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DEBUT WSB WIN FOR NEUKIRCHNER
Team Alstare Suzuki rider Max Neukirchner took a thrilling maiden victory at Monza and also went into the record books for being the first German to win a World Superbike Championship race today at the fifth round in Italy.
Ever since Valencia, when he was cruelly robbed of victory on the last lap, Neukirchner has been ready to win and today he showed that he is a force to be reckoned with this year: He was a race-long contender for a win in the second race, but was beaten to the line in a photo-finish with Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha). At the end, he was deprived of a double victory by just nine-thousandths-of-a-second!
Haga took second place in race one with Troy Bayliss (Ducati) third and Suzuki Alstare riders Yukio Kagayama and Fonsi Nieto fourth and seventh respectively. Behind Haga and Neukirchner in race two was Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) and Nieto.
Kagayama suffered a dramatic crash in the Ascari chicane after just four laps, hurting his ribs and right knee in the process.
Max Neukirchner - Race 1: 1, Race 2: 2nd:
"I am so happy to win my first ever World Superbike race and proud and happy to be the first German rider to do so. It's a great feeling and I'm sure that there'll be much more interest in Germany now. Although I was a bit nervous before the race, I was not nervous in it or at the end. It was easy to be in front in race one and my bike felt very fast on the straights and good in the corners. I knew exactly where Haga was and knew what I had to do to beat him. I used the same bike and set up for race two, but Haga was a bit quicker in the corners. I was behind him when I suddenly saw a big cloud of smoke coming from his bike. I thought his engine had blown
Yukio Kagayama - Race 1: 4th, Race 2: DNF:
"I am very sore after my race two crash! I don't know why I crashed because it happened so quickly and I had no chance of saving it. Maybe there was some dirt and gravel on the side of the track and I hit it and that caused the bike to change direction so violently. It was a big shame because I was thinking of maybe a podium and to end up in the Clinica Mobile was not my idea of how to finish the race. I had some brake problems in race one and that me go straight on in the chicanes sometimes, but I did not want to give up, so I kept pushing as hard as I dared. I hope my injuries are not serious, but I know I'm going to be very sore tomorrow morning."
Fonsi Nieto - Race 1: 7th, Race 2: 4th:
"I am not at all happy in race one because I was hit by Checa and the impact broke my seat. Because of that, I lost a little top speed and once I had lost touch with the leaders it was not possible to catch up again. Race two was quite good. I felt very comfortable on the bike and, as the race wore on, I was able to be more confident in one corner that had been causing me a little problem. I was behind Haga, when smoke suddenly appeared from the rear end of his bike. I thought that his engine had gone, so I slowed down because I was worried that oil was coming out. It even smelled a bit like oil, but half a lap later the smoke disappeared. By then I was too far away to challenge for a top spot and so I decided to keep my place and take fourth."
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