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Gozzini
carries the lead home to Castelletto
Date: 2008-05-21 (Courtesy Youthstream)
FUNCHAL (PORTUGAL)
The FIM SuperMoto World Championship season opened in
Torino last April with the stunning victories of Thierry Van Den Bosch (S1)
and Davide Gozzini (S2) and is due to continue this weekend with the second
round at Castelletto di Branduzzo, Italy.
On the popular SuperMoto venue which has recently been completely renewed
the UEM SuperMoto series will also take place, with the leaders Alessandro
Asnicar (S3) and Graziano Rispoli (Open) being hungry for victories as they
enter the second meeting of 2008.
S1
The Gran Prix of Italy at Torino was an incredible battle in between two
Superiders who had a score to settle since a long time, when they were team
mates inside the KTM Red Bull Racing squad in 2005. Bernd Hiemer and Thierry
Van Den Bosch’s chance to battle it out for the win eventually came at the
Oval, with the duo collecting one heat win each at the end of a superb day
of racing.
Aprilia Off Road’s Van Den Bosch walked away with the overall as KTM Italia
Miglio’s Hiemer slipped to second on the podium by losing heat two from VDB.
Though the fight for glory is set to continue this weekend, with none of
them willing to let the other by.
Husqvarna CH Racing’s Thomas Chareyre was a solid third at the first Grand
Prix but the 20 year old Frenchman aims higher as he wants to beat his older
brother Adrien by one year to be remembered as the youngest SuperMoto World
Champion.
DRC Aprilia Off Road’s Ivan Lazzarini slightly missed the podium at his
first GP outing with the Italian manufacturer but the Pesaro born Superider
will try harder this weekend, being at home again.
Robinsons KTM UK’s Matthew Winstanley was the third Superider to collect a
total of 36 points at Torino, alongside Lazzarini and Chareyre, to make a
solid debut in the class.
Being sixth in the points standings, Suzuki Valenti’s Fabio Balducci is the
second highest placed Italian Superider in the series. Crashing out and
hurting himself at Torino, he held on to finish both moto’s but he will be
in much better shape for this second round.
S2
TM Factory Racing’s Davide Gozzini was one of those four Superiders who
could battle it out for the Title at the final round of the 2007 season in
Greece but he missed his change to finish the lowest he could with fourth in
the Championship. At Torino, the Italian took his personal revenge to
collect the first GP win of the season.
2007 S1 World Champion Adrien Chareyre was astonishing at his maiden Grand
Prix in the class, as he challenged Gozzini for victory to finish second on
the podium. Chareyre showed to be an extremely mature and experienced
Superider and will be a threat throughout the entire season.
One year after he clinched his best World Championship finish with second in
the S2 series, KTM Italia Miglio’s Attilio Pignotti was back to action at
Torino, where he collected the remaining spot on the podium. Pignotti had a
shoulder operation throughout the winter and could not train properly; he
will head to Castelletto in better shape to try and repeat his 2007 victory,
which is still the only Grand Prix success in his career.
Home Superiders Luca Minutilli of PMR H2O Aprilia Off Road and Massimo
Beltrami of DRC Aprilia Off Road rounded off the top five of the opening
Grand Prix, both showing to have adapted perfectly to their new team
situations for 2008, as both enjoy factory support.
Torino was a negative weekend for two major players of 2007, in the likes of
defending Champion Gerald Delepine and Christian Iddon. Both Superiders
crashed in the heats to finish respectively seventh and eleventh in the
Championship. Delepine even injured his ribs but will be fit to ride this
weekend at Castelletto.
THE UEM EUROPEAN SUPERMOTO CHAMPIONSHIP
Home Superider Alessandro Asnicar looks forward to this second S3 round in
Castelletto, where he will ride to defend his Championship lead from runner
up and Torino’s poleman Olivier Scheen. The Belgian is actually followed
from close by British Oliver Pope, as Raphael Storning and Kenneth Dekindt
round off the top five. In occasion of this second round of the UEM S3
series, Janina Wuerterle will enter the Championship to be the first female
Superider to ever ride an S3 round.
In the Open class, experienced Graziano Rispoli won round one with
authority; though the Italian exploited first moto winner Viktor Bolsek’s
misfortune in heat two, as the Croatian crashed while Rispoli was on route
for victory. Bolsek ended a bitter third and will be raring to make up for
it in Castelletto. Heino Meusburger is second in the Championship with KTM
fellow Superiders Alberto Dall’Era and Edgardo Borella being fourth and
fifth respectively.
THE MOTODROMO AND CASTELLETTO
Castelletto di Branduzzo’s Motodromo has been always linked to SuperMoto as
it is one of the few permanent structures dedicated to the sport. The race
track did undergo major changes throughout the winter and since April 2008
it looks completely different than it was last year. With the oval section
and the sky zone being the only parts of the track that remained untouched,
the rest of the Motodromo has become more flowing and fast. Basically the
back straight is now longer and ends with a new section leading into the
start straight; the twisty section which was opposite to the start straight
is now changed into a technical series of two turns which will require a
very fine set up work. There will be new lap records in each class. Last
year’s event was won by Van Den Bosch in S1 and Pignotti in S2 at the end of
a sunny weekend while the weather forecast for this weekend is cloudy.
Castelletto di Branduzzo is a town in the province of Pavia, which is
also the closest main city being just 20 kilometres away. Though Castelletto
is inside a triangle area edged by three major cities in Italy: Milano,
Alessandria and Piacenza. The actual name of the town comes from the
mergence of the two towns Castelletto Po and Branduzzo, which dates back to
1928.
THE EVENT’S SCHEDULE
Saturday May 24: EC Open Free Practice 1 at 9:00 am; EC S3 Free Practice 1
at 9:30 am; KTM Italia Trophy Free Practice 10:05 am; EC Open Pre Qualifying
Practice at 10:30 am; EC S3 Free Practice 2 at 11:00 am; S2 Free Practice 1
at 12:00 am; S1 Free Practice 1 at 12:40 am; EC Open Qualifying Race 1 at
1:30 pm; S2 Free Practice 2 at 2:00 pm; S1 Free Practice 2 at 2:40 pm; EC
Open Qualifying Race 2 at 3:30 pm; S2 Time Practice at 4:00 pm; S1 Time
Practice at 4:50 pm; EC S3 Time Practice and EC Open Last Chance Qualifying
Practice at 5:40 pm; KTM Italia Trophy Time Practice at 6:15 pm
Sunday May 25: KTM Italia Trophy Warm Up at 7:45 am; EC Open Warm Up at 8:05
am; EC S3 Warm Up at 8:30 am; S2 Warm Up at 8:55 am with Superpole
immediately after; S1 Warm Up at 9:30 am with Superpole immediately after;
KTM Italia Trophy Race 1 at 10:15 am; EC Open Race 1 at 10:50 am; EC S3 Race
1 at 11:35 am; S2 Race 1 at 12:25 am; S1 Race 1 at 1:25 pm; EC Open Race 2
at 2:25 pm; S2 Race 2 at 3:25 pm; S1 Race 2 at 4:25 pm; EC S3 Race 2 at 5:25
pm; KTM Italia Trophy Race 2 at 6:00 pm.
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