WSBK, ROUND 7 - MISANO

RACE 2

Season-best finish for Milwaukee Aprilia in Misano Race 2

Race 2 at Misano delivered the best performance so far for Milwaukee Aprilia, topping their previous-best result from Race 1. Coming home in P5 and P6 respectively on their Aprilia RSV4 RFs, Eugene and Lorenzo delivered a total of 21 points for the team.

Starting P3 under the SBK reverse grid rules, Eugene was quickly on the attack, jostling for position with Sykes and Melandri in the early stages of the race. As the lead group began to edge away Eugene held his own and managed his pace, eventually taking 5th place and leading home teammate Lorenzo.

Lorenzo started P6, struggling initially to find his pace and progress. More comfortable on his bike than in Race 1, he fended off attacks from De Rosa and Krummenacher throughout the middle of the race. As he found a consistent pace towards the end, he was able to pull away and finish 6th behind teammate Eugene.

With a positive finish to Round 7, the team now look ahead to Round 8 at Laguna Seca in the United States, where they will be hoping to deliver more strong results before the season’s summer break.”

Lorenzo Savadori #32 / Grid - 6th / Race 6th - 10 points
"It was a positive weekend for us. P6 was a good result today, but we need to do a lot of work on the race starts because I am slow there at the moment.
We also made some changes to the front after the problems yesterday. They helped me but the problem is still there, so we have some work to do when we leave Misano. I am happy with more points today, and I want keep up these performances.
I’m feeling good for Laguna Seca next month. Last year I was close to the podium, and it’s a track I like riding. We learnt a lot of things weekend, so we have to work hard to make sure we arrive at Lagune in a good position".

Eugene Laverty #50 / Grid - 3rd / Race - 5th - 11 points
"P5 is our best result of the year so far, so we’ve got to take positives from that. The front guys still got away from us at the start which was hard to take, but it was a better race today. I managed a consistent pace and it was good to bring home decent points.
Yesterday we worked the tyres too hard, and today they were consistent so it was a much better ride for me. There were some subtle changes made last night to take some load off the front, and they worked in the race but we still need to make progress on that.
Looking ahead to Round 8 at Laguna Seca, it’s a track where the rider can make a lot of difference, so that should be a lot of fun. The fifth we got today is the benchmark we should be aiming for, and hopefully we’ll deliver another good performance in America".

RACE 1

Double points finish in Race 1 at Misano for Milwaukee Aprilia

Milwaukee Aprilia scored a double points finish in Race 1 at the Misano World Circuit on Saturday. Coming home in 6th and 9th positions respectively, riders Eugene and Lorenzo recorded the highest finish for the team so far in 2017.

Conditions were hot on Saturday as the race got underway. Starting P10 after making the cut into Superpole 2, Eugene quickly made up places on the first lap, a frequent occurrence in his fast race starts. Maintaining a good pace, he was engaged in a hard-fought battle with Camier and Torres for a majority of the race. After incidents ahead promoted him to 6th, Eugene held on to his position to bring home 10 valuable points.

Lorenzo started P13, unable to join Eugene in Superpole 2 after a difficult Superpole 1 session. He lost places at the start, but was quickly back in the hunt for points. Fighting with Ramos and de Rosa, he maintained his race pace and despite a technical problem was able to take 9th place and 7 points.
Under the reverse grid rules Eugene and Lorenzo will start Sunday’s Race 2 in P3 and P6 respectively, which will give them a good opportunity to score more big points.

Lorenzo Savadori #32 / Grid - 13th / Race - 9th, 7 points
"It was a shame we didn’t make Superpole 2 today, but it was a tough session. In the race, I made a small mistake at turn 9 on the first lap and I lost some places there. My pace was OK and I could push quite hard.
Around halfway in the race I was gaining on the middle group quickly, but then and towards the end it was really difficult for me to push hard. I didn’t have a strong feel for the front, and I didn’t feel comfortable.
Tonight we know some things that we can change and improve; the front for sure, and some other areas that we tried in the test. I hope tomorrow we will have a better race, and I know that the SMR and Aprilia guys will work very hard as always".

Eugene Laverty #50 / Grid - 10th / Race - 6th, 10 points
"The race started well for me, but it was tough overall. I made up some places on the first lap and was in the fight with the leaders, but after 6 laps I had problems with the front tyre and then the rear. After that it was a matter of nursing it home, and I was really riding on the edge.
In the test we ran well here on race runs, so it’s been disappointing to see that we couldn’t manage that in the race.
We can make some chassis changes tonight and some other things, we have to stay optimistic because we’ve got a bike with a strong engine and electronics; we just need to make the chassis work around it".