Wednesday June 14, 2006 at 12:00am
Saturday Sprint & Sunday Gold Race Result 1st Tim & Tristan Reeves; 2nd Andy Laidlow & Patrick Farrance; 3rd Steve Norbury & Scott Parnell
Supporting the Superside FIM Sidecar World Championship was the ACU Star Championship and once more the Series produced some excellent racing from our young up and coming riders. The Junior Superstock Championship was the platform yet more close racing and proved why the rider education side of the ACU Academy programme is so vital for the progression of young riders to the highest levels of racing. An understanding of and compliance with technical regulations is fundamental to racing at all levels. The Star Championship is designed to help riders raise their game from Club racing level to National level, so technical issues are taken very seriously.
This round of the Championship saw rigorous sound testing being carried out throughout the weekend, and resulted in a number of the Junior Superstock machines failing the sound test by a wide margin. Frantic activity in the paddock saw ACU Officials working with the Teams in an effort to identify the problem and get the guilty machines through the test and out on the track, and with moments to spare, all but one of the bikes passed the test and was allowed out in timed practice
The cause of the problem was found to be rather simple…riders had removed the manufacturers silence baffle, in the belief that more power would be generated. Combined with a lack of maintenance in the baffle pack department the lack of packing resulted in extremely noisy bikes! Subsequent dyno tests demonstrated that, in all cases, the bikes performed better when properly silenced! A valuable lesson for all the riders and teams.
The next surprise came in post qualifying dyno testing when pole position setter Leon Morris’s bike was only producing 85bhp! The rest of the grid was producing between 104 to 108bhp! In an attempt to silence his bike, the team had fitted an over sized baffle which had killed the power. For the race, the correct baffle was fitted and the bike was back to 107bhp.
Sunday’s race saw pole sitter Leon Morris battle with his main rival for the Championship James Rose for 11 of the scheduled 12 laps. On the final lap, Leon was in a very close second place and positioned his bike for his race-winning move. Driving hard out of Tower Corner Morris closed in on Rose. As the pair exited Bobbies chicane, Morris moved along side Rose and set the scene for a final crash or glory move at the very tight Bybrook chicane. With no rider prepared to give an inch, it was Rose who kept his nerve and Morris who was forced to take to the grass and crash out, handing Hayden Fitzgerald and Ben Billard, who had been battling for 3rd place throughout, the lower steps of the podium.
The combined GP and Formula 125 race was stopped after Nick Swindells suffered a fall on the seventh lap causing the red flags to come out, the result being declared after 6 laps, handing Stuart Anderson his first win in the Series. With the absence of several front runners in the Formula 125 Class, Jonathon Railton took his second win in the series and was joined by two new visitors to the podium, Murray Williams and Danny Kent. Junior Superstock 600 Race Result 1st James Rose, 18 yrs, Loversall, Doncaster; 2nd Hayden Fitzgerald, 21 yrs, Douglas, Isle of Man; 3rd Ben Billard, 19 yrs Chesterfield, Derbyshire
Junior Superstock Championship Standings 1st James Rose 75 pts; 2nd Leon Morris, 65 pts; 3rd Hayden Fitzgerald 58 pts
GP125 Race Result 1st Stuart Anderson, 17 yrs, Dunfermline, Fife; 2nd Lee Costello, 19 yrs, Bolton, Lancs; 3rd Jonathon Lodge, 19 yrs, Holmfirth, W. Yorks
GP125 Championship Standings 1st Lee Costello 95 pts; 2nd Jonathon Lodge 76 pts; 3rd Stuart Anderson 73 pts
Formula 125 Race Result 1st Jonathon Railton, 15 yrs, Huntingdon, Cambs; 2nd Murray Williams, 15 yrs, Banchory, Aberdeenshire; 3rd Danny Kent, 12 yrs, Tetbury, Glos
Formula 125 Championship Standings 1st Jonathon Railton; 2nd Connor Behan 61 pts; 3rd James Dye 41 pts
The next round of the ACU Star Championship is due to take place on 22nd July 2006 at Snetterton and organised by Derby Phoenix MCC.
Jim Parker said, “The ACU Star Championship is already highlighting some very capable riders and also a number of very young riders who I’m sure will be following in Bradley Smith’s and Dan Linfoot’s steps in the near future. A special mention must go out to all the marshals throughout the weekend, who gave total concentration whilst being exposed to the heat and sun for the whole day, proving once more that British marshalling is the best and one of the most professional in the world. Without these willing volunteers dedicating their time to the sport, racers would not get their adrenaline ‘fix’ at weekends.
If you require any further information on this press release please contact Brian George, ACU Press Officer on 01788 566428 or via e-mail [email protected].