Two small mistakes demoted him to a mere third place at Misano
Corser laments ‘two small mistakes’ in race one for being unable to turn BMW’s first World Superbike pole position into a first win. Troy Corser believes he should be celebrating his first World Superbike win with BMW but for ‘two small mistakes’ that demoted him to a mere third place at Misano.
dominated qualifying to deliver BMW its first pole position, Corser looked on course to turn it into a maiden win for the German manufacturer too as he led Max Biaggi and Carlos Checa for two-thirds of race one.
However, after running wide with nine laps to go, Biaggi pounced on him, Corser proceeding to respond with an error that would also drop him behind Checa.
While it was still enough for the Australian to complete only BMW’s second podium finish at this level, he is adamant it was a missed opportunity for victory.
“I should have won the first race and the only reason I didn’t was because I made two small mistakes,” he said. “This series is so hard that it only takes the smallest of mistakes or errors to lose a win and that’s what happened today.
“The bike has come on a lot recently and most of it is to do with a new set-up at the rear. It’s something that I’ve wanted to try for some time, but it’s not something that we felt we could try during a race weekend. We tried it at the recent Mugello tests and now I have bike I can ride easily without thinking about it – and that’s a great feeling.
“Now the bike is probably the best it has ever been at any stage and I felt comfortable leading the first race. I made a small mistake on lap seventeen when I went a bit wide at a left-hander and had to go on the grass.
“I couldn’t get my normal drive out of the turn as a result and Max (Biaggi) overtook me. On the next lap, I left a bit too much spac! e going into another left-hander and Carlos (Checa) dived underneath me. From then on in, I matched them for lap times but just couldn’t pass them.
Corser led race two as well, but conceded the changes to the S1000RR between the races didn’t improve it and he was unable to stay out front. Slipping to sixth place, Corser would eventually cross the line tenth after running off the track on the final lap.
“Because it now takes such a long time for the interviews in parc fermé, the podium ceremony and the interviews in the Paddock Show, I wasn’t able to have a proper debrief with my team. We spoke briefly when I got back to the parc fermé and I told the boys that I was pretty happy with the bike and if they wanted to make some small adjustments they could do so.
“They wanted to improve the rear grip, so changed the front forks a little, but the plan didn’t work and the bike was actually harder to stop in the corners and this is why I started going backwards. It was a shame, because otherwise I felt that another podium was on the cards.
“Our tyres don’t like it when the track temperature goes over 30C, but I think that’s probably the same for everybody. Today Max and the Aprilia were a good package. They can be beaten, but our bike needs to be perfect to do it.
“As I said, I’m really happy with the bike now and I am enjoying leading races and challenging at the front. My goal is to try and finish third in the championship. I don’t know if that’s realistic, but that’s what I’m aiming for.”
source: crash.net