Michel Fabrizio was frustrated after a wet Superpole session prevented him for making best use of the improved GSX-R1000 at Misano.
The Alstare Suzuki rider was eliminated in SP1 which was a major underachievement based on his dry weather pace, the Italian was third fastest in qualifying practice.
And Fabrizio was left cursing the weather which cancelled out the progress that had been made to make the bike a contender in dry conditions.
“Obviously I am very disappointed the way things worked out. The weather ruined everything for me today and now I will have a lot of work to do to get good results from the fourth row of the grid. After yesterday and this morning, I felt confident that I could get on the front row of the grid or, at worst, row two. My bike’s set-up was good and everything was going pretty smoothly, apart from a small crash this afternoon when I pushed just a little bit too hard trying to get the fastest lap. “
“This track is very slippery in the wet and this is my first time on this bike here in the wet and it was very hard to keep upright and not crash. I didn’t have much confidence in the wet and couldn’t feel what the front end was doing. I rode as best I could but I wanted to make sure I didn’t have another crash. I had a few little ‘moments’ and that was enough for me to keep things steady.”
Unsurprisingly, Fabrizio is hoping for two dry races tomorrow which will allow him to rediscover the form that gave him hopes of a front row grid position.
“I am hoping that tomorrow will be dry and I can attack in both races. I need to make two good starts and then fight with the guys up front. I’m keeping my fingers crossed for the weather and, if it is dry, I can really enjoy the battles.”