The BMW Motorrad Italia GoldBet Superbike Team took to the track today at Donington Park, the venue hosting the fifth round of 2012 World Superbike this weekend. In Qualifying 1 Michel Fabrizio was seventh while Ayrton Badovini finished the session in tenth place. The day started with Free Practice 1, run on a dry track with high winds blowing. The session was fiercely competitive with only three tenths of a second separating the top-8 riders.
Michel Fabrizio immediately put himself towards the top of the timing screens and completed 19 laps. With a best lap-time of 1’30.876 he was fourth fastest with a 0.120s gap from the session leader. Ayrton Badovini put in 20 laps and, thanks to a 1’31.075 lap-time, achieved eighth position at the flag with a 0.319s gap from first place.
In this afternoon’s qualifying Michel Fabrizio finished 7th with a time of 1’29.928, set on the 15th of 19 laps completed. Ayrton Badovini crashed out at “Fogarty Esses” on just his second lap and was forced to pit, emerging after repairs with only 12 minutes remaining. In the final part of the session, with only one set of tyres available, Ayrton managed to climb up the classification to 10th position, with a personal best lap-time of 1’29.986
Serafino Foti – BMW Motorrad Italia GoldBet Superbike Team Sporting Director
“It’s been a fairly good day. The bike seems to suit the track well. We’re still working to find the best tyre choice for the race, and in addition we will have some time tomorrow morning to try some small changes to the bike set-up. Michel went OK, although a small issue with his right arm prevented him from being even more competitive. Ayrton lost the front at the beginning of Qualifying 1 and that compromised his session a bit, but he’s done well to get back on track and set the tenth fastest lap.”
Michel Fabrizio #84 – FP1 4th (1’30.876) – QP1 7th (1’29.918)
“Today was not so bad. The bike did the job well and there was no need to make big set-up changes. It is a shame that a little pain in my right arm stopped me doing better than 7th, but I’m positive anyway because the feedback we got is good and the weather seems to be holding.”
Ayrton Badovini #86 – FP1 8th (1’31.075) – QP1 10th (1’29.986)
“The crash at lap two turned into a bit of a problem, as I lost most of the time available in the session. The kerb on the chicane is very high, so if you decide to take that line to get a quicker lap-time you can end up falling off the bike. My crew was amazing by fixing the bike as quickly as possible and in the final part of the session, with not much time available, I managed to equal my best lap time of last year and that makes me happy.”
