For the second race in succession Tom Sykes gave the Kawasaki Racing Team a pole position prize and as an important bonus his team-mate Joan Lascorz earned a second row start in eighth position.

Sykes was peerless in the final Superpole session, as he had been in combined qualifying. In Superpole three he set a new track best for the SBK category of 1’46.748 seconds. Tom took his Ninja ZX-10R 0.473 seconds clear of the second place rider, Sylvain Guintoli, and Sykes also praised his Ninja’s ability give him information on just how hard he was pushing to enable him to make such a fast lap time.

This was Tom's fourth career pole position in SBK racing and all have come while riding Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R machines.


For Lascorz qualifying inside Superpole was his first goal and then taking a top eight placing was another step-up in his overall push towards strong race finishes in Sunday’s 21-lap races. He also feels there are some small improvements to come in warm-up before the races begin.

Supported squad Team Pedercini put David Salom in 20th place on the grid and rookie rider Leandro Mercado 24th in his first full SBK ride. Loris Baz was top Kawasaki qualifier in the Superstock 1000 class, fifth on his MRS Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R.

Tom Sykes:

“To get two Tissot-Superpole wins on the roll is fantastic. I dug deep after the second Superpole because I knew the times would be fast. On my fastest lap in Superpole three I had a lot of feedback from my Kawasaki. A couple of times I arrived past the limit, but the feel was good so I could finish with a good lap time. A few of us have very consistent race pace so there will be a big fight over full race distances on Sunday. I had a little bit of a problem with the Qualifying tyre in that second Superpole session but in Superpole three we made a small change, dug a bit deeper and managed to do a good lap. We have a good starting position for tomorrow and I think it will be exciting during the races.”

Joan Lascorz:

“I did my best lap with a race tyre in Superpole three and it was not so bad because I am on the second row of the grid. Normally I have been a little behind. I used both my qualifying tyres but I found no great advantage. I think in the warm-up we can make even more small changes to suit race conditions and I think we can still make the overall package better. I already know which tyres we will use if the conditions remain like they have been until now, dry and sunny.”

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