Ben Spies took Superpole at Donington Park after setting a quickest lap just before rain prevented anyone from challenging him in the British leg of the World Superbike Championship.
His eighth pole position of the season, Spies’s effort of one minute 29.846 seconds was timed to perfection as the riders struggled to react on the increasingly slippery surface.
Spies played down the factor the weather had on his performance, pointing out that he was one of the last riders to get his quick lap on the board.
“It’s not arrogance, but we were one of the last people to get out on track, so I think I got a bit more rain than everyone else,” he said.
“The times should have been better, but everyone got their time in before we did.”
“We need to find some more stuff with the bike, but the weekend is going smoothly so far, so I am confident we will have a good couple of races.”
Indeed, Spies is feeling confident about his race chances as he looks to overcome a frustrating run of form, one that has prevented him from making bigger in-roads into NHaga’s title advantage. Yahoo! Eurosports
But perhaps the biggest shock of the three-session Superpole shoot-out was Aprilia Racing’s Max Biaggi, who stormed to second on the grid . . . his best qualifying position of the season.
Third was leading Brit Shane “Shakey” Byrne onboard the Sterilgarda Ducati, while Biaggi’s team-mate gave Aprilia even more to celebrate by rounding off the front row in fourth.
Unlike some circuits the series has visited this season, rookie Spies has raced at Donington before and he hopes he can use his previously gained knowledge to his advantage when the flag drops today.
“I like it here,” he said. “It’s a flowing track and it’s pretty good.
“I’m hoping we can make the bike even better and get a good morning warm-up today so we can go out there and get a couple of wins and help boost my championship charge.”
Championship leader Noriyuki Haga starts from sixth on the grid, just behind his team-mate Fabrizio. Sunday Sun
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