Round 5 World Endurance Championship Losail, Qatar DISAPPOINTMENT FOR CUDLIN IN DOHA DESERT Australia’s Damian Cudlin was forced to watch another podium finish disappear under the lights in Doha on the weekend, at the final round of the World Endurance Championship in Qatar. Having dominated every practice and qualifying session, the BMP Elf 99 BMW Team looked odds on favorites to take their first race win of the season in Qatar as Cudlin lined up in pole position for the start of the 8 hour race. After struggling to start his engine on the line, Cudlin limped away in 20th position but soon made early progress in the race, disposing of his competitors one by one. Soon Cudlin had climbed to 2nd and began to close the deficit to the fast starting SERT Suzuki. As the gap reduced from 14 seconds to less than 3, Cudlin made his first scheduled pit stop and handed over to team mate, Sebastian Gimbert. Suzuki pitted a lap later and Vincent Phillipe handed the controls to World Superbike rider Sylvain Guintoli. Gimbert then caught and passed the Suzuki rider for the lead, as the pair engaged in an exciting dual, exchanging passes every lap for outright supremacy. The race became a scrap between the two teams for the majority of the race, as 3rd placed YART couldn’t maintain the searing pace at the front and steadily dropped further behind. However with just 50 minutes of the race to go, disaster struck the luckless BMP squad as Gimbert suffered a fall avoiding a back marker’s accident. The extensive damage to the 99 BMW was repaired with lightning speed, although it was not enough to claim the podium result the team so desperately craved, and despite an inspiring late surge from Erwan Nigon the team finished in a disappointing 6th place. “It’s certainly not the way we wanted to end our World Endurance season; luck just hasn’t been on our side at all this year” Cudlin admitted. “But we did prove once again that we were the fastest team at the race track, and as soon as the tide swings our way a bit we are going to win races. It’s just a matter of time.” The BMP Elf 99 BMW Team scored 3 pole positions and 4 fastest laps in their debut WEC season, proving they will be a force to be reckoned with, should lady luck be a little kinder to them in 2011. “Endurance is a hard game and the saying ‘to finish first, first you have to finish’ doesn’t ring any truer then in this sport”¦ but if it was easy then anybody could do it. The team has done an incredible job in their debut season and I can’t wait to see them in action again in 2011.” More, from a press release issued by TwoThree Public Relations: Waters brothers take top five finishes in ASBK Supersport finale Talented Mildura-based brothers Brodie and Nick Waters have taken impressive top five finishes in the final round of the 2010 Australian Supersport Championship to round out the season at Symmons Plains in Tasmania on 12-14 November. Regular Supersport contender Brodie was joined by younger brother Nick for the season finale, the Waters Racing/Sunstate Racing Suzuki teammates finishing fourth and fifth respectively on their GSX-R600s in the event contested alongside the V8 Supercars Championship Series. Brodie qualified an uncharacteristic fifth before racing to 3-6 results in the pair of 14-lap races across the weekend, Saturday’s opening race run in the dry before treacherous rain set in for Sunday’s second outing. “Qualifying wasn’t so good and I only managed fifth on the grid, which wasn’t ideal to start from inside the second row at Symmons Plains, and then in race one I worked my way through the pack and finished third, so I was quite happy with that result,” 18-year-old Brodie explained. “In race two it was wet and I struggled, almost had a few crashes and only ended up sixth. It wasn’t the best way to finish off the year, but overall the season was a strong one to finish third overall in the series and second privateer.” Brodie sealed third in the championship for the 2010 season in a series won by factory Suzuki rider Troy Herfoss, also clinching second in the Privateer Cup. Now, his focus is solely on returning to win the title in 2011. “It’s been a good year with Suzuki and I was able to be a lot more consistent while learning a lot as well,” Brodie continued. “I’ll come back next year and use that experience gained to try and win the championship.” The weekend marked 17-year-old Nick’s official Supersport debut in the ASBK after finishing fourth in the Superstock 600 title earlier this year, and he showed skill beyond his experience with a determined fifth overall. Nick qualified seventh before taking sixth in the dry opener for the weekend, and then finished an impressive fourth in the wet on Sunday. “I had a lot of fun in my first Supersport race and was really happy to finish in the top five for my first ASBK race on the bike,” he said. “It was a good result for Suzuki and hopefully next year I can race Supersport full time. “Racing against the top guys in Supersport was completely different to what I’m used to in Superstock, you can really race close and I learnt a lot out there. Hopefully I can race against Brodie again next year and maybe even beat him again!” In the Superbike ranks, eldest Waters brother and 2009 Australian Superbike Champion Josh Waters made his ASBK return to racing from injury for Team Suzuki to finish third overall for the round. Symmons Plains Supersport Overall Results 1. Troy HERFOSS 2. Christan CASELLA 3. Aaron GOBERT 4. Brodie WATERS (Waters Racing/Sunstate Racing Suzuki) 5. Nicholas WATERS (Waters Racing/Sunstate Racing Suzuki) Final 2010 Australian Supersport Championship Standings 1. Troy HERFOSS 275 2. Christan CASELLA 233 3. Brodie WATERS 212 (Waters Racing/Sunstate Racing Suzuki) 4. Aaron GOBERT 164 5. Chris QUINN 152 18. Nicholas WATERS 31 (Waters Racing/Sunstate Racing Suzuki)