This weekend sees the final round of the British Superbike Championship of 2009 taking place at Oulton Park with crowned champion Leon Camier aiming for another victory.
This weekends triple-header consists of one race on the Saturday with two further races on the Sunday at the Cheshire circuit.
The second Airwaves Yamaha rider James Ellison, will be aiming for maximum points to become runner-up in the championship against rival Hydrex Honda rider Stuart Easton. Ellison has a 51 point advantage over Easton but if he fails to finish in the points at this round Easton will take the second place.
Although the pressure has eased off slightly for Camier, he feels that this weekend will see his team-mate riding his socks off and also expects to be challenged by the HM Plant Honda rider Josh Brookes.
Camier said;
“These past couple of weeks have been pretty hectic so I’ve not had a chance to sit down and really let the Championship sink in. But it does feel as though the pressure is off to some extent. The motivation to win is as strong as ever, although I know it’s not going to be easy. My teammate James is going to be fast straight away, as will Josh Brookes. The GSE Racing team has been incredible all year, so I know they’ll give me the best possible package once again.”
Ellison said;
“I’m so excited about this weekend, but also disappointed it’s the final round. The past three race meetings have gone better and better for me. We’ve made small changes here and there, and now the Airwaves Yamaha is really working for me. It’s a shame we couldn’t have got to this point earlier, but the Championship now belongs to Leon and all I can do is go out there, top Practice, and try and win all three races.”
Not only is it the end of the BSB series this weekend but also the end of the five-year partnership between the GSE Racing team and sponsors Wrigley’s Airwaves
Alastair Seeley will be on a full Relentless Suzuki by TAS this weekend after making his British Superbike debut at the last round at Silverstone. The machine he rode at the Northampton circuit however, was the Suzuki specified to the newly introduced ‘Evo’ regulations, to be used in 2010, whereas this time out he will be riding the same machine as ridden by Ian Lowry and Atsushi Watanabe this season.
Leon Haslam and the Stiggy Honda World Superbike team are parting company at the end of the 2009 season due to the teams ongoing financial problems.
The Stiggy Honda team, earlier quit their relationship with their backer S2 Racing, which has led to the pair parting ways to pursue their own projects for the 2010 season.
Johan Stigefelt, the team owner said;
“After the S2 Racing financial issues and complications it was clear that we had to address the future alone. Our plans involved Leon but we are not fully in a position to commit for 2010 at this stage therefore its better for Leon to pursue his career elsewhere.
Overall, with Leon, it has been a great year. We didn’t know each other too well at the start but the experience has been thoroughly enjoyable and I hope we can work together again one day”.
Leon Haslam said;
“I think it’s fair to say that we started the year as complete underdogs and outsiders but I knew we had the potential with Johan’s team when I saw the guys he’d brought in for me.
My crew and the rest of the guys have done an excellent job and the results confirm their ability as a team. I want to thank Stiggy for this opportunity, for believing in me and getting me back in the top level of racing again. I hope Stiggy manages to regroup quickly as the team is still young and clearly has huge potential.”
Running sixth in the current championship, Haslam is rumoured to be making a move to the Alstare Suzuki team for 2010.
The Renault F1 team have confirmed that Robert Kubica will be replacing Fernando Alonso for the 2010 season as their lead driver.
The 24-year-old has been rumoured to be going to Renualt since the BMW Sauber team announced that it would be withdrawing from the series at the end of the year.
Team principle Bob Bell said;
“We are very excited to have signed Robert. Ever since he made his grand prix debut in 2006, he has been on our radar as one of the most naturally talented drivers of his generation and he has delivered on that promise, so it’s great to have secured him in one of our cars next season. Renault has high ambitions and hopes for the future of the team and we feel that Robert can play a big role in fulfilling them.”
Kubica said;
“I am very happy that I will be joining Renault in 2010. I feel I have a special connection with this team because, in 2005, I won the World Series by Renault, which gave me the chance to test with the team in Barcelona, which, in turn, led to my debut in F1.
I share with Renault a strong winning mentality and feel comfortable with their friendly and open attitude. I’m highly motivated and optimistic that, together, we can be at the front of the grid next year and, hopefully, fighting for the world title.”
There is still no confirmation on who the second driver for the team is likely to be, after it was suggested that Romain Grosjean is unlikely to hold his seat with the team.
The Spanish rider Aleix Espargaró has signed to race for the Pramac Racing team for the 2010 season, riding alongside Mika Kallio.
The 20-year-old, made his debut in the MotoGP series for the team, replacing Kallio who was drafted into the Marlboro Ducati team to ride for the ailing Casey Stoner. He rode in the Indianapolis round, finishing thirteenth and then again at the Misano circuit, finishing in eleventh.
Espargaró looked to moving onto the new Moto2 machine next season after spending the majority of the year working on the development of the machine but said when this chance came along he couldn’t turn it down.
The new satellite Ducati rider said;
“I am very happy to be arriving in MotoGP after the time I have had this year. It is better news to be riding for Ducati all through next season than to be riding in the final few races of this year, which could have happened. The two races that I did for Ducati this year were good, I was very comfortable on the bike and with the team. I think I adapt well to MotoGP because I’m quite tall and the bikes suit me better than Moto2 machines. 2010 could be a good year for me.”
“I performed well in the two MotoGP races I did but now I will have the whole winter to practice with the bike, get the set-up right and prepare for 2010. I will be able to prepare calmly and precisely for racing in MotoGP.”
The newly crowned British Superbike Champion Leon Camier, missed-out on his race win at Cadwell Park in August after ignoring a black flag in the second race of the day.
On the final lap of race two, the Airwaves Yamaha of Camier began to smoke while he was leading the race and he was shown the black flag with an orange spot, meaning that he must leave the circuit immediately. Camier believed the flag meant that he had to leave the circuit within one lap, seeing him stripped of his race win and the victory going to team-mate James Ellison instead.
At the Croft round of the championship in September, the British rider was given a quick lesson by the track marshal’s just to make certain that he knew what the flags meant, watch the clip below.
