Team Suzuki Alstare rider Leon Haslam defied the pain barrier in today’s second Superbike World Championship race at the Nurburgring, taking a superb podium despite a dislocated right thumb and damaged knee ligaments. Leon had crashed at the start of race one, when he was highsided and it was fortunate that the race was red-flagged and he and the other fallers were able to make the restart. His bike was too badly damaged to take part in the restart, so he was forced to use his spare bike - one that he had only used for a handful of laps in practice and qualifying.

Team Suzuki Alstare rider Sylvain Guintoli had his best Superpole of the season and will start tomorrow’s pair of 20-lap races from the front row of the grid. The Frenchman was in tremendous form today, particularly in Superpole 2, when he ended up the fastest. It took a record lap from Max Biaggi (Aprilia) to knock Sylvain down the order, but he held on to third quickest, just behind Carlos Checa (Ducati).

The first day of practice and qualifying at the Nurburgring today was a tough one for Team Suzuki Alstare riders Leon Haslam and Sylvain Guintoli. The tyres brought here for this event were the same type as the new ones that Leon, Sylvain and the team found hard to work with in Misano and Brno and so a lot more work on bike set-up has to be done before they can push as hard as they want.

Team Suzuki Alstare rider Leon Haslam endured two tough 18-lap races at Silverstone today, taking a superb third in race one and a fourth in race two to close the gap on series leader Max Biaggi. But It was a day of frustration for the young Brit because he felt he could’ve challenged for the wins if things had gone his way a bit more and that would’ve narrowed the gap even more.
Leon’s team mate, Sylvain Guintoli, suffered with a too hard tyre in race one and ended 12th. He used a softer tyre in race two and had a much better race, finishing 7th.

Team Suzuki Alstare rider Leon Haslam just missed out on a front row grid place today in final Superpole when he was held up by a slower rider on his flying lap. He will now start tomorrow’s pair of 18-lap races from the second row of the grid, just behind the poleman, Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha).

Both Team Suzuki Alstare riders Leon Haslam and Sylvain Guintoli gave the thumbs up to the new Silverstone circuit after spending the day learning the new layout and are now looking forward to improving their positions tomorrow. Leon finished 8th fastest and was the happier of the duo, but Sylvain is very upbeat about his prospects tomorrow, despite ending the day 17th in the standings.

The tenth round of this year’s Superbike World Championship is a ‘home’ race for both Team Suzuki Alstare riders Leon Haslam and Sylvain Guintoli. It is a home race for Leon because he is a Briton and lives in Derbyshire, but it is also a home race for Sylvain because the Frenchman has lived in UK for some time and is married to an English girl. Sylvain will be making the short trip from his home near Melton Mowbray, while Leon will have a slightly further journey.

Britain’s ‘Magnificent Seven’ World Superbike riders will ride into Silverstone next week for the UK’s only round of the FIM Superbike World Championship (Friday 30 July to Sunday 01 August). Rather than protecting the Silverstone crowd from marauding Mexican bandits, our Magnificent Seven will be searching for glory of a different kind; going all out to clinch race wins and podium finishes aboard their trusty 1000cc two-wheeled steeds.

Team Suzuki Alstare's difficult weekend continued today in Brno. Both riders hoped that solutions had been found to the problems in practice and qualifying, but while Sylvain took a superb fourth in race 1 and a seventh in race two, Leon’s struggles continued.

There were mixed fortunes today in Brno for Team Suzuki Alstare riders Sylvain Guintoli and Leon Haslam. Sylvain managed to improve his bike’s grip problems from yesterday and advance into Superpole 3, before just missing out on a front row grid spot.

The first day of practice and qualifying turned out to be a difficult one for Team Suzuki Alstare riders Leon Haslam and Sylvain Guintoli. Similar problems to the ones they had on day one at Misano and a lack of grip caused Sylvain to end the day 15th fastest, with team mate Leon two places back in 17th.

Team Suzuki Alstare riders Leon Haslam and Sylvain Guintoli are looking forward to Brno and hoping to go into the summer break on a high. The 5.403 kilometre circuit is a favourite amongst riders due to its flowing nature and elevation variations but, as usual, a good set-up is necessary for a fast lap.