Motorcycle Blog

After sitting out the last round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Cadwell Park last weekend, due to a wrist injury sustained in training the week previously, Hydrex Bike Animal Honda rider James Ellison will be back in action to take his place as a wild card entry at this weekend’s Hannspree World Superbike Championship meeting at Donington Park.

Up until Cadwell, the 27 year old from Kendal, who has been one of the revelations of the season on his return to BSB after four years, had scored points in every round aboard the Shaun Muir Racing 1000cc Honda Fireblade, and despite attempting to ride at Cadwell, he had to admit defeat when a ligament injury prevented his participation on the grounds of safety.

However, with a week’s rest being prescribed, he is fit and raring to go and is looking forward to the opportunity of racing on the world stage once again, especially after two years in MotoGP and a year in the American Superbike Championship. Ellison is no stranger to the World Superbike paddock, having won the European Superstock Championship in 2000 and 2001, before embarking on a season in World Supersport in 2002. His best results in World Superbikes came in 2004, the same year he won the British Superbike Cup, when he took his Jentin Yamaha to a fifth and sixth place finish at Brands Hatch.

James Ellison:  “I’m so looking forward to racing at Donington, it’s unreal! I was so frustrated at Cadwell but my wrist is fine and I have no concerns about it at all now. All it needed was a little bit of rest and now I’m raring to go. We had a good run in the BSB races at Donington and I’m hopeful we can give a good account of ourselves once again. We know our bike is good, we have got the electronics working a lot better and I’m really up for this one. Top ten would be a great result, but I’m hoping for a top six if I’m being honest and despite it being probably the strongest field of the year what with all the British wild cards, I’m feeling very confident.”

Shaun Muir (Team Owner):  “After the disappointment of Cadwell, we are all looking forward to James racing once again and I’m confident he can do us proud. He showed well at Donington back in May and although it’s going to be a lot tougher this weekend, I’m hopeful that James can get a couple of good results. It will be good for us also to see exactly where we as a team are in terms of progress this year and I think if we can score a couple of top tens, that would be a great achievement for us.”

The team still has a limited number of VIP Hospitality places available so anyone interested should contact Shaun Muir at shaunmuir@smr.uk.com by Wednesday 3rd September 2008.

First qualifying takes place on Friday 5th September, with second qualifying and Superpole on Saturday 6th September. Race one takes place on Sunday 7th September at 12.00 with race two at 15.30. The racing will be shown live on British Eurosport from 1030 to 1630.

Following confimation from the Hannspree Ten Kate team, five of the best motorcycle racers in the world will descend on Northallerton in North Yorkshire this Wednesday night (3rd September) when the North Yorkshire Road Racing Supporters Club ‘World Superbike Night’ takes place at Club Amadeus in the town.

Headlining the bill is the multiple World Championship winning Hannspree ten Kate Honda Team who are in the UK just prior to the eleventh round of the World Superbike Championship meeting which takes place at Donington Park over the weekend of 5/6/7th September.

Former MotoGP star Carlos Checa is enjoying a fantastic first season in WSB and the Spanish rider knows all about the region as he had a property in Great Ayton when racing for the works Yamaha team!

Another rider with UK roots is Japanese ace Ryuichi Kiyonari who will be making his second visit to Club Amadeus. A double British Superbike Champion, ‘Kiyo’ is red hot favourite to add to his Brands Hatch double in the last round when he tackles Donington Park.

The third member of the Hannspree ten Kate Superbike Team is Turkish rider Kenan Sofuoglu who won last year’s World Supersport Championship and with it, recorded the team’s amazing seventh successive crown in the class.

It looks like it will be eight on the bounce also as the two Supersport riders, Andrew Pitt from Australia and Northern Ireland’s Jonathan Rea, currently run first and second. Rea is always a popular visitor to Northallerton and will be joined on stage by the 2001 World Supersport Champion Pitt also.

There will be a number of other star guests in attendance in the show which will be co hosted by Eurosport commentator James Whitham and BSB Pit Lane reporter Larry ‘Scoop’ Carter.

As well as the normal chat show and autograph sessions, there will be a raffle and an auction plus trade stands and all money raised will be distributed amongst local competitors.

Admission costs a mere £5 on the door (£4.00 NYRRSC members) with the show getting underway at 7.45pm prompt.

Further details are available from Martin Knighton on 07818 040205 and the postcode of the venue for SatNav directions is DL6 1NH.

Some of the best motorcycle racers in the world descend on Northallerton in North Yorkshire a week next Wednesday night (3rd September) when the North Yorkshire Road Racing Supporters Club ‘World Superbike Night’ takes place at Club Amadeus in the town.

Headlining the bill is the multiple World Championship winning Hannspree ten Kate Honda Team who are in the UK just prior to the eleventh round of the World Superbike Championship meeting which takes place at Donington Park over the weekend of 5/6/7th September.

Former MotoGP star Carlos Checa is enjoying a fantastic first season in WSB and the Spanish rider knows all about the region as he had a property in Great Ayton when racing for the works Yamaha team!

Another rider with UK roots is Japanese ace Ryuichi Kiyonari who will be making his second visit to Club Amadeus. A double British Superbike Champion, ‘Kiyo’ is red hot favourite to add to his Brands Hatch double in the last round when he tackles Donington Park.

The third member of the Hannspree ten Kate Superbike Team is Turkish rider Kenan Sofuoglu who won last year’s World Supersport Championship and with it, recorded the team’s amazing seventh successive crown in the class.

It looks like it will be eight on the bounce also as the two Supersport riders, Andrew Pitt from Australia and Northern Ireland’s Jonathan Rea, currently run first and second. Rea is always a popular visitor to Northallerton and will be joined on stage by the 2001 World Supersport Champion Pitt also.

There will be a number of other star guests in attendance in the show which will be co hosted by Eurosport commentator James Whitham and BSB Pit Lane reporter Larry ‘Scoop’ Carter.

As well as the normal chat show and autograph sessions, there will be a raffle and an auction plus trade stands and all money raised will be distributed amongst local competitors.

Admission costs a mere £5 on the door (£4.00 NYRRSC members) with the show getting underway at 7.45pm prompt.

Further details are available from Martin Knighton on 07818 040205 and the postcode of the venue for SatNav directions is DL6 1NH.

2008 HANNspree World Superbike Championship
Rounds 19 & 20 - Brands Hatch, Kent, UK
Sunday 3rd August 2008

Vent Axia VK Honda riders Greg Lavilla and Chris Walker were in points scoring form when round ten of the HANNspree World Superbike Championship took place at Brands Hatch this weekend.

Spaniard Lavilla recorded thirteenth and fourteenth positions in the two races with new signing Chris Walker claiming fifteenth place in both 25-lap races on his return to World Superbike action.

In a weekend blighted by rain showers, Lavilla very nearly upset the form book when he set fastest time in the early stages of Saturday’s Superpole which he held for most of the session but as the track dried a number of riders ended up going faster and he ended up in thirteenth.

Sadly Walker missed the Superpole session after only managing 23rd place as he fought to get to terms with the 1000cc Honda Fireblade after spending most of the year racing in World Supersport.

In the two races both riders battled hard in the lower leaderboard positions to eventually score points which Lavilla added to his tally to end up in fourteenth in the Championship with Walker glad to open his account after a tough weekend.

Gregorio Lavilla:
“We made some good improvements to the bike in the second race and we put in some good lap times.  We were consistent once again and within the points but I wasn’t able to improve much on my qualifying position during the race so we have to keep working hard on set-up and move up to the next level which I hope we can achieve at Donington.  Brands is a track which I have beaten Kiyo on before in the BSB so I it was really great to see him win the double here and I want to congratulate him.”
 
Chris Walker:
“Every time I went out on the bike I learnt more and more and it’s great to be back on a Superbike.  The bike felt brilliant and I was happy with the race set-up in the end.  My fitness level is good but I need to get into the gym to work on my arm strength as I had to lose weight to ride the Supersport.  I was desperate to get into the points this weekend so overall I’m pretty happy with my performance.  The boys have done me proud and I’m chuffed to be part of the team.  They’ve all made me feel really welcome and I can’t wait to get to Donington.”
 
Paul Bird:
“Overall the team and I were expecting better results at our home round and I’m feeling disappointed.  However it was good to see Greg doing better in qualifying and it was unfortunate for us that we didn’t get a better grid position after putting in some good laps during the wet practice and also during the Superpole wet session. Chris had a good weekend and did what we expected him to do.   We threw him in the deep end and he did a professional job.  I’m pleased with his performance and we’re really happy to have him in the team.  All we can do now is look forward to Donington, another strong track for us, and hope that we get some better results which I know we are capable of.”

The next round of the Championship takes place on 6th/7th September at Donington Park in Derbyshire.

Superbike Race One Result
1, R Kiyonari (Honda) 36m18.607s, 2, T Bayliss (Ducati) +0.137s, 3, M Biaggi (Ducati) +0.180s, 4, Y Kagayama (Suzuki) +5.733s, 5, F Nieto (Suzuki) +6.499s, 6, C Checa (Honda) +6.984s, 7, M Neukirchner (Suzuki) +8.300s, 8, T Corser (Yamaha) +10.732s, 9, J Smrz (Ducati) +16.547s, 10, R Rolfo (Honda) +16.569s. 14, G Lavilla (Vent Axia VK Honda) +26.856s, 15, C Walker (Vent Axia VK Honda) +32.877s.

Superbike Race Two Result
1, R Kiyonari (Honda) 36m14.904s, 2, N Haga (Yamaha) +1.848s, 3, T Corser (Yamaha) +8.883s, 4, M Neukirchner (Suzuki) +11.180s, 5, F Nieto (Suzuki) +12.928s, 6, M Fabrizio (Ducati) +13.696s, 7, T Sykes (Suzuki) +13.872s, 8, C Checa (Honda) +14.009s, 9, J Smrz (Ducati) +19.065s, 10, L Lanzi (Ducati) +19.864s. 13, G Lavilla (Vent Axia VK Honda) +20.722s. 15, C Walker (Vent Axia VK Honda) +32.090s.

Championship Standings after Round 10
1, T Bayliss (AUS) 334pts
2, M Neukirchner (GER) 252pts
3, T Corser (AUS) 242pts
4, C Checa (ESP) 233pts
5, N Haga (JPN) 230pts
6, F Nieto (ESP) 183pts
7, M Biaggi (ITA) 166pts
8, R Kiyonari (JPN) 165pts
9, M Fabrizio (ITA) 161pts
10, R Xaus (ESP) 148pts
14, G Lavilla (ESP) 83pts
28, C Walker (GBR) 2pts

Following on from the broken leg sustained in the very first round of the Italian Superbike Championship, British teenager Tommy Bridewell bounced back with a battling eighth place finish at round four held at Misano today.

Having missed the previous two rounds of the ISC also, the 18 year old from Etchilhampton near Devizes in Wiltshire was nearly back to full fitness following recent races in the Suzuki GSX-R 750 European Cup and was determined to put in a good performance on his Naturally Best Racing 1000cc Suzuki.

Brim-full of confidence going into the race, Bridewell’s problems started on the warm-up lap when a dragging clutch beset his challenge but despite this, he battled with the leading group during the early stages of the 13-lap race.

However, Tom was dealt a second blow when a problem with the rear tyre started seriously hampering his progress and the resulting time loss in the second half of the race relegated him to eighth at the flag, albeit some 19 seconds ahead of the ninth placed rider.

“What a bummer.” declared Tom afterwards. “For the first time this season, I felt really confident that we could get a good result here this weekend and then when I felt the clutch go on the warm-up lap I thought maybe I could ride round the problem but then the tyre gave up the ghost a few laps later and it was all I could do to bring the bike home. I finished the race with no clutch and the rear tyre shredded but despite that, I’m pleased to get my first points on the board in the series. We have a two month break now in this series so my aim is to get fitter and look to score a podium when we come back here to Misano in late September.”

In the interim, Bridewell has two races on home ground when he contests his local Castle Combe Superbike Grand National over the weekend of August 16/17 and then it’s on to Donington Park three weeks later for round five of the Suzuki GSX-R 750 European Cup.

Italian Superbike Championship
20th April Mugello
4th May Monza
25th May Vallelunga
27th July Misano
28th Sept Misano
19th Oct Mugello

Suzuki GSX-R750 European Cup
6th April Valencia, Spain
11th May Monza, Italy
15th June Nurburgring, Germany
29th June Misano, Italy
7th Sept Donington Park, GB
5th Oct  Magny Cours, France

Paul Bird Motorsport wishes to announce the signing of British rider Chris Walker to race for the Vent Axia VK team for the rest of the 2008 Hannspree World Superbike Championship.

The 36 year old from Nottinghamshire will join existing rider Gregorio Lavilla in the team for the remaining five rounds commencing at Brands Hatch over the weekend of August 1/2/3rd.

Walker, four times a runner-up in the British Superbike Championship, has been racing in the World Supersport Championship this season but hasn’t enjoyed the best of luck on his Kawasaki so the rider who has 138 WSB races and twelve podiums under his belt is relishing the opportunity of racing a superbike again.

After a successful test at Oulton Park yesterday aboard the team’s recently built 1000cc Honda Fireblade, both Walker and team owner Paul Bird were delighted to shake on the deal which will see ‘The Stalker’ as the only permanent British rider in the series.

“When I set off on the bike, it very nearly pulled my wig off and it reminded me of just what I’ve been missing in Superbikes!” said Walker. “It’s a massive opportunity for me and one which I don’t intend to waste. Everyone knows this team has pedigree and they build awesome bikes so I know it will be competitive. I nearly signed for Birdy a few years ago and didn’t so now I’m really looking forward to working with the team and also Greg whom I have a lot of respect for. I love Brands and Donington and my aim is to give the crowds something to cheer about so make sure you come along and support me!”

Team owner Paul Bird commented: “Running a second bike was always in the plan but we felt it best to help concentrate on giving Greg the best package possible. But now we have a couple of races at tracks both he and the team know, the time is right to introduce Chris who like Greg, knows his way round Brands and Donington. The plan thereafter is to go to the final three rounds brim full of confidence and get some results abroad that we know the bike and riders are capable of. It’s important for the organisers that we bring a British rider to the series and I’m delighted to have Chris on board.”

Name: Chris Walker
DOB:  25/03/1972
Lives: Newark, Notts

2002: 9th World Superbike Championship
2003:  6th World Superbike Championship
2005:  7th World Superbike Championship 
2006: 6th World Superbike Championship

WSB Stats:    
Starts:   138
Podiums: 12
Wins:  1 (Assen 2006)
Seconds: 1
Thirds:  10

Remaining rounds:

Aug 1/2/3 - Brands Hatch, UK
Sept 5/6/7 - Donington Park, UK
Sept 19/20/21 - Vallelunga, Italy
Oct 3/4/5 - Magny Cours, France
Oct 24/25/26 - Portimao, Portugal