Izutsu top four cylinder rider again.

Fuchs Kawasaki riders, Hitoyasu Izutsu and Chris Walker put in strong performances during this afternoon's two Superbike races at Kyalami, finishing both as the top four-cylinder riders, as the V-twins, and Bayliss in particular, dominated at the South African circuit.

Fuchs Kawasaki riders, Hitoyasu Izutsu and Chris Walker put in strong performances during this afternoon's two Superbike races at Kyalami, finishing both as the top four-cylinder riders, as the V-twins, and Bayliss in particular, dominated at the South African circuit.

A bad start in race one left Izutsu to fight his way through the field in the early stages of the race, eventually slotting into seventh place by two-thirds distance. With the top six riders just too far ahead to catch, the former Japanese Superbike Champion was unable to progress further up the leader board and had to settle for seventh at the line.

Famous for his lightning getaways from the line, Chris Walker was caught out by two riders in front of him at the start of the first race. The 30-year-old British rider got a clean launch, but then had to take avoiding action as riders starting from the second row of the grid closed the gap on him. Despite the setback, Walker put his head down and crossed the line in eighth, just one place behind team-mate Izutsu.

A better start in race two allowed Izutsu to latch onto the back of the leading group of riders but, with the advantage that the V-twins enjoy at Kyalami, it wasn't long before he'd lost touch with the battle for the race lead. Despite the disappointment of having to fight for a mid-pack finish, Izutsu was happy enough to beat the twins of James Toseland and Juan Borja, again finishing as the top four-cylinder rider.

'I got a bad start in race one and that did for me really,' said Izutsu. 'I managed to fight my way through the pack, but by the time I'd cleared the slower riders, the leaders had disappeared. I got a better start in the second race, but there was no answer to the V-twins today, I tried to match their pace early on in the race, but had to back off after a couple of front end slides. I'm a little disappointed with how the races finished, but I have every intention of getting my own back on the two-cylinder bikes at Sugo.'

After finishing the second race in ninth place, Chris Walker declared himself fairly satisfied with his weekend's work.

'It's been a pretty good weekend as far as it goes,' said Walker. 'I'm consistent for longer on the bike than I have been previously, but I still lost a lot of time during the latter stages of both races when the tyres went off. I was a bit disappointed not to have finished higher in the second race, as it's the first time that my eye hasn't given me any trouble - the sweatband might not be the most stylish headgear in the world, but it works! We leave here having made a lot of progress with the bike as well. The ?hlins guys made some changes to the forks this weekend, which gave me the confidence I need to push the front end. This new found confidence has highlighted the fact that we're lacking grip at the rear, but at least we only have one end of the bike to sort out now.'

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