Thursday, 22 October 2009
IF ... (HAGA)
If Haga becomes World Champion at Portimao he will be:
- the first Japanese rider to win the title, he is already the best-placed among the 112 Japanese riders who have competed in WSBK so far, with two second places in 2000 and 2007;
- the oldest champion in history at 34 years, 7 months and 23 days, beating the record set by Stephen Roche in 1990 at 33 years 8 months and 28 days;
- the fourteenth time a Ducati rider wins the riders' championship;
- the rider who needed the longest amount of time to win a championship: ten full seasons and 259 race starts (current record held by Neil Hodgson, who won in 2003 after six full seasons and 149 races);
- the first champion since Toseland in 2004 to win the title despite not being the most successful rider during the season. Haga can currently count eight wins to Spies thirteen, in 2004 Toseland won with only three wins to Laconi's seven and Haga's six;
- the thirteenth rider to win the first race of the season and the championship;
- if he doesn't score pole in Portimao he will be the world champion with the lowest number of poles (one at the Nurburgring) since James Toseland in 2004. That year the Briton was able to win the title without starting from pole in any race. He was the third rider in history to do so after Fred Merkel in 1988 and Carl Fogarty in 1998;
IF ... (SPIES)
If Spies becomes World Champion at Portimao he will be:
- the sixth American rider to win the title and the first since Colin Edwards in 2002;
- third in the age ranking with 25 years 3 months and 14 days, behind James Toseland who in 2004 won the title at 23 years 11 months and 28 days and Troy Corser, who won in 1996 at 24 years and 11 months;
- the first champion on a Yamaha;
- excluding Fred Merkel, who won the first championship made up of only seventeen races, he will be the rider who has needed the fewest number of race starts (28 after Portimao) to win a world title (current record 29 races and one full season, Doug Polen, 1991);
- the first rider to win the championship despite not scoring points in the season opener (he was 16th in the first Phillip Island race). Up to now all the world champions have finished the first race of the season in at least fourth position;
- the second rider to win the title despite not scoring points in five races during the season. Troy Bayliss won the title last year despite a mechanical failure at Monza, a fall and a failure at Miller, a fall at Donington and at Vallelunga. Spies this year failed to score at Phillip Island after a first lap tangle with Biaggi and Haslam, he fell in race 1 at Valencia and race 2 at Assen, was sidelined by a mechanical failure in race 2 at Kyalami and was taken out of the race by Fabrizio in Brno. He also has to add an empty fuel tank at the end of the first Monza race when he coasted to the line gaining only one point (he was leading) and a clutch problem in Misano (race 2, seven points gained);
- if he scores pole he will be the World Champion with the highest number of poles in his winning year, eleven, posting also the all-time season record of poles;
http://www.worldsbk.com/en/news/latest-new...ll-the-ifs.html
IF ... (HAGA)
If Haga becomes World Champion at Portimao he will be:
- the first Japanese rider to win the title, he is already the best-placed among the 112 Japanese riders who have competed in WSBK so far, with two second places in 2000 and 2007;
- the oldest champion in history at 34 years, 7 months and 23 days, beating the record set by Stephen Roche in 1990 at 33 years 8 months and 28 days;
- the fourteenth time a Ducati rider wins the riders' championship;
- the rider who needed the longest amount of time to win a championship: ten full seasons and 259 race starts (current record held by Neil Hodgson, who won in 2003 after six full seasons and 149 races);
- the first champion since Toseland in 2004 to win the title despite not being the most successful rider during the season. Haga can currently count eight wins to Spies thirteen, in 2004 Toseland won with only three wins to Laconi's seven and Haga's six;
- the thirteenth rider to win the first race of the season and the championship;
- if he doesn't score pole in Portimao he will be the world champion with the lowest number of poles (one at the Nurburgring) since James Toseland in 2004. That year the Briton was able to win the title without starting from pole in any race. He was the third rider in history to do so after Fred Merkel in 1988 and Carl Fogarty in 1998;
IF ... (SPIES)
If Spies becomes World Champion at Portimao he will be:
- the sixth American rider to win the title and the first since Colin Edwards in 2002;
- third in the age ranking with 25 years 3 months and 14 days, behind James Toseland who in 2004 won the title at 23 years 11 months and 28 days and Troy Corser, who won in 1996 at 24 years and 11 months;
- the first champion on a Yamaha;
- excluding Fred Merkel, who won the first championship made up of only seventeen races, he will be the rider who has needed the fewest number of race starts (28 after Portimao) to win a world title (current record 29 races and one full season, Doug Polen, 1991);
- the first rider to win the championship despite not scoring points in the season opener (he was 16th in the first Phillip Island race). Up to now all the world champions have finished the first race of the season in at least fourth position;
- the second rider to win the title despite not scoring points in five races during the season. Troy Bayliss won the title last year despite a mechanical failure at Monza, a fall and a failure at Miller, a fall at Donington and at Vallelunga. Spies this year failed to score at Phillip Island after a first lap tangle with Biaggi and Haslam, he fell in race 1 at Valencia and race 2 at Assen, was sidelined by a mechanical failure in race 2 at Kyalami and was taken out of the race by Fabrizio in Brno. He also has to add an empty fuel tank at the end of the first Monza race when he coasted to the line gaining only one point (he was leading) and a clutch problem in Misano (race 2, seven points gained);
- if he scores pole he will be the World Champion with the highest number of poles in his winning year, eleven, posting also the all-time season record of poles;
http://www.worldsbk.com/en/news/latest-new...ll-the-ifs.html
