Tom Sykes expects both World Superbike races at Imola to be closely contested despite storming to pole position by half a second today. The Kawasaki rider smashed the lap record in SP3 and had far too much for Sylvain Guintoli and Carlos Checa but expects them to push him hard tomorrow.
“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.”
Teammate Joan Lascorz couldn't extract as much pace from his ZX-10R and will start on the outside of the second row. The Spaniard still sees areas which need tweaking on his bike if he is to make gains from eighth on the grid.
“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.”