This is the Castrol Press Release from Sugo
 

         1998 World Championship Team
                           Media Information

Issued: Saturday October 31 1998

         SLIGHT  TAKES  POLE  POSITION  AT  SUGO

Castrol Honda's Aaron Slight will start Sunday's International Superbike race at Sugo in Japan from pole position after a blistering lap in Saturday's final qualifying session.

The 32-year-old New Zealand rider recorded the first sub 1m 30s lap of the 2.32-mile track for pole position in the traditional end of season race which also heralds the final round of the Japanese Superbike championship.

"It's nice to lap the Sugo circuit so quick but a shame I couldn't have
done this four weeks ago in the final World Superbike round of the year," said slight who took runner-up place in this year's World Superbike
championship.

Behind Slight came 500cc GP regular Tadayuki Okada, also Honda-mounted, with Yamaha's Noriyuki Haga third quickest and five times 500cc world champion Mick Doohan fourth - having a rare superbike outing - to complete the front row of the grid for Sunday's race.

Suzuki's Keiichi Kitigawa and Akira Ryo head the second row which includes Castrol Honda's Colin Edwards and Shinichi Itoh who holds a comfortable lead in the Japanese series before Sunday's final race.

Final qualifying times for Sugo TBC Big International Superbike race:
1. Aaron Slight, New Zealand (Castrol Honda) 1m 29.858s, 2 Tadayuki Okada,
Japan (Honda) 1m 30.036s, 3 Noriyuki Haga, Japan (Yamaha) 1m 30.137s, 4
Mick Doohan, Australia (Honda) 1m 30.433s, 5 Keiichi Kitigawa, Japan
(Suzuki) 1m 30.562s, 6 Akira Ryo, Japan (Suzuki) 1m 30.619s, 7 Colin
Edwards, USA (Castrol Honda) 1m 30.644s, 8 Shinichi Itoh, Japan (Honda) 1m
30.710s, 9 Tamaki Serizawa, Japan (Kawasaki) 1m 30.829s, 10 Shinya
Takeishi, Japan (Kawasaki) 1m 30.836s.