Superpole.

[Cedric]

I have been mystified by Superpole ever since I got into WSBK a couple of years ago. Efforts to understand more than a basic idea of what it means have been fruitless for me. Can anyone enlighten me in layman's terms as to how it works and what affects in the grand scheme of things?

[mrkotter]

3 sessions, and riders only get two sets of qualifying tyres but riders choose when to use them.
After practice the quickest 20 riders go through to the superpole qualifying.
First session is 12 minutes and the quickest 16 go to the second superpole session. 4 are dropped and grid positions 17-20 are set. There is a 7 minute break presumably to change settings on bikes and tyres.
Second session is 12 minutes only the quickest 8 progress and 8 riders are cut. Grid positions 9-16 are set. Another 7 minute break.
Final session is 12 minutes and grid spots 1-8 are set on these times.

Basically changed to make it more "interesting" but these sort of rules just make it more confusing and manufactured. You do see upsets where a slower rider uses a qualifying tyre and a fast guy is cut because he is saving his tyres for the last 2 sessions. Usually the fast blokes will always make the final 8 and may even have to sets of qualifying tyres for this last session!

I preferred the old format, like the old V8 supercar rules with the top 10 shoot out. Nothing like watching one rider trying to do the perfect lap.

[stetto]

So basically like f1s qualifying format

[Wattie]

yep, and its shit.

bring back the ol flying lap superpole, better for the crowd to concentrate on 1 rider going hell for leather. for a whole lap.

[Cedric]

Cheers guys.

So what was the old system? I was under the impression that each rider was given a chance to do one flying lap and that grid positions would be set by their times.. but I'm probably wrong. If it was changed to be more 'entertaining' then I can't see how altering it to the current system would create greater entertainment than seeing all the riders balls out for one lap..

[mrkotter]

I believe only the top 8 or 10 did a solo flying lap in the previous qualifying system. similar to the top ten shoot out in the V8 supercars.

[Wattie]

yeah the top 10 riders i think got to do they flying lap.

apparently the new way "promotes consistant fast laps"

[1down5up]

it was the top 16 riders not 10 .............also in the new format if you set a time in the first session that is very good and should get you poll over the 3 sessions it dont mater as the time from the session 1 dont count for session 2 and times from session 2 dont count in the last session so you could be on poll with a time that was slower than the time you set in session 1 as long as it was faster than the other riders in the last session.......so all times from each session are scraped ............... top 16 shoot out was the better way to do it i think