Motourage

Guy Martin completes the Tyco Suzuki lineup for the forthcoming season. The 2011 Ulster Grand Prix Superbike winner and quadruple podium finisher at last year’s Isle of Man TT will partner Manxman Conor Cummins in an all-new line up for the three major International Road Races.

British Superbike Championship rider Alastair Seeley will also join them in a three-pronged attack at the North West 200 in May.

It will be Lincolnshire rider’s second season racing for Moneymore-based TAS Racing and in inimitable Guy Martin style, he explained just why he wanted to remain on GSX-R machinery with Tyco Suzuki.

Guy Martin:
“It’s taken a while, but it was always on the cards. I’m happy to be back with the team for a second year and I love the new Tyco Suzuki colors. Great job. I couldn’t knock last year to be honest; the only thing we didn’t do was win a TT, but hopefully we’ll put that right in June. That’s the box we want to tick. The North West and Ulster GP are great events but it’s a TT win I really want. The team is good enough, the bikes are good enough; and I believe the rider is good enough, so it’s time to go out and win one.”

Philip Neill, Team Manager:
“After all the speculation it’s nice to finally be able to officially announce that Guy Martin will continue to race for TAS in 2012 in the new Tyco Suzuki livery. I think we both knew that it was going to happen. We made a verbal agreement to each other last August at the Ulster Grand Prix, but all the speculation has brought lots of publicity for our sponsors, the team and Suzuki, which is great. But I suppose when Guy gets out of bed these days he gets media coverage.”

“He’s a hard man to pin down with such a busy schedule, but with Conor onboard and now Guy, I think we have a strong team looking ahead to the three internationals. Guy proved last year that he has all the ingredients required to go all out for that TT win in June. It’s eluded him so far, but we’ll work as hard as we can as a team to make it happen.”

“He’s not just the most popular rider in the UK these days, but also very popular outside the sport, which is good for motorcycling in general. Everyone at TAS, Suzuki, Tyco and existing sponsors like Ian Glen from Beacon are delighted to see him stay for a second year. And as I said before, along with Conor and our BSB duo of Seeley and Brookes, I feel it can be a successful season for Tyco Suzuki.”

After his Superbike victory on Wednesday night, Guy Martin rounded out his week at the Southern 100 in the Isle of Man with third place in yesterday’s Supersport 600cc race and second place in the Solo Championship Superbike event, run over nine laps.

He almost had the consolation of setting a new outright track lap record for his 112.234mph effort on lap six of the Solo Championship race as he closed in on Michael Dunlop, but the youngster re-claimed the lap record prize on the penultimate lap.

It was a solid week for Martin, who, although disappointed at not taking the Solo title, was happy enough with his performance on Relentless Suzuki by TAS machinery at the Southern 100.

Guy Martin:
“I thought I’d be able to pull Michael back today in that Solo Championship race but Ryan kept showing me a wheel. Fair play to him though he rode well. That temperature made a bit of a difference today – it must have been the thick end of 25 degrees – but no excuses. He broke the tow and that was it. The 600 race was some battle. At one stage I was second and then I was fourth so I’m happy enough to get on the podium. It’s been a decent enough week. We would have liked more wins, but that’s the way it goes and the boys did a good job.”

Philip Neill – Team Manager:
“We obviously would have liked that Solo Championship victory but you can do no more than break the lap record trying to do so. That tells you how hot the pace was, so fair play to Michael. Guy had a decent week: we got a win, which is always good for our sponsors, and three podiums demonstrates the pedigree of Suzuki’s GSX-R machinery.

“It’s more mileage and more information as we prepare for the Ulster Grand Prix in August and after a few weekends ticking boxes with his crazy mountain biking trips, Guy will be back super fit for the Armoy Road Races at the end of July. With the entry they are expecting it looks like being a cracking weekend of racing.”

Solo Championship [9 laps]: 1 Michael Dunlop [Kawasaki] 20mins 38.549; 2 Guy Martin [Relentless Suzuki by TAS] 20mins 42.601; 3 Ryan Farquhar [Kawasaki] 20mins 45.044; 4 William Dunlop [Honda] 20mins 52.539; 5 Cameron Donald [Honda] 22mins 05.138; 6 Dan Kneen [Kawasaki] 21mins 07.896.

Supersport Race: 1 Michael Dunlop [Yamaha] 18mins 58.558; 2 William Dunlop [Honda] 19mins 03.002; 3 Guy Martin [Relentless Suzuki by TAS] 19mins 03.644; 4 Cameron Donald [Honda] 19mins 03.824; 5 Dan Kneen [Honda] 19mins 22.186; 6 Conor Cummins [Kawasaki] 19mins 22.944.

Guy Martin will make a welcome return to pure road racing this week at the Southern 100 ‘friendly races’ on the Isle of Man in the UK with the Relentless Suzuki by TAS Racing Team.

The Lincolnshire rider is a former Solo champion at the 4.25-mile Billown Circuit on the south of the Island, and after a successful Isle of Man TT – where he scored four podiums from five races on GSX-R machinery – Martin will be gunning for glory at what he calls his favorite meeting of the year.

Guy Martin:
“This is one proper meeting I love attending: It’s run the way a road race should be and the organizers and fans make it a special week for all the riders. I missed last year through injury, but it’s great to be back. It’s a mega circuit with some great corners: real road racing corners. The entry list is pretty strong this year but I’m sure we can be at the sharp-end fighting for some silverware on the Relentless Suzukis. It’ll be a busy but enjoyable week.”

Philip Neill – Team Manager:
“The Southern 100 is a race we’ve not been able to attend as much as I’d have liked over the years. It has great history and from what the riders tell me, the event is run like clockwork. We know Guy is a big fan of the place and with the likes of Ryan, Cameron, Conor and the Dunlop boys there; it’s going to be like a mini-TT week. The weather forecast is good, which is important; so let’s hope Guy can put our GSX-R machinery on the top step. It would be a nice way to get the ball rolling on the run into the Ulster Grand Prix next month.”

Southern 100 Race Schedule:

Tuesday 12th July:
8.05pm – Corlett’s Trophies 600/1000cc Race [8 Laps]

Wednesday 13th July:
6.20pm – Total Oils Senior Race [8 Laps]
8.00pm – Radcliffe Butchers’ 600cc Race [8 Laps]

Thursday 14th July:
11.10am – S&S Motors’ 600cc Race [8 Laps]
3.00pm – Manx Gas Solo Championship Race [9 Laps]
8.30pm – Open Air Presentation in Castletown Market Square.

Guy Martin and the whole Relentless Suzuki by TAS Racing team covered themselves in glory during yesterday’s Supersport and Superstock races at the Isle of Man TT with two podium finishes. The Lincolnshire rider took a hard-fought brace of third places on the team’s all-new GSX-R600 and GSX-R1000 respectively.

It was a day of lengthy delays, and although the Supersport race got underway at 10:45am, it was 8:20pm before the final press conference for the Superstock race was completed.

The opening Supersport race was red flagged after less than two laps due to an incident at Gorse Lea. It was later restarted over a shortened race distance of three laps with Martin hovering in around the podium positions for the duration. And when others faltered, Martin was ready to pick up the pieces, giving Suzuki’s all-new GSX-R600 its second International Road Racing podium of the season.

The four-lap Superstock race got underway after a lengthy delay at 6:30pm, but the Isle of Man TT fans were served up a real exhibition of pure road racing. At the first checkpoint at Glen Helen on lap one, less than three seconds covered the top five, and by the end of the lap, Martin had forced his GSX-R1000 to the top of the leader board with a lap of 127.953mph from a standing start.

From there he got embroiled in a battle with John McGuinness and Michael Dunlop, eventually coming home in third place, struggling slightly in the latter stages to find the same level of performance he had done on lap one to challenge for the win.

Guy Martin:
“I couldn’t have taken the little 600 round there any faster today. When Cameron blew up in front of me I thought it was going to end in tears for both of us. I hit the curb trying to get round him, but a podium is a good effort for us. We’ll change a few things and see what we can do on Wednesday.

“In the Superstock race the early grip and stability was great and the bike was just mega. The whole job was coming easy enough and I wasn’t having to hang it out anywhere and I wasn’t bouncing off any curbs! I started to struggle a little bit in the latter stages with grip and stability – what you’d expect I suppose – so I was just glad to get it home on the podium. It’s not a shabby job at all. I haven’t won one yet but it’ll come. This is a proper team effort and all the Relentless Suzuki by TAS boys are a great bunch of lads.”

Philip Neill, Team Manager:
“It’s been a long day obviously tainted with sadness, which is always the case when a competitor loses his life – so our thoughts and prayers are with Derek Brien’s family at this time. Two podiums is a strong day for us. Yes we are here to win but overall you’ve got to be happy with podiums at the TT. All you can do is make your package competitive enough for a podium finish; after that it’s really down to the circumstances of the race.

“A lot of things must be taken into consideration, but getting into a lengthy dice on the road didn’t help Guy’s chances of second place in the Superstock race. But that’s the way it goes sometimes, although it would make me consider our start numbers for next year. We used to dominate the Superstock class with the GSX-R1000 so it’s good to be back on the podium and also very pleasing to give the new GSX-R600 another international road racing podium, especially here at the TT.

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Alastair Seeley took Saturday’s only race victory at the rain-lashed Relentless International North West 200 and gave the all-new GSX-R600 Suzuki its first top step of an International Supersport podium this year.

And in the second race of the day – the Superbike event – Seeley came from the third row of the grid – again in soaking-wet conditions – to lead at the end of lap one. Unfortunately for the riders and the fans, the race was red-flagged on lap two when another rider’s engine expired, leaving a massive oil spill on the Coast Road from Church Corner to Juniper Hill chicane. Despite a lengthy delay – and the best attention from the organizers – the meeting was abandoned on safety grounds.

Seeley had been in prolific form throughout the week-long event taking Pole positions in both Supersport and Superstock classes, and despite an electrical problem forcing him to sit out the majority of Thursday’s Superbike session, the former British Superstock Champion and current North West 200 lap-record holder made the grid after a tremendous show of allegiance from British Superbike teammate Josh Brookes: While Seeley continued his North West 200 preparations on the Causeway Coast, Australian Brookes travelled to Kirkistown Race Circuit early on Friday morning to make sure the Seeley’s GSX-R1000 was ready to race following a late-night session from his crew back in the team’s Moneymore workshop. And only for the oil spill in the race, Brookes’ generous gesture would have played a significant role in the anticipated victory.

Alastair Seeley:
“That’s an International Road Racing victory to add to the British Supersport win at Brands for the new GSX-R600. It was a great race to be involved in and even more pleasing to beat what is basically a World Supersport specification Honda. I knew I would be stronger into the chicanes despite Cameron using traction control on his bike, as the brakes on the new GSX-R600 are one of its best features and that gave me a lot of confidence in the wet.

“In the Superbike race, the plan was the pick them off and get into the lead so I wouldn’t have to sit in anyone’s spray. The speed of my GSX-R1000 was far superior to Ryan and Michael’s bikes and the way it was set up, I was actually enjoying it spinning up down the big straights in the wet. I was ready to pull the pin and just ride my own race, so it was disappointing to see a red flag on lap two. I really felt like I was in control this week in all classes, and having felt so comfortable in the wet I think we’d have been hard to beat. That five of McCallen’s was definitely a big target.”

Guy Martin:
“It was a tough day for everyone involved and a week’s worth of effort for just one race. Unfortunately I made the wrong tire choice. To come away with eighth place is nothing to shout about but I am now going to the Isle of Man full of confidence; confidence in the blokes working on the bikes and confidence in the bikes themselves. It was a terrible day for the people who turned out to watch the racing, but a confidence-building day for the bigger picture – the bigger picture being the TT.”

Philip Neill, Team Manager:
“The North West 200 has always been one of my favorite events on the calendar and as Ireland’s biggest sporting occasion. It’s a shame to see such a great event abandoned due to unforeseen circumstances. Mervyn Whyte and his team from the Coleraine & District Motor Club did everything in their power to save the day and must be commended for their efforts.

“On a positive note we had a strong showing from both our riders in practice and we won the only race giving us a 100 percent record for our sponsors Relentless, Suzuki and all our other team partners. It really was a masterful display from Alastair Seeley in that Supersport race giving Suzuki and the new GSX-R600 its first international road race victory. What is even more special is the fact that we were running the bike with very limited British Supersport specification electronics; unlike some of our main rivals who were running fancy electronic aids including traction control.

“We dearly wanted the Superbike race to run full distance as in all honesty with Alastair coming through from the third row of the grid to lead within a lap, there was no beating the wee Carrickfergus man, although it was the correct decision to stop the race and eventually abandon the meeting on safety grounds.

“Guy made a solid debut on the international roads for our team. Unfortunately he took a gamble with his intermediate tire choice in the Supersport race and with everyone else on wets – which was the correct choice – makes his eighth place an impressive finish given the conditions. More importantly for Guy is the fact that he now feels really confident with his three GSX-R Suzukis, which he now believes he can take to success at the Isle of Man TT Races in two weeks’ time.”

Supersport Results (5 laps – 8.9 mile circuit):

1 Alastair Seeley [Relentless Suzuki by TAS] 4mins 55.835; 2 Cameron Donald [Honda] +0.844; 3 Bruce Anstey [Honda] +14.081; 4 Michael Dunlop [Yamaha] +23.104; 5 Gary Johnson [Honda] +25.227; 6 William Dunlop [Honda] +28.845; 7 Ryan Farquhar [Kawasaki] +42.558; 8 Guy Martin [Relentless Suzuki by TAS] +58.777.

Fastest Lap – Alastair Seeley [lap 5] 109.155mph.

Alastair Seeley

Reigning North West 200 Superbike champion Alastair Seeley dominated last night’s opening practice sessions for this year’s Relentless International North West 200.

In overcast and blustery conditions, Seeley topped the Superbike leaderboard with a lap time of 4’31.148″ (119.094mph) and a trap top-speed of 190mph on his Suzuki GSX-R1000. The Carrickfergus man also headed the Superstock class with a lap time of 4’32.690” (118.420mph) and brought his Supersport Suzuki GSX-R600 home in second place (4’42.638”/ 114.252mph), just 0.1” off the top spot.

Alastair Seeley:
“I kept my powder dry as I was towing Cameron Donald round in the Supersport session, but I’m happy to be at the top of the timesheets at this stage in the Superbike and Superstock classes. Everything is working really well and the bikes are very stable, which is so important round here. Thursday is a longer session and we’ve a few more things to try with the bike and also with Pirelli, but so far I’m very happy.”

Teammate Guy Martin made his full road racing debut last night for Relentless Suzuki by TAS Racing finishing sixth in both the opening Superbike (4’40.269”/ 115.214mph) and Supersport qualifying sessions (4’52.824”/ 110.278mph). The Lincolnshire man took ninth place in the Superstock class, which closed the opening night’s session, registering a time of 4’39.036”/ 115.727mph and he is also looking forward to tomorrow’s daytime session.

Guy Martin:
“The Superbike is mega; we’re right there with that one, and the Supersport bike is – yeah that’s spot-on too. Little problem last night, but nothing to worry about. On the Superstock bike we’ve a little bit of work to do and struggled a little last night with gearing, but all-day practice tomorrow and we should be good. I’m looking forward to a good run in the dry, and we’ll be right there hopefully for Saturday.”

Philip Neill, Team Manager:
“It’s been a good start for us. This is obviously a tough week in general as many different aspects can determine how you qualify. We are in quite a unique scenario with two riders on three different bikes and bike set-up can be turned on its head in five minutes with a change in the weather. Our dry set-up is very good after the opening session and apart from a few teething troubles we are ready for Saturday, although as I say, a drop of rain could offer up a whole new challenge for everyone.”

Relentless Suzuki by TAS Racing’s Guy Martin made an instant impression on his return to the Cookstown 100 Road Races in Northern Ireland yesterday after a seven year absence.

Although the Lincolnshire man’s main goal was to continue his pre-North West 200 development on his stable of GSX-R Suzukis, he left with three podium finishes and a new outright lap record of 90.932mph.

With limited qualifying time on Friday evening, Martin made the best of his second-row starts in all three events – two Superbike and one Supersport – around the tight County Tyrone circuit. All three races were blanket finishes and despite a little disappointed at not winning, the Scarborough circuit specialist is happy to have made giant steps forward with his Relentless Suzukis.

Guy Martin:
“We can’t be disappointed. We learnt a lot more about the bikes and set a new lap record, so job done. I’m a racer and I want to win but we are making progress and this weekend served its purpose. I didn’t want to take any unnecessary risks even though I felt comfortable, especially with the North West just a couple of weeks away. It’s always worthwhile getting a run out on the roads and between this week and last weekend at Brands, as I say, we’re making good progress.”

Philip Neill – Team Manager:
“Guy pretty-much exceeded our expectations out there today and it was good to see how he handled himself on GSX-R machinery for the first time on the roads. It was a positive test and a worthwhile day for him and while we are still working on making little improvements to the bikes, we are pretty much ready for the North West 200.”

Alastair Seeley demonstrated the pedigree of Suzuki’s all-new GSX-R600, taking it to its debut victory in the British Supersport Championship at Brands Hatch earlier today in front of a packed Easter Monday audience.

Alastair Seeley leads Jack Kennedy (#4), Christian Iddon (#21) and Dean Hipwell (#74) in Supersport race two at Brands Hatch on Monday

Supersport
The former British Superstock champion and current Superbike and Supersport lap record holder at the International North West 200, picked himself up after yesterday’s disappointment, to lead home a high-speed freight train over 26 pulsating laps. Less than a second covered the top five at the checkered flag, and despite yesterday’s DNF the Ulsterman sits well poised in fourth place, just 13 points behind the series leader.

British Superbikes
Josh Brookes will not forget his Relentless Suzuki British Superbike debut in a hurry, crashing out spectacularly in race one, which disappointingly forced a medical withdrawal from race two. Before the race one incident, the Australian had mesmerizingly scythed his way through the pack from 13th position through to second place on his GSX-R1000 Superbike. But just when he was planning out his attach on race leader Shane Byrne he suffered a wicked high-side at the top of Paddock Hill Bend prematurely ending his Easter Monday debut.

Alastair Seeley, Supersport
“I never looked behind me in that second Supersport race and it’s a good job as I think I might have scared myself! I just watched my board today, kept my head down and stuck to the game plan. Ben tried to make a break for it but I was ready for him and when I eventually got to the front I just defended my line on that last lap and brought it home for the win. Next week we’ll get a chance to stretch the legs on the wee GSX-R600 at Oulton Park, but before that I have a GSX-R owners’ day here at Brands Hatch with Suzuki.”

Josh Brookes, Superbike
“I suppose we did all right coming back from where we were in qualifying and I have to say, everything felt one-hundred percent better today on my bike. As I said after qualifying, I knew what caused the problem and once we’d that sorted we were fast in morning warm-up and in the race. While I was battling with people in the race I couldn’t get into a proper rhythm, but once I got to P2, which was quite easy, I was totally confident. I saw Shakey and thought, ‘I’m in a good position here,’ but it all ended at Paddock Hill. I’m upbeat because I really can’t believe how I didn’t injure myself in such a big crash. Now I’m just looking forward to Oulton Park.”

Philip Neill, Team Manager
“There are a number of positives to take away from this meeting starting with Alastair Seeley. He was pure class in that race today, and it’s not the first time he’s pulled this team out of a hole. He completely out-smarted his rivals and the new GSX-R600 package was nothing short of perfect. He rode the textbook race and we knew he had a better tire choice than many of his rivals. He controlled the race from the front and it was the race of the day for the fans with five of them in it at the end.

“Josh proved in the opening BSB race that we’d really cracked it with his set-up this morning in warm-up and I have to admit, watching him come through from 13th to second place – it’s been a long time since I’ve taken so much pleasure watching someone on a Superbike. He was so strong and made a pass on almost every lap; no one could hold him off at Clearways. He can certainly ride a motorbike and that’s why we signed him, for his never say die attitude. He just pushed that little too hard down Paddock Hill which caused the crash, but we’ll accept that and move on. Until then he made the whole GSX-R1000 Superbike package look absolutely superb.

“Guy [Martin] acquitted himself really well this weekend and we are really pleased how he got on running 46.5 lap times. There are not too many of the pure road racing men who could match those times here and it sets him up well for the Cookstown 100 next week, where he will ride our GSX-R Superstock and Supersport machines.”

Results

British Superbike Race 1
1st – Shane Byrne (Honda); 2nd – Tommy Hill (Yamaha); 3rd – Tommy Bridewell (Honda); 4th – Stuart Easton (Kawasaki); 5th – Jon Kirkham (Suzuki); 6th – Michael Rutter (Ducati); 7th – Loris Baz (Yamaha); 8th – Dan Linfoot (Honda); 9th – Martin Jessopp (Ducati); 10th – Chris Walker (Kawasaki)
Josh Brookes DNF

British Superbike Race 2
1st – Tommy Hill (Yamaha); 2nd – Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda); 3rd – Shane Byrne (Honda); 4th – Michael Laverty (Yamaha); 5th – John Hopkins (Suzuki); 6th – Stuart Easton (Kawasaki); 7th – Michael Rutter (Ducati); 8th – Dan Linfoot (Honda); 9th – Peter Hickman (Honda); 10th – Gary Mason (Kawasaki)
Josh Brookes was withdrawn from BSB Race 2 as a precautionary measure on medical grounds

British Supersport Race 2
1st – Alastair Seeley [Relentless by TAS Suzuki]; 2nd – Jack Kennedy [Yamaha]; 3rd – Steve Plater [Honda]; 4th – Ben Wilson [Kawasaki]; 5th – Dean Hipwell [Yamaha]; 6th – Lee Johnston [Honda]; 7th – Jimmy Hill [Triumph]; 8th – Luke Mossey [Triumph]; 9th – Sam Warren [Yamaha]; 10th – Daniel Cooper [Triumph]

Relentless Suzuki by TAS Racing had a tough opening day at the British Superbike Championship first round at Brands Hatch. Josh Brookes suffered several minor problems in BSB Qualifying, posting the 13th-best time and Alastair Seeley crashed out in the first of the Easter weekend’s two Supersport races challenging for the lead. Guy Martin, appearing at Brands as a BSB wildcard entry, qualified a respectable 27th in his first official time out on a Relentless GSX-R1000.

Relentless Suzuki's Josh Brookes

Josh Brookes:
“I’m disappointed with qualifying but I don’t want to make excuses. In my opinion we’re not just quite there yet and qualifying wasn’t a good showing. We made a few changes and I’ve a fair idea what the problem was, but as I say, I’m not going to make any excuses. I’m trying to stay upbeat as being annoyed is not going to help the situation. We will make a few changes for morning warm-up and see where we can improve.”

Alastair Seeley:
“I was catching Ben Wilson when I lost the front, so it’s good to be getting two bites at the cherry this weekend. The new GSX-R600 really felt great up to that point; it’s just a matter of sussing out what tires to be using for tomorrow in this heat. I suppose it’s all down to rider preference. I’m okay and the bike’s not too bad after the crash, so we’ll reload for tomorrow and go chasing a podium.”

Philip Neill – Team Manager:
“Today was a big disappointment, there’s no hiding that. We’re taking the positives as we’ve spent most of the weekend on the back foot after Josh had a small crash and an electronic problem also cost us a whole session. It’s been a baptism of fire but we’ve been here before at Brands so no one is panicking. We have the pace on a race tire and while it’s not an ideal grid position, if Josh can find a bit of consistency through the whole lap, we can come away with something from the weekend.

“In the Supersport race we felt Alastair had a good set-up and tire choice. The plan was to stay in the hunt early on and make his move towards the end, but unfortunately he made a small mistake. We’ll get back up and try again tomorrow. What I would say is he’s got to be able to run at this pace and not crash to be in the Championship race.

“Guy Martin has made steady progression and the objective was to come here so he could gain as much knowledge as possible with the GSX-R1000 Superbike, and he’s doing that. He has been going faster with every session and that’s what we expected he would do. He’s competitive and would like to be further up the grid but his lap time is respectable.”

Guy Martin will make his pure road racing debut in Relentless Suzuki by TAS Racing livery at the Cookstown 100, Northern Ireland’s opening road race of the season on April 29 & 30.

The event will be used as a North West 200 shakedown for the Lincolnshire man, who hasn’t raced at the County Tyrone circuit since 2005. He will ride his GSX-R600 and GSX-R1000 Superstock machines at the event. In preparation for event, he will also race this weekend at Brands Hatch in the opening round of the British Superbike Championship.

Guy Martin:
“I’m looking forward to Brands but it’s hard to beat a bit of pure road racing. We’ve had plenty of testing time, but ‘yeah… there’s nothing like a bit of racing to get you ready for the real thing. This will give us a chance to try the bikes out on a road circuit, which at the end of the day is where we intend racing them. I haven’t been at Cookstown for quite some time but it’s only a little circuit so we’ll be spot on.”

Philip Neill – Team Manager:
“The organizers and local fans are very enthusiastic about the Cookstown 100 and with our team based just up the road in Moneymore; it’ll do us no harm to show them a bit of support. We always try to make an effort and go there when circumstances allow, and even though it clashes with the Oulton Park BSB we will work around it. It’s always beneficial to get out on a road circuit before the North West 200, but with Guy being a relative newcomer to Cookstown, we will be realistic with our expectations.”