Motourage

Swan Honda’s James Ellison is already making good progress as he continues to recover from the broken femur he sustained at Thruxton two weeks ago.

Ellison had been setting the pace up until his crash in the final practice session, and now, following two operations, he is recovering in the Isle of Man as he strives to make positive progress so he can return to action as soon as possible.

Ellison said:
“I firstly just want to thank everyone for all their support since my crash; I really appreciate it and it really motivates me. It was tough after the accident as I was in hospital for six days and the morphine had made me feel really bad, just dizzy and sick which is one of the side affects. I had two operations, one to insert the rod and the other to stitch it back up.
I was so pleased to finally get out of hospital, my dad and wife Sarah had been staying in the motor home at the circuit, but I am lucky to have the best crew chief in the world and Mick (Shanley) came down from the team HQ and picked us up and drove us back to Kendal in the bus.
I am now over in the Isle of Man, as a few riders have said there are some really good people over here that can help me speed up my recovery. I have to thank Robin Croft from SMT, as he has played such a big part in organizing it, from getting the place to stay sorted here, to actually driving us over so he has been fantastic.
I am now in physio every day for about two hours, sometimes a little more. It is quite tiring but I can already feel the benefit of it and I am starting to get more movement back. I am due for some-ray in a few days which will hopefully show some progress. My goal at the moment is to get enough movement to start cycling again, even stationary so I can get the strength back. Once I have that then I know the riding won’t be that far away.
I will be watching the racing this weekend from Oulton Park, I am going to miss it but hopefully I can be back out there again soon.”

Relentless by TAS Suzuki will take the positives from a tough weekend at Thruxton during the second round of the 2010 British Superbike Championship today after overcoming practice crashes by both team riders.

Michael Laverty – 10th & 6th – and Alastair Seeley – 12th & 9th – battled courageously after qualifying crashes and a number of minor problems during both races, to score solid points that keeps them both in the top-10 and at the sharp-end in the Championship table as Seeley currently slots into fifth and Laverty 10th.

Relentless Suzuki's Alastair Seeley spent the weekend trying to find the correct setup and only managed 12th and 9th-place finishes

Laverty’s 10th place in race one, from row five on the grid, whilst riding around a serious rear tire problem, was a terrific performance, but his second race top-six finish could so easily have been a debut podium – losing out by 0.6sec at the checkered flag, this time from the third row of the grid.

Seeley took a gamble with set-up in race one and the series rookie battled to 12th place. For the second outing he reverted to his qualifying set-up, and although he found Thruxton a tough proposition on his full Superbike debut, ninth place keeps him well in the Championship hunt.

Michael Laverty:
“After the tire problem in race one, 10th place was a decent result considering the circumstances. Race two was much better, although I took a bit long to pass Alastair and my brother John, but my pace over the last 10 laps was the same as the leaders. With a good starting position today I could have challenged for the win, but again I can take a lot of positives from race day. We have the pace but just not the luck yet. We will regroup before Oulton with a test planned and come back even stronger. I would like to thank the whole team for their efforts this weekend; they have had to work so hard and endure a lot of setbacks.”

Alastair Seeley:
“I tried a different set-up for the first race but it didn’t work for me, so we reverted back to the old set-up for race two. It all hooked up a lot better and instead of the tire going off at half distance, we were right on the money until it deteriorated about four laps from the end. The track control works overtime around here and it’s a tough circuit to perfect your set-up on. At least we got more points in the bag and remain top-five in the Championship. Thanks to all the boys in the team as it’s been a tough weekend with all the travel problems and burning the midnight oil fixing bikes.”

Philip Neill – BSB Team Principal:
“It’s been a tough weekend for the whole team for a number of reasons, but we will take the positives from Thruxton. We haven’t come away with the results we had hoped for after a strong start on Friday, where the both boys posted top-three times, but we scored solid points today.
Both riders started the weekend with a lot of confidence but their crashes during practice set them back a bit and we also had our fair share of little problems – not least an all-night session for the boys to rebuild Michael’s bike after it’s excursion over the infamous Thruxton kerbs. With flights cancelled, Alastair also had a long drive to the circuit from Northern Ireland at the last minute, which isn’t ideal preparation, but something that couldn’t be avoided.
Michael needs a lot of credit for his efforts this weekend: He rode around a chatter problem in race one due to an out-of-balance tire, which in turn affected his grid position for race two. From the halfway point on in the second outing he showed us just why he is regarded as one of the most talented riders in the Championship, narrowly missing out on the podium.
Alastair had a Baptism of Fire on his first Superbike ride here, but it is a daunting circuit for even the most experienced riders and bike set-up is very specific. Maybe we fell into the trap of trying to find the perfect set-up but we have learned from it. I’m glad Thruxton is over and we can now focus on Oulton Park in two weeks’ time.”

Race 1:
1. Tommy Hill (Worx Crescent Suzuki)
2. Josh Brookes (HM Plant Honda) +0.818s
3. Yukio Kagayama (Worx Crescent Suzuki) +1.185s
4. Stuart Easton (Swan Honda) +1.510s
5. Michael Rutter (Ridersmotorcycles.com Ducati) +5.670s
6. Martin Jessopp (Ridersmotorcycles.com Ducati) +7.490s
7. John Laverty (Buildbase Kawasaki) +9.154s
8. Gary Mason (MSS Colchester Kawasaki) +9.300s
9. Ryuichi Kiyonari (HM Plant Honda) +9.493s
10. Michael Laverty (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) +17.014s
12.  Alastair Seeley (Relentless Suzuki by TAS)

Race 2 Results:
1. Josh Brookes (HM Plant Honda)
2. Tommy Hill (Worx Crescent Suzuki) +0.391s
3. Stuart Easton (Swan Honda) +17.112s
4. Ryuichi Kiyonari (HM Plant Honda) +7.146s
5. Martin Jessopp (Ridersmotorcycles.com Ducati) +7.263s
6. Michael Laverty (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) +7.789s
7. Michael Rutter (Ridersmotorcycles.com Ducati) +8.241s
8. John Laverty (Buildbase Kawasaki) +10.378s
9. Alastair Seeley (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) +12.218s
10. Gary Mason (MSS Colchester Kawasaki) +12.240s

Tommy Hill increased his lead significantly in the British Superbike Championship by taking a race victory and second place in today’s Thruxton second round.

Worx Crescent Suzuki's Tommy Hill is enjoying a comfortable 34-point lead ahead of HM Plant Honda's Josh Brookes

With an identical scorecard to the Brands Hatch opener, the Worx Crescent Suzuki rider again put together a commanding performance in race one and then backed it up with a strong performance in race two, limiting his risks and building his Championship lead.

Teammate Yukio Kagayama also built on his front-row qualifying; dicing for the lead in race one and showing – as he did in the Cartage winter tests – that he has speed the equal of his Hill. After a third-placed finish in the first outing, Kagayama was promising better still for the second race, but it wasn’t to be: Riding on identical bike settings to the first race – as was Hill’s machine – Kagayama rear tire developed a severe loss of grip after just three laps and never recovered, but he fought on to finish a creditable 11th for a precious handful of points.

Tommy Hill:
“There’s not much to say! Another two fantastic results and to come away with a much bigger Championship lead is a great bonus. I’ve been a bit stiff today after that 120mph highside yesterday but, to be honest; once you’re on the bike and the adrenalin is flowing you don’t notice it. It was good to have Yukio up there this weekend and properly racing – and if he gave it to me I gave it to him back! But that’s exactly how racing should be; we’re team-mates in the pits, but we’re competitors on the track and I think we’re both really looking forward to Oilton Park.”

Yukio Kagayama:
“That first race was so enjoyable; a return to normality. The result is not so bad, but could have been better: At one point I was leading but near the end there I lost a second on Tommy and Josh, and while I got it back, it was too late. But great to be on the podium. For race two, what can I say? The rear tire felt like it punctured and after five laps, my race was finished. I carried on but the feeling was very scary and it was very difficult, but I raced for some points. After everything, I am happy; the bike and the Team are working very well and I’m looking forward to Oulton Park – as unlike the track here, I can remember much about it.”

Jack Valentine – Team Manager:
“It’s been a cracking day. Tommy’s had a day much like he did at Brands Hatch; putting in a great performance in the first race then playing the long game in the second, taking the points and building the Championship lead. Yukio was right on it today, to the point where I was getting nervous as he and Tommy started slugging it out! Yukio was looking good in that second race too, but tire issues put him out quite early on. Tommy retaining and building on his Championship lead is a great way to finish the weekend. But we’re far from complacent – it’s a long season and Tommy knows he can’t afford to relax. Yukio has shown that he’s got the pace and being just 15 points outside the top six he’s still very much in the frame for being in the showdown at the year end.”

MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship, Thruxton:

Race one:
1. Tommy Hill (Worx Crescent Suzuki)
2. Josh Brookes (HM Plant Honda) +0.818s
3. Yukio Kagayama (Worx Crescent Suzuki) +1.185s
4. Stuart Easton (Swan Honda) +1.510s
5. Michael Rutter (Ridersmotorcycles.com Ducati) +5.670s
6. Martin Jessopp (Ridersmotorcycles.com Ducati) +7.490s
7. John Laverty (Buildbase Kawasaki) +9.154s
8. Gary Mason (MSS Colchester Kawasaki) +9.300s
9. Ryuichi Kiyonarri (HM Plant Honda) +9.493s
10. Michael Laverty (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) +17.014s

Race two:
1. Josh Brookes (HM Plant Honda)
2. Tommy Hill (Worx Crescent Suzuki) +0.391s
3. Stuart Easton (Swan Honda) +7.112s
4. Ryuichi Kiyonari (HM Plant Honda) +7.146s
5. Martin Jessopp (Ridersmotorcycles.com Ducati) +7.263s
6. Michael Laverty (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) +7.789s
7. Michael Rutter (Ridersmotorcycles.com Ducati) +8.241s
8. John Laverty (Buildbase Kawasaki) +10.378s
9. Alastair Seeley (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) +12.218s
10. Gary Mason (MSS Colchester Kawasaki) +12.240s
11. Yukio Kagayama (Worx Crescent Suzuki) +17.507s

Championship points (after 2 rounds):
1. Tommy Hill (Worx Crescent Suzuki) 90
2. Josh Brookes (HM Plant Honda) 56
3. Stuart Easton (Swan Honda) 50
4. James Ellison (Swan Honda) 41
5. Alastair Seeley (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) 40
11. Yukio Kagayama (Worx Crescent Suzuki) 25

MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship Round 2
Thruxton Circuit, Hampshire, England

Friday
09.30 – 10.10 Fuchs-Silkolene British Supersport Free Practice 1
10.20 – 11.10 2008 BENNETTS BRITISH SUPERBIKES Free Practice 1
11.20 – 11.50 Metzeler National Superstock 1000 Free Practice 1
12.00 – 12.20 Relentless British 125GP Free Practice 1
12.55 – 13.35 Fuchs-Silkolene British Supersport Free Practice 2
13.45 – 14.35 2008 BENNETTS BRITISH SUPERBIKES Free Practice 2
14.45 – 15.15 Metzeler National Superstock 600 Free Practice
15.25 – 15.45 Relentless British 125GP Free Practice 2
15.55 – 16.25 Metzeler National Superstock 1000 Qualifying 1
16.35 – 16.55 Focused Events KTM Super Duke Free Practice 1

Saturday
09.00 – 09.25 Metzeler National Superstock 600 Qualifying 1
09.35 – 10.15 Fuchs-Silkolene British Supersport Qualifying 1
10.25 – 11.15 2008 BENNETTS BRITISH SUPERBIKES Free Practice 3
11.25 – 11.55 Relentless British 125GP Qualifying 1
12.05 – 12.30 Henderson Yamaha R1 Cup Free Practice
12.35 – 13.00 Focused Events KTM Super Duke Free Practice 2
13.40 – 14.05 Metzeler National Superstock 1000 Qualifying 2
14.15 – 15.05 “SWAN COMBI 50 – ROLL FOR POLE”
15.15 – 15.55 Fuchs-Silkolene British Supersport Qualifying 2
16.05 – 16.30 Henderson Yamaha R1 Cup Qualifying
16.40 – 17.10 Relentless British 125GP Qualifying 2
17.20 – 17.45 Metzeler National Superstock 600 Qualifying 2
17.55 – 18.20 Focused Events KTM Super Duke Qualifying

Sunday
08.55 – 09.05 Henderson Yamaha R1 Cup Warm up
09.10 – 09.20 Fuchs-Silkolene British Supersport Championship Warm up
09.30 – 10.15 Pirelli Pit walk, VIP laps
10.50 – 11.05 2008 BENNETTS BRITISH SUPERBIKES Warm up
11.10 – 11.20 Metzeler National Superstock 1000 Warm up
11.25 – 11.35 Relentless British 125GP Championship Warm up
11.40 – 11.50 Metzeler National Superstock 600 Warm up
12.00 Focused Events KTM Super Duke Battle 12 laps
13.00 2008 BENNETTS BRITISH SUPERBIKES 20 laps
13.45 Henderson Yamaha R1 Cup 14 laps
14.35 Fuchs-Silkolene British Supersport Championship 18 laps
15.30 2008 BENNETTS BRITISH SUPERBIKES 20 laps
16.30 Metzeler National Superstock 1000 15 laps
17.10 Relentless British 125GP Championship 14 laps
17.50 Metzeler National Superstock 600 14 laps