Atlantic: Team Toyota Yamaha qualifying summary

Tight qualifying battle on physical track sees Kevin Lacombe 2nd in both Pro 600 and Superbike, Pascal Picotte 7th in Superbike, on third row in Pro 600

Schubenacadie, August 12, 2006. Qualifying for the sixth round of the Parts Canada Superbike Championship produced mixed results here today for the Team Toyota Yamaha Racing riders. Kevin Lacombe dominated the two qualifying sessions before losing pole in both classes at the very end of each session. Team leader Pascal Picotte was unable to push through his pain barrier on this tough and bumpy track, ending up 7th in Superbike and on the third row for the Pro 600 race.

Kevin Lacombe ended the day feeling frustrated, after losing pole position in the Pro 600 class on the very last timed lap of the session, and then seeing history repeat itself in Superbike, when he ended up a mere 0.005 sec behind pole position. "Starting second in both races is a good news-bad news deal. I know we are fast, but our sponsors, our team, as well as Pascal and I all want to beat the other guy -- very badly. We have good race set ups on both machines, and I expect two more barn burners tomorrow (Sunday). We will work on the bikes again tonight and go for two wins."

Pascal Picotte knew coming in that the Schubenacadie layout would be hard on his body, and it was. "The top Pro 600 riders could throw their bike around and ride through the bucking machines more easily than I can at this point. Starting from the third row is certainly far from what I wanted, as I hoped to closer to the front and possibly help Kevin in the Pro 600 points chase. My Superbike reacted better to our overnight changes, and a second row start put me in a good position to stay with the leaders and help Kevin get a win."

According to Pascal, there will be some simple team tactics in place tomorrow. "Kevin needs to go absolutely flat out in both races. I managed to save my energy for the races tomorrow, and I am counting on Kevin's speed, my experience, a few more adjustments and maybe a few errors from the competition to get maximum points for the team."

-credit: amci