Parkes takes pole at Monza

From Yamaha Racing

Yamaha World Supersport Team riders Broc Parkes and Fabien Foret earned front row starts for Sunday's Monza WSS race, with Parkes taking pole and a new track record of 1:49.868 on his Yamaha YZF-R6.

It was Parkes' second pole in succession and the third Yamaha pole of the 2008 season. It was also his sixth career pole win.

Parkes, carrying elbow, wrist and hand injuries, was unstoppable in the final qualifying session, beating the previous track best of second place qualifier Josh Brookes with the first ever Monza WSS lap under the 1:50 bracket.

"That was a bit of a surprise because from Wednesday to now I have come a long way," Parkes said. "I never expected the pole here after suffering some injuries. I knew the bike would be good here, and normally me too, but to get pole is unreal. I'm not sure about running race distance tomorrow, but every day so far I have been getting better, working with the Clinica Mobile. I haven't done many long runs so tomorrow we'll have to see what happens."

Foret was just over one second from Parkes' impressive best and fully confident that his pre-race form would be able to be transferred to real race conditions on Sunday.

"Not fastest today but I am ready for the race," Foret said. "Taking a front row start was the main thing, and there is nothing wrong with our set-up. Nothing is ever perfect, of course, but we are ready to go. The race here is always like a freight train of people locked together, so I hope to be in this train. If I am, I'm sure I can be strong at the end of the race."

Massimo Roccoli (Yamaha Team Italia Lorenzini by Leoni) made the changes to his machine set up that he knew would be an improvement from those on day one, and subsequently joined Parkes and Foret on the front row, making it three Yamahas in the first four places.

"Today was very good because we made a new front tire choice and the bike was completely changed for the better," Roccoli said. "My best fastest lap was very satisfying, riding with Andrew Pitt. In Monza everyone has the opportunity to slipstream. I think tomorrow my bike and I will be able to fight for the win."

Angel Rodriguez and David Salom (Yamaha Spain World Supersport Team) finished their Monza qualifying sessions 14th and 22nd respectively, finding day two a tough test in such a competitive field of 37 would-be qualifiers.

Qualifying Results
1. Broc Parkes AUS 1:49.868
2. Joshua Brookes AUS 1:50.334
3. Fabien Foret FRA 1:50.420
4. Massimo Roccoli ITA 1:50.533
5. Jonathan Rea GBR 1:50.747
6. Gianluca Vizziello ITA 1:50.800
7. Andrew Pitt AUS 1:50.823
8. Robbin Harms DNK 1:50.969
9. Mark Aitchinson AUS 1:51.004
10. Gianluca Nannelli ITA 1:51.229
11. Craig Jones GBR 1:51.296
12. Katsuaki Fujiwara JPN 1:51.357
13. Angel Rodriguez ESP 1:51.532
14. Barry Veneman NED 1:51.590
15. Joan Lascorz ESP 1:51.700