PARKALGAR HONDA’S Eugene Laverty took second place at today’s seventh round of the World Supersport Championship at Miller Motorsports Park in the USA after a tense race-long battle with his two title rivals.

Miguel Praia started and finished in 14th place to score valuable points and will be looking to improve at the next round at Misano in Italy on June 27th. To follow all the team news visit www.parkalgar-honda.com.

Eugene: “There is so much grip around Miller Motorsports Park that the tyre spun on the rim and that happened early in the race, causing me to suffer major vibrations through the front end. It was not comfortable and this is a problem we have had before and we must look for solutions as it cost me the chance to compete with Kenan for the race win. I always knew my Parkalgar Honda would be faster in the second half of the race but towards the end I really had to push to keep Lascorz behind me. I am pretty content with second but would have been disappointed with third – we are fighting for the title and I cannot afford to lose points like that. It’s been solid points today and six behind the title lead is very little. I am looking forward to a couple of weekends off, getting into my training and I’m also going to see Snow Patrol before getting back to business at Misano.”

Miguel: “The race didn’t go exactly to plan. My pace was OK and as expected but I went into the first corner hard trying to overtake a couple of riders and was blocked, causing me to lose around one-second on the opening lap. That was enough to lose the tow on the group in front. My Parkalgar Honda was good and I was happy with it. Now we have time before the next race to recover, rest and also focus on my fitness because when you are racing and travelling as much as we do it is hard to train properly.”

Simon Buckmaster, Parkalgar Honda Team Manager: “Eugene got a good start but we always knew it would be a tough fight and congratulations to Kenan on winning; we can’t win them all. Overall not a bad race as we have pulled some further points on Lascorz and are only six points behind the lead – Eugene is keeping the pressure on. There will be three riders in this title fight right until the end. We go to Misano next which is a good track for us and we will be giving our all to win there for sure. Today Miguel was not fast enough in the first half of the race. Towards the end he got faster but had to settle for the points. Knowing his potential this is a disappointing race for him but we will all pull together to get him up the results sheet at the next round.”

Race Result

1 54 Sofuoglu K. (TUR) Honda CBR600RR 33′45.278 (157,002 kph)
2 50 Laverty E. (IRL) Honda CBR600RR 1.028
3 26 Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1.673
4 7 Davies C. (GBR) Triumph Daytona 675 13.209
5 51 Pirro M. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 14.209
6 37 Fujiwara K. (JPN) Kawasaki ZX-6R 14.386
7 25 Salom D. (ESP) Triumph Daytona 675 14.603
8 127 Harms R. (DEN) Honda CBR600RR 20.582
9 4 Rea G. (GBR) Honda CBR600RR 22.895
10 99 Foret F. (FRA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 27.100

14 117 Praia M. (POR) Parkalgar Honda CBR600RR 41.986

Championship Positions (after seven of 13 rounds)

1: Sofuoglu 142

2: Laverty Parkalgar Honda 136

3: Lascorz 128

4: Davies 84

5: Pirro 58

6: Salom 58

7: Rea 54

8: Harms 51

9: Fujiwara 48

10: Lagrive 44

13: Praia Parkalgar Honda 31

PARKALGAR HONDA ace Eugene Laverty missed out on pole position by less than 8/100ths of a second to fellow Honda racer Kenan Sofuoglu at the seventh round of the World Supersport Championship at Miller Motorsports Park near Salt Lake City in the USA.

Portuguese Parkalgar Honda racer Miguel Praia crashed in the morning practice but came back to improve his lap time in qualifying, ending up 14th with high hopes of finishing higher in the race now he has found a confidence inspiring set-up on his bike. The race is at 1330 local time on Monday, May 31st – Memorial Day in the USA.

Eugene: “That was really close and I am surprised by just how many riders managed the quick lap times. We are consistent but I think we have more in the bag. The raise in temperature caught us out a little and we need to go further to improve my Parkalgar Honda. Basically there is a lot of grip here and we need the bike to work differently with it by improving the rear end. I am looking forward to warm-up before the race because we know what we need to do. Kenan and Joan are right there and it is going to be a hard race.”

Miguel: “I crashed in practice this morning and that hurt us preparing for qualification. I ended up with the lap time I wanted and my Parkalgar Honda team stiffened the forks for me this afternoon and my bike felt much better. Now we will try something more in warm-up to go faster but I know I can run good times by myself. My starting position is not the best but I think we can get a decent result in the race.”

Simon Buckmaster, Parkalgar Honda Team Manager: “Sofuoglu dug deep to beat Eugene by 8/100ths of a second and Lascorz has closed in as well. Eugene is still looking good with very consistent and fast lap times. We expect nothing less than a big fight for the win but that is what we are going for. Miguel’s crew did a great job fixing his bike after this morning’s crash and he has improved by nearly a second today, however, his poor first three sessions are letting him down by placing him down the grid – he will need a superb first lap tomorrow to get up with the riders in front and go for a top 10 finish.”

Final Qualifying

1 54 K. SOFUOGLU TUR HANNspree Ten Kate Honda Honda CBR600RR 1′51.281

2 50 E. LAVERTY IRL Parkalgar Honda Honda CBR600RR 1′51.363

3 26 J. LASCORZ ESP Kawasaki Motocard.com Kawasaki ZX-6R 1′51.461

4 37 K. FUJIWARA JPN Kawasaki Motocard.com Kawasaki ZX-6R 1′51.531

5 25 D. SALOM ESP ParkinGO BE1 Triumph Triumph Daytona 675 1′51.656

6 7 C. DAVIES GBR ParkinGO Triumph BE1 Triumph Daytona 675 1′51.797

7 51 M. PIRRO ITA HANNspree Ten Kate Honda Honda CBR600RR 1′51.929

8 99 F. FORET FRA Team Lorenzini by Leoni Kawasaki ZX-6R 1′52.033

9 127 R. HARMS DEN Harms Benjan Racing Honda CBR600RR 1′52.248

10 40 J. DISALVO USA ParkinGO BE1 Triumph Triumph Daytona 675 1′52.287

14 117 M. PRAIA POR Parkalgar Honda Honda CBR600RR 1′53.372

PARKALGAR HONDA’S Eugene Laverty claimed provisional pole position in commanding style for the seventh round of the World Supersport Championship at Miller Motorsports Park near Salt Lake City in the USA - as the only rider to dip under 1m 52seconds and setting a new outright best Supersport lap time.

Miguel Praia finished 14th and will be looking to improve his position in final practice and qualifying tomorrow before the race takes place at 1330 local time on Monday, 31st May, Memorial Day in the USA.

Eugene: “It was good to get a 1m51s lap. First I got a 1m51.9s and then I managed a 1m51.6s lap and thought no-one would beat that today so stayed out and got a better understanding of the feeling of my Parkalgar Honda. I knew I could do a quick lap this morning but to set the quickest ever Supersport lap here was excellent this afternoon. Miller Motorsports Park suits the Honda and my riding style very well, especially the first part of the lap which is fast and flowing; I enjoy riding here. I think the others are now playing catch up. Kenan is a bit behind but he did the same last year and was a full second a lap faster in the race; saying that I think I have moved the goalposts and I am pushing the other riders hard.”

Miguel: “I am disappointed not to be in the top 10 and I must understand why I have not been able to do this. I like this circuit and it suits my Parkalgar Honda so now I must work on my riding and make big improvements. I will speak with my team and see how they can help me, as well as looking at the data and finding where I can go faster.”

Simon Buckmaster, Parkalgar Honda Team Manager: “It was a really good day for Eugene and a new best lap. There are a few things we can improve and we will be doing everything we can to put him in the best possible situation so he can win another race. Miguel simply didn’t get up to speed fast enough. He needs to improve himself and he already knows if he qualifies better his race results will improve. His crew will be doing all they can to help him but now it is time for him to dig deep.”

First Qualification

1 50 Laverty E. (IRL) Parkalgar Honda CBR600RR 1′51.652
2 26 Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1′52.211
3 25 Salom D. (ESP) Triumph Daytona 675 1′52.310
4 99 Foret F. (FRA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1′52.328
5 127 Harms R. (DEN) Honda CBR600RR 1′52.509
6 54 Sofuoglu K. (TUR) Honda CBR600RR 1′52.534
7 40 DiSalvo J. (USA) Triumph Daytona 675 1′52.607
8 7 Davies C. (GBR) Triumph Daytona 675 1′52.646
9 51 Pirro M. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 1′52.732
10 37 Fujiwara K. (JPN) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1′53.015
14 117 Praia M. (POR) Parkalgar Honda CBR600RR 1′54.313

PARKALGAR Honda travels to Salt Lake City in the USA with the aim of winning its fourth race in a row and fifth of the season as Eugene Laverty’s title bid gathers momentum.

Parkalgar Honda racer Miguel Praia is looking forward to the race as it is a track he enjoys and expects to secure a strong result after finding new focus on his riding skills at the previous round. The seventh round of the Supersport World Championship is at Miller Motorsports near Salt Lake City and will take place on Monday 31st May rather than the usual Sunday race.

Eugene: “This bunch of races I have really been looking forward to - I have won the first three and now go to Salt lake and Misano knowing I really like them and last year got on well there right from the word go. I expect it to be a tougher race than Kyalami as Joan will be back in the mix with Kenan and myself. I think most people will prefer that as it may be a more exciting race but to be honest I like the races where I get away in front and have time to admire the scenery… I will be keeping any eye on Kenan in the last laps - I worry about him as I know what he is capable of and last year his last ditch overtake was out of control. It makes me appreciate racing with Joan. Most of the team is heading to Las Vegas for a short break before the race so I am happy to be spending time with them away from the track and work environment, they are great lads.”

Miguel: “My hopes are high for America, I really enjoyed the track and event last year right until I crashed and even after I crashed. I am capable of the top eight I think. My Parkalgar Honda is good and suits the circuit well. I also have a new focus on my riding, I want to be faster right from first practice - this is something I have spoken with my team about and I appreciate the help, I want to be quick from the word go.”

Simon Buckmaster, Parkalgar Honda Team Manager: “There is only one point in it at the top of the Championship so that is quite exciting and it has been a fantastic performance from Eugene in the last three races that has got us there. We want four in a row at Salt Lake but we will be hoping that Kenan plays fair this time. Miguel is concentrating on going quicker earlier in the weekend so we will be helping him achieve that and working towards a good points scoring finish.”

PARKALGAR HONDA’S Eugene Laverty scored his first ever hat-trick three-victories in a row when he won the sixth round of the World Supersport Championship at Kyalami in South Africa, leading from the first lap to the chequered flag – making it four wins out of six starts this season.

Miguel Praia dug deep and finished a competitive 10th to round off a good day for the Portuguese circuit backed Parkalgar Honda team. The next round of the Championship is in the USA at Miller Motorsports Park on Monday May 31st. For all of the team news, pictures and to buy team merchandise or tuning for your road or race bike, visit www.eugenelaverty.com.

Eugene: “Kenan kept me honest for the first half of the race but my Parkalgar Honda was very good and was managing the tyre well so I was able to push and go for a break in the second half. I think at the same time Kenan’s tyre was starting to wear which helped. This is my first ever three wins on the trot in any Championship and it has been a long time coming. It’s nice to leave here almost leading the Championship, it is all to play for now in the second half of the season.”

Miguel: “That was much better in the race – Mark Woodage made some changes to my Parkalgar Honda after qualifying and immediately in warm-up I was faster. My team has done a fantastic job, thank you. My pace was good in the middle of the race and I caught the group in front and passed them but then I lost a little rear grip and couldn’t go with Salom. I then lost ninth place to Rea on the last corner but this does not hide the fact it was a good race for me and much better than last year. I also feel we have made a good change to my bike that will help in future races, I am confident.”

Simon Buckmaster, Parkalgar Honda Team Manager: “Eugene rode the perfect race and although Kenan put pressure on him he controlled it from the front; it was fantastic. We have broke the pole position duck by winning from the front and that means it doesn’t matter where we qualify in the future. We are only one-point off the lead of the Championship and the whole team did a great job. Miguel did ride well today and showed desire and ambition. He beat some good people and now we need to get him focussed on bringing that performance to practice and qualifying so he can step up and be fighting with the group in front.”

Race Result

1 50 Laverty E. (IRL) PARKALGAR HONDA CBR600RR 39′13.215 (149,399 kph)
2 54 Sofuoglu K. (TUR) Honda CBR600RR 4.184
3 7 Davies C. (GBR) Triumph Daytona 675 9.609
4 51 Pirro M. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 12.912
5 26 Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-6R 23.383
6 14 Lagrive M. (FRA) Triumph Daytona 675 25.252
7 25 Salom D. (ESP) Triumph Daytona 675 25.315
8 127 Harms R. (DEN) Honda CBR600RR 27.087
9 4 Rea G. (GBR) Honda CBR600RR 32.358
10 117 Praia M. (POR) PARKALGAR HONDA CBR600RR 32.476

Championship Positions (after six of 13 rounds)

1: Sofuoglu 117

2: LAVERTY PARKALGAR HONDA 116

3: Lascorz 112

4: Davies 71

5: Salom 49

6: Pirro 47

7: Rea 47

8: Harms 43

9: Lagrive 40

10: Fujiwara 38

11: Roccoli 29

12: PRAIA PARKALGAR HONDA 29

PARKALGAR HONDA’S Eugene Laverty took pole position for Sunday’s sixth round of the World Supersport Championship at Kyalami, continuing his impressive form after being fastest in every session.

Miguel Praia improved his lap time on his Parkalgar Honda but slipped to 15th on the grid. The race is tomorrow, Sunday 16th May at 1330CET. Follow all the action on www.eugenelaverty.com.

Eugene: “I wasn’t sure I wanted pole position but now I’ve got it I’m cool. We improved my Parkalgar Honda further in the direction of last year’s set-up and there is still a bit more to come. I am not 100 per cent happy with the bike but then as a rider you never are. My main rival is Kenan; he is right on the limit and pushing hard. I thought Lascorz may have got it together by now but it may be too late for him and he could be fighting for third tomorrow – I don’t think he’ll get away with Kenan and I. It will be a scrap between the pair of us for the win and an interesting race. I have had two poles earlier this year and failed to win; I want to set that straight tomorrow.”

Miguel: “That was not too good; it took me longer than I wanted to get into my rhythm and I don‘t think I could have gone much faster. I need to find a little more speed in warm up and will be talking with my crew chief to see what we can try in the morning.”

Simon Buckmaster, Parkalgar Honda Team Manager: “I’m happy with Eugene, he set pole time without using his last tyre and while working on set-up. No-one has won from pole this year yet so let’s hope it is third time lucky for Eugene. Miguel was below par. He has the package with his Parkalgar Honda and the potential is there but he has to learn to find his form during practice if he wants to make the step up and compete at the next level.”

Final Qualifying

1 50 Laverty E. (IRL) PARKALGA HONDA CBR600RR 1′40.812
2 54 Sofuoglu K. (TUR) Honda CBR600RR 1′40.896
3 51 Pirro M. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 1′41.415
4 37 Fujiwara K. (JPN) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1′41.415
5 14 Lagrive M. (FRA) Triumph Daytona 675 1′41.418
6 7 Davies C. (GBR) Triumph Daytona 675 1′41.675
7 55 Roccoli M. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 1′41.700
8 26 Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1′41.856
9 25 Salom D. (ESP) Triumph Daytona 675 1′41.874
10 127 Harms R. (DEN) Honda CBR600RR 1′42.060
15 117 Praia M. (POR) PARKALGAR HONDA CBR600RR 1′43.133

AFTER winning at Monza in Italy last Sunday Parkalgar Honda racer Eugene Laverty has piled more pressure on his rivals by taking provisional pole position at Kyalami in South Africa for this Sunday’s sixth round of the World Supersport Championship.

In good weather conditions Miguel Praia suffered a crash in the morning session and ended up an uncharacteristic 17th in first qualifying with plenty of work to do tomorrow. The race takes place at 1330CET on Sunday 16th May and you can follow the progress of the team on www.eugenelaverty.com.

Eugene: “My Parkalgar Honda has been good from the word go, we have a decent setting from here last year to start with. We have worked on the chassis to help with the bumps; it feels more like a motocross track at times. Tomorrow we will concentrate on improving the bike under braking but to be honest we are not far away already. I still have to make my race tyre choice and will be focussing on that as well.”

Miguel: “I crashed at the first corner on the first fast lap this morning – it was completely my fault and it cost me half a session. I wanted to go fast right from the start and went into the corner too quickly; but fortunately I am not injured and I must thank my team for preparing the second bike for me to use, it was good. While my position is not great I am OK as the gap to the second row is not much and if I had not lost the time on track I think I would have been there. I am optimistic for tomorrow.”

Simon Buckmaster, Parkalgar Honda Team Manager: “Eugene has a good fast pace at the moment and it appears along with Sofuoglu the pair of them have an advantage on everyone else. Miguel made a silly mistake on his first flying lap in the morning that cost him track time and that has reflected in his position. We have spoken and he will learn from it and tomorrow we expect him to be fighting further up the field.”

First Qualifying

1 50 E. LAVERTY IRL Parkalgar Honda Honda CBR600RR 1′42.246

2 54 K. SOFUOGLU TUR HANNspree Ten Kate Honda Honda CBR600RR 1′42.352

3 37 K. FUJIWARA JPN Kawasaki Motocard.com Kawasaki ZX-6R 1′42.584

4 34 R. QUARMBY RSA BikeFin SafeSky Honda Honda CBR600RR 1′42.807

5 14 M. LAGRIVE FRA ParkinGO Triumph BE1 Triumph Daytona 675 1′42.992

6 26 J. LASCORZ ESP Kawasaki Motocard.com Kawasaki ZX-6R 1′43.132

7 51 M. PIRRO ITA HANNspree Ten Kate Honda Honda CBR600RR 1′43.339

8 55 M. ROCCOLI ITA Intermoto Czech Honda CBR600RR 1′43.988

9 38 L. ISAACS RSA BikeFin SafeSky Honda Honda CBR600RR 1′44.037

10 40 J. DISALVO USA ParkinGO BE1 Triumph Triumph Daytona 675 1′44.231

17 117 M. PRAIA POR Parkalgar Honda Honda CBR600RR 1′45.825 3.579

THE biggest talking point of the moment is the reduced grids with the main focus on the Supersport class. For the opening race of the season in Australia we had only 17 riders on the grid which was of course disappointing after much fuller grids for so many years. Back in Europe we have 18 full time riders with a couple of wild cards thrown in which normally means at least 20 on the start line.

I spoke to the people at In Front at the end of last season and told them if more was not done we would be in the same position as Moto GP sooner than they thought. I must admit I did not think it would be the very next season myself. They took absolutely no notice of me anyway. Even now nobody seems that bothered and if they are they certainly have not shared their concerns with us.

When you consider Parkalgar Honda was second in the rider’s title race last year and third highest in the team standings you might think someone might take notice of our opinion. I have had a couple of discussions with In Front and we exchanged some good points which I hope will be discussed at further length and make a brighter future for everyone. If nothing else we would all have a better feeling if we thought we held some value to the In Front series as a whole.

One example of just doing something and not consulting anyone it affects is the new practice schedule. We did have a top team meeting in Magny Cours at the end of last season where we all said we would like to go back to four practice sessions and restrict testing in a bid to save costs. When we all agreed this I doubt any of us thought we would end up doing two qualifying sessions with neither of them anywhere near our race time.

I would like to state again in my opinion there is absolutely no need for two timed sessions. Just to remind everyone, Moto GP, Formula 1 and even our own Superbike series only have one; in the case of Superbike just one 12 minute session decides the first two rows. When you bear these facts in mind how on earth can anyone put up a reasonable argument that Supersport needs two? Anyway I will get off my soap box on that one and stick to the time table. We have two sessions on Friday one starts at 2pm and then a qualifying session starting at 5pm and ending at 5.45pm.

Then on Saturday we have a session of free practice which finishes at 10.30 and then we have qualifying at 4.05 pm. You might ask why the massive gap, well I will tell you - Parkin Go which sponsor the Triumph teams has done a deal to have a one-make series for sit up and beg Triumphs.

Fantastic…but surely it is not necessary to have them out practicing in place of a World Championship class - especially when they have to give rides away just to try and get more than 12 riders on the grid. One word only describes this, Ludicrous! In Front please listen and pay some attention to the class that has given and still is giving great racing and been a breeding ground to some of the leading Superbike riders now.

We are, as all teams, looking hard at our options at the moment. I love the superbike paddock and really enjoy working with the people who represent In Front. Eugene will certainly not stay in Supersport next year and I would love to take him up into Superbike and then take another young rider in Supersport to take his place and continue our fight with Ten Kate and Kawasaki for the 600cc title. However if things don’t change and teams are not dealt an improved package we will have to look seriously at the Moto 2 class. As much as I like where we are now a part of me also relishes the chance to show what we could do in Moto2.

One guy from the Moto GP paddock told me if we came we would need to employ some “Moto GP” technicians because we just don’t understand how it is. Eugene and I are confident that our Parkalgar Honda team has got what it takes to compete in Moto2.

One last thing: whilst Superbike has such strong manufacturer support from Yamaha, Suzuki, Aprilia, Ducati, BMW & Kawasaki and no one thinks there is any problem at all - just scratch the surface and see. After the second BMW team dropped out after just two races there are now only 22 riders on this grid. Now DFX Ducati has pulled out of the flyaway races this is another alarm call.

Like I said I love the atmosphere and the people in the WSB paddock. In Front please invest now and give the teams a better deal. When I came here first back in the late 90’s we had a freight package, air tickets, and hotel rooms for flyaway events plus participation allowance for European events. Now we pay for the show. We should at the very least get all our tyres and the entry fee free if we compete the whole season and as for having to pay a fee for the official tests that is just beyond belief.

In Front please take notice now before it is too late. I want to be in the paddock with you for many years to come but need you to listen and help. Over to you!

Finally, let me congratulate Eugene and our whole team on responding to the disappointment of the Portimao crash and only fifth in Valencia by taking back to back victory in Assen and Monza. Miguel also responded to disappointing rides in Assen and Valencia with 10th at Monza. Whilst he has achieved ninth in the past at Monza only Foret failed to finish and in the second half of the race his pace was good enough for at least seventh - all we have to do now is find a way to unlock the key for Miguel so he can achieve this level of performance all race weekend.

Cheers

Simon

I had planned to write an entry on the flight to Monza last week but instead I got a big sleep in.  I’d driven through the night with Pippa and my chief mechanic Phil to get to Stansted in time for our connecting flight to Milan so we were pretty knackered!  THAT volcano decided to play havoc again causing our flight from Northern Ireland to England to be cancelled.  To be fair I’d have cycled to Monza if I’d known I was going to receive 25 points on Sunday afternoon!  That was a sweet sweet race won on turn one.  I received a great message from my friend Ben Parkinson via Twitter after the race.  It read, “They say you can’t win a race in the first corner, I’m not so sure.”

It was a great fortnight for me and my brothers with my back to back victories at Assen and Monza as well as Michael’s debut BSB victory and John’s debut BSB podium in between.  Our parents worked very hard to give us the opportunity to show our talents and we owe a lot to them.  I don’t think we ever imagined we’d achieve success at this level back when we were sat in a caravan in the fields of Donegal during our junior motocross days!

I was glued to the TV the weekend between Assen and Monza with the MotoGP from Jerez on Sunday followed by the BSB on Monday.  The Moto2 race was very exciting, I’ve read that Aspar will switch to the Suter chassis so expect Julian Simon to start kicking ass soon.  Tomizawa has been the revelation of Moto2 proving that the switch from the politically corrupt 250 category to the new equal opportunities 600 category was the right move.

Already people are asking where I’m going next season and my answer is as simple as this: I have two interests, WSB and Moto2.  Both are now stepping stones to MotoGP so my decision will be with the most competitive offer.  I want to continue winning races next season albeit in a different class and I believe that I can do that in both those series so long as the package is right.  I know all too well following my two seasons in 250GP that everything needs to be in place in order to fight for victory.

I’m in South Africa right now taking it easy having flown through the night.  I won the race here last year and i’d love to do the same again.  The title race has really tightened up between Lascorz, Sofuoglu and I so it’s going to be an exciting second half to the season.

Catch y’all again soon,

Eugene

PARKALGAR HONDA ace Eugene Laverty led from the first corner to the chequered flag to win the fifth round of the World Supersport Championship at Monza in Italy – giving him three wins out of five races in 2010 to date.

Miguel Praia improved as the race progressed, bringing his Parkalgar Honda home in a respectable 10th after starting from 13th on the grid. The sixth round of the World Championship is in one week’s time at Kyalami in South Africa.

You can buy signed Eugene Laverty and Miguel Praia Team T-shirts through the Parkalgar Honda website at www.parkalgarhonda.com for £25 delivered.

Eugene: “I led into the first corner – I was able to brake late and pass the other two. Then I tried to make a break and read my pit board to control the gap. I was using my rear brake a little too much and cooked it so the oil boiled over and was on my boot towards the end. Kenan in second place kept me honest but it is great to get this win – my first back to back victories. Thanks to everyone in the team and it’s good that the Championship race is now much closer. I hope we can get the flights to South Africa OK as I like the circuit and had a good result there last year.”

Miguel: “My Parkalgar Honda was perfect in the race and I grew in confidence with every lap. At the end I was catching the group in front and if there had been a few more laps I think I could have attacked them and improved my position. I am happy with my race performance but I need to find a way to perform like this from the start of practice on a Friday for the whole race weekend. Today shows that we have the potential and I am glad that we are racing again next weekend as we can continue to improve.”

Simon Buckmaster, Parkalgar Honda Team Manager: “There’s not much to say about Eugene’s performance it was simply mega. He won the race in the first two laps because he made the break and after that the first three matched each other’s lap times. Great job well done and three victories out of five races is impressive. Miguel also rode well – he was 1.1seconds faster in the race than he was in qualifying. If he was to get to that level quicker in the weekend he would be finishing in the top eight – he nearly caught the group fighting for seventh this race. It was a good 10th place and we will be encouraging him to get up to speed quicker at the next round.”

Race Result

1 2 50 E. LAVERTY IRL Parkalgar Honda Honda CBR600RR 16 1′47.767

2 1 54 K. SOFUOGLU TUR HANNspree Ten Kate Honda Honda CBR600RR 16 2.817

3 3 26 J. LASCORZ ESP Kawasaki Motocard.com Kawasaki ZX-6R 16 3.043

4 4 51 M. PIRRO ITA HANNspree Ten Kate Honda Honda CBR600RR 16 21.238

5 7 37 K. FUJIWARA JPN Kawasaki Motocard.com Kawasaki ZX-6R 16 22.003

6 11 14 M. LAGRIVE FRA ParkinGO Triumph BE1 Triumph Daytona 675 16 22.056

7 9 7 C. DAVIES GBR ParkinGO Triumph BE1 Triumph Daytona 675 16 30.724

8 6 25 D. SALOM ESP ParkinGO BE1 Triumph Triumph Daytona 675 16 30.730

9 8 4 G. REA GBR Intermoto Czech Honda CBR600RR 16 30.857

10 13 117 M. PRAIA POR Parkalgar Honda Honda CBR600RR 16 32.265

Championship Positions (after five of 13 rounds)

1: Lascorz 101

2: Sofuoglu 97

3: Laverty Parkalgar Honda 91

4: Davies 55

5: Salom 40

6: Rea 40

7: Harms 35

8: Pirro 34

9: Fujiwara 34

10: Lagrive 30

13: Praia Parkalgar Honda 23