BMW The Ultimate Riding Machine

It was a positive weekend for the BMW Motorrad Italia Superbike Team at Brno (Czech Republic), with two sixth places for Ayrton Badovini, who has now achieved eighth place in the Championship standings. Lorenzo Lanzi was thirteenth in race 2 and benefits from two points. Sylvain Barrier won in Superstock, with Lorenzo Zanetti finishing third in the race and taking second place in the FIM Cup.

Ayrton Badovini in race 1 had to work hard to move up from the 13th place he held at the end of the first lap, moving up to sixth place, thanks to a fantastic series of passes. In race 2, by virtue of a good start, he was fighting with the top riders and by the halfway point had worked his way to sixth position, which he held to the finish.

Ayrton said: "We managed to finish the weekend with two sixth places and, objectively, I think this is the best that we could realistically achieve. The result is important because it moves us up two positions in the standings. My confidence with the bike is growing and I am increasingly at ease in dealing with the competitors on track at this level, which for me represents a significant development from the beginning of the season. "

Lorenzo Lanzi, meanwhile, finished race 1 in seventeenth position, while in race 2 took thirteenth, winning two more World Championship points.

Sylvain Barrier claimed a great win in Superstock, managing to win a duel with Davide Giugliano (Ducati), maintaining his fourth place in the FIM Cup.  Lorenzo Zanetti now lies second in the standings thanks to his third place today which is almost a miracle considering his serious bruising from Friday's fall. The two riders from the BMW Motorrad Italia Superstock team battled for podium positions for almost the entire race with the leader of the FIM Cup, Davide Giugliano, who with the German Raiterberger also riding a BMW S1000RR, alternated the lead. Sylvian, with great determination, took the lead for himself three laps from the end, claiming the top step.

Sylvain Barriersaid: " I’m happy with the bike, and I am very happy with the team which  worked so hard to prepare for the race. I have to thank them because they allowed me to focus and take this important result: my first win in Superstock in this season. The race was a real battle, but I enjoyed it. After the halfway point I had less grip from the rear tyre but in some ways it was useful to understand how to handle the acceleration and control the loss of traction. I am very happy to take my first win of the season. "

Lorenzo Zanetti said: "After Friday's fall I was not sure of being able to ride but I managed to start. Halfway through the race I thought I would give in but I held firm to get to the end. I had a good race and this is an important result, mainly from the perspective of the championship. The third place puts me second in the standings but there’s still a long way to go in the Championship."

Serafino Foti, sporting director of BMW Motorrad Italia Superbike Team, said: "We had a good weekend and won some important points, thanks to Ayrton ‘s double-sixth. We made a step forward and now we are close to the best. From now on, the team, bike and riders will improve, but we look forward with optimism and continue to work hard. I want to congratulate Ayrton who handled the weekend very well.Lorenzo Lanzi managed to win more World Championship points and is constantly improving his race pace. I want to thank him for agreeing to being at Brno as a reserve rider and having been extremely helpful. .As for Superstock, Sylvian, after battling with Giugliano, picked up his first career win with a great performance. Finally Zanetti rode a "heroic" race given his injuries, and was on the podium as well as taking second place in the FIM Cup. "

Andrea Buzzoni, Director of BMW Motorrad Italia, said: "It was a perfect weekend because we brought home the best result possible in every race. In Superstock, Barrier scored his first victory having fought and won a race with clear determination. Zanetti was stoic under physical adversity but kept battling and won third place, which was important for the Championship. Ayrton was flawless in both race 1 and race 2, and two sixth places is an excellent result. He rides with authority and self assurance.  The pace of the top five was beyond our reach. The eighth place in championship shows the strength of the Superbike team bond and that they are motivated and professional, just as the Superstock team are."

SUPERBIKE

Race 1: 1° M. Melandri (Yamaha) 40'23.699 - 2° M. Biaggi (Aprilia) + 0.241 - 3° C. Checa (Ducati) + 0.436... 6° A. Badovini (BMW) + 16.374...17° L. Lanzi (BMW) + 36.582

Race 2: 1° M. Biaggi (Aprilia) 4''21.646 - 2° M. Melandri (Yamaha) + 0.222 - 3° C. Checa (Ducati) + 3.558... 6° A. Badovini (BMW)+ 18.085... 13° L. Lanzi (BMW) + 37.468.

Standings: 1° C. Checa (Ducati) p. 293 - 2° M. Biaggi (Aprilia) p. 263 - 3° M. Melandri (Yamaha) p. 240 ....8° A. Badovini (BMW) p. 106 ...21° L. Lanzi (BMW) p. 10 ...25° B. Veneman (BMW) p. 3...26° J. Toseland (BMW) p. 3

SUPERSTOCK

Race: 1° S. Barrier (BMW)24'54.052 - 2° D. Giugliano (Ducati) + 0.070 - 3° L. Zanetti (BMW) + 0.722 - 3° M. Reiterberger (BMW) + 1.257 - 5° N. Canepa (Ducati) + 13.181

FIM Cup: 1° D. Giugliano (Ducati) p. 115 - 2° L. Zanetti (BMW) p. 84 - 3° D. Petrucci (Ducati) p. 69 - 3°- 4° S. Barrier (BMW)p. 65 - 5° N. Canepa (Ducati) p. 48.