Crutchlow Tops Toseland In Kyalami

Paul Carruthers | May 15, 2010

The final Superpole segment at the Kyalami circuit in South Africa came down to a intra-team battle with Sterligarda Yamaha’s Cal Crutchlow delivering the final blow to take pole position for tomorrow’s two World Superbike races over his teammate James Toseland.Crutchlow earned his third pole position of the season with his 1:37.243 with just over two minutes left in the final 10-minute Superpole 3 session, the time good enough to knock Toseland from the top spot. Toseland had jumped to the head of the class with his 1:37.260 fairly early in the session as the Brit was attempting to earn his first pole position since Magny-Cours in 2007.Still, the banged up Toseland was able to secure second on the front row for the races tomorrow, the former World Superbike Champion battling the lingering effects of the concussion and bruised neck he suffered in the first-turn crash of race two last weekend in Monza, Italy.Althea Ducati’s Carlos Checa ended the session third, the Spaniard putting in a 1:37.296 – just .053 of a second off Crutchlow. Just .905 of a second separated first from eighth (Aprilia’s Leon Camier) in the final Superpole, with seventh-placed Max Biaggi just .370 of a second behind Crutchlow.The front row was filled by Xerox Ducati’s Michel Fabrizio, the Italian who led the proceedings on day one at Kyalami. Fabrizio lost the top spot today to Jakub Smrz, who led the final qualifying session prior to Superpole getting rolling.Fabrizio’s best lap late in Superpole 3 bumped championship leader Leon Haslam to the second row, the Alstare Suzuki rider putting in a best lap of 1:37.401. Haslam will be joined on the second row by Smrz, Biaggi and Camier.Row three will be made up of Luca Scassa, Sylvain Guintoli, Jonathan Rea and Tom Sykes – the best of the rest from Superpole 2 who didn’t make it through to the final 10-minute segment of Superpole 3.The man who swept to victories in both races at Kyalami last year, Xerox Ducati’s Noriyuki Haga, will start the races from 16th on the grid.American Roger Lee Hayden didn’t qualify for Superpole on the Pedericini Ducati and he will start from 21st on the grid.

Final Qualifying

1. Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha) 1:37.243

2. James Toseland (Yamaha) 1:37.260

3. Carlos Checa (Ducati) 1:37.296

4. Michel Fabrizio (Ducati) 1:37.368

5. Leon Haslam (Suzuki) 1:37.401

6. Jakub Smrz (Ducati) 1:37.561

7. Max Biaggi (Aprilia) 1:37.613

8. Leon Camier (Aprilia) 1:38.148

9. Luca Scassa (Ducati) 1:37.768

10. Sylvain Guintoli (Suzuki) 1:37.876
21. Roger Lee Hayden (Kawasaki) 1:40.981