Michael Rutter

While Honda’s HM Plant rider Josh Brookes treated the spectators to a spectacular riding display at the Cadwell track over the weekend other riders were struggling to find a good set up, among them RidersMotorcycles.com Ducati rider Michael Rutter who has been in incredible form up to this point in the season.

The Ducati team had their work cut out getting Rutter’s bike to work around the Cadwell circuit, but the rider did manage two impressive, under the circumstances, fifth place finishes.

Having already secured a place in the final showdown Rutter will be relishing the final three rounds at Croft, Oulton Park and Silverstone. He starts the showdown on 510 points, just fifteen behind leaders Ryuichi Kiyonari and Tommy Hill and will fancy his chances as much as the next man for the Championship title.

With much talk about the inclement late season weather that may play its part in the final showdown, Rutter may even have the upper hand on his rivals, with the Ducati perfectly suited to the three remaining tracks and the rider himself loving to race at each of them.

RidersMotorcycles.com Team Owner Phil Jessopp said after the races on Monday;

“Michael and the team did a great job this weekend under difficult circumstances. We’ve achieved exactly what we wanted from the nine-round regular season – to qualify for the Showdown. Michael is riding really well and the bike is flying. We know that Michael goes well at all the final three circuits and the Ducati works well at each of them so we have to be confident of our chances in the fight for the 2010 BSB title.”

Looking forward to the final showdown, Rutter said;

“This isn’t my favourite place and it’s been a tough weekend for everyone in the team to get the bike working well around here but the ridersmotorcycle.com ducati crew has worked well and I’m pretty pleased with the results.

To be honest, with the new points system there was no point in risking everything just to pass the person in front of me. I’m qualified for the final as one of the six ‘Title Fighters’ and we’ve got as good a chance of winning the title as any of the other riders. The final three rounds at Croft, Silverstone and Oulton Park are all perfectly suited to the Ducati and are tracks I love to race on so I’m really looking forward to the challenge.”

Josh Brookes

Race 1

Tommy Hill claimed his first win in four months at this weekends round of the British Superbike championship at Cadwell Park for the Worx Crescent Suzuki team.

It was the HM Plant Honda rider Josh Brookes that led the riders into the first corner with Tommy Hill right on his tail.  By lap 8, Hill had made his way past the Australian and held on for the win leaving a trailing Brookes and his team-mate Ryucihi Kiyonari to claim second and third respectively.

Michael Laverty crossed the line for fourth place ahead of Michael Rutter in fifth position and James Ellison in sixth.  Yukio Kagayama finished in seventh place followed by Alastair Seeley in eighth, Dan Linfoot in ninth and Stuart Easton in tenth.

Tommy Bridewell had his points disqualified after his collision with John Laverty on the final lap of race one.

Here are the results;

1.  Tommy Hill  GBR Worx Crescent Suzuki  26mins 25.609s
2. Josh Brookes AUS HM Plant Honda +5.116s
3. Ryuichi Kiyonari JPN HM Plant Honda +7.092s
4. Michael Laverty GBR Relentless by TAS Suzuki +12.522
5. Michael Rutter GBR Ridersmotorcycles.com Ducati +14.623s
6. James Ellison GBR Swan Honda +20.822s
7. Yukio Kagayama JPN Worx Crescent Suzuki +28.158s
8. Alastair Seeley GBR Relentless by TAS Suzuki +28.533
9. Dan Linfoot GBR Motorpoint Yamaha +34.523
10. Stuart Easton GBR Swan Honda +34.945s
11. Chris Walker GBR Sorrymate.com SMT Honda +49.900s
12. Adam Jenkinson GBR Buildbase Kawasaki +50.932s
13. Steve Brogan GBR Jentin Racing BMW +51.699
14. Gary Johnson GBR AIM Suzuki +54.599s
15. Tom Tunstall GBR Doodson Motorsport Honda +1min 04.821s

DQ Tommy Bridewell GBR Quay Garage Honda +30.198s

Race 2

It was the HM Plant Honda rider Josh Brookes that crossed the finish line to take the chequered flag in the second race of the day at Cadwell Park.

Brookes took to the front as the race got underway but was passed by Tommy Hill before the end of the first lap followed by Ryuichi Kiyonari in second.

It was Brookes skill at ‘the mountain’ that gave him the edge over the leading two riders, giving him the lift he needed to get in front.

On lap 11, Brookes passed the leading man and shortly afterwards the red flags were waved ending the race after James Edmeades crashed and needed medical help on circuit for a fractured pelvis.

Once again it was Michael Laverty and Michael Rutter in fourth and fifth places respectively ahead of James Ellison in sixth.  Yukio Kagayama finished in seventh place followed by Tommy Bridewell in eighth, Alastair Seeley in ninth and Gary Mason in tenth.

Kiyonari will now head into the three round shoot-out on 525 points, Hill is also on 525 points and Brookes is on 524 points.

These races will begin at Croft on September 12 with each rider will have their previous points deleted and will each be credited with 500 points plus their bonus points from this seasons performance.

1.  Josh Brookes  AUS HM Plant Honda  19mins 00.530s
2. Tommy Hill GBR Worx Crescent Suzuki +0.230s
3. Ryuichi Kiyonari JPN HM Plant Honda +0.888s
4. Michael Laverty GBR Relentless by TAS Suzuki +5.071
5. Michael Rutter GBR Ridersmotorcycles.com Ducati +11.719s
6. James Ellison GBR Swan Honda +13.178s
7. Yukio Kagayama JPN Worx Crescent Suzuki +15.712s
8. Tommy Bridewell GBR Quay Garage Honda +21.347s
9. Alastair Seeley GBR Relentless by TAS Suzuki +24.287s
10. Gary Mason GBR MSS Colchester Kawasaki +27.445s
11. Stuart Easton GBR Swan Honda +27.640s
12. John Laverty GBR Buildbase Kawasaki +28.063
13. Dan Linfoot GBR Motorpoint Yamaha +29.143s
14. Adam Jenkinson GBR Buildbase Kawasaki +30.768s
15. Chris Walker GBR Sorrymate.com SMT Honda +35.609s

Simon Andrews GBR MSS Colchester Kawasaki DNS

The long awaited British summer turned up with a vengeance at round four of the championship at Cadwell Park, making for an even more uncomfortable ride for O’Halloran, who has never raced at the demanding circuit before.

The Triumph team fitted a new shock on Saturday evening and went back to the original settings from Friday and this produced a good race set up for morning warm up. After a couple of tough qualifying sessions Jason managed to put the 675 Triumph on the fifth row in 15th place. Gaining one position after the opening lap Jason soon settled into a good rhythm and pace and was producing some very consistent lap time.

He was soon locked in a battle with AJ Venter, Dan Cooper and Joe Dickinson for eighth place and was having to fight every lap to hold off the battling pair behind him. Swapping positions for at least 10 of the 16 lap race Jason was eager to gain a top ten finish after missing Oulton Park through injury. He finally crossed the line in a strong tenth place after passing Dan Cooper on the final lap.

O’Halloran was pleased with the reult under the difficult circumstances and said after the race:

“It’s been a very long and difficult weekend so to come out of it with a tenth place I’m pleased with. Having never ridden here before I had my work cut out with getting the bike right and still feeling quite sore in my shoulder and wrist, I was determined to finish with a decent result and move on and be fully fit for Mallory. We made a load of changes with the bike and didn’t seem to get any further forward, the team changed the shock and we started again and it felt good in the race and I felt a lot more comfortable. At least we have a good setting for when we come here in August. I’m going to be training hard over the next month and be fully prepared and fit for Mallory at the end of June.”

Next race: Fuchs-Silkolene British Supersport 600cc Round 5 Mallory Park 25th – 26th – 27th June

Michael Rutter on the podium

Riders Motorcycles.com’s Michael Rutter continued to show some great form aboard the Ducati at Cadwell Park at the weekend, finishing third and fourth in the two MCE sponsored BSB races on Sunday after qualifying in third on the grid.

Rutter left Cadwell Park sitting fourth in the championship race, but 56 points behind current leader Tommy Hill. He finished third in the first race, after battling with race winner Ryuichi Kiyonari early on, but was then passed by Michael Laverty in the closing stages.

Rutter said: “I rode the best I could. I knew I didn’t have the pace of Kiyo and then I got arm pump. I’ve never had it before but we did the morning warm-up with a heavy throttle setting and I think that set it off.”

He then battled with Laverty again in race two but when the Suzuki rider missed the chicane it upset the Ducati rider’s rhythm and Tommy Hill sneaked by for the final podium spot.

“I was just trying to go inside Laverty when he went off and Tommy got by.  But I’m happy with the weekend. Third and fourth, and going home in one piece. Can’t be bad,” said Rutter.

Team mate Martin Jessop finished with an eighth and ninth, but was hampered by excessive traction control in race one and an appalling start to race two. He is currently ninth in the overall standings.

Jessopp said: “In the first race I got a good start but we had some traction control issues and that held me back. Then in the second one I got a terrible start. It was frustrating because I felt I had the pace of the front runners but I  had to make some harsh moves to get through the pack and by then it was too late to close the gap to the leaders.”

Josh Brookes – HM Plant Honda 2010

It was a great weekend for the HM Plant Honda team for the latest round of the British Superbike championship with Ryuichi Kiyonari winning the opening race of the day and his team-mate Josh Brookes taking the victory in race two.

Race One

In race one, Ryuichi Kiyonari took his first win of the season despite nearly losing his Honda in the closing stages.

Kiyonari led the field as the lights went out for the start of the race followed by pole sitter Tommy Hill, Michael Rutter and Stuart Easton.

Easton lost his position on the second lap after losing the rear of his Swan Honda at Charlies and was followed two laps later by Tommy Hill who went down at Hall.  The Worx Crescent Suzuki rider managed to ground an engine case on the Kerb racing through Hall Bends causing him to crash and the deployment of the safety car.

As the race restarted on lap 8, Kiyonari pulled away from Rutter who was being put under pressure from Michael Laverty on the Relentless Suzuki who soon moved into that second position and began chasing down the race leader.  Laverty worked his way past Kiyonari with just a couple of laps left to run but the position was soon taken back by the Honda rider, crossing the line to take the chequered flag.

Laverty took second place ahead of Michael Rutter on the RidersMotorcylces.com Ducati and Tommy Bridewell for an impressive fourth place on the Quay Garage Honda.

Here are the results;

1. Ryuichi Kiyonari JPN HM Plant Honda 27m 35.356s
2. Michael Laverty GBR Relentless by TAS Suzuki +0.497s
3. Michael Rutter GBR Ridersmotorcycles.com Ducati +1.877s
4. Tommy Bridewell GBR Quay Garage Honda +2.528s
5. Josh Brookes AUS HM Plant Honda +5.168s
6. John Laverty GBR Buildbase Kawasaki +7.754s
7. Chris Walker GBR MSS Colchester Kawasaki +10.072s
8. Martin Jessopp GBR Ridersmotorcycles.com Ducati +11.042s
9. Alastair Seeley GBR Relentless by TAS Suzuki +11.953s
10. Dan Linfoot GBR Motorpoint Yamaha +13.178s

24. David Anthony AUS MIST Suzuki Racing 13 laps completed
25. Christian Iddon GBR Sorrymate.com SMT Honda 8 laps completed
26. Tommy Hill GBR Worx Crescent Suzuki 3 laps completed
27. Stuart Easton GBR Swan Honda 1 lap completed

Race Two

Josh Brookes took the victory in the second British Superbike race of the day while his team-mate and race one winner Ryuichi Kiyonari was forced to miss out after his HM Plant Honda developed techincal problems on the warm-up lap.

Michael Laverty got the lead as the race got underway followed by Michael Rutter and Brookes but before the end of the first lap, Brookes had moved past Rutter for second place.

The Australian rider then made his move to take the lead on lap 2 where he stayed until lap 16 of race two when the red flag came out after Dan Linfoot had a big accident going up the Mountain.

On lap 13, Laverty, who had looked good for second position, made a mistake at the chicane which saw him riding across the grass allowing Rutter to close-up while he fought to hold off the challenging Tommy Hill.  Hill soon moved into third position before slotting into second as he passed Laverty on the following lap.

Here are the results;

1. Josh Brookes AUS HM Plant Honda 22m 15.411s
2. Tommy Hill GBR Worx Crescent Suzuki +4.398s
3. Michael Laverty GBR Relentless by TAS Suzuki +5.675s
4. Michael Rutter GBR Ridersmotorcycles.com Ducati +5.921s
5. John Laverty GBR Buildbase Kawasaki +10.465s
6. Tommy Bridewell GBR Quay Garage Honda +10.731s
7. Alastair Seeley GBR Relentless by TAS Suzuki +13.663s
8. Chris Walker GBR MSS Colchester Kawasaki +19.568s
9. Martin Jessopp GBR Ridersmotorcycles.com Ducati +1 lap
10. Stuart Easton GBR Swan Honda +1 lap

24. Dan Linfoot GBR Motorpoint Yamaha 14 laps completed
25. Steve Heneghan IRL Quattro Plant Honda 7 laps completed
26. Chris Burns GBR Splitlath Aprilia 6 laps completed
27. Ryuichi Kiyonari JPN HM Plant Honda Did not start

The Worx Suzuki rider Yukio Kagayama has recovered sufficiently to ride at the Cadwell Park round of the British Superbike championship this coming weekend.

Kagayama suffered two cracked vertebrae at the last round of the championship at Oulton Park after being clipped from behind in the first race of the day.  The Japanese rider went down at the fast Island bend and was taken for X-rays which revealed the compression to his vertebrae.

The Suzuki rider was ruled out of competing at the Monza round of the World Superbike series where he was to take part as a wild-card for the Yoshimura Suzuki team and was instead replaced by Daisaku Sakai.

Stuart Easton – Swan Honda 2010

This weekend the second round of the British Superbike championship of 2010 takes place at the Thruxton circuit.

The Swan Honda rider Stuart Easton is expected to be fit to ride after a trip to the hospital following the opening round at Brands Hatch.

Easton was injured in a testing accident at Cadwell Park at the end of March when he lost grip entering turn 2 ‘Charlies Corner’ and was thrown into the tyre wall before being hit by his bike.  The Scottish rider received a deep cut to the back of his knee and underwent surgery to repair the damage.

After contracting an infection to the injury, Easton has been given strong antibiotics and has since had the wound restitched and has been having frequent salt baths to aid the wounds recovery process.

Despite still not being 100% fit, Easton is said to be recovering well and is now back in training so hopefully will be in a much stronger position than he was at his last outing at Brands Hatch.

Stuart Easton – Hydrex Honda 2009

The 2010 Swan Honda British Superbike rider Stuart Easton, crashed his machine at a testing session at Cadwell Park yesterday suffering an injury.

It is believed the rear tyre lost grip entering turn two ‘Charlies Corner’, he was thrown into the tyre wall before being hit by his machine which hit him in the back of his leg.  Easton received a deep cut to the back of his but after being taken to hospital, it was discovered that he had avoided muscle or tendon damage to the injury.

The Scottish rider underwent surgery to the wound last night and was expected to be released later today where he now faces a race against time to be fit for the opening round at Brands Hatch from 2-5 April.

Peter Ward – BSB Championship – Cadwell Park 2009

It has now been confirmed that the Astro Racing Team will be on the grid of the British Superbike Championship for 2010 in the Evo series with Peter Ward as their rider.

Taking a step-up from the Superstock 1000 championship, the team will be participating in their first full season with in the British Superbike class to be supported by Scott Smart.

Peter Ward, know as ‘Pesky’, competed in a number of rides during the 2007 and 2008 seasons in British Superbikes having mainly participated in the Supersport and Superstock series and so will not be totally new to the class despite having stated that he will now have to train harder to achieve his aims.

Donington Park

A revised calendar for the 2010 MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship in association with Pirelli has been announced today due to the major changes involving Donington Park which is unable to be included for the coming year.

The Donington Park round due to take place on 10-12 September will now be held at the Croft circuit and on May 21-23 is now being held at the Cadwell Park circuit.

Other changes to the calendar show the Knockhill round has moved to the 2-4 July while the 16-18 July round will be held at the Snetterton circuit.

* – Denotes three BSB races at these events, all others two.