Submitted by David Emmett on
Results and Summary:
Cal Crutchlow will start from pole for Sunday's World Superbike races at Portimao, after a blistering lap shattering Ben Spies' pole record from last year by nearly four tenths of a second. The Sterilgarda Yamaha man set the time early in the final Superpole session, then retired to the pits knowing that nobody was going to get anywhere near that time.
The nearest man to Crutchlow was Max Biaggi, but the Aprilia veteran was nearly half a second behind the young Briton. Biaggi was followed by another veteran, Althea Ducati's Carlos Checa, while the younger Leon Haslam finished up in 4th, completing the front row. While Crutchlow had a big lead, there was little to separate the rest of the front row. Ten Kate Honda's Johnny Rea heads up the second row, the Ulsterman not capable of matching the scorching lap he set in Superpole 2 in the final session, when it would have put him 2nd on the grid. Rea sits ahead of Jakub Smrz and Shane Byrne, with Troy Corser rounding out the second row.
A couple of big crashes affected both James Toseland and Max Neukirchner. Neukirchner crashed in Superpole 1, destroying his bike but making it through to Superpole 2, while Toseland suffered a huge highside in the final corner on his first fast lap of Superpole 2, taking a severe tumble but ending unhurt. Both men OK but ended up on the fourth row of the grid.
The Xerox Ducati team had the worst of Superpole, however. Michel Fabrizio losing the front end and not being able to make it back to the pits in time to get back out could not all be put down to Fabrizio's own fault, but a lackluster show by Noriyuki Haga clearly could. Both Xerox Ducati men will start from the 5th row of the grid for tomorrow's two superbike races.
Results and Grid
| Pos | No. | Rider | Bike | Time | Diff |
| 1 | 35 | C. Crutchlow | Yamaha YZF R1 | 1'42.092 | |
| 2 | 3 | M. Biaggi | Aprilia RSV4 1000 F. | 1'42.513 | 0.421 |
| 3 | 7 | C. Checa | Ducati 1098R | 1'42.586 | 0.494 |
| 4 | 91 | L. Haslam | Suzuki GSX-R1000 | 1'42.596 | 0.504 |
| 5 | 65 | J. Rea | Honda CBR1000RR | 1'42.807 | 0.715 |
| 6 | 96 | J. Smrz | Ducati 1098R | 1'42.889 | 0.797 |
| 7 | 67 | S. Byrne | Ducati 1098R | 1'42.960 | 0.868 |
| 8 | 11 | T. Corser | BMW S1000 RR | 1'43.152 | 1.060 |
| Out after Superpole 2 | |||||
| 9 | 50 | S. Guintoli | Suzuki GSX-R1000 | 1'42.984 | 0.892 |
| 10 | 111 | R. Xaus | BMW S1000 RR | 1'42.999 | 0.907 |
| 11 | 2 | L. Camier | Aprilia RSV4 1000 F. | 1'43.039 | 0.947 |
| 12 | 66 | T. Sykes | Kawasaki ZX 10R | 1'43.199 | 1.107 |
| 13 | 76 | M. Neukirchner | Honda CBR1000RR | 1'43.380 | 1.288 |
| 14 | 57 | L. Lanzi | Ducati 1098R | 1'43.568 | 1.476 |
| 15 | 52 | J. Toseland | Yamaha YZF R1 | 1'49.401 | 7.309 |
| 16 | 99 | L. Scassa | Ducati 1098R | ||
| Out after Superpole 1 | |||||
| 17 | 84 | M. Fabrizio | Ducati 1098R | 1'43.564 | 1.472 |
| 18 | 41 | N. Haga | Ducati 1098R | 1'43.686 | 1.594 |
| 19 | 88 | A. Pitt | BMW S1000 RR | 1'43.781 | 1.689 |
| 20 | 49 | M. Tamada | BMW S1000 RR | 1'45.142 | 3.050 |
| Not through to Superpole | |||||
| 21 | 32 | S. Morais | Honda CBR1000RR | 1'45.520 | 3.428 |
| 22 | 15 | M. Baiocco | Kawasaki ZX 10R | 1'45.610 | 3.518 |
| 23 | 31 | V. Iannuzzo | Honda CBR1000RR | 1'45.795 | 3.703 |
| 24 | 95 | R. Hayden | Kawasaki ZX 10R | 1'45.799 | 3.707 |
Comments
Haga
Can't help but feel that, 2009 being such a letdown, Haga just may not have enough left for another realistic shot at the championship. Too bad, but, unless he's able to reenergize himself somehow, this season may just get longer and longer for him as it unfolds.
And if this season turns out not to be competitive, what then? Will Duc keep him around for another season, especially with younger guns increasingly supplanting the veterans? If not, can he get another ride that's competitive? Realistically, this may finally be his swan song.