The first race of the day sawEugene Laverty start well, Laverty impressing by leading the first two laps of his first ever Superbike race, before dropping back to swap positions with Melandri several times. Laverty claimed fourth and Melandri fifth at the line. Both riders had struggled a bit for rear grip in the first race, and Laverty also from arm pump, problems which were rectified by team set up changes and help from Clinica Mobile prior to race two. Laverty’s second race began with the young Northern Irishman pressing on and holding sixth position until lap eight when a false neutral caused him to run wide, losing valuable time and positions. The same issue was repeated on lap 11, dropping him to 20th position by lap 15. Despite the setback Laverty fought back, pushing back up over seven laps to claim 15th at the line.
As they head to Donington in the UK for the second round of the championship, they do so with Melandri sitting in third in the overall standings with 27 points, his teammate Laverty sits in ninth with 14 points, 13 behind Melandri.

Eugene Laverty, Yamaha World superbike Team, 4th, 15th
“In the first race I had problems with arm pump and had just to sit there, I had the possibility to go third but didn’t want to risk my arms. I got it fixed at Clinica, it was just really stiff after five days riding on a Superbike this week! Marco upped the pace in second race; it would have been tough to beat, but there was a definite fourth there for me. Unfortunately two false neutrals killed the race leaving me with one point. On the plus side I’m very positive for Donington, we’ve clearly got a very competitive package and under race conditions we can see that our competitors aren’t as fast as the practice sessions suggested.”

Andrea Dosoli, Yamaha World Superbike Team Manager
“Today we got confirmation that all the work we have done is in the right direction. We struggled a bit in race one, both riders complained about a lack of reargrip and we could see we where slow in the last sector. With just a few adjustments we improved the bike for race two, so Marco could follow Max and, at the end, the gap to Carlos Checa was not as big as in race one so he kept a good race pace. Eugene did a great job in race one and he was doing in the same in race two. He really impressed us with a fantastic start he showed he could work under pressure and ride in a tough race. He put in the same performance in race two, unfortunately getting a couple of false neutrals and running off,losing ten seconds each time. If not for this he could have been on the podium.
We showed this weekend that the performance of the team is high with both riders so we should be proud, especially considering this is the first time they have run a two race event on a Sunday. Thank you to all the team for a good job done so far and we will try to be even more competitive at Donington.”

Extensive photography of the new Yamaha World Superbike Team livery including detailed technical images of the 2011 YZF-R1 Superbike are now available for download at www.yamaha-racing.com/wsb/photo

Yamaha World Superbike Team riders Eugene Laverty and Marco Melandri experienced their first ever Superpole shoot-out this afternoon at the Phillip Island International circuit in Australia. The adrenalin fuelled short ‘qualifying heats’ quickly sort the fastest riders from the pack to decide the grid line up for Sunday’s two World Superbike races, the first of the 2011 season.
Laverty continued to display the consistent form fans have seen since he first jumped on the Yamaha R1 race bike, flying through the first, second and third Superpole heats in fifth place, earning himself a second row start for his first ever World Superbike race tomorrow.
Eugene Laverty, Yamaha World Superbike Team - 5th, 1’31.858
“So far so good! I’ve really been enjoying the weekend so far; everything seems to be running really smoothly. We’re still working on our set up for race distance but for the faster laps in qualifying it seems to have worked well. Superpole was a new experience for me, the qualifying tyres require quite a different style of riding so I think I’m yet to get the best out of them. Bring on tomorrow, I’m ready and really excited about seeing what we can do, I just hope it doesn’t rain!”

Yamaha World Superbike Team Manager - Andrea Dosoli
“I’m happy considering both riders are rookies and they managed to get through to the final Superpole on their first attempt. Eugene continues to confirm what he showed in the past and more. Only two months ago Marco had a shoulder operation and even now is not 100% fit so his performance today was impressive. For our first race it’s ok to start from the second row. We are still working to find the best set up for both riders as the race will be very demanding on tyres so the key point will be how to save them. We need a quick start off the line, then it’s up to both Eugene and Marco to enjoy the race. It looks like it might rain tomorrow, which will obviously be difficult as we have limited wet set up knowledge here, I believe both riders, and especially Marco, can be strong in the wet so we’ll see!”

Times from Philip Island Q1

1. 7 CHECA (ESP) Althea Racing Ducati - 1′31.577

2. 50 GUINTOLI (FRA) Team Effenbert-Liberty Racing Ducati -1′31.850

3. 58 LAVERTY Eugene (IRL) Yamaha World Superbike Team - 1′31.969

4. 3 BIAGGI (ITA) Aprilia Alitalia Racing Team- 1′32.009

5. 96 SMRZ (CZE) Team Effenbert-Liberty Racing Ducati - 1′32.066

6. 91 HASLAM (GBR) BMW Motorrad Motorsport BMW S1000 RR- 1′32.082

7. 84 FABRIZIO (ITA) Team Suzuki Alstare - 1′32.108

8. 17 LASCORZ (ESP) Kawasaki Racing Team - 1′32.163

9. 4 REA (GBR) Castrol Honda - 1′32.424

10. 12 WATERS Yoshimura Suzuki Racing Team - 1′32.690

2011 Yamaha World Superbike riders Eugene Laverty and Marco Melandri today completed the second of two days testing at the Phillip Island circuit ahead of the season opening round this coming weekend. Both riders spent the sessions working on set up to deliver consistent pace for the Australian circuit. The team achieved their target of testing all updates for the 2011 R1 race bike, and will now take a couple of days rest in preparation for the two races on Sunday 27th February.

Eugene Laverty, Yamaha World Superbike Team - 9th, 1’32.137

“It’s been a tough test but we’re making progress bit by bit. We’re focusing on consistency for the races, that’s been the focus since we started the test. We’ve found that now and all we need is a little bit more pace. I’m excited about the race, it’s a strange track like no other and requires a unique set up. I think it’s going to be the smart guys who are there at the end of the race.”

Yamaha World Superbike Team Manager - Andrea Dosoli
“All our jobs are done here for the test which gives us the confidence that we’ve achieved our targets. We wanted a more consistent bike and we’ve got it. The Ducati is very quick at this track so we need to improve some more and reduce the time difference. For the two races on Sunday I am feeling quite confident as Eugene is improving everyday and is very consistent. Marco has also put a lot of laps in on his shoulder so we believe that with two days of rest he will be ok for the races. After all the winter tests we are ready. Considering both riders are World Superbike rookies and Marco recently had an operation we are happy with our results here.”

The opening round of the championship is in Australia on 27th February

Top 10 times from Test

1. 7 CHECA Carlos (ESP) Althea Racing Ducati - 1′30.578 - 116Laps
2. 50 GUINTOLI Sylvain (FRA) Team Effenbert-Liberty Racing Ducati - 1′31.196 - 110 Laps
3. 4 REA Jonathan (GBR) Castrol Honda - 1′31.206 93 Laps
4. 96 SMRZ Jakub (CZE) Team Effenbert-Liberty Racing Ducati - 1′31.654- 136 Laps
5. 17 LASCORZ Joan (ESP) Kawasaki Racing Team - 1′31.866 – 128 Laps
6. 3 BIAGGI Max (ITA) Aprilia Alitalia Racing Team- 1′31.870 – 93 Laps
7. 84 FABRIZIO Michel (ITA) Team Suzuki Alstare - 1′32.113 – 136 Laps
8. 33 MELANDRI Marco (ITA) Yamaha World Superbike Team - 1′32.122 – 109 Laps
9. 58 LAVERTY Eugene (IRL) Yamaha World Superbike Team - 1′32.137 – 142 Laps
10. 66 SYKES Tom (GBR) Kawasaki Racing Team Superbike - 1′32.272 – 107 Laps

1. 7 CHECA Carlos (ESP) Althea Racing Ducati - 1′30.578 - 116Laps

2. 50 GUINTOLI Sylvain (FRA) Team Effenbert-Liberty Racing Ducati - 1′31.196 - 110 Laps

3. 4 REA Jonathan (GBR) Castrol Honda - 1′31.206 93 Laps

4. 96 SMRZ Jakub (CZE) Team Effenbert-Liberty Racing Ducati - 1′31.654- 136 Laps

5. 17 LASCORZ Joan (ESP) Kawasaki Racing Team - 1′31.866 – 128 Laps

6. 3 BIAGGI Max (ITA) Aprilia Alitalia Racing Team- 1′31.870 – 93 Laps

7. 84 FABRIZIO Michel (ITA) Team Suzuki Alstare - 1′32.113 – 136 Laps

8. 33 MELANDRI Marco (ITA) Yamaha World Superbike Team - 1′32.122 – 109 Laps

9. 58 LAVERTY Eugene (IRL) Yamaha World Superbike Team - 1′32.137 – 142 Laps

10. 66 SYKES Tom (GBR) Kawasaki Racing Team Superbike - 1′32.272 – 107 Laps

The 2011 Yamaha World Superbike Team has unveiled the livery they will run for the upcoming World Superbike season. The new design features a Yamaha blue corporate racing colour scheme. The livery takes its inspiration from both the famous Yamaha speed block design and also one of the colours of the current production model YZF-R1, giving the bike a modern sleek appearance whilst emphasizing Yamaha’s racing image.The team features an all new rider line up for the 2011 championship with 28yr old Italian rider Marco Melandri, a previous 250cc World Champion, stepping across from MotoGP to partner 24yr old rider Eugene Laverty from Northern Ireland who steps up from the World Supersport Championship. The new livery will feature prominently on the leathers of both riders.

The team continues its winter testing schedule on the 21st and 22nd February at the Phillip Island circuit in advance of the opening round of the championship in Australia on 27th February.

Extensive photography of the new Yamaha World Superbike Team livery including detailed technical images of the 2011 YZF-R1 Superbike are now available for download at www.yamaha-racing.com/wsb/photo

Any rider who’s ridden on the world stage knows the feeling.  It’s 3am and I’m wide awake with jetlag so what else can you do but get up and sport yourself?  I don’t like wasting hours lying in bed when I could be doing something better.  Pippa and I are staying in Perth for a few days ahead of Phillip Island with our friends Raymond and Sheena Rooney.  Yesterday was our first whole day here and it was great to fit in a spot of snorkelling.  I’d never got round to doing it before and nor had I the intention of giving it a go in the shark-invested waters of Perth but Raymond had me talked into it before lunchtime on day one!  So much for standing my ground.

My alarm was set for 05.30 to head out for a cycle with Raymond before the temperature goes through the roof.  I’ve got the lend of a Fausto Coppi Aluminium Galaxy for the week, it looks proper retro so I’m looking forward to throwing my leg over the old girl.  I’ve enjoyed very little outdoor cycling due to our harsh winter back home in Northern Ireland so a good few days riding in the sun will be just the ticket.

Things were incredibly hectic back home the week before we left for Oz.  It’s always difficult to explain to others how motorcycle racers fill their time but our schedules often manage to be filled.  Don’t get me wrong, there’s quite a few weeks in the year when there isn’t work in us, but at times the workload can be hefty.  I was out of bed at 06.30 every morning last week in order to get my first training session of the day done before heading off out for meetings and such like.  Then I’d return in the evening after eight hours on the go and begin my second session of the day.  I have a lot of respect for guys who do a nine to five work day and still find the time for hobbies like cycling and running outside of work hours.

Last week my iPhone app was released which was a massive hit.  Pippa worked hard over the past few months on getting things together with Simon and Rory from Rockspin.  I  was delighted with the finished product which is a rare occurrence as I can be a hard man to please!  Sales on day one spoke for themselves with the app making it into the top 10 in the global sports category.  There I was stuck in amongst Premiership football teams and Formula One applications!  The app is interactive which makes it appealing to fans, I didn’t just want it to be like a shortcut to a website.  It’ll be quite funny to see the flood of riders following in my footsteps and bringing out their own app after the success we’ve enjoyed.  I’m very proud to have been the first rider to offer such a product and owe a lot of thanks to  Pippa and Rockspin for making it happen.

It’s less than a week before I get back on my R1 in Phillip Island.  I’m aiming to walk away with two top six finishes to kickstart my season.  If you think that wouldn’t be a great result then consider Toseland and Crutchlow’s start to the season last year.  It’s no secret that Yamaha struggled at Phillip Island in 2010 but I believe that, following our extensive winter testing schedule, many of our problems have been laid to rest.

Here’s wishing everyone a safe season.. But only me a successful one.  Until next time!

Eugene

Eugene Lavertys App has gone straight into the Top 10 of the paid sports App in its First day.