JG Speedfit Kawasaki’s James Ellison has his eyes firmly on Showdown rivals, Milwaukee Yamaha’s Josh Brookes and PBM Kawasaki’s Shane Byrne, and is confident he has the pace to be up the sharp end during the MCE British Superbike double-header at Assen on Sunday.
The former MotoGP racer believed that some people may have ‘written him off’ after his wrist injury but he is adamant that the championship is far from over and that he has the package to compete for wins and podiums.
Ellison’s aim was to put down a time that would place his ZX-10R on the front row, and he did just that, lapping a 1’36.346 during qualifying this afternoon at the Dutch track. But the Cumbrian is still not one hundred percent fully fit, and is still recovering from a broken wrist, but he is remaining focused on the task ahead with the aim of closing down on the 31 point lead that Brookes has over him in the series.
“I’m peaking with that. The aim yesterday was to get a front row if we wanted any chance of fighting with Josh tomorrow. Having Shakey behind is a bonus as well, because he’s our closest rival and he’s still fighting for the title. Some people may have written me off, but it’s not over yet. I know Josh has been dominant for the last few rounds, but I was like that at the start of the season before the injury,” said Ellison.
“We missed a few rounds because of the injury which hasn’t helped, but the team have stuck by me through it all, and to be signed with them already for next year for me is the icing on the cake. The wrist feels ok out on the bike because I’m focused on the lap and the lap timer, but off the bike it still hurts, walking around and picking things up it hurts. It is a hindrance, but I’ve learnt to ride around it and I’ve had to adapt my riding style to compensate it.
“Josh is quick, but he’s beatable, I’ve beat him before. He’s on a good run at the minute and his bike is working well, so I’ve just got to keep digging deep and plugging away at it. I normally go quicker in the race than I do in qualifying, my qualifying time from today is going to be hard to beat but I know that I’ll be running quick times in the race and I’ll be up there with the front boys.
“It’s important to keep Shakey behind us tomorrow; we have to keep both Shakey and Josh behind to be honest. Josh is strong around here, but Shakey’s on the same equipment and I believe that I am riding better than him at the moment.”
