Bayliss Fastest of three Ducatis in top four

© Ducati Corse. The Silverstone race weekend kicked off in dry conditions but by the time the first qualifying session had started lunchtime rains had left a wet track for all 21 riders to contend with.

In the last laps the track was dry enough for 2001 and 2006 champion Troy Bayliss (Ducati Xerox) to secure a new track record for WSB with a 1'25"295, set on Friday, and as always on mass produced race tyres. To underline the magnitude of his achievement, the next closest rider was his own team-mate Lorenzo Lanzi (Ducati Xerox) who was 0.657 seconds behind. The Honda meat in a triple-decker Ducati sandwich was supplied by James Toseland (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) who was the last rider within a second of the new SBK best time. Ruben Xaus (Team Sterilgarda Ducati) ended in fourth place on day one, ensuring Toseland was surrounded by the booming sounds of desmo engines.

A double rider push in the first qualifying session saw Troy Corser (Yamaha Motor Italia) lead his team-mate Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia) as they scored fifth and sixth best times respectively. A return to form for Michel Fabrizio (DFX Corse Honda) saw him seventh, with the aggression of Regis Laconi (PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse) pushing him up to eighth. All the first day times may prove important if the second session of qualifying proves to be fully wet, as the times over the first two days will count for Superpole qualifying.

Karl Muggeridge (Alto Evolution Honda) used new suspension parts to improve his final placing to ninth on day one, with another private rider, Max Neukirchner (Suzuki Germany) a fine tenth.

Neukirchner was just ahead of the Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra duo of Yukio Kagayama and Max Biaggi, who went only 11th and 12th on day one. In his defence, Biaggi is a novice at the Silverstone circuit, despite his vast experience in other forms of racing. A drying track caught out many riders on settings more suited to dry conditions, with Roby Rolfo (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) fast in the wet, but finally 13th, while Fonsi Nieto (PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse) was 14th. Two Italian private riders, Alessandro Polita (Celani Team Suzuki) and Luca Morelli (DFX Corse Honda) rounded out the provisional Superpole qualifiers.

In the World Supersport class Kenan Sofuoglu was the only rider to break into the 1:27 bracket in this afternoon’s qualifying session, recording a 1:27.937 to take provisional pole position. His team mate Sebastien Charpentier (1:28.178) was second, with Broc Parkes (1:28.189) third and Robbin Harms (1:28.384) fourth.

Rain began to fall during the latter part of the session, so times are expected to drop tomorrow if the track stays dry.

Claudio Corti has taken provisional pole position in the Superstock1000 class, with a best time of 1:28.649. Second was Niccolo Canepa (1:28.735), third was Ayrton Badovini (1:28.882) and fourth was Didier Van Keymeulen (1:28.908).

(FGSport)