Chambon looking for podium.
Monza is home to the fifth round of the 2002 Supersport World Championship and is where Team Alstare Suzuki rider Stephane Chambon is looking to extend his lead in the series.
Chambon is at the top of the title race at present and knows that another consistent high finish is required if he is to maintain his grip on the lead. Team mate Fujiwara had his best result of the year in the last round in Japan and is confident his amazing run of bad luck is over. The Japanese rider - like most riders - enjoys Monza and believes his GSX-R600 Suzuki has the ability to be on the podium.
Monza is home to the fifth round of the 2002 Supersport World Championship and is where Team Alstare Suzuki rider Stephane Chambon is looking to extend his lead in the series.
Chambon is at the top of the title race at present and knows that another consistent high finish is required if he is to maintain his grip on the lead. Team mate Fujiwara had his best result of the year in the last round in Japan and is confident his amazing run of bad luck is over. The Japanese rider - like most riders - enjoys Monza and believes his GSX-R600 Suzuki has the ability to be on the podium.
But the Supersport World Championship is ultra-competitive and first he and Chambon know they have to do well in qualifying to give themselves a chance of success on Sunday.
"Last year I was on a Superbike, so Monza will feel very different to me," said Stephane Chambon. "I last raced a Supersport at Monza two years ago and finished ninth, but I'm hoping for a much better result this year and will be disappointed if I don't end up in the top four really. Of course a win, or at least a podium, is what I'm really aiming for. This class is very hard and the bikes are so close, that it's vital not to make any mistakes or crash. But my Suzuki is going well and I'm enjoying riding it, so I'm hoping for a good result. It would be nice to win and extend my series lead, but it's important for me not to crash. We?ll see what happens, but I want a podium."
"The last round was very good for me," said Katsuaki Fujiwara. "Of course, I wanted to win in front of my home fans, but I just couldn't get past my team mate Steph. But it was a great result for our team and I was very happy to get a podium at last! My luck recently has not been bad, it's been terrible! So maybe Sugo was the turning point for me, I hope so. I like Monza. It's fast and fun and slipstreaming is so important. I think we can have a good result there and I am after another podium. Maybe we can get another perfect 1-2 there, but this time with me on top! But whatever happens, I have to do much better then last year."
