OULTON BSB:  RIDERS REVIEWS
VISK BRITISH SUPERBIKE CHAMPIONSHIP
Michael Rutter – North West 200 Coca Cola Zero (Q=22nd, R1=17th, R2=DNF)
"I cannot get comfortable on the new bike, both Chris and Graham's style seem to cope with the power from the new bike but I do not have the confidence just yet. I think what we learnt in the last race was very encouraging and I need next weeks test to work well."
Graham Gowland – Motorpoint Henderson’s Yamaha (Q=DNQ, R1=DNS, R2=DNS)
"I am totally gutted, I had a great feel for my bike and was getting more confidence with every track outing. However I got too confident with the tyre and the bike snapped and fired me over the bars! I thought I had got away with no injury but I was not that lucky, hopefully some treatment over the next few weeks will see me make a full recovery for Donington"
Chris Walker – Motorpoint Henderson’s Yamaha (Q=9th, R1=11th, R2=9th)
"We are far from where we want to be at the finish line but I feel we have made some great steps forward today. This has been a tough weekend with a couple of crashes not helping my guy's have had to be on top form and I thank them for that. We have turned the corner with the new bike, a bit of time now before our next race will let us take in all we have learnt today."
Tom Tunstall – Hardinge Doodson Motorsport (Q=18th, R1=DNF, R2=DNS)
“I was the only rider on the gird who was on the wet part of the track and I lost a load of time & places trying to get the bike off line, unfortunately the suspension still had some wet settings and the balance of the bike didn’t feel good. The rear tyre only lasted half the race and after that it was just a matter of getting it to the flag”
“Of course I’m disappointed to miss out on third place, after the amount of work the whole team has put in the last three week they deserve it...With the weekend we’ve had, all things considered I can’t be too unhappy. We’ve gained a lot of experience with the new bike and I know that we’ll bounce back stronger.”

David Johnson – Team Maxxis – Adept Yamaha (Q=19th, R1=DNF, R2=14th)
“I was so frustrated with the first race, after the great start I knew I could get into the top 10, but only to have the race stopped was a real disappointment. At the restart I sat on the grid of what appeared to be forever, the bike’s temperature was soaring to 120o, so I tried to cool it down, whilst waiting for other riders to get to the grid.  The R1 is really smooth, we had a small issue with the rear shock, but Jamo [John Jameson] and the other guys will be working on that before our next test session.”
KTM RC8 SUPERCUP
Ritchie Thornton – TA Creative Ltd/P&H Motorcycles (Q = 17th, R=17th)
“I suspected something must have been wrong, I love this circuit and have always done well here, the bike just did not feel right at all.  The suspension settings we went out on to the circuit with seemed to be changing all the time. I just didn’t feel like I was part of the bike any more. Sometimes I thought it would just throw me off at any time.  Unfortunately the problem could not be rectified at the meeting and Ritchie was left in a position where he had no choice but to ride with the front forks as they were.”
“We decided to leave the dry tyres on as the rain was easing off and the tarmac just seemed a bit damp. I thought it would dry out.  It was the wrong decision, as it started to rain again about half way through the race. Some riders were going down on the slippery surface, one rider even dropped it on the warm up lap, so I decided to ride with safety in mind to bring it home in 17th position. Not great compared to my previous performances there.”
METZELER NATIONAL SUPERSTOCK 600
Nick Clark – Linxcel-Seton Tuning (Q=2nd, R=DNF)
“It took me a little time to get going and I dropped back to 6th. I was in a group of four riders and I was feeling comfortable sitting behind them and looked to set the guys up towards the end of the race. Oulton Park is quite physically demanding and I knew that they would tire towards the end of the race.  With five laps remaining, one of the riders high-sided and I took advantage to move up to fourth-place.”
“On the last lap I was closing on the third-place man so I ran wide into Cascades to give me a slingshot along the straight into Island Bend and took third.  All credit to Phil and team especially after the crash at Brands, despite seeing the leaders disappear a bit I was pleased with my improved consistency and it’s given me a clear route to move forward and challenge for the top-step of the podium.”
Liam Lyon – Team Haribo Starmix (Q=9th, R=DNF)
“Starting from the front of the third row I got off to a blinding start; into turn one in 6th position, then by turn two I was up to 5th.  A couple of laps passed as I got into a comfortable pace then made my move up to 4th, everything was feeling really good.  I followed 3rd place rider Pat McDougall for a few laps, to see where he was weaker than me, and where stronger.”
“On the start of lap 9, I was starting to think about making the move up to 3rd, as I knew other riders would now be on my tail, I broke for turn one, and tipped it in, gave it a bit of gas, and was just about to stand the bike up to exit the corner, when the rear stepped-out big time and totally washed out.  I couldn’t believe it.  I had no chance of saving it and slid along the track with it before the bike launched me at least 5 foot in the air.  As I lay winded in the middle of the track my new objective was to avoid getting hit by the 30+ bikes still racing behind me.”
Johnny Blackshaw – Team Haribo Starmix (Shootout race=13th,  Q=DNQ)
“The morning warm-up came first; and it was wet.  As I approached the first chicane I was getting a feel for the wet conditions.   On exiting the Chicane, I spun up the rear and it launched me “out of my seat and what felt like a mile high” before I fell shoulder-first to the ground. In the race I knew my shoulder wasn’t right; but I HAD to race.  The doctor in the medical centre demanded I show him ten press-ups before he’d let me ride.  I only just passed that test; I was determined.”
“After the first lap my muscles were screaming at me.  I was struggling to hold the bike.  I got up to 8th but eventually dropped back and finished 13th.  I had been in so much pain that when the race was over I removed my helmet and promptly threw up.  All in all it was a terrible weekend.  But I’ve learned from my mistakes and I can’t wait to race at Donington Park in three weeks’ time.”
FUCHS-SILKOLENE BRITISH SUPERSPORT CHAMPIONSIP
Hudson Kennaugh – Linxcel-Seton Tuning (Q=1st, R=DNF)
“Obviously I’m bitterly disappointed, especially after the great work the whole team put in to get the bike set up perfectly.  The bike was performing really well and, once again, the team has proven it has the capability of being the forerunner in the championship by producing the quickest outright lap times.”
Craig Fitzpatrick – BLDS Couriers (Q=10th, R=5th)
“The race began in the dry, but as the rain began to fall after a couple of laps it had to be stopped and restarted. With the weather looking decidedly changeable, the riders were left with a make or break tyre choice. At the last minute, Fitzpatrick took the intermediate option. Unfortunately the late decision had meant Fitzpatrick was too late to take his rightful spot on the grid and was forced to start from the back.”
“With the track still mainly dry, Fitzpatrick was eager to make a charge and by the end of the first lap was already up to 16th. As the rain started to worsen the track conditions became treacherous. Riders were crashing out at almost every corner, as it soon became apparent who had chosen the correct tyres. As the laps passed, the rain continued to fall and stretched field began to settle. After an impressive ride, Fitzpatrick crossed the line in fifth, to secure valuable championship points.”
Dan Linfoot – NW200 Coca Cola Zero (Q=2nd, R=DNF)
"That was frustrating, I had great pace all weekend and love riding at Oulton. The weather did not really bother me and I was pretty confident with my tyre choice. I thought that the weather may change and tried to go hard while the track was dry, my plan backfired and I got caught out when the rain came heavier. It is disappointing but we know we have good package and with some of the others having problems the championship is wide open"
Ben Wilson – Gearlink Kawasaki (Q=9th, R=3rd)
“I took a massive gamble on tyre choice and it paid off handsomely. At the start of the race the track was bone dry and although I was first into Turn One I realised I was not on the right tyres to stay there and dropped like a stone down the field to 20TH. But I got my head down and stuck with it and before long the much-needed rain began to fall and I was able to move forward.  I have to say a big thank you to the Gearlink Kawasaki team who have all worked so hard this weekend to keep me out there in the difficult conditions.”
David Hallett – Team Co-Ordit (Q=4th, R=20th)
“I’m a little frustrated with the end result of our weekend as we all put in a lot of
hard work to make some big improvements with the set-up of my R6 over the weekend. During the race we made the choice to run intermediates in difficult conditions, which was working in our favour as we started to move forwards.”
“Annoyingly, I was wrongly black flagged for tyre smoke and was not allowed to continue by the marshals, prematurely ending a race that I was sure of posting a good result of in the Cup. I’d like to say thanks to all of the team and sponsors for their continued support and look forward to the next race where I’m sure we can now be on the pace.”
Tom Grant – Centurion Racing (Q=11th, R1=6th)
"It's been a really tough weekend and I've had a number of engine problems. When it started raining it was a real lottery on which would be the best tyre to run, we had to change to intermediates but went over the allocated time and were forced to start from the back. I just had to get my head down and work hard to try and fight my way through but I'm really frustrated that I didn't get sorted in time to start on the grid position that I should have. We had a disaster this weekend so I have to take home the fact that we got some good points and just hope that everything is fine for Donington in a couple of weeks time."
METZELER NATIONAL SUPERSTOCK 1000
Daniel Hegarty – Daniel Hegarty Racing (Q=DNQ, R=DNS)
“With first free practice underway, Dan was setting good lap times and was running second after only a couple of laps. After 10 laps Dan had posted the 5th fastest time in free practice. Towards the end of the session however, Dan pulled in with technical issues on the bike. On closer inspection it was apparent that the problem was bigger than first anticipated. After several tense hours making calls to dealerships across the country and with the help of Crescent Suzuki, the parts required to fix the bike were not available and so the weekend racing for Dan was cut short.”
Richard Cooper – Team Co-Ordit (Q=4th, R=20th)
"That didn’t turn out to plan! After qualifying on the front row and right on the
pace, we was looking for another strong result. I crashed out while in fourth and managed to get back up to 20th but was gutted as I was in a another strong position for a podium.”