Spies Says…

Press Release | June 27, 2009

The following is from Ben Spies’ publicist…Ben Spies won his eighth Superpole in nine events Saturday aboard his factory WSBK Yamaha R1 at the venerable Donington Park. Spies clocked a one-minute, 29.846-second lap on the challenging 2.5-mile, 15-turn circuit to secure the top starting position for both of Sunday’s World Superbike races.Donington’s Superpole marks a return to the number one qualifying spot for Spies after having his record-setting Superpole streak of seven straight ended last week in Misano, Italy.Coming into Donington second-ranked Spies is making every effort to close in on Ducati’s Nori Haga, who leads the championship by 48 points.Spies was near the front in all three segments of Donington’s Superpole. After the first session he was second to Aprilia’s Max Biaggi, just 5-100ths back. In session two Michel Fabrizio topped the charts on his Ducati over Spies. In the final session, whittled down to the top eight riders, Spies came on strong and was the only rider to dip into the one minute, 29-second bracket. Spies’ 1:29.846 was two-tenths better than second-place qualifier Biaggi. Shane Byrne and Shinya Nakano round out the front-row starters.Spies said he made his fast lap in the nick of time.”It was great to get back to winning Superpole,” Spies said. “I got out on the track that last session a little late and started seeing raindrops on my visor. I got up to speed as fast as I could and tried keeping it off the painted lines and luckily everything worked out and I was able to get the fast time.”Spies said the team is still seeking a little better race set up, but he feels positive on his chances to run up front Sunday.”The crew is doing a great job,” he said. “They have a fire lit under them and are as hungry as I am at getting up there to challenge for the championship. I’m so comfortable on the bike right now. I seem to be able to put it precisely where I want it lap after lap, and that’s a good feeling. I went faster today than I did on the GP bike last year, so that gives me a lot of confidence. Hopefully we can keep this momentum going into Sunday.”Donington is one of the few tracks on the World Superbike calendar where Spies has raced. He rode with Suzuki’s MotoGP squad in last year’s British Grand Prix.In the U.S. both World Superbike races from Donington Park can be watched back to back on SPEED tomorrow (Sunday, June 28) starting at 3:00 pm.Ben Spies is sponsored by Yamaha, HJC, Alpinestars, Specialized and Parts Europe.

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