Tyco Suzuki's Conor Cummins has qualified in fifth place for tomorrow's 46th Macau Grand Prix in the Far East on his GSX-R1000 Superbike.

Thursday's qualifying session was cut short due a tragic incident at the Fisherman's part of the circuit in which Portuguese rider Luis Carreira sadly lost his life. The qualifying session was postponed until Friday, where Manxman Cummins was able to shave four seconds from his best lap time and is confident of posting a respectable result in tomorrow's 15-lap race on the Guia Circuit, which commences at 7.30am GMT.


Conor Cummins:

"Today went better in Q2. We were given a free practice in place of the original Q2 morning slot, which gave us time to try another set up on the Superbike. This worked out well, as I was able to find four seconds to put us fifth in the session. This set us up nicely going into the actual Q2 session in the afternoon.

"I went out on a used tyre in order to get a feel for track conditions and to also try a further chassis change which was made on the run up. The bike handled great and I was able to push on early in the session. I came in and put a fresh rear in. My first flyer put me fifth again but it was the second lap I was focusing on. My first sector was three-tenths faster than my best lap previously, but I got totally balked by a slower rider, which ruined my lap.

"I came into the pits to make an adjustment with the aim of getting a clear track but unfortunately this did not happen as the red flags came out and the session was cut short due to the darkness closing in. To say I was disappointed is an understatement but it wasn't to be.

"I will start tomorrow's race in fifth place, so a good start is a must. I'm feeling good and looking forward to it, so we will see what the day brings us."

Qualifying Results:

1 Michael Rutter (Honda) 2:27.545;
2 John McGuinness (Honda) +0.218sec;
3 Martin Jessop (Ducati) +1.742;
4 Gary Johnson (Honda);
5 Conor Cummins (Tyco Suzuki) +2.530;
6 Horst Saiger (Kawasaki) +2.658.

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