Vermeulen aiming for third successive podium finish

After stepping onto the rostrum with Casey Stoner and Valentino Rossi at Sachsenring and Laguna Seca Chris Vermeulen is hungry for more of the same in the Czaech Republic this weekend.

The likeable Australian rider will start Sunday´s Czech contest from the front of the second row after setting the fourth quickest time during a wet qualifying session on Saturday at Brno.

Vermeulen only completed ten laps of the newly re-surfaced Brno circuit in qualifying as conditions deteriorated during the hour-long session - making it very difficult to improve on lap-times. Vermeulen´s time of 2´13.002 was set on his fifth lap during his first run when the rain was quite light. Although he went out again towards the end of the official practice he was unable to better his time and narrowly missed out on a front-row start by 0.043 seconds.

`It was difficult today,´ stated the Rizla Suzuki man. `We came to the Brno with a completely new track, so we have had one full day in the dry to learn about the track and now one full day in the wet.´

`This morning the conditions were quite wet, but this afternoon it was very wet indeed so it was quite difficult,´ he continued. `I was sixth quickest yesterday in the dry and fourth fastest today so I am comfortable in either conditions.´

Looking ahead to the race Vermeulen said, `We have to wait and see what the weather does! They say it is going to be dryer than today but still wet. I would like it to be dry, but we´ll wait and see and I´ll try and fight for the podium.´