Richard Cooper was back to winning ways this afternoon as he snatched the opening Pirelli National Superstock 1000 victory from Taylor Mackenzie.
The Buildbase Suzuki rider overhauled his Bathams Racing title rival to take his first victory at the Scottish track.
Cooper grabbed the holeshot as the pack dropped down Duffus Dip, but it was a very short race for FS-3 Racing Kawasaki’s Lee Jackson, whose lunge for third went haywire as he lost the back end and cartwheeled into the gravel.
As Mackenzie slipped ahead of Cooper into the lead, Morello Racing Kawasaki man Rouse made a few looks at Cooper for second just as Tyco BMW’s Andy Reid began to make inroads into fourth, laying a pass on local ace Lewis Rollo.
The other Scotsman Mackenzie was already 1.5s clear of the field with four laps completed, but Cooper soon chopped his lead down and by lap 10, he had hit the front.
Cooper quickly set about pulling a gap on his title rival and with over half a second in hand, he powered across the line to take the win as Rouse bagged a lone third.
