Imola WSB: Checa takes sixth pole of the season

Championship leader Carlos Checa has taken his sixth pole position of the season at Imola, setting a new lap record on the way.

Checa beat Castrol Honda’s Jonathan Rea to pole position by a tenth of a second, with Pata Aprilia rider Noriyuki Haga in third. The final rider on the front row is Kawasaki’s Tom Sykes, fresh from his Nurburgring win.

Factory Yamaha rider Eugene Laverty heads the second row, ahead of Leon Haslam in sixth. The second row is completed by Effenbert Ducati’s Sylvain Guintoli and Ayrton Badovini onboard the Motorrad Italia BMW.

Checa’s main challenger for the title, Marco Melandri exited in superpole 2, and starts from ninth on the grid.

1. Carlos Checa (Althea Racing) Ducati 1098R 1’47.196
2. Jonathan Rea (Castrol Honda) Honda CBR1000RR 1’47.274
3. Noriyuki Haga (PATA Racing Team Aprilia) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1’47.442
4. Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team Superbike) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1’47.468
5. Eugene Laverty (Yamaha World Superbike Team) Yamaha YZF R1 1’47.929
6. Leon Haslam (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) BMW S1000 RR 1’48.081
7. Ayrton Badovini (BMW Motorrad Italia SBK Team) BMW S1000 RR 1’48.234
8. Sylvain Guintoli (Team Effenbert-Liberty Racing) Ducati 1098R 1’48.416
9. Marco Melandri (Yamaha World Superbike Team) Yamaha YZF R1 1’47.781
10. Leon Camier (Aprilia Alitalia Racing Team) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1’47.858
11. Michel Fabrizio (Team Suzuki Alstare) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1’48.126
12. Maxime Berger (Supersonic Racing Team) Ducati 1098R 1’48.334
13. Jakub Smrz (Team Effenbert-Liberty Racing) Ducati 1098R 1’48.741
14. Federico Sandi (Althea Racing) Ducati 1098R 1’48.812
15. Troy Corser (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) BMW S1000 RR 1’48.894
16. Alessandro Polita (Barni Racing Team S.N.C.) Ducati 1098R 1’49.091
17. Mark Aitchison (Team Pedercini) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1’49.159
18. Joan Lascorz (Kawasaki Racing Team) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1’49.185
19. Matteo Baiocco (Barni Racing Team) Ducati 1098R 1’49.378
20. Ruben Xaus (Castrol Honda) Honda CBR1000RR 1’49.595
21. Roberto Rolfo (Team Pedercini) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1’49.668
22. Javier Fores (BMW Motorrad Italia SBK Team) BMW S1000 RR 1’50.888