Tom Sykes will lead an all-British front row on the grid for tomorrow’s races at Portimao after another dominant Superpole showing. The world champion, who was involved in a feisty Twitter exchange with Jonathan Rea and Eugene Laverty before the weekend concerning the undulating Portuguese circuit, pipped Rea to pole with Chaz Davies claiming third for Ducati.
The opening Superpole session was delayed after a heavy crash for Claudio Corti but once it resumed, Sylvain Barrier comfortably booked his place in SP2 along with David Salom. Barrier then proceeded to set a sensational 1:43.754 which lifted him to fourth at one point, surprising one or two of the factory riders.
The Frenchman was shuffled back down the order though as his competitors switched to the qualifying tyre with Sykes setting the quickest time of all, three tenths faster than Rea’s PATA Honda. Davies was the only rider to break the 1:42s, claiming third for Ducati, while championship contenders Marco Melandri, Loris Baz and Sylvain Guintoli will start together on the second row. Eugene Laverty took seventh ahead of Davide Giugliano and Leon Haslam with the impressive Barrier demoted to tenth in the end.
But Sykes will be the man everyone has to beat tomorrow and the Kawasaki rider expects a number of riders to threaten him over longer runs.
“The Ninja ZX-10R is working well after we started quite steadily this weekend. We made some small changes to the bike every session and now I feel more comfortable on it. On the race tyre I was able to feel more comfortable and in Superpole, with the qualifying tyre, I just made it to the apexes a little bit easier. The circuit is missing a little bit of grip and of course the high winds are not helping, especially on the final section, but it is costing everybody some time. I am happy, especially after the changes we made today. I feel more comfortable and confident for the races tomorrow but I expect two difficult races. There are a lot of riders who are capable of running at the front but we will do the best we can.”
| 2014 eni SUPERBIKE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP – ROUND 8 – PORTIMAO | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FREE PRACTICE & TISSOT SUPERPOLE RESULT | |||||
| POS | RIDER | BIKE | TEAM | TIME | |
| 1 |  TOM SYKES |
KAWASAKI | KAWASAKI RACING TEAM | 1:42.484 | SP2 |
| 2 | JONATHAN REA |
HONDA | PATA HONDA WORLD SUPERBIKE | 1:42.765 | SP2 |
| 3 | CHAZ DAVIES |
DUCATI | DUCATI SUPERBIKE TEAM | 1:42.924 | SP2 |
| 4 |  MARCO MELANDRI |
APRILIA | APRILIA RACING TEAM | 1:43.038 | SP2 |
| 5 |  LORIS BAZ |
KAWASAKI | KAWASAKI RACING TEAM | 1:43.048 | SP2 |
| 6 | SYLVAIN GUINTOLI |
APRILIA | APRILIA RACING TEAM | 1:43.076 | SP2 |
| 7 |  EUGENE LAVERTY |
SUZUKI | VOLTCOM CRESCENT SUZUKI | 1:43.245 | SP2 |
| 8 | DAVIDE GIUGLIANO |
DUCATI | DUCATI SUPERBIKE TEAM | 1:43.317 | SP2 |
| 9 | LEON HASLAM |
HONDA | PATA HONDA WORLD SUPERBIKE | 1:43.475 | SP2 |
| 10 | SYLVAIN BARRIER |
BMW | BMW MOTORRAD ITALIA SBK | 1:43.754 | SP2 |
| 11 | ALEX LOWES |
SUZUKI | VOLTCOM CRESCENT SUZUKI | 1:43.840 | SP2 |
| 12 |  DAVID SALOM |
KAWASAKI | KAWASAKI RACING TEAM | 1:44.361 | SP2 |
| 13 | AYRTON BADOVINI |
BIMOTA | TEAM ALSTARE | 1:44.472 | SP1 |
| 14 | NICCOLO CANEPA |
DUCATI | ALTHEA RACING | 1:44.590 | SP1 |
| 15 | CHRISTIAN IDDON |
BIMOTA | TEAM ALSTARE | 1:44.971 | SP1 |
| 16 |  SHERIDAN MORAIS |
KAWASAKI | IRON BRAIN KAWASAKI SBK | 1:45.198 | SP1 |
| 17 |  BRYAN STARING |
KAWASAKI | IRON BRAIN KAWASAKI SBK | 1:45.543 | SP1 |
| 18 | ALESSANDRO ANDREOZZI |
KAWASAKI | TEAM PEDERCINI | 1:45.805 | SP1 |
| 19 | CLAUDIO CORTI |
MV AGUSTA | MV AGUSTA REPARTO CORSE | NO TIME | SP1 |
| 20 | TONI ELIAS |
APRILIA | RED DEVILS ROMA | NO TIME | SP1 |
| 21 | RICCARDO RUSSO |
KAWASAKI | TEAM PEDERCINI | 1:45.298 | FP3 |
| 22 | JEREMY GUARNONI |
KAWASAKI | MRS KAWASAKI | 1:45.342 | FP3 |
| 23 | FABIEN FORET |
KAWASAKI | MAHI RACING TEAM INDIA | 1:45.405 | FP3 |
| 24 |  GEOFF MAY |
EBR | TEAM HERO EBR | 1:46.971 | FP3 |
| 25 |  GABOR RIZMAYER |
BMW | BMW TEAM TOTH | 1:48.250 | FP3 |
| 26 | AARON YATES |
EBR | TEAM HERO EBR | 1:48.468 | FP3 |
| 27 | PETER SEBESTYEN |
BMW | BMW TEAM TOTH | 1:48.734 | FP3 |
