SHARK FRENZY

SHARK TRUSTE LES PODIUMS A DONINGTON

Posted by Marianne on 14 mai 2012 0 comments

Ce WE, le circuit Anglais de Donington accueillait la 5^ième manche du championnat du monde de Superbike. Si seules les catégories Superbike et Supersport étaient de la partie, les pilotes SHARK ont su se mettre en avant et apporter leur Race-R Pro Shark sur le haut de la scène mondiale.

En Superbike, Tom Sykes et Sylvain Guintoli nos deux représentants habituels voient arriver Loris Baz dans la catégorie reine en provenance du Superstock. Loris, pilote fidèle à Shark depuis de nombreuses années et âgé de 19 ans seulement, rejoint Tom Sykes chez Kawasaki pour le reste de la saison.

En Superpôle Tom Sykes s’octroie sa quatrième pôle en 5 courses. Il s’élancera donc en 1^ère position tandis que Sylvain Guintoli partira de la 5^ième et Loris Baz de la 18^ième place. Au passage, lors des qualifs, Tom Sykes bat le record du tour.

Lors de la course 1, Tom Sykes, après avoir mené une bonne partie de la course, finit dernière les deux BMW et se classe troisième. Sylvain Guintoli prend quant à lui la 8^ième place. Loris Baz pour sa première course en SBK se retrouve à la porte des points avec une 16^ième place.

Dans une course 2 qui risque de rester longtemps dans les mémoires de tout le monde de part la remontée musclée et la victoire de Jonathan Rea, nos pilotes prennent des très honorables places dans les points. Tom Sykes réalise un second podium avec une 3^ième place, tandis que Sylvain Guintoli se classe 5^ième et Loris Baz est un très beau 8^ième.

Dans la course au titre, Tom Sykes monte encore d’une marche et prend la seconde place du championnat du monde à 5 point du leader Biaggi. Le suspense reste donc entier. Sylvain Guintoli est 7^ième tandis que Loris marque ses premiers points et pointe en 22^ième position.

En Supersport, nos pilotes SHARK ont comme à leurs habitudes monopolisé le haut de l’affiche lors de la manche de Donington. En effet, pendant les qualifs Jules Cluzel et Sam Lowes se sont battus pour la pôle. Le second bien qu’à domicile mais malade laissera le meilleur chrono et le record du tour à Jules Cluzel. Fabien Foret qui a connu des malheurs divers avec une casse moteur et une chute en qualif s’élancera lui de la 10^ième place tandis que son coéquipier Romain Lanusse, toujours en apprentissage dans cette catégorie, partira de la 23^ième position.

Lors de la course, Jules Cluzel restera un bonne partie en tête pour finalement finir 3^ième mais encore une fois sur le podium. Sam Lowes, malgré un mauvais départ, réussit une seconde partie de course magnifique et s’impose à domicile pour la première fois. Fabien Foret se place 10^ième et Romain Lanusse 19^ième.

Dans la course au titre le pilote Turc Sufuoglu est toujours en tête mais talonné de prêt par nos 3 représentant Shark. Le classement après 5 courses laisse le championnat toujours aussi ouvert et le titre accessible pour nos pilotes : 1. sufuoglu 81pts 2. LOWES 76pts 3. CLUZEL 64pts 4.FORET 55pts

A suivre en World Superbike, la sixième manche du championnat qui aura lieu le 28 Mai à Miller Park, USA. Et surtout ne pas manquer les pilotes SHARK au GP de France du Mans ce WE (19/20 MAI).

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Lowes takes maiden World Supersport win at Donington Park

Posted by Becky on 14 mai 2012 0 comments

This weekend at Donington Park, East Midlands, the fourth round of the World Superbike Championship took place, with SHARK’s Sam Lowes taking his maiden World Supersport win and fellow SHARK-men securing podium finishes.

Sam Lowes (Bodanka PTR Honda) took his first career win in the World Supersport Championship after a troublesome weekend. Picking up a stomach infection on Friday, Lowes struggled in practice and fell in Saturdays qualifying suffering injury to his left little finger, missing the chance to start from pole.

Fellow SHARK-man Jules Cluzel (PTR Honda) started on pole, but Lowes managed to make a pass during the early stages. Holding off the presence of double world champion Kenan Sofuoglu (Kawasaki), Lowes held on to the win by upping his pace over the final two laps to take his long-awaited first WSS win. Jules Cluzel finished on the podium in third, giving SHARK a 1-3.

In the World Superbike class, SHARK rider Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing) claimed his fourth pole position of the season, and finished both races third on the podium. The Brit has scored five podiums in the nine races so far this year. Meanwhile Sylvain Guintoli (Effenbert-Liberty Racing) enjoyed a point-scoring weekend finishing both SBK races in a respectable fifth place.

The next round of the World Superbike Championship will take place at Miller Motorsports Park, USA on 26-28 May. The World Supersport Championship will not travel to Miller and will continue from Misano, Italy on 8-10 June.

Sam Lowes, World Supersport – first: “The weekend was a bit tough for me, so I’m really happy with my first win. I injured my finger in qualifying and it’s quite painful now but it wasn’t a problem during the race itself so I’m happy about that too. After taking the lead I was just looking at my pit-board and focusing on lapping as consistent as I could. I upped the pace with two laps to go trying to extend my advantage a little bit and it worked alright so I’m really happy. It’s great to take my first World Supersport in front of my home crowd and I’m really grateful for the support. There’s a bit of a break now, which is good as I can sort out my injured finger. I’ll be training hard to come to Misano as fit as ever and ready to rock and roll.”

Tom Sykes, World Superbikes – race one: third / race two: third: “Race one was a fantastic race, I really enjoyed it and it certainly felt like a long one as it seemed to go on for many laps. Overall I think we had a very good show, lots of passing and a little bit too much at some corners, especially at the Foggy Esses, which seemed to claim a few victims. Unfortunately we seemed to struggle at one particular part of the track and that definitely affected our race performance. Yet again we got the holeshot and led for a number of laps in race two, but I was missing a bit of feeling with the wind, which was unfortunate. I managed to stay out front but made one mistake and all the other guys came past at a rate of knots. I had the best seat in the house for the last couple of laps of race two, but for me five minus two equals a podium so I’m very happy!”

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Busy weekend of racing action for SHARK-riders

Posted by Becky on 8 mai 2012 0 comments

This weekend SHARK-supported riders contested in three different Championships MotoGP, World Superbikes and British Superbikes, plus road racing from Tandragee. All races saw SHARK men claim race wins, podium finishes and essential championship points.

The third round of the Moto2 Championship took place at Estoril, Portugal, with rookie rider Johann Zarco (JiR) claiming a respectable fourth-place finish. Running ahead with the race leaders from early on, the young Frenchman managed to keep pace with the front-runners, eventually finishing in fourth and claiming precious championship points. In the Moto3 Championship Efren Vazquez (JHK T-Shirt Laglisse – FTR Honda) had a successful weekend collecting points, finishing in fifth after a long battle with Niccolo Antonelli.

MotoGP rookie Stefan Bradl (LCR Honda), once again impressed the paddock with a ride beyond his experience. The Moto2 Champion started from fourth on the grid to chase Valentino Rossi during the early stages, and settled into a lengthy duel with Ben Spies. Swapping places on several occasions, Spies’ experience eventually won out, with Bradl ending the race in a respectable ninth. The MotoGP paddock will now take a short break, before the fourth round takes place at Le Mans, France on 20 May.

The World Superbike and Supersport Championships continued in changeable conditions from Monza, Italy. The first race was cancelled and the second was red flagged just eight laps in, leaving SHARK-rider Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing) to score his first World Superbike race win of the season.

In World Supersport, it was a SHARK 1-2 on the podium after a good battle between Jules Cluzel (PTR Honda) and Sam Lowes (Bogdanka PTR Honda). Lowes secured his third pole in a row, and made a clean break early on in the race, with Cluzel in his shadow. A mistake on lap seven saw Lowes drop back, and Cluzel move ahead of his PTR teammate. On the last lap Lowes made a pass but ran wide giving Cluzel a clear run to the finish line. Lowes was second by 0.3 seconds. The next round will take place this weekend at Donington Park, England.

The fourth round of the British Superbike Championship continued from Oulton Park. The re-scheduled race from Brands Hatch meant the Superbikes were on track three times over the weekend. SHARK’s riders scored points in all three races by finishing within the top-ten. Ben Wilson (Gearlink Kawasaki) scored two second places in the Motorpoint British Supersport races moving himself up to second in the rider standings.

The Metzeler Superstock 1000 race saw a SHARK 1-3 with Danny Buchan (MSS Bathams Kawasaki) and Dave Johnson (BMW Carbontech Racing) on the podium. Fellow SHARK riders made up the rest of the pack with Howie Mainwaring (Buildbase BMW Motorrad) in fourth, Lee Costello (Kawasaki Halsall Racing Team) seventh and Victor Cox (ILR Kawasaki) in eighth. In the Superstock 600 race, Alec Olsen (Triumph Team HARIBO Starmix) landed himself on the second step of the podium, with fellow SHARK-man Lee Jackson (Kawasaki Chris Walker Race School) in fifth.

The Triumph Triple Challenge gained more wins for SHARK with Philip Atkinson winning both battles, and the 125 Monster Energy British Motostar race saw a further SHARK podium with Ryan Watson (Appleyard/Macadam Racing) in second place, followed by Harry Hartley (Honda GH Motorsports) in fifth and Joe Francis (Honda Banks Racing) in seventh.

Road racing ace Ryan Farquhar collected a hat trick of wins at the Tandragee 100 road races. The SHARK rider won the Open, Supertwins and Moto 450 races, and was runner-up in the Supersport and feature Superbike races. Farquhar’s teammate, and fellow SHARK-supported Jamie Hamilton had a mixed day at the 5.5mile track; being forced to retire in the first Superbike race, but he did claim third place in the Supertwins and gave SHARK 1-3 with Farquhar on the podium.

Stefan Bradl, MotoGP: ninth: “Well… this has been a very hard weekend for us in general. We have struggled a lot with rear grip immediately on Friday morning but Saturday we have found some good adjustments. Unfortunately for the all race we had some issues going into the corners. My start was okay and I could make some good manoeuvres in the beginning but then I was a bit on the limit and in the middle of the race I was losing too much in the corners entries which was always our problem this weekend.”

Jules Cluzel, World Supersport: first: “I am really happy because I expected to make a podium before now, but it was really hard in Australia and in Imola I made a mistake. For me, to look at these conditions before the race, I was expecting and hoping for dry conditions, because it was possible to win the race or finish on the podium. I pushed for the first two laps and I was second behind Sam and I was happy behind him. I braked very late and to pass me he had to go inside. He had to run ran wide so it worked out for me. This was very good for the team, a 1-2, and Sam is a really good rider who was pushing hard. »

Danny Buchan, British Superstock: first: “The bike felt fantastic from the word go and qualifying went really well, it was like I had never left and I stuck the bike in second spot on the grid. The race was close, I knew there was someone behind me and I was waiting for them to have a go at me. This weekend was much better than the first two rounds and it’s great to be back with MSS Bathams Kawasaki – now the championship is on!”

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Grand Prix du Portugal – Estoril – 06 mai 2012

Posted by admin on 7 mai 2012 0 comments

MotoGP :
Ce week-end sur le circuit d’Estoril, on a eu chaud pour Randy de Puniet qui a chuté samedi. Heureusement il a pu prendre le départ de la course dimanche, qu’il a terminée à la 13ème place.
Stefan Bradl quant à lui termine 9ème et Aleix Espargaro 12ème.

Moto2 :
Scott Redding et Johann Zarco s’étaient qualifiés respectivement en 3ème et 4ème positions samedi ! Dimanche, Johann a terminé à la 4ème place et Scott à la 11ème.

Moto3 :
La journée n’a pas été bonne pour le pilote SHARK Miguel Oliveira qui a été contraint à l’abandon suite à un problème technique. Efren Vazquez, quant à lui termine à la 5ème place.

Bravo à tous nos pilotes et rdv au Grand Prix de France le 20 mai !!

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SHARK riders collect valuable points in Jerez as Farquhar wins at Cookstown

Posted by Becky on 30 avril 2012 0 comments

SHARK-supported Scott Redding (Marc VDS Racing Team), Johann Zarco (JiR Team) and Stefan Bradl all scooped top-ten finishes this weekend in the Moto2 and MotoGP Championships from Jerez, Spain.

The Moto2 race started in dry conditions, with Redding on the fourth row of the grid after a big crash in qualifying the day before. Getting off to a flying start, the young Brit pushed his way up, and was seventh by the end of the first lap. Redding battled with the front-runners throughout the race, until a heavy rain shower resulted in a red flag. He took a fantastic fourth place, after the positions were taken from the previous lap.

Fellow SHARK man Zarco started the race from 10th place on the grid. A difficult first lap saw the young Frenchman drop down to 18th, however he fought hard to make a remarkable comeback, regaining 10th place by lap 14. Zarco was battling with Bradley Smith when the race was red flagged, and he finished in 10th.

Meanwhile MotoGP rookie, Stefan Bradl (LCR Honda MotoGP RC213V) battled with veteran Nicky Hayden to the chequered flag. It was an educational weekend for the young German, with practice, qualifying and the race all held in tricky conditions. Bradl battled and managed to pass Hayden on the final lap, claiming seventh – one place better than at his debut race in Qatar. The MotoGP paddock will now travel to Portugal for the next round at Estoril from 4-6 May.

The Cookstown 100 road races where also held this weekend with SHARK’s Ryan Farquhar storming to victory, claiming four-wins in one day. Farquhar has now racked up 27 race wins at the event. Jamie Hamilton – Farquhar’s teammate – finished behind the experienced Irishman in second place in the Supertwins race, and also claimed two top-ten finishes in both Superbike races. The road-racing action now moves to the Tandragee 100 road races on Saturday 5 May.

Scott Redding, Moto2: 4th: « I knew I had to push from the start if I wanted to make it to the front, so I stuck the elbows out, took a few risks and bumped my way past a few people. It was a good battle at the front, with some pretty hard moves from everyone, but then it started to rain around the back part of the track and I had a couple of big moments as the rear let go. After the second near highside I decided to back off a bit to see if conditions would improve, but then the real rain arrived and the race was stopped. It would have been good to finish on the podium, but having started from so far back on the grid, I’m pretty happy with fourth place today. »

Stefan Bradl, MotoGP: 7th: “I am very happy with this result. First of all I think it was a difficult weekend for everybody due to the weather conditions, so I want to thank the whole team for their great job. During the sighting lap I was very nervous because I thought that the last part of the track was wet, so I changed my helmet visor and everything was clearer. I was capable to attack my competitors since the beginning of the race but I found it a bit risky so I waited a little bit and after some laps I was fighting with (Alvaro) Bautista and (Nicky) Hayden. We were doing well, but Hayden blocked me a little bit in the middle of the race and Bautista got away from us. When he was gone I started my fight with Nicky, which I enjoyed very much, especially in the last two laps. I got some problems with my right arm because it was sore in the middle of the race and this cost me a bit of time because I had to force the bike in a different way. Basically, this was another positive weekend for me and I really enjoyed the applause the team made for me when I was back at the garage.”

Ryan Farquhar: « What can I say, it’s been another great day and everything’s gone to plan so it’s a fantastic start to the Irish road racing season. I could have done without Friday’s wee mishap but it didn’t create any issue for race day and we started the day with a good second. Jamie had yet another great day too and he’s impressing everyone with his results, not just on the Supertwin but also on the big bike. He’s been a great addition to the team and it’s been a great day all round for KMR Kawasaki. There’s not much time now before Tandragee so there’s a lot of work to be done on the bikes whilst I also hope to be out on my Superbike for the first time this year and get a good run on it before the North West 200. »

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Grand Prix d’Espagne – JEREZ – 29 avril 2012

Posted by admin on 30 avril 2012 0 comments

MotoGP :
Samedi 28, lors de la séance de qualification, le pilote du team CRT Power Electronics Aspar, Randy de Puniet, s’était qualifié en dixième position pour le GP bwin d’Espagne. Malgré la météo (des essais sous la pluie, et une piste sèche pour les qualifications), le pilote SHARK a bien tourné, en terminant devant les 3 Ducati de Abraham, Barberá et Rossi.
Lors de la course, dimanche, il s’est battu dans le groupe de Rossi, Spies Barberá et Abraham pendant toute la première partie, mais a du abandonner à cause d’une défaillance technique à 2 tours de l’arrivée.
Aleix Espargaró quant à lui, termine premier pilote CRT, et se place en 12ème position.
Stefan Bradl prend pour sa part la 7ème position.
Les pilotes SHARK occupent au classement général la 8ème position pour Stefan Bradl, la 12ème position pour Aleix Espargaró et la 15ème pour Randy de Puniet.

Moto2 :
En Moto2, Scott Redding termine en quatrième position, et Johann Zarco termine lui en 10ème position et a été le plus rapide pendant la séance de warm-up.
Au classement général, Scott Redding occupe la 4ème place, et Johann Zarco la 12ème.

Moto3 :
En catégorie Moto3, le pilote SHARK Miguel Oliveira a débuté le GP bwin d’Espagne en 3ème position et a mené les 20mn de warm-up sous le soleil, après avoir signé le meilleur temps de la dernière séance d’entraînement.
Au classement général, Miguel Oliveira occupe la 8ème place.

Rendez-vous dimanche 6 mai pour le Grande Prémio de Portugal Circuito Estoril.

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SHARK, partenaire des Pirelli Days – Circuit de Ledenon 21 et 22 Avril 2012

Posted by Marianne on 25 avril 2012 0 comments

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Visite de Freddy Foray chez SHARK le 24/04/2012

Posted by Marianne on 25 avril 2012 0 comments

Freddy Foray nous a rendu visite hier et il en a profité pour regarder les casques urbains et évidemment sa préférence va au Jack !

Et retrouvez-le sur Youtube :

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Guintoli à l’honneur – Superbike – Assen – Dimanche 22 avril 2012

Posted by admin on 23 avril 2012 0 comments

Des premières pour Guintoli et son team !

Sylvain Guintoli remporte sa première victoire, à l’attaque sous la pluie, à Assen. Une première également pour son team Effenbert Liberty Racing. Lors de la seconde course, Sylvain termine aussi sur le podium à une belle 2ème place.

Tom Sykes casse le moteur en première manche avant le drapeau rouge. Il mènera une course prudente en deuxième manche, à la fin de laquelle il obtiendra la 6ème place.

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Bol d’Or 2012

Posted by admin on 18 avril 2012 0 comments

La 76e édition du Bol d’Or a vu la Suzuki finir en 2ème position, malgré la chute de Vincent Philippe, à seulement 1’41 »055 de la Kawasaki.

Le classement général :
1. Julien Da Costa/Grégory Leblanc/Olivier Four (FRA/Kawasaki n°11) 781 tours
2. Vincent Philippe/Anthony Delhalle/Fabien Foret (FRA/Suzuki n°1) à 1’41″055
3. Igor Jerman/Steve Martin/Gwen Giabbani (SVN-AUS-FRA/Yamaha n°7) à 5 tours
4. David Checa/Kenny Foray/Matthieu Lagrive (FRA/Yamaha n°94) à 5 t
5. Daniel Ribalta/Anthony Dos Santos/Arturo Tizon (ESP-FRA-ESP/Yamaha n°4) à 16 t
6. Valentin Debise/Benjamin Delègue/Fabrice Holub (FRA/Kawasaki n°24) 1er Superstock à 31 t
7. Dylan Buisson/Grégory Fastre/Pedro Vallcaneras (FRA-BEL-ESP/BMW n°13) 2e Superstock à 32 t
8. Claude Lucas/Jonathan Hardt/Julien Duguet (FRA/Suzuki n°67) 3e Superstock à 33 t
9. Cameron Donald/John McGuinness/Simon Andrews (AUS-GBR/Honda n°77) à 34 t
10. Didier Van Keymeulen/Alex Cudlin/Gianluca Vizzielo (BEL-AUS-ITA/Yamaha n°9) 4e Superstock à 40 t