Szoke Opens his Season with a Win at Shannonville
The opening round of the Mopar Canadian Superbike Championship at Shannonville Motorsports Park has been tradition for the series, and this year was no different. The fans and full paddock of racers were treated to hot and sunny weather from flag to flag.
Szoke opened up his bid for a 13th Canadian Superbike Championship by piloting his 2018 Mopar Express Lane BMW S1000RR around the Shannonville Pro track in a fast flyer of 1:04.412. Just squeaking by fellow competitor Matt McBride by 0.045 sec in Dalton Timmins Superpole action Saturday afternoon.
Sunday’s action was no less dramatic with Szoke taking the hole shot with Fellow BMW pilots Matt McBride and Ben Young hot at his heels. Tucking the front on the new pavement in turn 8 McBride took advantage and passed Szoke for the lead. McBride nursing an injured knee from a previous crash slowed and Szoke managed to pull clear of the pack for the victory.
“I got lucky today, it’s never over until it’s over. I put in some hard laps to maintain the gap to bring it home for the win. Winning is never easy, I always hit the reset button every season, regardless of how many wins or championships you have there’s always someone hungry to beat you.” says Szoke. “Now make sure you stay in your seats and cheer on my wife in her superbike debut.”
Amy Szoke started her first Superbike race right after her husband Jordan’s win. It was her very first weekend on the new BMWS1000RR having stepped up from the lightweight class last season. Starting from 10th position Amy slid into 3rd place by corner two. After a brief battle for the final podium spot she succumbed to a solid fourth place defending her position to a pack of racers behind her. Just past mid point Amy ran off track on the back straight and had to rejoin, placing her right where she started in 10th spot.
“Not bad for my first superbike race.” says Amy. “I’ve now notched 6 days on this dragon so considering that I am more than pleased. It wasn’t the best finish, but it was a great ride. I’ve gone the fastest I’ve ever gone around here (at a best lap time of 1:10.092) so I’m pretty proud of that. Thank you to everyone near and far who sent me words of encouragement. I couldn’t have done it without you. That ride was for you.”
More, from a press release issued by BMW Motorrad Motorsport:
Five wins and a total of 13 podiums: BMW riders continue their run of success in international and national championships.
•Third win of the season for Markus Reiterberger in the FIM Superstock 1000 European Championship, Roberto Tamburini on the podium again.
•BMW riders finish in top four positions in the Alpe Adria Road Racing Championship.
•BMW racers in Canada get the new season of the Canadian Superbike Championship underway by claiming the top three positions.
Munich. The BMW racers continue their run of success in international and national championships. Their haul from the weekend: five wins and a total of 13 podiums. In the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship (WorldSBK), Loris Baz (FRA) secured a front row grid position at Donington Park (GBR) and finished in the top ten in both races. At the same track, Markus Reiterberger (GER) celebrated his third win of the season in the FIM Superstock 1000 European Championship. Roberto Tamburini (ITA) finished on the podium for the fourth time in the fourth race of the season. The races in the Alpe Adria Road Racing Championship Superbike class (AARR SBK) at Poznan, Poland, ended with a win for Karel Hanika (CZE) and a podium for Christopher Kemmer (AUT). In the Superstock class (AARR STK) Michal Filla (CZE) won both races, with BMW riders securing the top four positions in race two. Reigning champion Carmelo Morales (ESP) finished in second place on the podium in the second race of the season in the Spanish Championship (RFME CEV). And at the season opener of the Canadian Superbike Championship (CSBK) at Shannonville (CAN), record champion Jordan Szoke, Ben Young and Matt McBride (all CAN) claimed the top three positions for BMW.
MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship at Donington Park, Great Britain.
Typical British weather welcomed the 2018 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship (WorldSBK) riders and teams to the sixth round of the season at Donington Park (GBR) – with rain on Friday and Saturday. Loris Baz (FRA) of the Gulf Althea BMW Team was unfazed by the wet conditions. The Frenchman finished the first practice session in third place; he set the eighth fastest time overall on Friday, making it straight into the crucial Superpole 2. As the third-fastest in that qualifying session, he secured a position on the front row of the grid. Baz finished the two races in positions seven and ten.
Loris Baz: “In the wet, I had good feeling with my bike, which was behaving well. I’m pleased to have scored the first front row start for BMW in five years. I felt very confident with the qualifying tyre, and we have made good progress with the bike, but nevertheless the front row came as a pleasant surprise. I knew the race would be tougher; when you start from the front row you always hope you can fight for the podium but unfortunately that wasn’t possible. I still had some grip issues and, although I tried my best, I gradually lost ground, losing a few tenths each lap. Overall, P7 in race one was a very good result, considering how things went at Imola. Sunday was a very tough day. We tried a different tyre in warm-up, but we’d need to work more on the bike set-up to be able to use that tyre in the race, so I started the race with a different tyre again, but unfortunately I had no feeling with the front and too much chattering which meant I couldn’t go into the turns quickly. Tenth was all we could do. But overall we’ve definitely taken a step forward this weekend though and I hope we can continue in this vein in Brno.”
FIM Superstock 1000 European Championship at Donington Park, Great Britain.
Fourth race of the season in the FIM Superstock 1000 European Championship (STK1000) – and third win of the season for alpha Racing-Van-Zon-BMW Team’s Markus Reiterberger (GER) . The BMW S 1000 RR rider had another perfect weekend at Donington Park (GBR). Reiterberger secured pole position with a record time and set a new lap record in his dominant start-to-finish victory. Fellow BMW rider Roberto Tamburini (ITA / Berclaz Racing Team) continued his run of finishing on the podium in Great Britain and after three second places, he finished in third place on the podium this time. Jan Bühn (GER / alpha Racing-Van-Zon-BMW) and Eric Vionnet (SUI / MOTOS VIONNET) also finished in the top ten, in eighth and tenth place. Reiterberger’s win sees him extend his lead in the championship. With 86 points, he now has a ten-point lead over second-placed Tamburini.
Markus Reiterberger: “We modified the chassis slightly during warm-up to make the tyres last better over the distance. It worked perfectly. The motorcycle was well-balanced, easy and consistent to ride, and that was the key to success at Donington. It was a fantastic weekend; everyone in the team did an impeccable job. We were able to extend the lead in the championship to ten points again, and that is important. Now I’m looking forward to Brno – a really great track on which we will go on the attack again.”
Alpe Adria Road Racing Championship at Poznan, Poland.
The Alpe Adria Road Racing Championship (AARR) headed to Poznan in Poland for its second event of the 2018 season. Karel Hanika (CZE) in the Superbike class (AARR SBK) celebrated his first win of the year. The Mercury Racing Team rider won the second race on Sunday on his BMW S 1000 RR. Christopher Kemmer (AUT / Bertl K. Racing Team) joined him on the podium, finishing in third place. Hanika finished the first race in fourth place, with Kemmer finishing in sixth place.
In the Superstock class (AARR STK) BMW rider Michal Filla (CZE / BMW Sikora Motorsport) remains the dominant man. He won both races, getting the fastest race lap in each and celebrating his third and fourth wins of the season. In race one, his team-mate Bartlomiej Wiczynski (POL) finished second to clinch a one-two finish for BMW. Michal Šembera (CZE / TME racing team) finished fourth.
In the second race in the Superstock class, BMW riders claimed the top four positions. Behind Filla in second place was Arnaud Friedrich (GER / Team LRP Poland), third place on the podium went to Michal Prášek (CZE / Rohac and Fejta motoracing team). Wiczynski crossed the finish line in fourth place.
Spanish Championship at Barcelona, Spain.
The Spanish Championship (RFME CEV) held its second race of the 2018 season at the “Circuit de Catalunya” near Barcelona (ESP). Reigning champion Carmelo Morales (ESP), of the Graphenano EasyRace SBK Team, picked up more important points for ‘Mission Defend Title’. After his win at the opening race, BMW rider Morales finished in second place on the podium this time around.
Canadian Superbike Championship at Shannonville, Canada.
The 2018 season started in the Canadian Superbike Championship (CSBK) with the top three positions going to BMW riders. The field was led by record champion and defending champion Jordan Szoke (CAN), who continued his run of success and set the pace at the first race weekend of the new year at Shannonville (CAN). Szoke secured pole position on his BMW S 1000 RR in action for the Mopar Express Lane BMW Superbike team and won the race with a clear lead of 5.73 seconds. Second place on the podium went to BMW rider Ben Young (CAN / Ben Young Racing), and Matt McBride (CAN) rounded off the one-two-three finish in third place.
More, from a press release issued by Ben Young Racing:
PODIUM FINISH FOR YOUNG IN CSBK OPENING ROUND AT SHANNONVILLE
SHANNONVILLE, ON – MAY 29, 2018
It was the opening MOPAR Canadian Superbike Championship (CSBK) round at Shannonville Motorsports Park this past weekend. Going into the weekend, the weather forecast was for periods of rain but thankfully the sun was shining and the heat was on for Ben Young on his #86 Scot-Build BMW S1000RR and the team to chase hard to clinch their first Superbike win.
Perfect weather and track conditions greeted Friday’s practice sessions for the Collingwood Ont, rider. Young again with last year’s team members Scott Cartier and Willy Vass, along with new team member Steve Weir, put in some serious hours on and off the track to chase that perfect set up.
Young with the Scot-Build BMW S1000RR placed himself 3rd on the grid during Saturday afternoons Dalton Timmis Insurance Pro Superbike Top Ten SuperPole session with a time of 1:04.754. This was 0.34 seconds off MOPAR CSBK Champion Jordon Szoke’s pole position time.
Sunday’s race again arrived with good racing conditions. Young got a good start in 2ndposition, but heading into turn 2, series veteran Matt McBride nipped Young to retake his qualifying position of 2nd. McBride and Szoke broke away from Young slightly and started battling for the lead in the first 3 opening laps though Szoke started to pull a gap. Young knew he had to chase hard. While chasing McBride and taking back 2nd position, Szoke had already pulled a 5 second gap. Maintaining the gap to the final flag, Young crossed the finish line with a hard fought second place.
Young said, “We had a great weekend and good solid start to the season. We had a good set up for SuperPole on the Saturday, managing to get where we wanted to be as in lap times for Sunday’s race. During the race, the wind picked up and had an effect which was unfortunate as this let Szoke get the gap. Stoked for 2nd place finish and we’re heading to a track I like for round two. We’ll be chasing hard for the win. We are very fortunate in working again with our great sponsors and also with a new addition of Liqui Moly, who are supplying our engine oil needs”. Looking forward in providing great results all season for these guys”.
The MOPAR Canadian Superbike Championship returns to TSN for 2018. Visit www.csbk.ca for confirmed dates at times for broadcasts.
The Mopar Canadian Superbike Championship heads to Grand Bend Motorplex in Grand Bend, Ont on June 8-10, 2018.
Young’s partners for his 2018 CSBK Championship season include; Scot-build Developments, BMW Motorrad Canada, AXO Racing, Arai Helmets, Hindle Exhaust, Woodcraft, SBS, Motion Pro, Bickle Racing, Liqui Moly, ACF-50, Barrie Trim and Mouldings Inc.
He is also proud “Laps for Muscular Dystrophy” (Laps4MD) rider who’s pledged to donate $1 for every lap he leads. These donations go to Muscular Dystrophy Canada to help make a difference in the lives of over 50,000 Canadians affected by a neuromuscular disorder.
To keep up-to-date on Ben Young throughout the year visit; www.BenYoungRacing.com, www.facebook.com/BenYoungRacing and on Twitter and Instagram: @benyoung_86.