football fan and after winning the FA Cup final today I can’t stop smiling, it’s been a good day!”
Qualifying
1 Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1′51.749
2 Laverty E. (IRL) PARKALGAR HONDA CBR600RR 1′51.829
3 Crutchlow C. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R6 1′52.051
4 Nannelli G. (ITA) Triumph Daytona 675 1′52.659
5 Roccoli M. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 1′52.726
6 Sofuoglu K. (TUR) Honda CBR600RR 1′52.755
7 McCoy G. (AUS) Triumph Daytona 675 1′52.794
8 Foret F. (FRA) Yamaha YZF R6 1′52.827
9 Aitchison M. (AUS) Honda CBR600RR 1′52.951
10 Fujiwara K. (JPN) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1′53.171
14 Praia M. (POR) PARKALGAR HONDA CBR600RR 1′53.919.
