Cooper on National Superstock podium at Donington Park World Superbikes
Richard Cooper finished on the podium in today’s National Superstock 1000 race at Donington Park, taking second place onboard his Bennetts Suzuki GSX-R1000.
The two-part race, which was a support race for the sixth round of the World Superbike Championship, saw Cooper battle at the front for the opening half, as he, along with Danny Buchan, escaped the chasing pack. With four laps to go before the pit-stop, Cooper hit the front at the Esses, but a mistake into the Melbourne Loop allowed Buchan to close in on him, before another mistake into Goddards saw him surrender his race lead.
Another attempt into the Esses on the final lap saw Cooper take the lead again, but he was re-passed into the Melbourne Loop and was unable to mount another attack into Goddards, crossing the line in second place.
Some machine tweaks were made for the second half of the race in an attempt to improve edge grip. Cooper again got away with the leading group, but a near-highside – that saw him take out the screen of his GSX-R – cost him valuable time and dropped him to fourth. He recovered to second, but by which time the gap to the lead was too big to bridge, and he settled for second place.
Richard Cooper, “I’m a little deflated to be honest. We put a plan together as a team and it should have worked really. I felt comfortable behind Danny [Buchan] in the first part of the race and I knew where I was strong. With four laps to go I decided to go for the lead and thought I could pull away enough for the win, but I made mistakes that allowed him back passed and didn’t execute the plan as I’d hoped. In the second half the highside cost me time and positions, and I took out the screen in the process. I got back up to second but Danny had already got away. I was disappointed with the way it went in the end. I felt we could have won it, and they say you can’t win them all but I want to. We’ve got a fight on this year if we want to win the championship and we can’t afford to have an off weekend. We’ll get out on the bike before Knockhill and keep working.”
Steve Hicken – team manager, “We’re disappointed with the result today, but that shows we know where we can be and where we should be; it’s good to be disappointed with second place. We had a plan for the race, and it looked like we’d got it right in the first part, but unfortunately Cooper made a couple of little errors and they cost us the win. But that’s sometimes how it goes and he’ll be giving himself a harder time than we can. We changed the bike a bit for the second part to try and find a bit more edge grip, and the changes probably didn’t have the effect we were looking for. But it’s another podium and we’re still at the sharp end of the championship. We’ll keep working and keep improving the bike and go again at Knockhill.”
The Bennetts Suzuki team’s attention now turns to the Isle of Man TT races, with Michael Dunlop aiming to add to his win tally with the all-new GSX-R1000.
Superstock 1000 race result: 1. Danny Buchan, 2. Richard Cooper, 3. Adam Jenkinson.
More, from a press release issued by EHA Racing:
SOLID WORLD SUPERBIKE WEEKEND FOR HEDGER & EHA RACING AT DONINGTON PARK
In front of a 40,000 strong World Superbike Championship audience at Donington Park, Luke Hedger was able to showcase his talent during the British Championship National 1000cc Superstock races, taking a pair of ninth placed finishes aboard the EHA Racing Aprilia RSV-4 RF.
Speaking afterwards, Luke said of his weekend rubbing shoulders in the paddock with the world’s leading Superbike riders: “The weekend started off steady and if I’m honest, Friday was the toughest day one for a while and Q1 wasn’t much better. But come race day, I knew that Ian and the EHA Racing Team would have the bike where it should be – and they did just that for me.
I was feeling confident for the races and I got off to a good start and finished the first part in ninth. The second part was much better and I went faster and was on the back of the leading group at one stage, but we ended up with ninth.
The weekend ended on a high as I know we had the pace to run top five which is positive. I’d like to thank the whole EHA team and Ian for working really hard. Thanks also to my personal sponsors, SRS Swindon Karting and One-X Leathers and JC Cook Cycles.”
Team Manager Gail Allingham added: “Luke did really well. He had a good consistent weekend and managed to get some very valuable points in both races. We are now looking forward to the Snetterton test next week to get some more bike time under our belt, before our next round at Knockhill in two weeks’ time. Thanks as always to all our loyal sponsors and the team in general for another great weekend.”
The next round of the National 1000cc Superstock Championship takes place at Knockhill in Scotland on June 16/17/18.
More, from another press release issued by EHA Racing:
ALLINGHAM TAKES POSITIVES FROM WORLD SUPERSPORT DEBUT
David Allingham and EHA Racing will take the positives from a tough weekend as wildcards in the World Supersport Championship. The Ulsterman showed strong pace and maturity throughout and despite having to retire from Sunday’s race at Donington Park with a mechanical – the Ulsterman never stopped smiling throughout. He is now looking forward to getting back to the ‘day job’ at the next British Supersport round in just over two weeks’ time at Knockhill in Scotland.
Speaking of his World Superbike experience, where he was running in the lower end of the points aboard his EHA Racing Yamaha before retiring, the Eglinton ace said: “I was really looking forward to getting to race at world level, unfortunately it didn’t turn out the way myself and the team had hoped.
I was quite strong through the first three sectors but really struggled in the last two; then a technical issue in the race forced me to retire. But to come away safe and ready to battle for a championship title this season in the Dickies British Supersport series is keeping me majorly motivated. Massive thanks to all my personal sponsors team sponsors. We live to fight another day.
Allingham currently holds second place in the British Supersport Championship standings with EHA Racing after the opening three rounds, and is now looking ahead to round four at Knockhill in Scotland at the start of June.
Team Manager Gail Allingham said: “This was a great opportunity for David and the team to compete at world level. It was a learning curve for us all and one that we thoroughly enjoyed. Of course it was disappointing not to finish the race, but hopefully David will have learned from the experience and we can build on it and continue with our British Championship campaign. Thanks to the team for their hard this weekend and to our sponsors that made this happen.”
The fourth round of the British Supersport Championship takes place at Knockhill on the weekend of June 16/17/18th.
More, from a press release issued by Scott Deroue’s publicist:
VALUABLE POINTS FOR DEROUE
He feels at home on Donington Park, but unfortunately the weekend was a bit challenging for Scott Deroue. The hope to step up on the podium again, vanished in the first couple laps of the race. It was obvious that these three riders had better speed this weekend than Deroue. The Kawasaki Ninja 300-rider couldn’t close the gap to Coppola, Perez en Garcia and fought a fierce battle for fourth place. The thirteen points that belongs to this position are very important to Deroue, as he is still the leader of the World Supersport 300-class. As Coppola was victorious at Donington Park he closes in on the Dutch ace with only two points separating these two riders.
The race was a little bit of a disappointment, as the MtM Racing-rider expected to have a good weekend on his beloved Donington Park. It didn’t work out this time. Though, Deroue left the UK with a positive note, as Borja Sánchez left home without any points. He was considered as a fierce contender for the world title, but he’s falling behind. It looks like Deroue, Coppola, Perez and Garcia have the best chances to win this first ever World Supersport 300-championship. Their next fight will be hold at Misano, in two weeks time.
‘It’s pretty annoying that I can’t leave Donington Park with a place on the rostrum, as in the past I always rode good races on this track. Honestly, I guess I had a good fight as well this time, but three boys were just a little bit quicker this weekend. I couldn’t close the gap to them. With a fourth position I’m still leading the championship and I’m glad about that. But, from now on there has to be some good results, as I can’t loose any more points. The season is halfway and there’s a lot going on on the next five circuits. It will be exciting at the front of the field, that’s for sure.”
Results (full results, clicks on links)
First Free Practice: P16, 1.47,814
Second Free Practice: P7, 1.46,690
Superpole 2: P8, 1.46,959
Race:
1. Alfonso Coppola (ITA) – Yamaha, 23.06,892
2. Mika Perez (ESP) – Honda, +0,174
3. Marc Garcia (ESP) – Yamaha, +0,241
4. Scott Deroue – Kawasaki, +9,207
5. Armando Pontone (ITA) – Yamaha, +9,453
Championship classification:
1. Deroue, 68
2. Coppola, 66
3. Garcia, 51
4. Perez, 42
5. Sánchez, 39
The next race will be at Misano from friday 16th till Sunday 18th of June.
More, from a press release issued by Alex Murley’s publicist:
Alex Murley Fights At The Front In Donington Park WorldSSP300 Thriller
The pressure of racing in a World Championship race in front of an enthusiastic British crowd at Donington Park didn’t phase Team Toth Yamaha rider Alex Murley as he pushed through the field from the sixth row of the grid to fight for 4th in yesterday’s 13 lap World Supersport 300cc race.
Eventually finishing 11th, Murley had the crowd on their feet throughout as once again he was the leading British rider to finish, ensuring his 100% record of scoring World Championship points in 2017 continues!
The weekend didn’t start as planned with a few small set-up issues, and qualifying 16th wasn’t in the script but an electric start which saw the #18 up to ninth by the second corner meant he was in the perfect place to attack.
Moving up to sixth after passing several rivals with three laps to go the 17 year old from Birmingham showed incredible race craft throughout to add another valuable five points at the flag.
Aside from racing Alex also played a pivotal role alongside Michael Hill at the Paddock Show during the TwoWheelsForLife Charity Auction which raised almost £6000 on Saturday evening. His own range of signed merchandise going to one lucky bidder for £160!
Alex Murley – 11th: “It was a really great weekend at Donington Park for my home race. We started with a small issue but Team Toth are a great team and they worked hard to get us back in contention for the race which is were is counted. It still wasn’t perfect but we all got together as a team and said ‘let’s have this and just go for it’ and we did! We found a better set-up for Sunday which obviously worked and we were fastest in a couple of the sectors so I am really proud of the effort we all put in. I worked damn hard and fought with everything I had and it wasn’t like I was gifted places through others falling. I was battling with the World Championship leader Scott Deroue and podium finisher Dani Valle which has given me a massive confidence boost but I made a small mistake on the final lap which cost me an even better result. It was another consistent front running result and I have to remember it’s a World Championship. I was so proud when I crossed the line and saw the crowd all cheering and the reception at the Paddock Show just blew me away. Big thanks to my team, all my sponsors, my family and everyone who is supporting me. Next stop Misano.”
More, from a press release issued by Kallio Racing:
Difficult weekend for the Kallio Racing team
The World Supersport Championship race of Donington Park was a little off the mark for Kallio Racing team as Niki Tuuli scored no points at all. Sheridan Morais rode a decent race and he managed to get a sixth-place finish.
Morais did a good job at the start of the restarted race, gunning his Yamaha R6 to its full speed. South African fought his way to the sixth place and was happy with that.
“It was a difficult weekend. This time we had a luck with the red flag, because the first start was bad and in the second one I got the good position and I manage to fight for the better results. Sixth place is quite good, because we had some issues and the team worked really hard. I’m grateful for the team and looking forward to Italy, were we can start fresh again”, Morais said.
Niki Tuuli struggled with his riding throughout the weekend and ended up 24th place finish.
“Nothing much to say. The riding isn’t there where it supposed to be, but now we go home to Finland and we will work harder than ever to get the results we want”, Tuuli said.
In the 300 class Kimi Patova had a crash in time qualifying, but despite of that the Finn kept a calm head and rode a good race finishing 24th.
“The race was pretty good after starting from 30th place. It was too bad, that I had a crash in Saturday, because I missed a lot of practice time on the track. Anyways, next race is in Italy and I try to be better there”, Patova said.
Renzo Ferreira crashed out of the race.
“I think it was on the fourth lap, I braked too late and I went out of the track. I did a high side in front of the grass and fell down. I got a little bit hurt on my back and my chest, but everything is good now”, Ferreira said.
Next Round: June 18, 2017 – Italy
Results World Supersport class, Donington Park, Great Britain
1. Kenan Sofuoglu, Turkey, Kawasaki
2. Jules Cluzel, France, Honda
3. Luke Stapleford, Great Britain, Triumph
4. Lucas Mahias, France, Yamaha
5. Kyle Smith, Great Britain, Honda
24… Niki Tuuli, Finland, Yamaha
Standings World Supersport Class after 6 of 13 rounds
1. Lucas Mahias, France, 105
2. Kenan Sofuoglu, Turkey, 75
3. Sheridan Morais, South Africa, 68
4. Jules Cluzel, France, 55
5. PJ Jacobsen, USA, 55
…12. Niki Tuuli, Finland, 27
Results World Supersport 300 class
1. Alfonso Coppola, Italy, Yamaha
2. Mika Perez, Spain, Honda
3. Marc Garcia, Spain, Yamaha
4. Scott Deroue, Netherlands, Kawasaki
5. A Pontone, Italy, Yamaha
21… Kimi Patova, Finland, Yamaha
Kesk… Renzo Ferreira, Brasil, Yamaha
Standings World Supersport 300 Class after 4 of 9 rounds
1. Scott Deroue, Netherlands, 68
2. Alfonso Coppola, Italy, 66
3. Marc Garcia, Spain, 51
4. Mika Perez, Spain, 42
5. Borja Sanchez, Spain, 39
…22, Kimi Patova, Finland, 5
… Renzo Ferreira, Brasil, 0
More, from a press release issued by WILSport Racedays Honda:
Double Podium Success At Donington Park For WILSport Racedays Team
Yesterday’s round of the Supersport World Championship at Donington Park in Leicestershire saw both WILSport Racedays riders on the podium, Hannes Soomer once again taking victory in the European Supersport series (ESS) and Mika Perez putting himself back in contention for the 300cc Supersport World Championship crown with a fighting 2nd position.
Both riders impressed from the very first practice sessions on Friday, Soomer eventually qualifying 15th, with Perez securing a front row grid slot in 3rd.
Tens of thousands of enthusiastic British fans packed the banks around the 2.5 mile undulating Donington Park circuit in anticipation of a great day of racing and the weren’t disappointed.
The World Supersport race was initially stopped due to oil on the circuit after only three laps, with a 13 lap restart declared in almost ideal conditions. Soomer who had narrowly missed Tissot-Superpole 2 on Saturday made a good start and was soon in contention for overall World Championship points. Mixing it with the World’s best Supersport contenders, the young Estonian was able to pull clear of his ESS rivals securing the win in terms of the European classification, racing to 13th overall and 3 World Championship points at the flag. The result moves Hannes into a clear lead of the ESS standings as the series moves to Misano in a couple of weeks time.
World Supersport 300 was as ever action packed from start to finish with Spain’s Mika Perez locked in a battle for the win from the very first corner. Pushing hard Mika was able to break away with two other riders meaning it would all come down to the final lap. The reigning European Junior Cup champion has been at the forefront of the results in each and every round of this all new World Championship category and yesterday was no exception. Making his move he would lead with a few corners to go only to lose out on the win by the narrowest of margins, 0.174s at the flag. With the championship leader only finishing 13th, the #88 has pulled back 17 points in the overall standings meaning the championship fight is back on!
Mika Perez – 2nd position in WorldSSP300: “It was a really good weekend at Donington. Practice went very well and I knew I could fight for the win. I Had a crash in the Qualifying but was not injured and my position on the grid was good P3. The race was crazy as usual, everybody fighting to win. I tried to push to break the group but it was not possible, so it was me, Coppola and Garcia fighting to end where I finished in second place. The team gave me a great bike and I want to thank them for all the work this weekend. I am now back with a chance to fight for the championship and I will try my best at the next race in Misano.”
Hannes Soomer – Best Classified ESS rider: “Donington Park was a good round for me. I am learning the bike more and more each time I ride and the team did a fantastic job adapting the setup to suit me. We made big steps forward this weekend. I am very happy with my lap times and result was perfect. I really like Misano and hope we can keep improving the bike so I can fight for the victory again. I would like to thank all my team for the continued support and hard work this weekend.”
Mike Dickinson – Team Manager: “I could not be happier the weekend. It was really important for the team to put all the problems of Imola behind us and focus on the rest of the season and we did just that! I would just like to say before I talk about Donington Park that the Imola problem with Mika’s bike was not the FIM supplied quickshifter but an aftermarket component that failed on the warm up lap. We have two very young riders with very little experience at this level and to see them excel gives the team a lot of satisfaction. Hannes is very easy to work with and we know when that his future will be filled with success once he and the team understand the complexities of the Supersport Honda. I am very happy with his progress and he now goes to Misano leading the ESS championship by 3 points. Mika had an almost perfect weekend, and he showed the team that he has put Imola behind him and is ready to fight for wins and the championship. He was on fire from the very first lap of practice and once again was the rider everybody was chasing. The bike performed without any problems and is right in the sweet spot of its development. A big thanks to my team who work tirelessly all day and night to put the best bikes we can on the track, we really do have a great team. We have a mini break now, so will see if we can improve the bikes a little more for Misano.”