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World Superbikes 2011
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23-02-2011 3:07pm#1
The new WSBK season starts on Sunday and with Jon Rea and Eugene Laverty on the grid Irish interest should be pretty big this year! Both should win races and Rea is expected to challenge for the title. Last season there was great racing in WSBK but ultimately Max Biaggi had a comfortable title win, this year though it looks very different and its almost impossible to pick a winner at this stage.
My season preview is online hereTagged:0
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After a superb opening race weekend to the World Superbike season I thought it was appropriate to look into how the races developed by analysing the pace of the leading contenders throughout both races. Carlos Checa may have dominated the race but when you look beyond the race results it is clear that Checa, Max Biaggi and Marco Melandri all were able to adjust their tactics from the race one to race two.
Tyre performance is clearly the limiting factor to world superbike lap times. This is shown quite easily by a cursory look at the fastest laps for each rider in races; generally they all set their fastest time in the opening laps of races. The fact that these times are achieved on full tanks of fuel clearly shows that it is tyre life, not weight, which determines lap times on these machines. When the tyre starts to degrade, the grip level falls and the rider loses confidence in the performance capability of his machine.
In the first race at Philip Island it is interesting that in the opening half of the race Checa can keep his pace much more consistent in comparison to Biaggi. During the first half of the race in Australia Checa has consistent speed throughout the first nine flying laps. His pace barely deviates until the tenth lap where the tyre degradation starts to affect his performance and his pace decreases.
When this is contrasted to Biaggi’s lap times the Italian’s times are much more inconsistent. This is due to numerous factors, notably that he was moving through the pack to take second position. But even so it is surprising that the normally consistent Biaggi loses so much time to Checa in the opening half of the race. It is only in the second half of the race that Biaggi finds any level of consistency, and by this time it is clearly too late.
The difference between the performances of both drivers is quite startling and it is quite clear how much more confident Checa was in the opening laps, he was straight down to business, whereas Biaggi struggled to deal with his bike, and the opposition, during this period. With Checa opening a commanding lead in this race he had little to do in the second half of the race and he adjusts his speed accordingly to do little more than match Biaggi until the chequered flag.
In the second race of the day both riders show vastly different lap time profiles relative to their opening races. Both riders completed race two faster than in the opening race of the day but it is surprising that they did so with what, at first glance appears to be a much more inconsistent race pace. When you look at the lap times in more detail however and it becomes clear that both riders did this to allow their tyre time to cool slightly and to increase tyre life; it is a similar approach to a long distance runner slowing their pace slightly to let the body relax before making their next push.
In the opening race Checa completed a string of 1m32s laps early in the race but once his pace started to deteriorate, around his 12th flying lap, he could no longer lap under 1m33.5s and completed the next nine laps at a greatly reduced pace in the 1m33.5-1m34.5s seconds bracket. In the second race, having clearly adjusted his race tactics Checa completed less laps in the 1m32s range, ten in race one compared to seven in the second race, but his tactics allowed the Spaniard to complete considerably more laps in the 1m33-33.5s bracket, eight tours versus two in the opeing race. As a result of changing his tactical approach Checa managed to conserve the life of his tyres to such an extent that he could complete more fast laps relative to his effort in the opening race.
This trend continued for the rest of the race with Checa able to perform better as the race progressed in comparison to his earlier effort. As a result the Ducati rider finished the race over one second faster than his time in the opening race of the day. It will be interesting to see if a pattern such as this develops throughout the season with riders and teams focusing their pace on maintaining tyre life rather than out and out pace.
Biaggi’s efforts in race two mirrored Checa’s. The Italian completed as many 1m32s laps in the second race, but at a reduced average pace then in his opening race of the day. This allowed the reigning world champion to maintain tyre performance during the rest of the race and to complete eight laps below 1m33.5s, compared to just two such laps in the opening race. From that point on Biaggi had decent tyre life and could complete his other seven laps at an average pace of over two tenths of a second per lap faster than in the opening race of the day.
Both leading riders, and race two podium finisher Marco Melandri, were able to complete a much higher number of fast laps in the second race having gained a greater level of understanding in how the tyres reacted during the race. All three riders were hugely successful in cutting down on the amount of slow laps that they completed in the second race, as shown by the table below.
From the table it is clear that Melandri and Biaggi in particular were able to limit the amount of laps slower than 1m33.5s. As a result both completed the second race considerably faster than the opening race en route to their podium finishes.
Tactics have long been crucial to success on the race track but it is surprising that in an era of control tyres that there can be such a dramatic change in lap times due to the tactics employed by racers. It will be worth keeping an eye on whether this approach pays dividends over the course of the season.0 -
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With practice and qualifying completed at Donington Park a clear picture has developed as to what to expect in tomorrow’s races. Carlos Checa once more dominated proceedings on his Ducati but with a more in depth look at his performance over the course of the weekend it is clear that he has utterly dominated in Derbyshire.
The Spaniard has continued his form from the opening race into round two and been consistently the most impressive man on the racetrack this weekend. A cursory look at the lap times from the course of each practice session shows that while his rivals have been able to compete with him in terms of ultimate pace, Checa has left them in his wake due to his incredible consistency.
As the table shows the championship leader has had more sub 1m28.5s laps than anyone else. These lap times show the ultimate pace of each rider but are not indicative of the actual pace that the rider will be able to achieve in tomorrow’s races.
As we saw in Philip Island World Superbikes has changed in recent years and instead of the hard charging races of the past a more intelligent approach is now needed to succeed. This has come about because of ex-MotoGP riders, such as Checa and Biaggi, coming into the series. The ex Grand Prix riders have a much greater understanding of setting a bike up, particularly the electronics, and maximising the bikes potential over the course of a race.
Whereas in the past there was a “rag ‘til it breaks” mentality in WSBK the success of more cerebral riders, Biaggi, Checa etc, there is now a much more businesslike approach to racing. The leading lights now know that it is much more important to find the correct balance for the race instead of finding a perfect setup for one flat out Superpole lap.
The leading qualifiers, and the factory Yamaha riders, have all had relatively similar weekends in terms of their abilities to generate fast times. Each, with the exception of Eugene Laverty, has completed numerous sub 1m89s laps. Checa has the most of laps in this range but there is little to choose between him and his rivals.
It is in the next sector of lap times that Checa’s advantage over the field starts to be displayed. The Spaniard has completed more sub 1m29.5s laps than anyone else. The race pace should be in this timeframe for quite a large section of the race, probably over half distance, and as a result it is crucial for riders to be able to lap consistently in this range.
Riders such as Laverty, Rea and Haga have all struggled to lap consistently in this range and while each are exceptional racers they will need to spend a lot of time looking at their data if they are to find a solution in time for tomorrow’s race. Encouragingly for the likes of Jakub Smrz the Czech rider has been very consistent in this bracket and could be a challenger for the podium tomorrow if he can race with a clear head; far from a guarantee for the Ducati rider.
Tom Sykes fast lap in qualifying was good enough for the third fastest time but his ability to lap consistently in the 1m29s bracket could allow the Kawasaki rider to give the Japanese manufacturer a much needed lift. He has always excelled in front of his home crowd and it would be of little surprise to see him defeat compatriot Leon Haslam in the races due to the fact that he has clearly found a setup much more capable of consistent fast laps, even if Haslam has the faster bike in terms of ultimate pace.
Haslam, riding for BMW, was very impressive in his 2010 title challenge aboard a Suzuki. The Englishman though showed that there are still quite a few rough edges to be smoothed over and one thing that he will need to improve is his ability to find the best compromise for race pace. It is clear that the BMW is still far from a perfect bike and as a result Haslam’s ability to qualify second is very commendable. However it seems that when the red lights go out he will have a very challenging race as he tries to keep riders like Sykes, Smrz and even Max Biaggi at bay.
While the riders around him at the start will have to contend with battling through to the front there is little to suggest that Checa will face any strong challenge from them for the duration of the race. The Spaniard looks to be incredibly confident right and is ready to rack up more wins this weekend. He has the fastest bike on the track but much more importantly he has the most consistently fast bike as well.
Checa has consistently been setting times in the sub 1m29.5s range while his rivals have been lagging a few tenths adrift of this pace. Biaggi had had a fast bike underneath him all weekend and while Superpole was a struggle for the champion he should be able to make it to the front and while it is unlikely that he will battle for the win with Checa it would be very unwise to underestimate Biaggi.0 -
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Even though Carlos Checa took another pole position in today’s Superpole session there is clear evidence that the championship leader could face stiff competition as he seeks to maintain his near perfect start to 2011.
The Althea Ducati rider has been the fastest rider throughout the weekend but surprisingly Jakub Smrz has been able to match Checa stride for stride. The data from practice and qualifying shows that Checa has, on average, been just 0.036s faster than his Czech rival. The data is slightly skewed by Checa having completed significantly more laps than Smrz, 65-49, but it is interesting that Smrz has completed a significantly higher proportion of fast laps in the opening two days of action.
Looking at Checa’s lap times from the opening sessions it is clear that he has found a fast setup but also a consistent one. His high number of laps around 1m37s clearly shows that he has a consistent handling bike and one that he is very confident with around the fast and flowing Assen circuit. As has been the case throughout the season thus far Checa has spent more time on track than his rivals and as a result he should a much greater understanding of how the bike will react throughout longer stints.
At the last round in Donington Park Smrz showed that he had the speed to challenge for a race win but his inability to maintain the life in his tyres ended his hopes of taking a victory. This weekend he has spent more time on track to try and understand how his tyre evolves during a race stint but it remains to be seen if he can translate his undoubted speed into a consistent race. This is a problem that has blighted Smrz throughout his career but it is encouraging that he is so close to matching Checa’s times and as a result he should not be discounted tomorrow.
Irish riders Jon Rea and Eugene Laverty have been the closest challengers to Checa and Smrz. The pair has been two tenths off the pace but both have shown good pace on longer stints with Laverty particularly impressive this morning. Last season Rea waltzed away from the pack to take a double victory in Assen but if he is to replicate that feat this weekend, and kick start his title campaign, he will need to get off to a quick start otherwise Checa and Smrz could open too big a gap.
While Rea and Laverty will feel confident of challenging Checa and Smrz for the win there has been a large gap between the leading four riders and Leon Haslam, Leon Camier, Tom Sykes and Nori Haga. This quartet has been almost 0.4s off the pace but it is interesting that they are consistently faster than Max Biaggi and Marco Melandri.
The Italian’s have struggled all weekend but it would be unwise to discount them because they will be able to get the absolute maximum from their bikes throughout the race whereas riders like Haslam generally struggle to match the consistency of the ex-MotoGP riders. This will one of the biggest challenges that Biaggi will face, a cursory look at his practice form shows just how much he has struggled throughout the weekend.
The reigning champion has had some fast times but the majority of his lap times have been considerably off the pace. It will be crucial for Biaggi, and the similarly struggling Melandri, to make a good start because if they can get into a wheel to wheel battle with other riders they will be in with a great chance of finishing in the top five even though their performance over the weekend would do well to merit a top ten finish.
From the opening days of action it is clear that, once again, the battle at the front will involve Checa but Smrz, Rea and Laverty are all in close contention to challenge for the victory.0 -
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