Double Top Ten For Bridewell At Croft Tommy Bridewell came away with a pair of battling top ten places at round three of the 2011 MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship whereby mixed weather conditions prevailed at Croft. The 22-year-old from Etchilhampton near Devizes in Wiltshire was in action on the Tyco Honda and spent most of free practice setting up the bike for the demanding North Yorkshire track before qualifying in 18th place during Saturday’s knockout session. With dark clouds looming and drizzle falling for the opening race today, Bridewell took a safe gamble and opted for a wet front tyre and intermediate rear whereby he gamely battled to 10th position at the chequered flag, which he backed up with a great ride into a similar position in the much drier race two, after battling with the leading pack for much of the 20-lap race. Tommy Bridewell: “We needed a good couple of finishes this weekend and the top ten was my aim at least so I’m pleased I’ve achieved that. In race one, the conditions were so difficult as it kept raining and then stopping I was just pleased to bring the bike home and in race two, once I found my rhythm, I felt confident running with the pack and was unlucky not to perhaps finish a place or two higher. I’m really looking forward to my home race at Thruxton in two weeks time, as I missed it last year through injury, and I think the Tyco Honda will be strong round there too.” MCE British Superbike Championship race 1 (18 laps) 1 Jon Kirkham (Suzuki) 26m 41.827s 2 John Hopkins (Suzuki) +2.940s 3 Gary Mason (Kawasaki) +3.715s 4 Loris Baz (Yamaha) +13.335s 5 Alex Lowes (Honda) +14.699s 6 Stuart Easton (Kawasaki) +19.433s 7 Peter Hickman (Honda) +22.455s 8 Josh Brookes (Suzuki) +24.297s 9 Glen Richards (Honda) +26.063s 10 Tommy Bridewell (Tyco Honda) +27.747s MCE British Superbike Championship race 2 (20 laps) 1 Shane Byrne (Honda) 27m 46.928s 2 Stuart Easton (Kawasaki) +1.887s 3 John Hopkins (Suzuki) +2.269s 4 Josh Brookes (Suzuki) +2.461s 5 Loris Baz (Yamaha) +5.517s 6 Tommy Hill (Yamaha) +6.094s 7 Gary Mason (Kawasaki) +6.748s 8 Michael Rutter (Ducati) +8.120s 9 Peter Hickman (Honda) +8.397s 10 Tommy Bridewell (Tyco Honda) +9.657s Championship points (after 3 rounds) 1 Byrne 95 points 2 Hopkins 92 3 Easton 89 4 Kiyonari 59 5 Hill 57 6 Kirkham 54 7 Baz 51 8 Mason 44 9 Rutter 42 10 Hickman 37 14 Bridewell 28 Image attached courtesy of Double Red (www.doublered.co.uk). ENDS 2011 MCE Insurance British Superbike Calendar R1 Brands Hatch 22-25 April R2 Oulton Park 30 April – 02 May R3 Croft 13-15 May R4 Thruxton 28-30 May R5 Knockhill 17-19 June R6 Snetterton 300 01-03 July R7 Oulton Park 15-17 July R8 Brands Hatch GP 05-07 August R9 Cadwell Park 27-29 August R10 Donington 09-11 September R11 Silverstone Arena GP 23-25 September R12 Brands Hatch GP 07-09 October More, from a press release issued by Splitlath Motorsport: FIRST POINTS AS KENNAUGH GRABS 11TH AT CROFT SPLITLATH Motorsport celebrated their first points of the season after a heroic ride by Hudson Kennaugh saw him cross the line 11th in today’s first MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship race at Croft. Kennaugh was forced to start the race from the back of the grid after he ducked into the pits during the warm-up lap, and had been poised to start from pit lane until the start was delayed due to a sudden rain storm. This meant he was able to line up, but had to sacrifice his 25th grid spot for 34th. A good start saw him make up several places, and even running a little wide at the opening turn did little to hamper his pace and he crossed the line 22nd at the end of the first lap. In a race which saw many of the championship’s big hitters struggle, Kennaugh put his head down and fought his way up through the order, passing leading names including Tommy Hill, Dan Linfoot and James Westmoreland. By Lap 14 he had reached 11th place after making a move on Chris Walker, and quickly pulled a bit of a gap, holding the place for the remainder of the race to finish 11th, picking up his maiden points of the season and narrowly missing out on a top ten. “I’m really pleased with that, it was a good race for me and the team. The rain has always been a great equaliser and today we proved that to be true. We are definitely heading in the right direction and it’s a good boost to us all to see that our Aprilia can be competitive when it’s on an equal playing field with those other machines.” However Race Two wasn’t so good for Kennaugh. After another good start he was knocked off the track by another rider while running in 19th spot. Although he was able to rejoin, his bike had suffered some damage and he was forced to retire. Team-mate Jenny Tinmouth had a difficult weekend as she made her debut as the first ever female to contest the hard-fought series. Her first race came to an end on Lap Two when she crashed out at the first corner. Unharmed, she lined-up for the second race later this afternoon, but this time suffered a technical problem and retired on Lap Six. “I’m keeping positive, it was good to get some time on the bike and we made some good progress with the suspension settings,” she said. “Changes we made between the races really seemed to work. “Obviously I’m gutted with the result and the problems we encountered along the way, but I’m very grateful for all of the hard work put in by the team to solve problems and get me through the weekend. “It was good to qualify and get a couple of race starts under my belt, and I think we’ve definitely made progress in the right direction with the bike.” Team Manager John Dimbylow added: “What a great first race for Hudson, and a fantastic effort from all of the team to get him up there today. We have made such a big step this weekend, and that result has given us all something to be pleased about. “It was unfortunate for Jenny that she had the crash but she’ll bounce back. These things sometimes happen in racing but she’ll come back stronger next time.” “We came here seeking improvement with the development of our RSV4 machines and I think we’ve certainly achieved that today.” More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki News Service: With a win and two further podiums, Samsung Crescent Racing enjoyed a very successful day’s racing at the third round of the British Superbikes Championship at Croft today. Jon Kirkham took his first BSB win in race one with team-mate John Hopkins placing second. And in race two, it was Hopkins on the podium again, with a hard-fought third place. After three rounds of the Championship run, Hopkins is now second overall – just three points off the leader – and Kirkham is sixth. In changeable conditions, tyre choice was critical for race one: Hopkins chose intermediate tyres front and rear; Kirkham chose an intermediate front and slick rear. Both choices paid huge dividends as both riders found themselves able to easily-pass their competitors. Hopper had made a breakaway early in the race, in the company of Gary Mason, but when the pace car came onto the track, their gap vanished – and Kirkham joined them. Once the race resumed, on a drying track, Kirkham then found advantage in his tyre choice and was able to pass the leaders and take an assured win ahead of his team-mate. Race two started badly when Kirkham – who had started from pole – became the unwitting victim of some wild riding, crashing spectacularly out of fourth position on the first lap. Hopkins meanwhile found himself fighting for grip despite the dry conditions but resisted some determined attacks to secure his second podium of the day. John Hopkins: “I’ve got to be happy with today. It started well when I went fastest in warm-up. In race one I chose to run tyres I’d never run before – the Pirelli intermediates – and they proved great and I found a lot of confidence in them. I got up to the pointy-end and we’d built up a good lead only for the safety car to come out. As a racer I wasn’t too happy to be passed after that, but seeing as it was my team-mate JK then on a personal level that was awesome; he really deserved that race. I didn’t have the grip to pass him back so by the end I was riding for the points. “Race two didn’t work out so well. I was struggling for rear wheel grip, so I did what I could and was happy to come away with another podium. Importantly I’ve come away with second place in the points table, just three points off the lead, with a stack more podium points – I’m joint-leading the table there. So for me, a very good day!” Jon Kirkham: “I really didn’t expect that race one win, I don’t even like those conditions, although being a smooth rider I do tend to get good results from them. I felt very settled immediately and I remember passing six riders in one lap. But I could see Hopper and Mason had got away so it was a huge benefit to me when the pace car came out. When I took the lead I could barely believe it. Then Hopper came back by, but I could sense I had the better grip – from the slick rear – to take the win. Even now I don’t think it’s sunk in – I’ve won a BSB race! “There’s not much I can say about race two. I was still buzzing from the race one win and so pumped to be on pole again. I didn’t get the best start so I was in fourth place as I rode through ‘Sunny Out’ when I was hit and crashed out. Both bikes landed on me so I feel pretty beaten up, but luckily no broken bones. It’s a shame as I was looking to collect more points and climb further into the top-six – I was fifth in the standings after race one and Hopper was Championship leader! – but there’s always next time.” Jack Valentine – Team Manager: “A fantastic conclusion to the weekend. JK’s win in the first race was tremendous. Hopper again displayed such impressive race craft to capture his two podiums – the way he kept Josh Brookes at bay in the second race when he didn’t quite have the grip really impressed me. The whole team were gutted for JK when he got taken out and certainly we all feel the stewards were right to issue a warning to that rider. I’d also like to repeat Hopper’s comments on the Pirelli intermediates – we don’t get to use them very often, but what a great tyre! “Importantly though, we’re now challenging for the title. Hopper joint-leads the podium credits table and lies just three points off the Championship lead. JK, too, is now within the top-six Title Fighters, despite his no-score in the second race. We’re just about where we wanted to be, so we’ll be looking for more of the same, come Thruxton in 12 days time!” MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship: Race one result: 1 Jon Kirkham (Samsung Crescent Racing) 2 John Hopkins (Samsung Crescent Racing) +2.940s 3 Gary Mason (MSS Colchester Kawasaki) +3.715s 4 Loris Baz (Motorpoint Yamaha) +13.335s 5 Alex Lowes (WFR Honda) +14.699s 6 Stuart Easton (MSS Colchester Kawasaki) +19.433s 7 Peter Hickman (Tyco Honda) +22.455s 8 Josh Brookes (Relentless Suzuki) +24.297s 9 Glen Richards (WFR Honda) +26.063s 10 Tommy Bridewell (Tyco Honda) +27.747s Race two result: 1 Shane Byrne (HM Plant Honda) 2 Stuart Easton (MSS Colchester Kawasaki) +1.887s 3 John Hopkins (Samsung Crescent Racing) +2.269s 4 Josh Brookes (Relentless Suzuki) +2.461s 5 Loris Baz (Motorpoint Yamaha) +5.517s 6 Tommy Hill (Swan Yamaha) +6.094s 7 Gary Mason (MSS Colchester Kawasaki) +6.748s 8 Michael Rutter (Rapid Solicitors-Bathams Ducati) +8.120s 9 Peter Hickman (Tyco Honda) +8.397s 10 Tommy Bridewell (Tyco Honda) +9.657s DNF: Jon Kirkham (Samsung Crescent Racing) MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship standings after Croft: 1 Shane Byrne (HM Plant Honda) 95 2 John Hopkins (Samsung Crescent Racing) 92 3 Stuart Easton (MSS Colchester Kawasaki) 89 4 Ryuichi Kiyonari (HM Plant Honda) 59 5 Tommy Hill (Swan Yamaha) 57 6 Jon Kirkham (Samsung Crescent Racing) 55 More, from a press release issued by Indianapolis Motor Speedway: MotoGP RACE REPORT: GRAND PRIX OF FRANCE Stoner closes gap on leader Lorenzo with victory at Le Mans; Pedrosa hurt in crash INDIANAPOLIS, Sunday, May 15, 2011 – 2007 World Champion Casey Stoner completed a weekend of domination for Honda by winning the Grand Prix of France on May 15, closing to within 12 points of MotoGP leader Jorge Lorenzo. Stoner beat Andrea Dovizioso by 14.214 seconds on his Repsol Honda for his second victory of the season, both coming from the pole. Stoner led all three practice sessions, qualifying and the race warm-up. Seven-time MotoGP World Champion Valentino Rossi finished third, just .350 of a second behind Dovizioso, for his first podium with the Ducati Team. Defending World Champion Lorenzo leads Stoner, 78-66, in the points after finishing fourth on his Yamaha. Marco Simoncelli was fifth on his San Carlo Honda Gresini after yet again creating controversy in the pivotal incident of the 28-lap race. Stoner and teammate Dani Pedrosa traded the lead early in the race, with Stoner taking the lead for good near the halfway point. Once Pedrosa lost touch with Stoner, he started to drop closer to the charging Simoncelli. Simoncelli passed Pedrosa for second early on Lap 18. But later that lap, Pedrosa regained second on the back straightaway. Simoncelli, who has angered a few riders this season with his aggressive tactics, countered later that lap with a brash move into a series of S-turns to pass Pedrosa again for second. That maneuver caused 2010 Red Bull Indianapolis GP winner Pedrosa to clip the back of Simoncelli’s bike, throwing Pedrosa to the ground hard. Pedrosa suffered a broken collarbone in the crash, an injury he suffered last season and for which he required additional corrective surgery last month. Simoncelli was assessed a ride-through penalty. “He just came into me releasing the brakes, and I could do nothing,” Pedrosa said of Simoncelli. “I leave here with a broken collarbone and he with a ride-through penalty, good for him! Yet again I come out worse off. We only just recovered from the nightmare of the last operation, and now I’m hurt again. It is very unfair; I don’t deserve it.” Dovizioso and Rossi then took the spotlight with a spirited, clean duel for second over the last four laps. 2010 Rookie of the Year Ben Spies led the three American riders with a sixth-place finish on his Yamaha. Nicky Hayden finished seventh on his Ducati. Colin Edwards recovered from a crash to finish 13th on his Monster Yamaha Tech 3. The next race is the Grand Prix of Catalunya on June 5 at Barcelona, Spain. The Red Bull Indianapolis GP is scheduled for Aug. 26-28 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. *** RESULTS LE MANS, France – Results of the 28-lap Grand Prix of France MotoGP race, with position, rider, country, motorcycle, time behind winner. All riders on Bridgestone tires: 1. Casey Stoner Australia Ducati 2. Andrea Dovizioso Italy Honda +14.214 3. Valentino Rossi Italy Ducati +14.564 4. Jorge Lorenzo Spain Yamaha +21.075 5. Marco Simoncelli Italy Honda +31.245 6. Ben Spies United States Yamaha +31.609 7. Nicky Hayden United States Ducati +35.566 8. Hiroshi Aoyama Japan Honda +51.502 9. Hector Barbera Spain Ducati +1:03.731 10. Karel Abraham Czech Republic Ducati +1:03.885 11. Toni Elias Spain Honda +1:04.068 12. Alvaro Bautista Spain Suzuki +1:04.192 13. Colin Edwards United States Yamaha +2 laps NC Loris Capirossi Italy Ducati +7 laps NC Dani Pedrosa Spain Honda +11 laps NC Cal Crutchlow Great Britain Yamaha +22 laps NC Randy de Puniet France Ducati +27 laps NC – Not classified Fastest lap: Pedrosa, 1:33.617, Lap 9; Pole lap: Stoner, 1:33.153 *** POINTS Riders: Lorenzo 78, Stoner 66, Pedrosa 61, Dovizioso 50, Rossi 47, Hayden 39, Aoyama 36, Simoncelli 22, Edwards 21, Barbera 21, Crutchlow 21, Spies 20, Abraham 18, Elias 17, Capirossi 9, Bautista 7, De Puniet 6, Hopkins 6. Manufacturers: Honda 95, Yamaha 78, Ducati 52, Suzuki 13. *** PODIUM QUOTES CASEY STONER (Repsol Honda Team, winner): “The whole weekend has gone so well for us, arriving here from the Portugal test with the bike almost the same, and we have improved small things here and there and only needed to adjust the setup for this circuit. We went into the race confident. At the beginning of the race, Dani was very fast and he was difficult to pass as he as being cautious. When I overtook him, I thought I might be able to take some advantage, but he was able to match my times and follow me for some laps. So I continued to push more than I prefer to, and eventually I put a gap between us. From this point, the race came to me, and I was able to focus on my consistency and win. A big thanks to the team and everyone for all their hard work, but my thoughts are with Dani at this moment. I hope he can recover soon as he is a very strong contender for this championship.” ANDREA DOVIZIOSO (Repsol Honda Team, second): “I’m really happy with the second position today. It’s so important for the championship, and it arrives after a start of the season, where we didn’t get the results we expected. We did a very good job with the team since the beginning of the weekend, and I knew I could fight for the podium, but I didn’t expect second place. I had a great battle with Valentino and to beat him always has a special taste, and it’s a good fun to get the podium after a hard fight. I was losing a lot in two areas, but I was strong in braking. So I made a good strategy and once I overtook him, I pushed 100 percent not to have him too close, especially in Turns 10 and 11, where he was faster. Concerning the race, I had a good start, Lorenzo’s strong overtaking slowed me down a little, but then I pushed to recover the gap. We had good pace, but we need to be faster. We have to keep on working to reduce the gap to stay with the front riders from the beginning. Dani today was very unlucky, and I hope he can recover soon.” VALENTINO ROSSI (Ducati Team, third): “We’re very pleased with this podium because we’re on the right path, and especially because I had fun today. I rode the Desmosedici well. I was fast in the technical parts of the track. I felt good from start to finish, and I had good lap times. This morning we made a last change to the setting together with Jeremy and the guys from Ducati, and it helped cut another couple of tenths. I knew I could beat Lorenzo, so that was my goal. I also passed Dovi at one point, but I got a little confused and made a move on the penultimate lap instead of the last one. I lost my concentration momentarily, but in short, he got me again. Anyway, it’s fine like this; I’m happy for myself, for my team, for Filippo (Preziosi), and for all the boys at Ducati. This result boosts our morale. We still have to keep working and improving, though, because there’s more to be done. I also have to improve and keep adapting my style to the Ducati, because I’m still not riding it as I should. But in the meanwhile, we’ll enjoy today’s nice race and podium.” *** AMERICAN RIDER QUOTES BEN SPIES (Yamaha Factory Racing, sixth): “It was a pretty exciting race. I made two mistakes on the first two laps and lost touch with Colin and Valentino. I tried to ride as hard as I could and was reeling in Colin until unfortunately he crashed. His bike slid across the track, so I had to avoid it, which allowed Nicky to get up to the back of me. We diced around a bit, then I was able to get around him and go on my way. We got a sixth-place result, which is good for the points.” NICKY HAYDEN (Ducati Team, seventh):”We didn’t do ourselves any favors by starting 10th, but actually we made a little step forward with the bike today. I got a decent start but was just really tight and lost some time. As the race got going, I was able to move up a bit and slowly bring back Spies and Colin. Colin crashed, but once I got in front of Ben, I wasn’t really able to get down in the 34s and get away like I needed to. Seventh isn’t a great result for us, but I would say that overall, it’s probably been our best weekend yet. When the track was cold, I was able to go quite fast – always in the top five in those conditions. I hoped for better in the race, but I’m looking forward to the next stretch; we’re about to really get into the season.” COLIN EDWARDS (Monster Yamaha Tech 3, 13th):”I got one of the best starts I’ve had in a long time and I just flew off the line, but it was the usual jostle for position at the first corner. I got a bit of clear track in front of me, and I could see Valentino was coming back to me a little bit and Dovizioso and Lorenzo were also just in front of him. I rode at my absolute maximum to try and stay with them because I really wanted to get a top six for Tech 3 and for Monster. I was losing four of five bike lengths though coming onto the back straight, and then I’d also lose a bit more time at the next chicane because I wasn’t that fast through there. I could see the gap was staying at 1.5 seconds, and there was nothing I could do. I wasn’t making mistakes but neither were they, so I could see them but just not get close enough. When I crashed, it didn’t feel like I was doing anything too stupid. I was on the same line, and I didn’t get in there too hot. Normally you get a bit of warning when the front is going to tuck, but I had nothing. I was already looking through at the next corner and then I was down. I broke the foot peg off but came back to the pits and went out again and salvaged a couple of points, which might prove valuable at the end of the year.” *** MotoGP SUPPORT CLASS WINNERS Moto2: Marc Marquez, Spain, Team CatalunyaCaixa Repsol Suter. American Kenny Noyes finished 17th. 125cc: Maverick Vinales, Spain, Blusens by Paris Hilton Racing Aprilia. *** NEXT RACE Grand Prix of Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain, June 3-5, Round 5 of 18. *** 2011 Red Bull Indianapolis GP tickets: 2011 Red Bull Indianapolis GP tickets are on sale now. To buy tickets, visit www.imstix.com, call the IMS ticket office at (317) 492-6700 or (800) 822-INDY outside the Indianapolis area or visit the ticket office at the IMS Administration Building at the corner of Georgetown Road and 16th Street. Ticket office and phone hours are 8 a.m.-5 p.m. (ET) Monday-Friday. The 2011 Red Bull Indianapolis GP is scheduled for Aug. 26-28 at IMS. Race Day general admission tickets cost $40, with Friday general admission $10 and Saturday general admission $20. A three-day general admission ticket is $60. A Friday-Saturday general admission ticket is $25. Children ages 12 and under will be admitted free any of the three days of the event when accompanied by an adult with a general admission ticket. Race Day reserved seat prices will start at $70. More, from a press release issued by Steve Plater’s publicist: DOUBLE PODIUM FOR PLATER AT CROFT Steve Plater powered his Padgett’s Honda to two podium finishes in round three of the British Supersport championship at Croft on Sunday to move up the rider standings to fourth. Starting the 13 lap sprint race from a second row grid position the Woodhall Spa racer didn’t get the best of starts but soon settled into his race and began to pick his way through the opposition until he reached third place. He was looking set to close in on the two riders ahead but the red flag halted his progress and a result was declared at 10 laps distance which gave Plater a third place finish and a further 16 points. “The team has changed a massive amount on the bike for this weekend, including some gearbox settings” said Plater. “And we have made a huge step forward as you can see from my performance in the race. I got a bit of a wheelie off the line which cost me a bit of time so I have to work on that. I am happy with my race pace as I got the fastest lap of the race and was only a tenth away from the lap record. We have a few more adjustments to try out, I want to be winning races not coming home in third place and we are working towards that end.” Because he put in the fastest lap of race one Plater was awarded pole position for the second encounter but once again he wasn’t able to capitalise on that and was seventh after the first of 15 laps. But once again he got his head down and made steady progress through to third place on lap six. He could see Billy McConnell and Ben Wilson ahead of him and began to reel them in at a fast rate of knots and on the very last lap he passed McConnell into Sunny to snatch second place at the finish line. “The team have done a mega job this weekend and we have made a big step forward with the bike. I am now more competitive and fighting for the podium and I am sure there is more to come yet. I am happy enough with the results here at Croft, the bike is working very well and the chassis is mega but we just need a little bit more power which is something the boys are working on. I was running at the same pace as the front two guys but just couldn’t catch them in time to take the win. There is not a lot of grip here and we were all struggling a bit with tyres but overall I am happy enough and we move on to Thruxton to see if we can progress further.” It will be a busy few weeks for the affable Lincolnshire rider who travels to the North West 200 for two days this week to advise the newcomers to the Northern Ireland road circuit. Wednesday morning he jets off to Spain for the second round of the World Endurance Championship with the Honda TT Legends team which takes place at the weekend. On completion of his race he flies directly to the Isle of Man to begin preparations for the team at the TT races. (Although not riding himself at the TT he is heavily involved in team preparation for Honda TT Legends). He then flies back to contest the Thruxton round of the British Supersport championship with Padgett’s Honda over the Bank Holiday weekend of May 28-30 and then its back to the Isle of Man for the two week TT festival. · UK Waste Solutions have come on board as a personal sponsor to Steve this season. UK Waste Solutions are a leading service-led independent provider of solutions for recycling & waste management based in Newark, Nottinghamshire who offer national coverage delivered with a professional but friendly attitude to meet their customers’ needs and to save them money. The company had a small involvement with racing in 2010 by helping Sam Warren and this year have decided to become more involved thus gaining valuable brand exposure with TV coverage and media publications. More, from a press release issued by Tom Tunstall Racing: Tunstall Takes Superbike Evo Podium Doodson Motorsport racer Tom Tunstall claimed his first British Superbike Evo podium with a hard fought third place at Croft over the weekend. The third round of the 2011 British Superbike series was staged at Croft near Catterick in North Yorkshire and having managed to fit in a day’s testing following the previous round the Doodson Motorsport Team were in a buoyant mood. In contrast to the opening rounds the team only made minor tweaks to the BMW S1000RR machine during the practice and qualifying sessions choosing to concentrate on getting the most from the powerful German machine. Having improved his time by nearly a second in qualifying, Tunstall was placed 7th in the Evo class and explained: “We think were on the right track with the bike set-up now and it’s a case of trying to get the best out of it. There’s still room for improvement in a couple of areas but the changes aren’t quite as big as we’ve been making at previous races and the bike is becoming a lot more predictable”. The weather for Sunday race day was challenging for both teams and riders with very light drizzle leaving the track neither wet nor dry making tyre choice a lottery. On the grid for race one the start was delayed as another belt of drizzle blew in meaning a revised distance of 18lap and a classified “Wet Race”. Tunstall and his team stuck to the decision of a wet front tyre and an intermediate rear Pirelli. In exceptionally tricky conditions with light drizzle still falling on a patchy drying track, Tunstall set about making his way through the field. When the safety car was brought out on lap eight Tunstall was up to third in the Evo class with Swiss Champion Patric Muff in pursuit. As the race restarted, Tunstall struggled with rear grip and worked hard to keep his pace high. With only four laps remaining Tunstall had a big slide out of the Chicane giving chance for the Swiss Honda rider chance to retake the third place. The Doodson rider used the closing laps to plan his attack and on the last lap, with only three corners remaining he swooped up the inside into the Complex holding the place to the chequered flag and claiming his first Evo podium of the season. “At the start of the race it was a tough call with tyre choice but we did some good homework during the morning warm up session, which helped, and although I struggled with rear grip after the safety car, I think we made the right choice. The bike was moving around a lot and I had a good race with Patric he wasn’t easy to pass but with a podium in sight I would have tried anything”. “Getting third place is due reward for the whole Doodson Motorsport Team, as we’ve had a challenging start to the season and everyone is working hard to make it happen. We made best of the opportunity the changeable weather brought and it’s great to be back on the podium.” Race two was held in full dry conditions and Tunstall couldn’t replicate the excellent race one result taking eight in the second twenty lap outing. “It’s been a very good weekend for us, we’ve made great strides since the last round at Oulton and race one was great. But we’re not out of the woods yet and we’ve still got work to do with the BMW. I’ve got the taste for champagne and we need to work hard to ensure we can taste it again soon!” The fourth round takes place at another ex-airfield circuit at the fast and bumpy Thruxton in Hampshire over the weekend of the 28th 30th of May. More, from a press release issued by Conor Cummins’ publicist: Frustration for Cummins at Croft Conor Cummins endured a frustrating race at Croft on Sunday where he was competing in round 3 of the Metzeler National 1000cc Superstock Championship and although 18th equalled his best result of the year, he was left pondering what might have been. Following the trend of the opening two rounds, Conor quickened his pace over the two days of practice and qualifying, held in both wet and dry conditions, and in the final qualifying session, he was able to knock some 1.6s off his time to qualify in 22nd place for a sixth row start.The race itself on Sunday saw dry conditions and after maintaining his starting spot on the opening couple of laps, Conor began to move forward and with Howie Mainwaring and Adam Jenkinson going out in the second half of the race, he was able to cross the line at the end of the 12 laps in 18th place thus equalling his result of Oulton Park two weeks ago. Once again, he also lapped quicker in the race than what he had done in qualifying although problems under acceleration meant he wasn’t happy with the end result. Talking later, Conor said; “Practice went well and, like always, I just chipped away and got quicker with each and every session. I lost a bit of time in second qualifying due to the padding on the seat moving around a bit but I went over a second and a half quicker and to be only half a second off the top 15 put me in a good frame of mind for the race.” “The race itself though was the poorest I’ve had since I got back and although it equalled my best finish of the season, it was very frustrating. Although I was lapping quicker each time I went out, I was struggling with the bike wheelying coming out of the corners and that meant I was losing a lot of time along the straights so no sooner was I gaining time, I was losing it straightaway. We thought we’d got it cured for the race but it wasn’t to be and I simply wasn’t able to move forward as I would have liked. Everyone’s working really hard and I’m edging ever closer to the top 15 and Championship points, so we’ll keep working hard and look at getting into the top 15 as soon as possible.” Conor now heads to Northern Ireland for his first public road race of the season, the International North West 200, where he will link up once more with the McAdoo Racing team. Practice takes place on Tuesday and Thursday with the 5 races on Saturday, May 21. More, from a press release issued by Bike Interceptor Racing: The technically and physically demanding 2.1-mile Croft circuit in North Yorkshire provided a stiff test for the third round of the 2011 Fuchs-Silkolene British Supersport and Metzeler National Superstock 600 championships this weekend, 13-15 May. Bike Interceptor Yamaha’s Sam Warren stormed to a pair of top ten finishes in the cold and blustery conditions, elevating himself onto the tail of the top ten leader board in the battle for the title. Lining up 12th on the grid for the 14 lap Sprint event, Sam powered his R6 from the lights to make the break with the leading group, battling with Plater, Young and Cooper for position. As the lap counter ticked down, Sam looked to exert pressure on Young to elevate himself further inside the top ten. However, a red flag on lap 11 brought the proceedings to premature end, leaving Sam in a solid ninth. The feature Supersport race saw Sam line up in a season best of seventh on the grid, thanks to his strong lap time (1:23.201s) during the sprint race. Once again, Sam powered away at the sharp end, keeping his machine inside the top ten for the reduced 15 lap race. Without the need to fight his way through the lower echelons from a poor grid position, Sam was able to concentrate on running with the leading pack, and after a solid battle against Hipwell, Cooper and Johnson, took the chequered flag in ninth. Sam has maintained his 100% scoring record in all races this season – only one of seven riders to do so – his consistency rewarded with another 14 championship points and elevation to 11th overall. Teammate, Ben Burke arrived at Croft with a comfortable lead in the Metzeler National Superstock 600 championship. Once again, Croft was a circuit that the young Australian rider had never visited before and he spent the first few sessions learning the track, building confidence and knocking seconds from his times with each successive lap. However, Ben and the team were put on the back foot when a massive highside on his first flying lap of Qualifying 2 left Ben battered and bruised, and the team with a mammoth task to get the Bike Interceptor Yamaha by Seton R6 back in running order before the close of the session. With a grid position back on row eight, Ben’s aim was one of damage limitation to protect his championship position. Riding through the pain barrier, Ben crossed the finish line in 34th, missing out on adding to his season’s tally. With Farmer scoring back to back wins, Ben will now head to Thruxton in a very healthy second place. The series now heads south for round four to the fastest circuit on the calendar, Thruxton in Hampshire, over the weekend of 28 – 30 May. Sam Warren: “It’s been our best weekend so far and although we haven’t improved our best race finish, we have certainly closed the gap on times to the 5th and 6th placed riders. Having run at the front during wet conditions early in the weekend I was praying for more rain, but it always seemed to dry up for our sessions! At least we’re scoring points and moving forward. We have worked really well as a team this weekend so thanks to all their hard efforts.” Ben Burke: “Unfortunately the dream run had to end. The weekend started off well with me learning the track and improving my times with every lap. In the second qualifying I took a heavy tumble and had severe bruising. After the fall I had missed out on too much track time to be competitive but still managed to complete the race. I would like to thank the team for their efforts and look forward to a good round at Thruxton.” Phil Seton, Team Manager: “Croft was great for Sam, he was on pole for the first part of the wet free practice session, and has shown in both races that his pace is nearly there. We have spent a lot of time getting the bike set-up just right for Sam and he has altered his riding style to work better on the Supersport bike and it appears to be working well. He gained another two ninth place finishes after securing his best grid position of the season. A much better performance, and great to see Sam battling for ninth rather than racing open track trying to move through the lower orders. Unfortunately for Ben, he struggled with this very technical track and suffered a huge highside in Q2, leaving him battered and bruised and sporting a third butt cheek in the form of a massive haematoma. However, he showed great spirit to line up for the race and gained some very valuable experience by the end of the 12 laps. Not as good as the last two scorching weekends, but we are over the moon that after a quarter of the season, and on tracks he has never seen, Ben is lying second.” More, from a press release issued by Moto Rapido Ducati: Gremlins put paid to strong weekend for Moto Rapido Ducati Moto Rapido Ducati’s Scott Smart was forced to watch the second British Superbike race at Croft from the sidelines on Sunday after a technical problem on his Ducati 1198 forced him to retire early following a strong showing in the first outing. Smart, who hails from Maidstone, had ridden his Evo-spec machine from 19th on the grid up to 14th place in race one, his vast experience and smooth style enabling him to makes up places over full Superbikes using slick tyres on a damp track. A minor error, though, saw Smart crash but he was able to re-mount, finishing the race in 21st and seventh in class. Race two saw another strong start from the 36 year-old but his progress was halted after seven laps when a sensor which has been damaged in the crash falsely warned Smart he was about to do serious damage to his engine so with discretion being the better part of valour, he pulled off the track. “I hadn’t expected this weekend to be so tough and I am gutted, so to speak. I had made some serious progress in the first race and the choice to run slicks on a drying track was easily the right decision. A damp patch on the way into Tower caught me out though and did some hidden damage,” said a disappointed Smart. “I managed seven laps of race two, also making up places from my grid slot, when the main warning light appeared on my dash. This is usually terminal so I pulled straight off but it turned out to be a false alarm.” Team manager Steve Moore summed up: “It had looked to be a good weekend for us. Scott has been strong here for the last two years and we were going well in race one until his spill. “There isn’t much to say about the second race other than it is one of those things. We will re-group and go to Thruxton with a positive attitude. It is the team’s home race so we want to put on a good showing. I must say thanks to all our existing sponsors for their help and hello to some new ones.” More, from a press release issued by Muench Racing: The German e-bike team MUENCH racing was able to celebrate their third individual success during the 2nd FIM e-Power International Championship race on Saturday May 14th, 2011. What a great accomplishment the team was able to realize last weekend. Both MUENCH racing drivers ranked under the top three, Matthias Himmelmann placing first and Thomas Mertens finishing second. During the qualifying number 49 Matthias Himmelmann was able to proof his talent with his TTE-1.2. With a time of 1:42:379 minutes he placed first and achieved pole position for the final race. Behind him Magny Cours Champion Alessandro Branetti (1:43:526, eCRP Racing), Thomas Mertens (1:54:233, MÃœNCH Racing) and Alexander Schulz (1:56:834, XXL-Racing Team) completed the field of the fastest drivers. “The challenge is not to cross the goal line but to make it to the start”, commented MUENCH manager Thomas Petsch. Only four of the nine registered teams were able to start due to difficulties with the e-bikes battery such as eCRP driver Branetti had to experience for himself later in the race. After the start the fans could observe two even racing laps with an alternating lead before Himmelmann and Branetti left the field behind. Everything seemed like as if one could once again witness a suspenseful duel between the two drivers from MUENCH and eCRP. “We ran a tactical race and I used Branetti’s slipstream to save energy. I knew that if I drove behind him he would not drive a 100 %”, says Himmelmann. “After two laps we switched into a higher gear and lapped the XXL Team and Thomas driving the other MUENCH bike”. In round three the expected duel finally took place as Himmelmann describes it as follows: “Alessandro tried to shift again and bring out the best out his machine which luckily only worked for a short time.” Due to flying sparks Alessandro Branetti was forced to stop racing and park his bike on the track’s side. eCRP had to experience a battery defect! Matthias Himmelmann easily finished the last five laps and secured MUENCH’s first victory on the German racing track followed by Thomas Mertens and Alexander Schulz. “I am very sad that Alessandro had to stop racing to protect his bike. I would have liked to race him until the end”, says Himmelmann about the unfortunate retirement of his main opponent. Further information as well as the full racing calendar can be found via: www.muenchmotorbikes.com More, from a press release issued by GBmoto Racing: GBmoto Racing and Tristan Palmer Win again at Croft Tristan Palmer took another remarkable win for GBmoto Racing at the Croft circuit this weekend, in the Metzeler National Superstock 1000 series. Team mate, David Johnson, continued his good form and race to race improvement with a solid 10th position. Coming from a brilliant maiden win two weeks ago at Oulton Park, the whole GBmoto Racing team knew they needed to keep level heads and continue the solid work they’ve been putting in so far. Tristan was confident of performing well at another circuit he enjoys racing at and David’s broken elbow was continuing to heal well. The biggest unknown this weekend was what surprises the notorious North Yorkshire weather would bring. Friday’s Free Practice sessions were indeed rain affected. Neither GBmoto Racing riders wished to push too hard on their only Global Reach Partners sponsored Honda CBR1000RR machines. This session was all about working to find some decent settings in damp conditions, which was something new for the 2011 season. At the end of this initial salvo, David had posted the 5th fastest time and Tristan a little further down in 9th. First Qualifying Practice was also scheduled for later in the day on Friday. With 40 bikes on track at once it is always difficult to find clear air to post a really quick lap. At least the rain had stopped, although strong winds continued to blow. Both riders were able to steadily improve their lap times, with Tristan moving up to 6th quickest and David shuffled back a little to 13th. Second Qualifying was scheduled for Saturday afternoon and once again the rain stayed away. With just 10 minutes remaining, Tristan was still in 6th position, but David had moved up to 8th. Only six minutes remained in the session when Tristan pulled out all stops for a brilliant qualifying lap to sieze provisional pole position and a 0.5 second gap over second placed Storrar. That’s how the session finished for Tristan, another pole position, and David secured his highest qualifying of the season so far in 9th. The first British Superbike Race of the weekend was a rain affected affair on Sunday, but thanks to the steady breeze the track had dried for the Superstock 1000 race 90 minutes later. Off the line, Tristan slotted in behind Jenkinson for the first corner, but then quickly asserted his authority by moving to the front and setting to work creating a gap. David was shuffled back in the opening corners, finding himself down in 14th position at one point. Tristan had built his lead to almost two seconds but O’Halloran in second was pushing hard at one point, reducing the lead to just 1.4 seconds. However, Tristan was controlling things nicely infront and responded with a new fastest lap. David was up to 11th with an opportunity to improve further. Tristan finally crossed the line for another superb win, collecting enough points to now lead the championship by a clear 5 points from Buchan. David finished 10th, which is also his best result for the season. May & Newman sponsored GBmoto Racing and Tristan Palmer now have two wins and a third place from the first three rounds. The riders, bikes and team are all working together in harmony making for a well oiled machine. Everyone is hoping for continued success at Thruxton in two weeks time. Tristan Palmer, Rider: It was another one of those perfect weekends. We struggled a little in first practice as it was the first time we’ve ridden the bike on a wet track. I didn’t want to do anything silly, but we also wanted a good wet setup. Fortunately, we didn’t have another wet session all weekend. In the dry conditions of 1st Qualifying I was still getting the gearing right and then the session was cut short with a red flag incident. I was feeling a bit frustrated. In 2nd Qualifying I went half a second quicker, which worked out really well as I was on pole for the race. In the race I didn’t want to do the same as last time and get in a battle, so I just went for it from the start. That worked out well and was able to control the race rom the lead. The team worked really awesome for the whole weekend and I can’t moan about anything. I’m really very happy. David Johnson, Rider: It was a tough weekend for me. My bad start in the race didn’t help. By the last lap I had caught right up to the group battling for sixth, but also had some big moments trying to get there. On the last lap I was only a couple of bike lengths from McGuinness and I was hoping for him to make a mistake. Instead I had a massive slide at the beginning of the lap and was lucky not to be passed myself. Tenth was a good result and we’re not far away from being right in the mix. I just need that good start. The team’s working really well, congrats to Tris again and I’m looking forward to Thruxton. We need to work hard to find a really good setup for me. Mark Smith-Halvorsen, Team Principal: A great job by everyone again this weekend. It feels nice to be leading the championship after three rounds. I think a few people are surprised at the way our bikes are performing and indeed some people raised eyebrows as to why we chose Honda at the beginning of the year. The Hondas are proving to be the most versatile package at the moment, running 1, 2 and 3 for most of today’s race. Another big test lays ahead of us at the high speed track of Thruxton in two weeks time. Once again I feel confident that by working hard and preparing well we can score some good results.