Spies and Haga share Assen wins

From the World Superbike Championship

Ben Spies (Yamaha World Superbike) and Noriyuki Haga (Ducati Xerox) continued their two-way domination of the 2009 Hannspree FIM Superbike World Championship at the Assen TT Circuit in the Netherlands by taking a win apiece in front of 76,000 spectators on Sunday.

The Texan pulled out a fantastic pass on his Japanese rival to take a last-gasp win in the first race, but then crashed out of race two early on, leaving Haga the winner.

Leon Haslam rode superbly to take home two podiums for the Stiggy Racing Honda team, while Jakub Smrz (Guandalini Ducati) scored his best-ever result with third in race two.

In the championship Haga now has a 60-point lead over Spies, 180 to 120.

Spies took his fourth win of the season by forcing his way past points leader Haga in a thrilling final lap of the opening race. The decisive move came a couple of turns from the flag, and the Texan then closed the door on his rival to win.

"I was trying to set a really good pace in the first few laps, but just didn't have the same feeling I had in practice with the bike," Spies said, "and Nori came by and I saw nobody was behind Haslam, so I just sat back and watched.

"When the tires started going off we made some moves, there were some close moments with Leon but we kept it clean. I knew I had to go and I fought it out with Nori over the last two laps. Actually I didn't know where to pass Nori, but I got a good run and it was close."

Third place went to Haslam, who had the satisfaction of recording a new lap record.

Yamaha's good all-round performance was completed with fourth place for Tom Sykes, the British rider finishing ahead of Max Biaggi (Aprilia), well up again after struggling in qualifying.

Sixth place went to Smrz, while Michel Fabrizio could only manage eighth with the second factory Ducati.

Troy Corser put in a good performance on the BMW, while Max Neukirchner (Suzuki Alstare) could only finish 13th after crashing out from second place and then rejoining.

Carlos Checa (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) also crashed out while trying to catch up after a poor start.

The outcome of the second race was decided on lap two when Spies slid off into the gravel while in the lead. This left Haga with an unchallenged run to the flag as he leveled the score with Spies with his fourth win of the year, together with a new fastest lap.

Haslam improved on his result in the first encounter with a second place, the British rider now proving to be a true podium contender.

Smrz scored his first-ever career podium in third, the Czech rider getting the better of Fabrizio in the final stages. The Italian had a broken gearbox in the end but managed to bring his 1098 home fourth.

In the all-British battle for fifth, Jonathan Rea (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) got the edge over Sykes.

Suzuki's disappointing weekend was completed with a ninth place for Neukirchner and 12th for Yukio Kagayama.

Corser scored another 10th place for BMW, just ahead of team-mate Ruben Xaus.

Biaggi's race came to an end at the start with a clutch problem, while Shinya Nakano failed to take the start after a crash in race one in which he damaged his previously operated-on shoulder.

"First of all, I'm sorry for Ben and his crash; I hope he is fine," Haga said. "After the first race we changed the suspension a little bit and the bike was really comfortable, so a big thanks to everyone in the team. I think it's nine years since I won here, in 2000, so I'm very happy and now I'm looking forward to Monza."

The Supersport race saw a second win of the year for Irishman Eugene Laverty (Parkalgar Honda), who held off a last-lap attack from Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha World Supersport), the new points leader.

Third went to Joan Lascorz (Kawasaki Motocard.com), who led for much of the race before losing out to his two rivals in the final stages.

Fabien Foret (Yamaha World Supersport) was again up at the front, the Frenchman scoring his best result of the season in fourth, while Kenan Sofuoglu (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) managed to salvage a fifth place in a disappointing day for the Dutch team, who lost Andrew Pitt in a crash while fighting for a podium place.

As expected, the Superstock 1000 race was dominated by Maxime Berger (Ten Kate Honda), who now becomes the new championship leader, from Xavier Simeon (Ducati Xerox Junior Team) and Sylvain Barrier (Garnier Junior Yamaha).

A series of upsets marked the European Superstock 600 race, with the two favourites Danilo Petrucci (Yamaha Trasimeno) and Vincent Lonbois (MTM Yamaha) both eliminated while in the lead. First the Italian was hit by his team-mate Marco Bussolotti, and then the Belgian crashed just a few corners before the checkered flag.

Then with the flag in sight, Dutch rider Joey Litjens (VD Heyden Yamaha) messed up his entry into the chicane, leaving the win to Britain's Gino Rea (Ten Kate Honda), who becomes the new championship leader.

Superbike Results Race One
1. Spies B. (USA) Yamaha YZF-R1 36:31.338 (164.628 km/h)
2. Haga N. (JPN) Ducati 1098R +0.154
3. Haslam L. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR +0.779
4. Sykes T. (GBR) Yamaha YZF-R1 +8.775
5. Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory +11.275
6. Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R +16.126
7. Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR +19.555
8. Laconi R. (FRA) Ducati 1098R +19.760
9. Fabrizio M. (ITA) Ducati 1098R +23.006
10. Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR +24.285
11. Byrne S. (GBR) Ducati 1098R +26.003
12. Muggeridge K. (AUS) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +27.814
13. Neukirchner M. (GER) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +36.962
14. Xaus R. (ESP) BMW S1000 RR +39.025
15. Kiyonari R. (JPN) Honda CBR1000RR +41.505
16. Roberts B. (AUS) Ducati 1098R +41.810

Superbike Results Race Two
1. Haga N. (JPN) Ducati 1098R 36:31.712 (164.6 km/h)
2. Haslam L. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR +2.678
3. Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R +4.603
4. Fabrizio M. (ITA) Ducati 1098R +8.981
5. Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR +12.104
6. Sykes T. (GBR) Yamaha YZF-R1 +14.575
7. Checa C. (ESP) Honda CBR1000RR +17.449
8. Byrne S. (GBR) Ducati 1098R +17.729
9. Neukirchner M. (GER) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +18.167
10. Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR +25.056
11. Xaus R. (ESP) BMW S1000 RR +32.617
12. Kagayama Y. (JPN) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +32.688
13. Roberts B. (AUS) Ducati 1098R +37.415
14. Baiocco M. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX-10R +55.088
15. Scassa L. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX-10R +55.325
16. Laconi R. (FRA) Ducati 1098R +1:18.514

Point Standings (after 4 of 14 rounds)
1. Haga 180
2. Spies 120
3. Haslam 94
4. Fabrizio 80
5. Neukirchner 75
6. Sykes 70
7. Biaggi 65
8. Laconi 64
9. Rea 53
10. Smrz 44