Haslam keeping the heat on his rivals

Feb 28 2010 by Zoe Burn, Sunday Sun

LEON HASLAM was hoping to turn his first ever Superpole into at least one win as the World Superbike Championship got under way in Australia this morning.

The Brit star looked untouchable in the hot Phillip Island sun yesterday, as he threw down the gauntlet to his rivals by sticking in a hotlap of 1.31.229mins early in the 10-minute final session.

The new Suzuki Alstare rider had controlled both previous Superpole knock-outs, which had seen the demise of several big names, including Xerox Ducati’s Noriyuki Haga, Aprilia’s Max Biaggi and BMW Motorrad’s Troy Corser and Ruben Xaus, as well as Brit rookie Leon Camier and Shakey Byrne.

“The hardest part was sitting in the garage watching the rest of the guys going round trying to beat my time,” he said last night.

“The bike is fantastic and the team are brilliant, so I’m hoping to give all of us something to smile about.”

Lining up second on the grid this morning was Ducati Xerox rider Michel Fabrizio, who has been looking much stronger than team-mate Haga all weekend.