FOR ALSTARE BRUX IN KYALAMI

The first day of practice and qualifying for the sixth-round World Superbike Championship at Kyalami in South Africa was a difficult one for Team Suzuki Alstare Brux.

Yukio Kagayama struggled with the bumpy nature of the 4.263 kilometre circuit and finished 15th while Fonsi Nieto, standing in for injured Max Neukirchner, has never raced at the track before or ridden the new GSX-R1000 K9 Suzuki: He used the day to learn the bike and the track and ended with the 22nd best time.

Michel Fabrizio (Ducati) posted the day's fastest lap with a time of 1:38.103. Second quickest was Jonathan Rea (Honda) with Ben Spies (Yamaha) third.

Yukio Kagayama - 15th, 1:39.475:

"We started with the set-up we used when we tested here last December, but my bike didn't work as well. The track feels bumpier to me and that meant I could not push as hard as I wanted. We improved the bike in the afternoon, but many other riders went faster, so I ended 15th. My main problem today was the bumps, but the rear tyre was also spinning in a couple of corners, so tomorrow we will try some suspension changes to see if we can make any improvements."

Fonsi Nieto - 22nd, 1:40.544:

"New track, new bike and a lot to learn today for me. Fortunately I know the team very well and they have helped me a lot. I am very happy to be back in World Superbikes and I feel as if I have never been away because this team is so good. The K9 bike is very different to last year's bike, but I hope to learn everything fast and keep on improving. I don't particularly like this track because for me it is very bumpy and dangerous in some places."

Friday WSB Qualifying: 1 Fabrizio (I-Ducati) 1:38.103, 2 Rea (GB-Honda) 1:38.506, 3 Spies (USA-Yamaha) 1:38.600, 4 Haslam (GB-Honda) 1:38.865, 5 Nakano (J-Aprilia) 1:38.998. 15 Yukio Kagayama (J-Suzuki Alstare Brux) 1:39.475. 22 Fonsi Nieto (E-Suzuki Alstare Brux) 1:40.544.