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.

PARKALGAR HONDA racers Eugene Laverty and Miguel Praia adapted quickly to the demands of the new to the 2009 calendar Miller Motorsports Park in the USA, finishing second and ninth respectively after the opening day’s practice sessions for the seventh round of the World Supersport Championship.

Eugene was always in contention at the head of the timesheets but was just pipped to the top spot by Kawasaki’s Juan Lascorz. Miguel showed promise through the sessions at the 4.9km track near Salt Lake City in Utah, ending up a fighting ninth and within striking distance of the second row. A late crash for Miguel means he will have to pass a medical examination to ride tomorrow. Qualification takes place on Saturday May 30th followed by the race on Sunday, May 31^st, which starts at 1925CET and can be viewed on Eurosport.

Eugene: “I like the track and got on with it right from the start in the first session. We then moved on and improved in the second session so I am happy. For the second session we went back to our normal chassis setting – a different set-up to what we used at Kyalami - and it is working well. We know what rear tyre we will use for the race and I will try a different front tyre in the morning, either will do the distance so it is going to be down to my preference. I am feeling confident as I am doing the same as Kyalami and running at the front from the very start of the weekend.”

Miguel: “I crashed right at the end of the session but I was not knocked out and feel better already. I will rest well tonight and will hopefully be passed fit to ride tomorrow. I am very happy with my Parkalgar Honda and the speed I have at this track, the chance for a top 10 result in the race is very real.”

Simon Buckmaster, Parkalgar Honda Team Manager: “That was a very good session for the Parkalgar Honda team, marred only by a very late crash for Miguel in the last minute of practice. He will have a medical tomorrow to see if he can ride – we hope he can as he is showing some of his best ever pace here. Eugene is competing at the top of the timesheets and everything is working well for him, the package is very good. He is showing he has the potential to win again this weekend.”

Practice

1: J Lascorz, ESP, Kawasaki 1:53.350

2: E LAVERTY, IRL, PARKALGAR HONDA 1:53.549

3: F Foret, FRA, Yamaha 1:53.573

4: K Sofuoglu, TUR, Honda 1:53.637

5: A Pitt, AUS, Honda 1:53.844

6: C Crutchlow, GBR, Yamaha 1:53.956

7: M Aitchison, AUS, Honda 1:54.333

8: G McCoy, AUS, Triumph 1:54.339

9: M PRAIA, POR, PARKALGAR HONDA 1:54.475

10: K Fujiwara, JPN, Kawasaki 1:54.598.

EUGENE LAVERTY and Miguel Praia will be going for glory on their Parkalgar Honda race bikes at the Miller Motorsports Park in Utah, USA, in the seventh round of the World Supersport Championship this weekend.

Eugene has won half of the World Supersport races this year and is looking to add to his tally of three victories at a new circuit to the race calendar that will have almost everyone starting without any past data or experience to rely upon. Miguel has already enjoyed two 12^th place finishes in 2009 and is gunning for a top 10 result at the 4.9km track which is close to Salt Lake City. The race can be watched on Eurosport on Sunday, May 31^st.

Eugene: “This is the first time for all of the Supersport riders at the Miller Motorsports Park track, apart from Kenan Sofuoglu who rode a Superbike there last year. I don’t think it will give him any real advantage - both he and Andrew Pitt tested at Kyalami before the race but it didn’t seem to give an advantage there. We’ll see how it goes this weekend, the last lot of races have been won by Cal Crutchlow or myself and I need to reel him back in and close the points gap in the Championship. Everything is working really well with my Parkalgar Honda and we are learning all the time and getting more from the chassis. We caught up with Cal and his bike package at Kyalami and could run the same lap times but we are not resting on our laurels, we are still moving forward. I think Cal will be at the front in the USA and I need to beat him this weekend. I also think the Ten Kate Hondas want to be at the front so will be a force to be reckoned with as well.”

Miguel: “This is my first visit to race at the Miller Motorsports Park and I am confident it will be good for me and Parkalgar Honda. With all the riders starting out without knowing the circuit, this will level the field and I want to put on a good performance. My Parkalgar Honda is working very well but we will need to get on the pace as quickly as possible so I can qualify well. My target is the top 10 this weekend and to score good points.”

Simon Buckmaster, Parkalgar Honda Team Manager: “It is the Supersport Championship’s first time to the Miller Motorsports Park so it is open and no team has any distinct advantage over the other. With Eugene Parkalgar Honda should be fighting at the front as usual as he has proved he can win at new circuits so we will be doing all we can to get him on the top step of the podium and maintaining his title challenge. The new circuit is a leveller for Miguel and is one of his best opportunities of scoring a top 10 finish this season. As I have said before, Miguel has the ability, the team and the bike to get into the top 10 and just needs to make it happen.”

Well, after the last two rounds at Monza and Kyalami the title race and the pressure is certainly getting to some people.

At Assen where Eugene won for us Fabien Foret’s tactics against his own team mate Cal Crutchlow were unbelievable. Although it could be said that Cal beat himself with his bad start he had got himself back into contention to battle for the lead with Eugene and Joan Lascorz again before Foret arrived on the scene to send them both out of contention with what can only be described as ill planned moves. Fair play to Cal on that day to get back in the hunt for the win with Eugene and Lascorz. Eugene though rode a fantastic last lap to win our second race of the year. Once again I can only praise our whole team for a superb job.

On that front we have had two changes of staff which has worked very well for us. I would like to thank the two departing members Mark Beeton and Danny Horne for their efforts but in both cases the time away and the demanding schedule was not really working out for them. We had two stand-in staff members for Assen in Graeme Parker as Eugene’s chassis technician and Ben Fry’s dad Chris. I think it showed once again what an unbelievable team spirit we have to pull out that fantastic result amongst the changes. We now have two new team members in Phil Roe as truck driver and chassis technician for Eugene and Carl Meakin (Stan) as chassis technician for Miguel - and no offence against the departing staff but our team now has gone up another level.

Moving on to Monza which is a track where it is always hard to make a break due to the slip streaming down the long straights. Eugene qualified on the front row in fourth and we were well set for another battle with Cal for the win. The race started and when it all settled down sure enough Eugene and Cal were there along with Foret. Lascorz had dropped back by over 2 seconds and should have been out of the fight for the win. In the space of a few corners Foret put what can only be described as very surprising passes for an experienced ex World Champion. Into Parabolica when he should have had the sense to not pass when he went into the corner we could see him brake then let them off and run both himself and Eugene into the corner too deep allowing Cal to get away a little. I was so surprised he did not stay in behind and draft down the straight and bring them both onto Cal and maybe even have overtaken him. Eugene got him back but then Foret put an even more outrageous pass on Eugene, block passing him into the second chicane. This allowed Cal to clear off by a couple of seconds whilst all these moves were going on and just to add salt into the wounds also allowed Lascorz to close in the them. In the end Lascorz ran Eugene deep at the start of the last lap into the 1^st chicane and he could not recover and finished 4^th. I think it says a lot about how far we have come this year when this was actually quite disappointing for all of us. A mention here for Miguel who after two disappointing performances for him got back into the points again with a hard fought 12^th place. It has been hard for him this year as the pace is so much quicker but he showed what a good package he also has coming from behind to get this result.

So after packing our crates in a hurry we were in South Africa just a few days later for the round we had last weekend. Ten Kate were the only Supersport team to have tested here but to our advantage they took the last chicane out of the track and made it a right hander as it was before. Only one corner change but at least their advantage was a little less. As it turned out we all caught them up real quick and in the end it was Crutchlow on pole from Eugene and they were the only two riders under 1.41 for the lap. Then we had that time disallowed as Eugene had on inspection missed the end of the session by less than 2 hundredths of a second. So it was then Crutchlow, Sofuoglu, Eugene and Pitt on the front row. Getting back to our friend Foret his head had nearly fell off after he was offended by the true statement I made about a ex World Champion having forgotten all track craft in Monza, then the final straw for him was Cal inviting Eugene round for some pasta in the Yamaha tent in between sessions. Another person showing the strain was the crew chief for Sofuoglu - Brains and I were walking down the front of the garages and stopped to look outside Ten Kate. We were just chatting away about how they were running the ABS spec bikes and we are not when he came out of the garage ranting about how this is World Championship racing and we should not be there. Well I have to say recently Ten Kate mechanics are often standing outside our garage and as a fellow Honda supported team they are welcome. Anyway, the next morning he came along with all his Supersport team and stood outside our garage. Brains asked them if they would like to come in but they just left. Oh well, we can’t please everyone. It is small change to me and his boss Ronald Ten Kate and I had a good laugh about it, so no problem.

Getting down to the race I believed that there were only two riders who really had the pace which were Eugene and Cal. With the nature of this track unless other riders got away before them they were half a second a lap faster than the rest. Eugene got away well and soon passed Sofuoglu and pulled away. Cal was back in 6^th and by the time he got to second Eugene was 4 seconds down the road. Cal put up a good fight but Eugene rode a great controlled race to win by 2.5 seconds. Foret crashed out of 3^rd and Aitchinson took the last podium position a full 17 seconds back.

I know the rest of this year will be hard and we still have to claw back the 13 points we are adrift of Cal but I would like to end by once again paying tribute to our whole team. Boys you are just the best and for a relatively small team like us to be fighting for the title makes me so proud and is testament to all your efforts.

See you next time

Simon

First I feel I must apologise.  The supersport race on Sunday was very boring in comparison with rounds 1-5 and it was all my fault.  I cleared off without considering that I would turn the race into a procession, but after battling to the flag at every single round this season I wanted an easy one.  I didn’t exactly get what I wanted though as Cal chased me all race long which stopped me from letting up until the last few laps.  We were setting some mighty lap times if I don’t mind saying so myself as we opened up a 15 second gap on the rest of the field.  It’s 2006 all over again!

I must admit I was a little scared going to South Africa.  I’d heard that you shouldn’t stop at traffic lights after dark so when I checked online and seen that the sunset at 5.30 I began to worry!  But, I really enjoyed my time in SA and met a lot of nice people.  Our waiter in our restaurant of choice had ‘Old Man’ on his name tag as that’s what his name translates to.  How could you not adore someone with a name like Old Man??  And I had one great coffee after another whereas I normally stay clear of the stuff outside of Spain and Italy.

On track things were dandy.  I qualified on the front row despite a timing cock-up from the organisers which dropped me from 2nd to 3rd on the grid.  In the race I took the lead on lap two and never looked back, I didn’t even pull a tear-off!  The only thing I did was alter the traction control setting twice as the tyre went off.  I was in the zone and kept my head down til I seen a guy waving a black and white flag at me.  That victory was the first for bike 1 as I’d raced every other on bike 2.  She performed in her debut race!

Brains and I are working hard to get every inch out of this chassis and we’re learning more and more about what makes it go round corners.  Ohlins have thrown some good ideas at us and although we’re limited to what we can change in the supersport category we’re really beginning to make this bike work.  We’ve got to keep moving forward as Yamaha have a great package and Cal’s riding hard.

The day after the race we all headed to a safari park.  Driving around with lions trying to open your door wasn’t exactly my idea of fun, it’s the most scared I’ve been for sometime. Check out the photo of the lion with its teeth around the door handle, that’s just not cricket. It was a hell of an experience nontheless. We seen lions, giraffes, cheetahs, and stripy horses known as zebras, but nothing beat the meerkat. He was the coolest little dude in the world, even if he wasn’t wearing a red robe like in the comparethemarket.com ad.

I’m leaving for California in the morning where I will stay with Josh Hayes for four days ahead of the next round in Salt Lake City.  Should be fun cycling in sunshine, we may pop down to Glen Helen for the first round of the AMA motocross as well which would be real cool.

Off to the States I go!

Eugene

EUGENE LAVERTY led from the second lap to the chequered flag in a controlled display of domination at the sixth round of the World Supersport Championship at Kyalami in South Africa, taking his and Parkalgar Honda’s tally of wins to three – half of the races started.

Eugene closed five points back on Championship leader Cal Crutchlow and remains in a clear second place in the title race. Parkalgar Honda racer Miguel Praia improved on his qualifying position of 17th finishing 16th and just outside the points. The next round of the Championship takes place on Sunday, May 31st at Salt Lake City in the USA.

Eugene: “Thank you to my Parkalgar Honda team for giving me a bike that was simply perfect. After warm-up this morning I knew we had the capability to win and that’s down to the team effort. During the race I was aware of the gap between myself and Cal and it wasn’t as easy to maintain as it may have looked. With someone like Cal behind pushing as hard as he does, on the limit to win, you can never relax. The gap went back and forward and it was a hard race – it was difficult to control because Cal had the same pace as me, if he hadn’t been held up at the start then it would have been a fight. It’s nice to keep the 50 per cent win record.”

Miguel: “We tried many things in warm-up this morning to find an extra half-second pace to get into the top 10 but nothing worked. We went back to yesterday’s settings and we should have been able to compete for 12th or so but mid-race when normally we get stronger, this time we lost pace for some reason - my Parkalgar Honda was harder to ride and I couldn’t do anymore. It has been a tough weekend and now I want to forget it and move on.”

Simon Buckmaster, Parkalgar Honda Team Manager: “What a mega day for Eugene and Parkalgar Honda, congratulations to everyone involved with the team. I think Eugene benefitted a little from Cal being held up in the pack early on. Cal came back at him but Eugene could run the same lap times and that was it – those two were clearly quicker than everyone else here. It simply didn’t click for Miguel here in South Africa and he needs to move on; it is a real shame for him to finish just outside of the points. He will still be pushing 100 per cent for the top 10 at the next round and it will come this season I am sure.”

Race Result

1 Laverty E. (IRL) PARKALGAR HONDA CBR600RR 39′06.061 (149,855 kph)
2 Crutchlow C. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R6 2.546
3 Aitchison M. (AUS) Honda CBR600RR 17.358
4 Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-6R 17.454
5 Sofuoglu K. (TUR) Honda CBR600RR 18.221
6 Pitt A. (AUS) Honda CBR600RR 20.561
7 McCoy G. (AUS) Triumph Daytona 675 33.141
8 West A. (AUS) Honda CBR600RR 37.326
9 Pirro M. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 37.728
10 Lagrive M. (FRA) Honda CBR600RR 37.939
16 Praia M. (POR) PARKALGAR HONDA CBR600RR 53.911

Championship Positions (after six of 14 rounds)

1: Crutchlow 119
2: LAVERTY (PARKALGAR HONDA) 106
3: Sofuoglu 83
4: Pitt 64
5: Lascorz 60
6: West 60
18: PRAIA (PARKALGAR HONDA) 8.

PARKALGAR HONDA’S Eugene Laverty will start tomorrow’s sixth round of the World Supersport Championship from third on the front row of the grid confident he has the pace to compete with the front runners at the new-for-2009 Kyalami circuit in South Africa.

Irishman Laverty is one of only two riders to have broken the 1min41-secs barrier - the other being pole-sitter Cal Crutchlow on a Yamaha. Laverty’s time was not allowed despite passing the finish line with the pit-lane clock showing two-seconds remaining. When the organisation checked against official timing it was found to be out of synchronisation with the pit-lane clock and he actually passed 0.0199secs after the session was finished. Parkalgar Honda’s Portuguese racer Miguel Praia slashed 1.3secs from his lap times yesterday and will start from 17th on the grid. The race starts at 1325CET on Sunday, May 17th.

Eugene: “I cannot believe that I started the last lap with two-seconds to go on the pit-lane clock and then was told that it isn’t the official clock and the time was not allowed. That is frustrating but ultimately it doesn’t matter, I can do the time and Cal Crutchlow on pole is the only other rider under the 1min 41secs barrier. The set-up on my Parkalgar Honda is nearly there, we made minor changes today and the CBR600RR is working really well. The only thing we need to decide upon is front tyre - but if it stays cool for the race then we’ll stick with what we are using.”

Miguel: “That was definitely a big improvement in lap time from yesterday but I think I should have been 13th rather than 17th. On my last tyre I caught many riders and was slowed down and for sure I think I could have improved by 2/10ths to 13th. Anyway, I can do this lap time very consistently while some of the riders in front of me only managed one lap. I am a better racer than qualifier and my target of the top 10 remains the same.”

Simon Buckmaster, Parkalgar Honda Team Manager: “Eugene crossed the line with what looked like time to spare and set the second fastest lap at 1min 40.8secs. It was then disallowed by the race direction because on real circuit timing it was 0.0199secs after the end of the session. It would have been nice to have taken second but it doesn’t really matter; he has shown he can do the time and has fantastic race pace so is looking good. Well done to him and the Parkalgar Honda team for a big effort. Miguel is getting quicker and is now dicing in qualifying with proven race winners Barry Veneman and Anthony West, not to mention Eugene’s brother Michael who is guest riding here and is a previous British Supersport Champion. Miguel will be competing for the points in the race.”

Qualifying

1 Crutchlow C. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R6 1′40.634 
2 Sofuoglu K. (TUR) Honda CBR600RR 1′41.003 
3 Laverty E. (IRL) PARKALGAR HONDA CBR600RR 1′41.161 
4 Pitt A. (AUS) Honda CBR600RR 1′41.396 
5 Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1′41.558 
6 Pirro M. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 1′41.563 
7 Foret F. (FRA) Yamaha YZF R6 1′41.603 
8 Aitchison M. (AUS) Honda CBR600RR 1′41.699 
9 Nannelli G. (ITA) Triumph Daytona 675 1′41.778 
10 Fujiwara K. (JPN) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1′42.003 
17 Praia M. (POR) PARKALGAR HONDA CBR600RR 1′42.832 

PARKALGAR HONDA ace Eugene Laverty is on front-running pace at the sixth round of the World Supersport Championship at Kyalami in South Africa, leading the practice times with minutes to go and eventually finishing second fastest.

Miguel Praia ended the day in 18th as he got to grip with the new-for-2009 circuit on the Championship calendar. Honda’s Kenan Sofuoglu was quickest. A further practice followed by a qualifying session takes place tomorrow before the race at 1325CET on Sunday, May 17th.

Eugene: “That was pretty good; I am surprised how easy the lap times came. We expected the circuit to be bumpy and my Parkalgar Honda team made some preparations to the bike that let it work straight away. It was cold in the afternoon and the front felt a little harsh but we made some changes at the end and they worked and the lap time came down again. Because it was so cold I still haven’t made a decision on which front tyre to use. The rear tyre selection is made; the harder tyre simply doesn’t work around here. We’ll have a look at the gearing and chassis this evening to see if we can find a bit more for tomorrow.”

Miguel: “I spent today getting used to the track and it was more difficult than I expected. I normally take time to get used to a circuit and here I stayed out for as long as possible to gain track knowledge. Of course, this means I am doing many laps on the same tyres and saving my good ones. We are working hard on set-up at this bumpy track. We will look at the data and I am sure I will get a little help from Eugene as he is doing so well. I think my settings on the Parkalgar Honda are not so bad and tomorrow I will put in new tyres and go for it.”

Simon Buckmaster, Parkalgar Honda Team Manager: “We are happy, Eugene has a good setting with his Parkalgar Honda which is working really well and has gelled with the track. He tried three gearing changes and minor suspension tweaks but that was all, which is testament to his technicians for giving him a good bike right from the off. Miguel is still getting to grips with the circuit and he will analyse his performance with the team tonight and I am sure find time tomorrow.”

Practice

1 Sofuoglu K. (TUR) Honda CBR600RR 1′41.566 
2 Laverty E. (IRL) PARKALGAR HONDA CBR600RR 1′41.812 
3 Crutchlow C. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R6 1′41.969 
4 Pitt A. (AUS) Honda CBR600RR 1′42.511 
5 Foret F. (FRA) Yamaha YZF R6 1′42.597 
6 McCoy G. (AUS) Triumph Daytona 675 1′42.735 
7 Nannelli G. (ITA) Triumph Daytona 675 1′42.797 
8 Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1′42.823 
9 Aitchison M. (AUS) Honda CBR600RR 1′42.990 
10 Fujiwara K. (JPN) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1′43.258 
18 Praia M. (POR) PARKALGAR HONDA CBR600RR 1′44.162

So far I’m enjoying South Africa; yesterday we all headed to a huge shopping mall, got lunch and had a mooch around. The only problem was the fact that everything works out twice the price compared to back home so one decided to keep one’s wallet deep inside one’s pocket. We did earmark the cinema for Thursday night though, Bucko and the older generation want to see ‘Star Trek’ whereas I’ve my heart set on ‘I Love You Man’. Good old Simon was steering on the way to the mall and stopped to ask a few coppers for directions. And so they conversed, Simon totally oblivious to the adjacent ‘Crime Scene’ sign. Not that it would have worried him had he spotted it.

What can I say about Monza that hasn’t already been said? I give it my best shot but Cal got away, it was always gonna be tough to keep him in sight but Foret simply handed him the race by vying for 2nd position at every single corner. I’m not too angry with Fabien but I just hope that he learnt a lesson when he watched the race back. At the end of the penultimate lap I lost the front at Parabolica which lost me one second on Foret and Lascorz but I managed to pull it right back before the final turn. I wanted to turn it tight and nip inside them but I got sucked in a little deeper than I wanted which faltered my plan. I had to make do with 4th place which is still good points for my title attempt.

Kyalami is another new track for me. Only the Ten Kate guys have tested here so the majority of the field will have to learn the circuit on Friday as well. We’re learning more and more about what makes this Honda tick so I’m enjoying my riding a lot at the moment. I want another big bagful of points this weekend; the small bags don’t really interest me much, neither do the empty ones!

See ya,

Eugene

PARKALGAR HONDA competes at the Kyalami circuit in South Africa this weekend with the World Supersport Championship chase firmly on its agenda and to score as many points as possible.

The 4.263km circuit is new to the 2009 World Supersport calendar - the series having last visited the track in 2002 - and racing starts at 1325CET on Sunday 17^th March, with Parkalgar Honda racers Miguel Praia and Eugene Laverty hoping to learn the circuit quickly. The race can be watched live on Eurosport.

Eugene: “It is my first time here and I think it should be good. As it is a new circuit for nearly all of the riders we have an extra practice session on Friday which will give us more time to learn the track and find a good setting. Ten Kate Honda is the only team to have tested here, so it is a fairly level playing field for us all. I think Kyalami will suit the Parkalgar Honda CBR600RR; it has a fantastic chassis and will cope well with the long corners where it really excels. I am looking forward to the race and I think we can do well here.”

Miguel: “With Kyalami being a new circuit to most of the riders, it will be a good chance for us to show our real potential, everyone will have the same time to learn and adapt to the circuit. After taking 12^th at the last round I feel there is momentum behind me now and the top 10 is my next goal.”

Simon Buckmaster, Parkalgar Honda Team Manager: “Eugene is in a clear second place in the Championship and our aim in South Africa is to do all we can to chase down the leader and score as many points as possible. I think Eugene is riding well and after being baulked and finishing fourth last weekend when he clearly had the potential for the podium or winning has simply fired him up and he’ll be at the front this weekend. Miguel is showing good form and getting closer to his target of the top 10. As long as he keeps calm and with a bit of luck he could achieve it at Kyalami.”