History Making 1-2 For Byrne And Irwin At Oulton Park
The Be Wiser Ducati team got their 2017 MCE British Superbike Championship challenge firmly up and running at Oulton Park today with a triple podium celebration including an historic one-two finish in a dramatic second race for the Penrith-based team.
After a disappointing opening couple of rounds which had seen defending champion Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne not score a podium finish, he bounced back in fine style with not only a pole position on the factory-backed Be Wiser Ducati Panigale R, but a superb second place finish in the opening race to kick start his season.
The five times champion from Sittingbourne shadowed series leader Leon Haslam throughout the 18-lap race, with barely half a second between them, but after a couple of lurid slides and missed gear changes towards the end of the race, Byrne settled for a safe runner-up place and with it his first podium of 2017.
Team-mate Irwin, meanwhile, was running strongly for much of the opening race although he dropped back towards the end. Occupying fifth position for the first half of the race, the Carrickfergus rider looked like he’d challenge for the podium but he struggled in the closing stages and ended up back in ninth.
With a podium in the bag, Byrne was brimful of confidence for the day’s second race and from the front row, after a few laps weighing up the opposition, he shot into the lead and was never headed. Shakey gradually pulled out an advantage over James Ellison and Leon Haslam behind him when the pair had a coming together which caused Haslam to crash and Ellison to retire.
That allowed Byrne to cruise to his first victory of the season and with it, his 78th career win whilst his rivals’ demise allowed Irwin to seize his opportunity. The Ulsterman sensed a podium and put in a fantastic effort in the last couple of laps, he managed to bring the second Be Wiser Ducati Panigale home in a sensational second place to record a first ever 1-2 for Paul Bird’s team and their long association with Ducati.
The feat matched Byrne and team-mate Stuart Easton’s exploits on PBM Kawasaki machinery a couple of years ago at Knockhill but significantly, this weekend confirmed that both Byrne and Irwin are genuine title contenders with both riders in the top seven of the standings.
Shane Byrne: “I was very conscious of having hardly any points and no podium credits coming into this weekend and although Leon was setting a very good pace, for two thirds of the first race I was happy to sit with him. In the end, it was getting a bit hairy and I really needed the points so settled for second. If I’d have pushed any harder, I’d have been upside down! We made a few changes to the bike in between races and I changed my line going into Hizzy’s and everything finally came together. I thought the tyres might drop off towards the end and it took me a while to work out what had happened to Leon and James when my lead shot up but once I had, I was able to bring the bike home. We’ve had the speed the whole time and have just been unlucky so, hopefully, all of our bad luck is behind us now and we can start winning more races and claw back the podium credits.”
Glenn Irwin: “Both races were tough but for different reasons and although I had the pace in the first race I wasn’t able to make a pass or attack like I wanted. The team worked really hard between the two races and the bike in the second race was an absolute dream. It took me a while to get my confidence and I was nearly in the campsite on one occasion when I ran wide at turn one but I regrouped and picked them off one by one. It was tough battling with such a big group of riders but I’m over the moon with second.”
Phil Borley, Technical Director: “We’re glad to see that Leon was OK after his big second race crash but for us, it’s great to get our first win of the year and our first double podium since returning to Ducati and first as a team since 2015. It was vital we had a strong weekend after a difficult start to the season and right from the outset both riders were on the pace. Shane obviously put in two great rides to get back onto the podium and onto the top step and although Glenn was slightly disappointed with his first race result, he put in a really impressive ride second time around. Both riders have taken a good haul of points and it’s good to go into the BSB break with the riders sitting in fifth and seventh in the championship table.”
MCE British Superbike Championship race one (18 laps)
1 Leon Haslam (Kawasaki)
2 Shane Byrne (Be Wiser Ducati)
3 Luke Mossey (Kawasaki)
4 Jason O’Halloran (Honda)
5 Peter Hickman (BMW)
6 James Ellison (Yamaha)
9 Glenn Irwin (Be Wiser Ducati)
MCE British Superbike Championship race two (18 laps)
1 Shane Byrne (Be Wiser Ducati)
2 Glenn Irwin (Be Wiser Ducati)
3 Jason O’Halloran (Honda)
4 Christian Iddon (BMW)
5 Luke Mossey (Kawasaki)
6 Josh Brookes (Yamaha)
Championship Standings (after three rounds)
1 Haslam 111pts
2 Mossey 108
3 Iddon 86
4 Brookes 67
5 Irwin 63
6 O’Halloran 61
7 Byrne 58
Round four of the MCE British Superbike Championship takes place at Knockhill over the weekend of 16/18 June and for further information, please visit www.pbmuk.net or www.pbmuk.net
More, from a press release issued by Bennetts Suzuki:
Difficult but educational weekend for Bennetts Suzuki at Oulton Park
The Bennetts Suzuki team endured a difficult weekend at Oulton Park for the third round of the MCE British Superbike Championship, but came away with a clearer picture of where to focus its development of the new GSX-R1000.
As is the case with a brand new machine, every area has been a focus for development so far, as the team learns more about bike, with lots of testing fitted in in a relatively short space of time. Corner entry had been a particular area of importance, and after trying multiple components and chassis settings, the weekend at Oulton Park revealed that the team needed to work on engine braking settings and also clutch setup to improve in that area. The summer break will now allow the team time to go over all of the data and work on finding a solution.
From the weekend’s two races, Taylor Mackenzie finished 18th in race one before improving to 15th in race two. Sylvain Guintoli was forced to retire from the weekend’s opening race with a technical issue but pushed through to an 11th placed finish in the second outing.
Roads campaigner Michael Dunlop also used the weekend as another chance to record some laps on the GSX-R1000 Superbike he will race at the North West 200 and Isle of Man TT races. The 13-time TT winner lapped the Oulton Park circuit faster than he ever has done. He finished 19th in race one before pulling out of race two.
Taylor Mackenzie, “It’s been a tough weekend but we’ve narrowed down on a key area for improvement. We’ve improved the chassis a lot, but the biggest problem is still the bike pushing on into corners and we’re struggling with our engine braking and getting the bike to work with the BSB-spec electronics. The bike wants to keep running in and miss the apex. But it’s good that we know where to focus now. It’s a problem both Sylvain and I are having, so we can work on it together and hopefully come up with a solution. In the first race I made a slight mistake and lost the tow to the group in front, but it was good to get into the points in race two. Hopefully we’ll come back after the break having tried more things with the bike and improve our results at Knockhill.”
Sylvain Guintoli, “It’s still early days and it’s important to remember that. We’ve worked a lot on all fronts and we’re still understanding the parameters of the bike. We can change something which improves the bike in one area but it can then have a negative impact in another, so we’ve been learning and developing. Now we have an area to really focus on before Knockhill. Our pace wasn’t too bad on Sunday but our qualifying position was lower than where we could have been, I think. Unfortunately we then had a technical issue in race one which was there from the start of the race, so I wasn’t able to push. In race two we had a better result, and were actually in the battle for eighth. It’s still not where we want to be, but it shows that we are moving forward.”
Michael Dunlop, “For me it’s all been about doing more laps, just getting more and more laps under my belt before the North West. The bikes are working good. We’re still making changes, improving the chassis, but we’re doing okay and should be right next week.”
Steve Hicken – team manager, “It’s been another challenge, but we’re making steps in the right way. It was always going to be this way with lots of new parts arriving and lots of work to get through in a short space of time. Up until this point we’ve been altering head angles, offsets, tried different swingarms, engine specs, and worked on getting the chassis balance right to work with the Pirellis – it’s a lot of work and we’ve needed to try all those things to see what works and what doesn’t. Corner entry has been our biggest weakness. We need the bikes to work better with the electronics, but we’re also going to be testing different clutches to give us the amount of slip we need. It’s going to take lots of work and lots of back-to-back testing, so we’re happy to be heading into the break from BSB duties to give us chance to look over everything and all the data we’ve accumulated, and come back at Knockhill and push on. As we keep saying, we’ve got all the potential in the world, but we need to turn it into results.”
In the National Superstock 1000 championship race, Richard Cooper was unlucky enough to be taken out by another rider in the opening stages. After getting a good start from pole position in tricky weather conditions, Cooper led the way into turn one but had slotted into second place by the end of the lap, opting instead to get a feel for the conditions and his opponents.
Unfortunately, he was collected while tipping into the hairpin on lap three, and crashed out. Despite the race being red-flagged for rain, Cooper was unable to make the restart, however, with other results going in his favour, the Bennetts Suzuki rider still sits at the top of the championship standings.
Richard Cooper, “It’s a shame when you’ve come all this way, been here since Saturday, and only got one race, that it then goes like it did. I didn’t really want to lead, to be honest, but I got such a good start I kind of had to, but when Danny [Buchan] came past I was happy just to sit there really. I thought I’d sit behind for eight or nine laps and see how things progressed. But it was only lap three and I felt someone hit the back of me and take me wide and onto the grass and that was it, down I went. It’s unfortunate because we made some more changes to the bike and it was working mint this weekend. But it could have been worse; we’re alright and things went in our favour in the rest of the race and we’re still leading the championship.”
British Superbikes race one result: 1. Leon Haslam, 2. Shane Byrne, 3. Luke Mossey, 18. Taylor Mackenzie, 19. Michael Dunlop, DNF. Sylvain Guintoli
British Superbikes race two result: 1. Shane Byrne, 2. Glenn Irwin, 3. Jason O’Halloran, 11. Sylvain Guintoli, 15. Taylor Mackenzie, DNF. Michael Dunlop
National Superstock 1000 race result: 1. Mason Law, 2. Chrissy Rouse, 3. Michael Rutter, DNF. Richard Cooper
More, from a press release issued by Smiths Racing Team:
Solid Points For Smiths At Oulton Park
Gloucester-based Smiths Racing BMW team enjoyed a strong third round of the 2017 MCE British Superbike Championship at Oulton Park today with Peter Hickman claiming a fifth place finish and Lee Jackson getting his first points on the board.
Having qualified in eighth for the first 18-lap race around the Cheshire track, Hickman started from the middle of the third row and immediately moved forward, picking off the riders ahead of him in the early stages.
By half race distance, he was only three seconds adrift of the race leader Leon Haslam and having moved up to sixth on lap 12, which he made into fourth two laps later when he overtook both Josh Brookes and Jason O’Halloran. It looked he’d take the position at the chequered flag but O’Halloran had other ideas and at the final corner on the final lap, he regained the place and so Peter crossed the line in fifth place for another excellent result.
The Louth-based rider started from seventh for the second 18-lap affair and it was even more closely fought with up to eight riders battling for the podium places and separated by only one and a half seconds. Despite never running higher than seventh, Peter was always in contention for the podium but a slight mistake at half race distance saw him slip back before taking a solid seventh at the chequered flag.
Team-mate Jackson again made good strides forward over the course of the weekend and his efforts were rewarded with his first points of the season. Starting the first race from 19th on the grid, the 21 year old made good progress throughout the race and finished in 15th to take a hard earned point.
The Lincoln rider again lined up in 19th for race two and by lap three he was up to 16th and on the edge of the points. Jackson found himself battling with a large group of riders for a top ten placing before settling for 13th position at the flag to claim his best result of the season.
Peter Hickman: “Fifth was a good result in the first race but I was a bit disappointed to have left the door open on the last corner. Normally you can hear the bikes behind you but on this occasion, I couldn’t so I thought I had a safe fourth! I was a bit annoyed but top five was still a good outcome and we made further improvements to the bike for race two although I again made an average start. I had the pace to finish on the podium but all of the riders in the group were lapping at a similar pace so it was difficult to pass and then hold onto the position if you had made a pass. I got bullied a bit and made a couple of mistakes so rolled off a bit to bring the bike home.”
Lee Jackson: “It’s my first points of the year and we’ve made some definite improvements to the bike so we’re going in the right direction. P13 and P15 isn’t where I want to be so the next step is to get into the top ten again like I have been before. I’ve been trying to make the bike feel like the one I rode in 2016 and make it more consistent and we’re definitely getting there. I had good mid-race pace on each occasion but did lose a bit of durability whilst a mistake on the last lap allowed Smrz to pip me for 12th. The improvements the team have made have been in the right direction and we’re getting closer to the top ten.”
Rebecca Smith, Team Manager: “Peter scored some good points again but such is the closeness of the championship, he’s gone from fifth to eighth in the table despite two fine rides. He’s consistently running with the top group so we’re happy with how he’s riding and together with the team, he’s continually moving forward and getting quicker. He can now look forward to the road racing season with a lot of confidence. It was great to see Lee score his first points of the season and he’s made a lot of progress with the bike, both on the track with the bike and off it with his confidence. He’s getting closer to where we all know he can be so our plan is to get a test lined up before the next round at Knockhill to give him every chance of finishing in the top ten.”
More, from a press release issued by Mason Law Racing:
EMOTIONAL WIN FOR SERIES ROOKIE LAW IN SUPERSTOCK 1000 CLASS AT OULTON PARK
Class rookie Mason Law grabbed a memorable debut win in the National 1000cc Superstock class, during round three of the British championship at May Day Monday’s Bank Holiday meeting at Oulton Park.
The Stauff Connect Academy rider made the correct tyre choice in the re-started 9 lap race in damp conditions, aboard his ZX-10RR GR Motorsport prepared Kawasaki, showing great character and a cool head to take his first win in the class by almost six seconds.
Mason Law:
“That race was all about using my head. My first start was good; I kept my place on track and started to push forward, which was the original plan. Then came the drizzle, which to be fair did start to settle on the track making it slick before the red flag.
We stuck the wet tyres in and I got a good leap off the line in the re-start and gained a few positions into turn one, then started to pick a few people off. The boys with the dry tyre choice started to come through. At that point I honestly thought, ‘fair enough good shout boys’ but I knew we were still on for a third place.
All I could do was pray for rain and it came. The problem was, the wets were really worn by that time and there wasn’t much grip out there, which a few guys found out. I passed the guys on dry tyres and found myself up to second.
I kept my pace, worked out where I had grip and where there wasn’t so much and started to catch the leader. When in front I had a 2.5-second gap showing on the pit board with three laps to go and honestly, I wanted to see that chequered flag pronto!
I crossed the line for the last lap and misread my board, thinking it was just half a second and not five seconds, so I pushed on; thankfully not too much to take one of the most emotional wins of my career. We, and I mean ‘we’ as a team at Stauff Connect Academy have worked extremely hard. So it’s pleasing to give my boys the gift of a win, and the sponsors, both personal and team related.”
Mason’s victory moves him up to seventh place in the championship standings, with the next round taking place at Knockhill in Scotland on June 16/17/18th.
More, from a press release issued by Gearlink Kawasaki:
Dickies British Supersport
It was a mixed weekend for the Gearlink Kawasaki team at the third round of the Dickies British Supersport Championship at Oulton Park. Australian Ben Currie secured a sixth and fifth in the two races and Ulsterman Andrew Irwin gained a fantastic second place in race one and 11th in race two.
Andrew Irwin worked hard during the practice sessions to find a suitable set-up on the Gearlink Kawasaki for the very technical circuit. His times continued to improve in each session and he was eager for a good qualifying sessions. He ended up qualifying on the front row in third position for the opening Sprint race on Sunday afternoon.
Andrew got a flying start and was leading the opening lap until the last corner when Keith Farmer came past him. They were locked in a scrap for the opening few laps and Andrew was looking confident for another strong result. It was not long before reigning British Champion Tarran Mackenzie made his move to the front but Andrew, once again, was able to stick with him. The battle was just starting when the race was cut short and red-flagged on lap 10 of 12 and a race result called, with Andrew securing another brilliant second place.
In race two he was placed in second place on the grid, he got a good start and held his position after the opening lap. He was soon locked in a battle with fellow country man Keith Farmer, who got passed him on lap two. On lap seven, Andrew raised his hand and started to slow down. He was able to nurse the Gearlink Kawasaki home to 11th place and some valuable Championship points. He is now sitting in fourth place in the overall Championship standings.
His team-mate Ben Currie also had a strong weekend and after some adjustments after the practice sessions his times were also improving. He qualified in seventh place for the opening Dickies Sprint race on Sunday. Ben is certainly a racer and made for race day, he got a great start and was sitting in third place after lap one. The pace was quick and Ben dropped a couple of places back to fifth, he was then locked in a battle with Keith Farmer for fourth. Despite the fight he put up, he slipped back to sixth when the red flag came out.
He started from fifth in race two, a good start saw him move to fourth after lap one. He was caught out on lap two and Tarran Mackenzie and Jack Kennedy both came past him. By the seventh lap he was seventh but he was soon able to get his head down and progress forwards through the pack finishing in a solid fifth place. With his extremely consistent results so far this season, Ben is lying in third place in the series standings.
Ben Currie – “It’s been a tough weekend at the office. I struggled from free practice one but managed to pull it back for race one and secure some good points.
Race two was a different story as I really struggled with rear grip. It was a credit to the Gearlink Kawasaki team for their continued hard work and never turning their back on me no matter how hard the job gets and I was able to gain another decent result.
I am sitting in a solid third in the Championship after a hard weekend is certainly a positive thing. I want to push hard at Knockhill to get on the podium and on the top step. I’d like to say a huge thank you to all my sponsors and UK Race Homes for providing me with 5* accommodation.”
Andrew Irwin – “It was another testing weekend where I think I continued to show the pace to run at the front of the British Supersport races. We struggled a little on Friday but the Gearlink Kawasaki team did a great job turning the bike around for qualifying where we ended up on the front row.
The first race was pretty good, I felt comfortable in second place and the rain came, which put an end to me being able to push for the win.
In the second race, I had a mechanical problem from the opening lap and there was nothing I could do. It got worse as the race went on but I kept on pushing as those extra Championship points might be vital at the end of the season.
Thank you to all my personal sponsors and the Gearlink Kawasaki team for all their hard work.”
MCE British Superbike
James Westmoreland worked hard once again throughout the weekend trying to continuously improve on his lap times. He pushed in qualifying for his best lap time of the weekend and just missed out on getting through to Q2. He started race one from 20th and finished in the same position. For race two he started from 22nd on the grid and pushed hard to finish just outside the points in 17th place.
James Westmoreland – “Race one was a bit of a struggle and we made some big changes for the second race, which helped massively. We’ve been on the back foot this weekend after losing the test day last week here.
It’s been unfortunate, as I’ve felt one step behind all weekend but my pace was ok and we improved in every session. I’m looking forward to having a think of how we can close the gap in the time off that we have.
I’d like to say a big thank you to the Gearlink Kawasaki team for their continuous hard work and I am looking forward to Knockhill as I think we can do a good job there. Good luck to the Gearlink team as the head to the North West 200 with Alastair Seeley.”
Team Manager Michael de Bidaph – “We struggled during the Supersport practice sessions but we worked really hard with Ben and Andrew and qualifying went really well.
The Sprint race was good, Andrew once again showed that he could run up at the front and if the race had not been cut short it would have been interesting to see if he could have challenged Tarran (Mackenzie). Despite Ben having a tough weekend he rode really well and once again rode another consistent race to finish in sixth.
In race two the bad luck continued for us and Andrew struggled with a technical problem throughout the race but he was still able to salvage some points. Ben had a really good ride and once again set some strong lap times which gained him fifth place, he is still third in the Championship standings I’m very pleased about.
James once again worked exceptionally well in every session to make progress. He works incredible hard with the team and we are making small steps. I hope with the effort he puts in the results will start to come for him soon.
We are now heading to the North West 200 with Alastair Seeley and he will be riding our Supersport bike there.”
More, from a press release issued by Tyco BMW:
IDDON CONSOLIDATES BSB POSITION AT OULTON PARK
Tyco BMW’s Christian Iddon consolidated his third place in the British Superbike Championship standings with two solid finishes during the Bank Holiday May Day meeting at Oulton Park.
Eighth in race one was bettered with a strong fourth place in race two, where Iddon narrowly missed out on his fourth podium of the season from this year’s opening six races aboard the TAS Racing prepared Tyco BMW S1000RR.
Alastair Seeley joined Tyco BMW for the weekend, where he deputised for Davide Giugliano, and despite slipping out of a top twelve finish during race two on Bank Holiday Monday at Oulton Park, the Ulsterman has gained valuable mileage on a Superbike prior to next weekend’s International North West 200.
Christian Iddon:
It was a tough weekend for a number of reasons but we can take away a lot of positives. Race one was disappointing but in the second race we were there battling for second place, so to then lose out on a podium, which is all important with podium credits on offer was frustrating – but at least we are continually in the mix. That debut win still hasn’t come but it’s not with the lack of effort, and my three-hour cycle home will clear my head and let me evaluate where we need to be for the next round. Thanks to the team for their continued big effort. We are sitting in a strong championship position; we just need to keep pushing hard for consistent podiums and try to grab that elusive win.”
Alastair Seeley:
“I enjoyed my return to the Tyco BMW team at Oulton Park and only for my little tip-off in race two, I think we had a pretty solid weekend considering and produced some good pace. It wasn’t all about the North West 200 at Oulton, but on the flip side it has given me valuable Superbike time, which means we can hit the ground running next week in Portrush. Thanks to everyone for making me feel so welcome again and to the fans who gave me a good reception on my return.”
In the re-started Superstock 1000cc race, Ian Hutchinson gambled on a dry rear in the inclement conditions, which in the early stages was looking like the correct choice. Unfortunately, the rain came and interrupted his chances of fifth podium this season. He eventually finished 14th.
Ian Hutchinson:
“It was worth the gamble, but didn’t pay off, but in hindsight, none of the leading championship contenders scored significant points either, so it hasn’t really affected the championship table. It’s now road racing time with the NW200 and TT on the horizon, but we remain in good shape in the Superstock 1000 class in British championship and will look to return with a strong podium finish at Knockhill in June.”
Philip Neill – Team Manager:
“We may not have added to our podium tally at Oulton Park, however it was great to see Christian challenging at the front in both of the extremely exciting BSB races. The 2017 BMW S1000RR once again showed its capabilities, with Alastair also enjoying a strong showing throughout the weekend after being introduced to his new machine only a few hours before the first practise session.
We made a brave last minute tyre choice with Hutchy in the Superstock 1000cc class, which looked like paying off, until the rain returned around half distance ending his chances of another podium finish.
With everything considered, we are comfortable with our championship positions in both Superbike and Superstock at this point. We now look forward to another exciting challenge at next week’s North West 200, which is quickly followed by the IOM TT. Thanks once again to our partners in Tyco Security Products and BMW Motorrad together with all our associate sponsors.”
More, from a press release issued by Team WD-40/GR Motosport:
Great weekend at Oulton Park with the STAUFF Connect Academy first win of 2017 as Tommy Bridewell breaks into BSB top10
It was an emotional roller coaster for Sheffield-based GR Motosport at the 3rd round of the MCE British Superbike Championship at Oulton Park, taking our first win of the season and picking up a rider injury.
The highs and lows of motorcycle sport can and do come thick and fast, On bank Holiday Monday Mason Law and his Stauff Connect Academy Team took his Kawasaki ZX10RR and dominated in mixed conditions to take our first race win of the season. Tommy Bridewell pushed his Team WD-40 Kawasaki ZX10RR Superbike into the top ten in BSB and unfortunately Liam Delves crash out while battling for 5th in the Hel MotoStar Championship race collecting ankle injuries.
The MCE British Superbike Championship: BSB this year continues to be the closest in level of competition it’s been for years with many ex British and World Champions, other Top riders and Teams. Team WD-40 Superbike continue to learn and understand the new Kawasaki ZX10RR. Our step by step improvements have seen Tommy Bridewell able to push a little harder moving up the result sheets the more he gets comfortable with the ZX10RR. Another improvement in qualifying putting #TB46 in tenth his best so far this season would enabled him to be closer to the front. Tommy was again in the points for both races and took his best finish of the season so far in 8th. Currently 10th in the overall standings. We still have work to do with the chassis and Motec system to get the best from the bike for Tommy but we are getting close and will see more updates available for the BSB test.
Tommy Bridewell: “Another Tuff weekend for us at Oulton, it’s good to get into the top Ten but we still have work to do for me to push more. My Team WD-40 crew are making progress and we have some more things to try ready for the next race at Knockhill.
Pirelli National Superstock 1000: The Stauff Connect Academy had made a strong start to the Season taking points in every race so far. At the official BSB test held at Oulton Park a week earlier Mason and his Team made another step forward in understanding the set-up of the Kawasaki ZX10RR so were quite confident at the track where Mason still holds the Superstock 600 lap record. In a race of 2 parts interrupted by the weather on Monday morning the tyre gamble was for everyone the difficult decision for the restart ‘We chose Wet Set-up’. For the first few laps it looked for Mason but the track was drying so he had to manage things but then the rain came again and Mason lifted the pace to take the lead and pull away to take the chequered flag and our first win of the season with a 5 second advantage
Mason Law: “That race was all about using my head. My first start was good; I kept my place on track and started to push forward, which was the original plan. Then came the drizzle, which to be fair did start to settle on the track making it slick before the red flag.
We stuck the wet tyres in and I got a good leap off the line in the re-start and gained a few positions into turn one, then started to pick a few people off. The boys with the dry tyre choice started to come through. At that point I honestly thought, ‘fair enough good shout boys’ but I knew we were still on for a third place.
All I could do was pray for rain and it came. The problem was, the wets were really worn by that time and there wasn’t much grip out there, which a few guys found out. I passed the guys on dry tyres and found myself up to second. I kept my pace, worked out where I had grip and where there wasn’t so much and started to catch the leader. When in front I had a 2.5-second gap showing on the pit board with three laps to go and honestly, I wanted to see that chequered flag pronto!
I crossed the line for the last lap and misread my board, thinking it was just half a second and not five seconds, so I pushed on; thankfully not too much to take one of the most emotional wins of my career. We, and I mean ‘we’ as a team at Stauff Connect Academy have worked extremely hard. So it’s pleasing to give my boys the gift of a win, and the sponsors, both personal and team related.”
HEL Performance MotoStar: Having taken points in the first 4 races Liam continues to make progress on his Stauff Connect Academy DR Moto. Again, in qualifying he and his Team made another step forward getting closer to the leading pace and qualifying 8th. Liam who has struggled to make good starts is now working hard in that area which showed this weekend getting away with the leaders to be in a fight for 5th place. The Racing was very close and unfortunately Liam could not avoid and touched another rider crashing out and picking up an ankle injury.
Liam Delves: It was a good weekend until I crashed, Mark, Phil and Derek have been helping me to understand more about my DR Moto and I felt that I was getting better every lap. My lap times were coming down every session and in the race, I was doing 46’s which I was really pleased with. I am sorry to my Team after all their hard work that I crash the bike and hurt myself but I will be ready for the next race at Knockhill.
Brent Gladwin – GR Motosport Managing Director: “Highs and lows are really an understatement. The work load my Team have, to continue to grow in the extremely competitive British Superbike Championship is huge. Geoff is moving the Superbike forward and Tommy is now heading where we want to be but there is still more improvement to come from us all. Danny has got the package together for Mason to Win and the development of Liam and the DR Moto is really coming along. We have a little break from racing now but it does not mean we will be relaxing, Mason will race at Donington in support at WSB and then it will soon be time for the BSB test at Snetterton on the 7th of June.
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More, from a press release issued by McAMS Yamaha:
Highs and lows for the McAMS Yamaha team at Oulton Park
The McAMS Yamaha team had a mixed weekend at the third round of the MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship at Oulton Park over the Bank Holiday weekend.
Tarran Mackenzie maintained his perfect winning form to claim his sixth win in as many races in the Dickies British Supersport Championship to further extend his advantage at the top of the standings despite severely injuring his finger during the official test.
The team had a challenging weekend in the Superbike class; James Ellison delivered a fighting performance in the opening race to battle through to sixth after a tough time in qualifying. In race two Ellison was pushing for the team’s first podium of the season, but a technical problem left him sidelined.
Michael Laverty endured a bruising weekend with a huge crash in qualifying which left him feeling second hand ahead of the two races, but despite this he bravely fought on to test new settings on the McAMS Yamaha during the races. He retired before full race distance but was positive of the improvement as the season reaches a break before Knockhill.
Ellison said: “I can’t seem to catch a break this year. We have a strong package in the McAMS Yamaha and have led at all three rounds this year and even smashed a lap record at Brands Hatch, so to be this far back in the championship standings with zero podium points really doesn’t reflect just where we should be.
“I’ve had more than my fair share of knock backs in racing and each one only makes me more hungry and stronger than the last. The freak accident at Oulton Park that knocked us out of a strong second place and the chance to get our championship on track was no different. We will be back and we will be stronger than ever before.”
Laverty said: “Oulton Park was obviously a difficult weekend! We had a revised setting to test for both myself and James over the weekend and we moved to a new set-up which was more towards what the Yamaha team use in WSB. We both tried that direction and the lap times were just not coming and in qualifying I just pushed the envelope too far and lost the front over a bump. It completely ruined my race bike and left me feeling very second hand too but thankfully nothing was broken.
“I knew I wasn’t anywhere near my best but the boys had worked so hard all weekend and I wanted to test something different in the races so I gave it a go but I was physically unable to do race distance in both, which is why I retired. Oulton Park is one of the most physically challenging circuits anywhere in the world and it takes a lot to wrestle a Superbike around there even when you have no injury. However the positive was that we found something really good with the front end, so that meant we ended the weekend feeling happier.
“I am gutted for the team but I am glad that we found something beneficial because we want to keep moving forward because in this game you need to be all the time.”
Mackenzie said: “It was just over a week since my operation and I was waiting to see what it felt like on the bike, but it didn’t give me any problems so that was nice. Once I had the first session we worked to make the bike better and six out of six is an awesome feeling.
“The win in the Sprint race gave me some extra confidence and then the Feature race was a bit more difficult. I had to come through a few people and Jack kept passing me but I am happy that I got to the front and could get my head down. This is a perfect way to go into the break especially with Knockhill coming up and that would be even better if I can win there.”