PODIUM SUCCESS FOR RAMSEY BUT DISAPPOINTMENT FOR MARTIN SOLENT SCIENTIFIC RACING AT THE 2007 MACAU GRAND PRIX Solent Scientific Racing have entered the Macau motorcycle GP for the second consecutive year, fielding riders in both the Superbike and 600 Supersport classes. Macau, formerly a Portuguese colony but now a Special Administrative Region within the Republic of China, hosts an annual Grand Prix event for many classes of motorsport including the famous Motorcycle GP. 2007 is the 54th annual Grand Prix and the 41st at which motorcycles have competed. During race week the city, on the shore of the South China Sea, is converted to a street race track, the notorious 6.2km long Circuito Da Guia. For more information regarding Macau please visit the official Macau website at: http://www.macautourism.gov.mo/en/index.php For more details of the Macau GP event please visit: http://www.macau.grandprix.gov.mo/app/home/gp54/en Based in Portsmouth in the UK, Solent Scientific are world leaders in the specialist production of glass lenses and associated manufacturing products. Orry Dugdale, Solent Scientific’s Managing Director, who travelled to Macau to support the team said “we are both proud and excited to be associated with such a unique and challenging event”. For more information about Solent Scientific please visit their website at: http://www.solentsci.com/uk/home/index.htm The Solent Scientific Team, which consists of one 1000cc Honda Fireblade Superbike and one 600cc Honda CBR600 Supersport machine, is managed by Guisborough based Shaun Muir Racing (known simply as SMR). SMR are a hugely experienced racing operation and team principal Shaun Muir commented “the Macau GP is a major international event and, as such, it’s a logical addition to our racing portfolio. We ran the Solent Scientific team in 2006 and we are very pleased to be asked to manage their team again this year”. Solent Scientific’s rider’s for 2007 are Guy Martin on the 1000cc Superbike and Callum Ramsay on the 600cc Supersport machine. Guy, 25 from Kirmington in Lincolnshire, is already an established road racer having achieved three podium finishes in the 2007 Isle of Man TT races including 2nd place in the Senior Race. Former British 250cc champion Callum Ramsay, 32 from Perth in Scotland, has had many years of racing success on roads as well short circuits, having won the NW200 and been a previous Macau GP winner. Racing activities began on Thursday 15th November with Free Practice at 07.30 and Qualifying 1 at 15.30. Both sessions went very well for Martin and Ramsay and gave the team a confident start to the event. Qualifying 2, held on Friday at 07.30, was a session of high drama for Solent Scientific. For the first 21 minutes of the 30 minute session Martin was the fastest rider out on track with a best lap time of 2m28.064s. However, in the 22nd minute disaster struck on the approach to Police Station Bend, a fast narrow turn on the back section of the circuit. Martin misjudged his breaking point causing him to lose control of his 1000cc Honda Fireblade and crash heavily into the safety barrier. Martin was taken to the local hospital where it was discovered he had broken his left wrist and the thumb on his right hand. On his release from hospital a few hours later he said “I am devastated, I was leading the session and then just a tiny error of judgement caused me to crash out. I really feel disappointment for the team, all of whom have worked so hard”. Ramsey, however, continued his strong performance and ended the qualifying sessions as the third fastest in the 600 Supersport class with a lap time of 2m38.067s. With Martin’s arm in a plaster cast Ramsey was Solent Scientific’s only entrant for the Grand Prix, which started at 15.20 on Saturday. He rode an excellent race and achieved a podium position with a well deserved 3rd place. At the press conference he said “it was a good race for me and I’m delighted to have got onto the podium. I thank the team for their superb support and I hope this goes some way to make up for the fact that Guy could not race”. Team manager, Shaun Muir, said: “obviously the team are very disappointed that Guy could not take part in the Superbike race, especially as his lap times were suggesting he could have finished with the leaders. However, Callum’s performance was superb and for the team to achieve a podium place in only it’s second year is a fantastic result”. Orry Dugdale, MD of Solent Scientific, summed up his feelings: “for Solent Scientific to achieve a podium position in only our second year at this unique closed road race is a true testament to the efforts of Callum Ramsey and the team who support him. It was, of course, a shame that our second rider, Guy Martin, was unable to take part in the Superbike category due to injuries sustained in the qualifying session while trying to improve on his already outstanding qualifying grid position”. Resullts: Superbike: P1 Plater – GBR – Aim Yamaha 37:03.845 P2 McGuinness – GBR – Stobart Honda 37:07.965 P3 Hinterreiter – AUT – Austria Yamaha 37:14.236 600cc Supersport P1 Allan – GBR – Aim Yamaha 38:38.911 P2 Penzkofer – GER – Austria Yamaha 38:51.482 P3 Ramsey – GBR – Solent Scientific Honda 39:35.382 More, from a press release issued by Corona Extra Racing: CORONA EXTRA HONDA AND MARK MILLER TAKE SIXTH AT MACAU GP INTERNATIONAL Corona Extra Honda Racing and rider Mark Miller finished sixth at the 41st running of the world famous Macau GP held on the streets of the old Portuguese colony of Macau across the bay from Hong Kong. The Team and rider, participating at the invitation of the organizers who arranged shipping of the Honda CBR1000RR Superbike as raced this year by James Ellison, quickly got up to speed in this true “Road Racing” event! In the first practice session Miller finished 7th out a field of 35 entries which included many international stars. The race is run over city streets so practice time is short as the populace needs to use the road! This means setup and any small issues can be problematical. This being the first time on the bike at the track for Mark the crew scrambled to get it spot on. In the final qualifying session Mark slipped to 13th. A fueling problem, arising from the requirement to use unleaded gas in place of the leaded race gas used in AMA SuperBike, had appeared which took time to sort out. Mark said; “The fuel delivery system has been acting up, there’s a lull almost to quitting at the bottom, then BANG! it comes on full tilt. All else is really good. The bike is handling great and the brakes and tires are perfect. I hit a couple walls hard so got some souvenir scuffs on the new Joe Rocket leathers!” (The track is lined with Armco barriers and walls in places!) Marks review of the race; “I did a few practice starts after qualifying and got good feel for what the clutch likes to do on a launch. When the red lights went out I bogged the motor down a bit trying not to rev it over 10K, then must have been about 20th into the first bend, not far from our third row grid. After stretching our legs on the first big straight (bikes can reach 200 MPH) I was probably up to 15th into the first hard braking “Lisboa” ninety degree right hander. After what was a terribly fun and aggressive tight first lap with loads of close passes between the steel Armco, I got up to 12th at the first pass over the start/finish line transponder. Over the next laps I was able to steadily make up additional if not more difficult passes on the bikes ahead, eventually getting to 8th place and in pursuit of Cummings from the Isle of Man. I just couldn’t get him”. At the checkered flag Mark was in sixth place, a terrific finish for the Team in a race viewed by over 100,000,000 in Asia and the World. After the race Mark commented; “My lap times improved every time around the circuit, setting my fastest lap of our weekend on the final lap. I felt better with every minute aboard the Corona Honda, feeling out carefully the ever-improving technologically advanced Dunlop slicks, the massively powerful CBR1000 engine, the terrific Ohlin’s suspension, and the World Superbike spec Brembo brakes. My crew of Dwayne and Walker were terrific and got the bike just perfect for me! This was my first race on this bike, and I was impressed. I believe with a bit more seat time we’d be fighting for the win!”