Troy Corser didn't let a painful shoulder hamper his progress as he swept to second place on the grid for the ninth round of the World Superbike Championship at Brno, Czech Republic.
The Australian rider experienced a rather heavy fall in the early stages of final qualifying, but nonetheless eased through into Superpole with the sixth fastest time of the session.
Chasing his 43rd career pole position, Corser was on course to snatch his second consecutive top spot after another superb effort over a single lap, but even he had to concede to
Troy Bayliss' even better lap just a few minutes later.
Nonetheless, while Corser was frustrated to miss out on another pole position, he was pleased to be well up in the mix with second place as he hopes this weekend proves the weekend he finally breaks his Yamaha victory duck.
“I am pretty happy with how the weekend has gone so far and happy to be mixing it with all those Ducatis,” he said. “I think the last three of four races have been good for us and the bike is working very well. The grip here has been improving throughout the weekend and I think it's going to be as good, if not better, tomorrow.
Looking back at the crash earlier in the day, Corser admits he was pushing a little too hard and is now paying the price for that exuberance with a sore shoulder.
“I had a bit of an unfortunate crash this morning and hurt my right shoulder a bit. It's a bit sore, but it isn't a problem when I'm on the bike and I don't expect it to hold me back tomorrow. We had changed the front end geometry a bit to get more stability and to allow me to brake harder.
“After one lap, I tried to brake a bit later in one corner and down I went. I tumbled into the gravel trap and got hit by my bike and that's what made my shoulder sore. I guess I was lucky that I didn't hurt myself badly.
“But, we learnt something from the experience and that's good. I feel we have quite a good set-up for the race and the tyres are consistent. I hope the weather stays dry and we can put on a good show for the fans.”
