Pata Honda World Supersport riders relish desert challenge

Michael van der Mark and his Pata Honda team-mate Lorenzo Zanetti are looking forward to the 11th and final round of the 2014 World Supersport championship which takes place at the Losail International Circuit in Qatar this weekend (31 October – 2 November).

Van der Mark, who turned 22 last Sunday, secured the 2014 title in round nine of the series at Jerez in Spain at the beginning of September. Such has been this season's form of the new World Supersport champion that, apart from sliding off in the opening round at Phillip Island in Australia, the Dutch ace has finished no lower than second in the nine races since, notching up five race wins along the way.

Zanetti, 27, has not quite been able to match his team-mate’s pace and consistency this season but he took a well-earned and popular victory of his own in his home race at Imola in May. The Italian is still in with a chance of securing third place in the championship standings but needs a maximum points haul in this final round.

This weekend's event marks a return of the World Supersport championship to the 5.38km Losail International Circuit for the first time since 2009, when the race victory was taken by Eugene Laverty on a Honda CBR600RR. However, this final race of the 2014 season will be the first time that a race the series has taken place under floodlights.

Michael van der Mark

Michael van der Mark I had a nice birthday with the family last weekend but now it’s back to work for the last race of the season. I’ve never been to Qatar before but I’m really excited about racing there this weekend. I like learning new circuits and it looks like a great track that should suit our bike. Also, riding at night is going to be a new experience that I’m really looking forward to. I understand that the sand in the desert can create some problems with grip, but it’s the same for everyone. This will also be my last race on the CBR600RR Supersport machine, so it might get a little emotional!

Lorenzo Zanetti

Lorenzo Zanetti I raced under the lights in Qatar in 125cc GPs so I have some experience. I like the circuit very much but it will be quite different on the CBR600RR, compared to a 125cc two-stroke! I still have the target of finishing in the top three this season but I know it will be difficult. For this to happen I must win the race or at leastfinish second and hope that Marino cannot score many points. But I have a strong motivation for a good result this weekend: I want to finish the season in a strong way for Honda and my sponsors who have helped me so much and, also, it’s the last race for my crew chief Bjorn Maathuis. With Mikey’s championship and race wins, it’s been a great year for the whole team so we want to finish it on a high.Pieter Breddels - technical co-ordinator

Pieter Breddels Mikey has nothing to worry about in Qatar – he is already champion and he’s going to World Superbikes next year – so he can ignore his rivals, do his job and battle for victory in his last World Supersport race. Hopefully, both riders can both be on the podium this weekend, which is certainly something that Lorenzo deserves. He has had a tough season so it would be really great to get him back up there.Championship Standings

1 Michael van der Mark 205 pts NED HONDA Pata Honda World Supersport Team2 Jules Cluzel 132 pts FRA MV MV Agusta RC3 Florian Marino 120 pts FRA KAWASAKI Kawasaki Intermoto Ponyexpres4 Lorenzo Zanetti 103 pts ITA HONDA Pata Honda World Supersport Team5 Kev Coghlan 98 pts GBR YAMAHA DMC Panavto-Yamaha6 Patrick Jacobson 95 pts USA KAWASAKI Kawasaki Intermoto Ponyexpres7 Roberto Rolfo 87 pts ITA KAWASAKI Team GO Eleven8 Kenan Sofuoglu 86 pts TUR KAWASAKI San Carlo Puccetti Racing9 Raffaele De Rosa 67 pts ITA HONDA Core PTR Honda10 Roberto Tamburini 63 pts ITA KAWASAKI San Carlo Puccetti Racing


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