Assen 500 win for Suzuki

The Suzuki Castrol team has won the opening round of the 2006 World Endurance Championship on the new Assen circuit in Holland on Monday, April 17, 2006.

By the halfway stage of the Assen 500km race, the team were a lap ahead of the rest of the field with rider Vincent Philippe setting the fastest lap of 1:43.659. Second place went to Yamaha Austria, who had to pit early after wearing out their front tyre in an effort to catch the Suzuki team. Britain’s Yamaha Phase One Endurance took a good third place.

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Fellow Brits Diablo 666 managed to finish in eighth place, despite completing the final 25 laps without fifth or sixth gears. The team had run as high as fifth during the second stint with rider James Hutchins, before gearbox problems developed during Alex Cudlin’s time on the bike. Final rider Marko Rohtlaan had to slip the clutch on some parts of the circuit with only four gears on the Kawasaki ZX-10R, but was able to finish.

Assen 500 results:

1st 2 – Suzuki 0123 Castrol – FRA – Suzuki GSX-R1000 – Philippe, Kitagawa – 110 laps
2nd 7 – Yamaha Austria – AUT – Yamaha YZF-R1 – Jerman, Scarnato – 1 lap
3rd 3 – Yamaha Phase One Endurance – GBR – Yamaha YZF-R1 – Nowland, Cudlin – 2 laps
4th 12 – Suzuki Fagersjo-el.se – SWE – Suzuki GSX-R1000 – Hanson, Andersson, Carlberg – 3 laps
5th 8 – Kawasaki Bolliger – SUI – Kawasaki ZX10R – Muff, Saiger, Morillon – 4 laps
6th 4 – Team X-One Yamaha – ITA – Yamaha YZF-R1 – Sanna, Demaneis, Tessari – +35.371 seconds
7th 21 – RMT21 Racing Honda – GER – Honda CBR1000RR – Mizera, Seidel – +1:05.900
8th 666 – Kawasaki Diablo 666 – GBR – Kawasaki ZX10R – Rohtlaan, Hutchins, Cudlin – 5 laps
9th 100 – Suzuki Team Endurance Moto45 – FRA – Suzuki GSX-R1000 – Bernon, Briere – +48.871 seconds
10th 199 – Yamaha Team Acropolis Zone Rouge – FRA – Yamaha YZF-R1 – vdBoreck, Pirot, Botton – 6 laps