Marco Melandri prevailed in the Spanish heat today in Aragon, dominating the time sheets throughout the first day of round seven of the World Superbike Championship. The extreme heat and elevated track temperature of 56 degrees proved no obstacle as the Italian produced impressive lap times, being the only rider to register less than two minutes on the clock, in this afternoon’s first qualifying session, where he finished in first place. Melandri also set the new circuit’s best lap time this afternoon, clocking in at an impressive 1’59.726, over three tenths of a second faster than Checa, the current championship leader.

Eugene Laverty was also on form today in the Spanish sunshine. The World Superbike Rookie spent the morning getting re-acquainted with a decisively hotter track than that tested just a month ago, following his double victory in Monza. Laverty proceeded to make improvements throughout the afternoon’s qualifying session, modifying the geometry and the electronics of his machine in search of the optimal chassis settings ahead of Sunday’s races, before completing the session in ninth place.

Yamaha World Superbike riders also recorded the fastest speeds of the day. Marco Melandri rode his powerful YZF- R1 to a maximum of 316.5 km/ph while Eugene Laverty was the second fastest on the track, reaching a high of 314.6 km/ph.

Marco Melandri - Yamaha World Superbike Team - 1st, 1'59.726

"It was most definitely a very good day for me. We actually didn’t change the settings at all from Misano and in a certain sense that worries me but today was really good so that’s a step in the right direction. Aragon won’t be easy, going by the high track temperatures and on Sunday from mid race we’ll have to be careful and play our cards right to ensure the tyres last to the end. Let’s hope it’s not quite as hot in the next few days. I’m delighted with today’s results but I’m also sure the top riders will soon catch up."

Eugene Laverty - Yamaha World Superbike Team- 9th, 2'00.377

"Overall, I’m quite happy with today. In qualifying I felt we had made an improvement from this morning’s free practice. We definitely made a step in the right direction but it wasn’t quite enough. I think we can be stronger tomorrow in the second qualifying session and hopefully it will also be a little bit cooler. With a little work tomorrow, I’m confident that I’ll be where I want to be by Sunday."

Andrea Dosoli - Yamaha World Superbike Team Manager

"Today was a very good start to the weekend. The tests we had last month after Monza were useful and provided us with a good base setting to start off with. This morning Marco worked on weight distribution and in the afternoon he progressed to work on the tyres which will be critical in such hot conditions. Eugene hasn’t found the optimal chassis set-up yet. He needs to still work on turning in and taking the curves where he is having difficulty. He didn’t use the soft tyres and therefore must be satisfied with his lap times."



Yamaha ParkinGO riders Luca Scassa and Chaz Davies faced extremely hot track temperatures on the exclusive new Spanish track in Aragon for today’s first qualifying session. Both Yamaha ParkinGO riders got straight down to business in the morning’s free practice, testing the base set up used just over a month ago, while testing a cooler track with their Superbike counterparts.

Chaz Davies struggled with an electronic issue in the afternoon’s first Qualifying heat but despite this completed the session in fourth place. Just behind him in fifth place was his team-mate, Luca Scassa. The Italian, back on his YZF-R6 machine after almost five weeks of absence, suffered a minor crash in the early stages of the first qualifying heat. Unhurt, the Italian proceeded to re-familiarize himself with his R6 and search for the ideal chassis setting for Sunday’s race.

Chaz Davies - Yamaha ParkinGO Team - 4th, 2'03.936

"I actually had a few problems today so it wasn’t a very good first qualifying session. I struggled with the electronics and didn’t get to run through the tyres like we had planned. Today was useful to get familiar with the track again and to get back into the swing of things. We changed the chassis set up used during the tests and that just didn’t work so well so tomorrow we’ll go back to the test set up again and work from there."

Luca Scassa - Yamaha ParkinGO Team - 5th, 2'03.943

"Today was the hottest day so far this season. We tried a different chassis set up than usual but that didn’t work out as I was struggling from a lack for grip. But I think we know which direction to work in tomorrow. It’s great to be back on the bike as it’s been five weeks since I last raced and I also need to get my eyes used to such speed again. I’m confident that with a little more work tomorrow we’ll be as strong as ever."