The official Kawasaki World Superbike entry will be back to full strength for round six of the championship, as Chris Vermeulen gets set to rejoin Tom Sykes and Joan Lascorz at Misano.

Vermeulen missed the previous round in America to be fully fit for this forthcoming Misano outing and he proved at a recent test at Motorland Aragon that he should be ready to complete a full race weekend in Italy, despite suffering an additional elbow injury recently.

Lascorz also had an outing on his official Kawasaki Racing Team machine at the recent Aragon tests, albeit for a short time only, after he headed back from the Miller Motorsports Park round.

Sykes approaches this Misano race fresh from a top six finish in the first race at the previous Miller Motorsports Park round, looking for more double digit points scores at a circuit which could not be more different from the American venue.

Presently, Sykes is 13th overall in the standings, Lascorz is 15th and Vermeulen has yet to score due to his long-term recovery from a knee injury. The Pedercini Team Kawasaki pairing of Mark Aitchison and Roberto Rolfo will get back to work at Misano, the second Italian based round of the season for the Italian owned and operated team. Rolfo is ranked 17th at present, Aitchison 19th.

Located almost at sea level, the Misano International Circuit is the host venue for the San Marino round of the World Championship. Tight and twisty for the most part, Misano is a favourite with many riders and fans alike, partly for its location right on Italy’s Adriatic holiday coast. Despite its obvious on and off circuit attractions it will be work all the way for all three official Kawasaki entrants until both 24-lap races are completed on Sunday 12 June. Then it will be a quick dash across southern Europe to Spain, for the Motorland Aragon event, which follows right on the heels of Misano.


Tom Sykes:

“Misano was one of our least favoured tracks from 2010 but I am still confident about our chances. This year we have a better package to work with, and one which is improving with every race. There is still work to be done but every time I head to a new circuit I feel positive, so I am looking forward to Misano. After Miller we have even more ideas on how to improve the bike and bring something else to the table, both at Misano and at Aragon shortly afterwards.”

Joan Lascorz:

“I had a short test at Aragon recently and it was good to ride the bike again, even if I did not do so many laps. I learned some things there but the main thing is that I have some information for when we go back there to race. I do not know what will happen at Misano but I am thinking positive and we will work hard with the team. We have good potential there, and at other tracks too.”

Chris Vermeulen:

“We tested recently at Aragon, at the full Superbike track and it was good because I had never been there, which means I have learned the layout for that race which happens right after Misano. The first day I did 60 laps and the second day 72, so it wasn’t too bad. We got a lot of work done and tried a lot of parts and settings. My previously injured knee is a lot better than it has been. I am feeling more and more back to my old self on the bike. The elbow I injured recently will also be a lot better when we get to Misano. Now I am just looking forward to getting to a racetrack I know well, on a bike I have tested and ridden a lot more now.”