EUGENE LAVERTY SUFFERS WITH SOME GRIP ISSUES AND WILL NEED TO DO SOME WORK TO GET UP TO SNUFF FOR THE RACES.   

Misano, 8 June 2012 – The Misano Adriatico Superbike weekend got underway with the first two Friday sessions. The free practice session in the morning had Max Biaggi and Eugene Laverty lapping consistently in order to adjust the RSV4 to the decidedly summer conditions of the circuit in Emilia Romagna. The final times of the session placed the Corsair in seventh place while Eugene put the fifteenth best time on the boards.

After the customary changes, the Aprilia riders took the track for the first qualifiers. Max, at the end of 16 timed laps, earned third place for the day, showing encouraging progress and consistent performance.

Max Biaggi has rather clear ideas about tomorrow: “We did some testing between the morning and afternoon sessions to try and find the beneficial points of this track, but without any great results. We had the biggest problems with the bike’s balance, although the situation improved from about halfway through the second session. Like everyone else, we tested various tyre choices including some solutions which are new, but very similar. We’ve done about 80% of the work but we can still improve, especially where better traction is concerned”.

 There were some difficulties for Eugene Laverty, who complained of poor grip after a few laps. In view of the races the rider from Northern Ireland knows that he’ll have to work on long distance duration rather than his fast lap. Tomorrow Eugene and his mechanics will continue working based on the observations made today in order to move up in the rankings, which put them in thirteenth place today.

“We didn’t get off on the right foot today. Already after the first few laps I’m struggling to get the grip I need out of the rear tyre and it isn’t getting any better. The others are much more consistent, so we need to improve significantly for tomorrow. I don’t have any radical changes in mind, but there are some small steps we can take in order to get close to an optimum set-up. Being quick on the fast lap isn’t that important. The races are long and knowing how to manage tyre wear is essential”.