World SuperBike 2000 - Round 4 - Donington - Race 2

Chili got the jump off the line followed by Hodgson, Walker, Edwards & Haga. Corser 6^th. Noriyuki nearly got under Colin into ‘Goddards’ but couldn’t make it stick. Corser hit the kitty litter at the start of lap 2 but managed to get going again from the back of the field.

Walker shot in to 2^nd on lap 2 only to be passed again a few corners later by Hodgson. Edwards still in 4^th with Haga all over him. Chili was opening a gap out front, Walker went past Hodgson again, followed a few corners later by Edwards also going through on Hodgson for 3^rd. Troy returned to the pits and threw his Aprilia to the ground in pit-lane.

Edwards took Walker for 2^nd on lap 4 and Hodgson took Walker for 3^rd shortly after. Haga also slipped it under Walker only to have the same thing done right back to him on the next corner.

Edwards had opened up a gap back to Hodgson but was still a fair way behind Chili who had a 1.8-second lead.

Walker and Haga were battling hard for 4^th, both backing it in and firing out.

By lap 6 Chili had 2.1 seconds on Edwards and looked to have it all under control. Cadalora is having a woeful ride back in 18^th. Walker closed right on to the back of Hodgson and was really sliding his Suzuki around in a ‘Haga-esque’ type fashion. Slight 9^th, Bostrom 10^th.

Lap 8 saw Chili stretch his lead out to 2.6 seconds. Edwards’ trap speeds are not as high in this race. Edwards pulled a couple of tenths back on Chili on lap 9 and Walker was looking for a way past Hodgson for 3^rd.

Edwards binned it at ‘Redgate’ but managed to get going again after losing a dozen or so places.

Walker snuck it under Hodgson on lap 11 but was passed again by Neil a lap later. Edwards returned to the pits.

Walker backed it in under Hodgson on the next lap and made it stick in an unbelievable move. Haga also put a move on Hodgson shortly after. Walker is hugely entertaining and really abuses the rear end of his Suzuki on the way in to the turns. He must think he is on a Moto-Cross bike!

10 laps to go and Chili had over 4 seconds on Walker in 2^nd. Slight 8^th, Bostrom 9^th. Walker is totally crossed up in to ‘Melbourne Loop’ every time. Hodgson made a pass stick on Walker with 9 laps to go but I am sure Walker will slide it underneath him again before the end of the race.

There he goes – sideways in to ‘Melbourne Loop’ again and under Hodgson. Hodgson takes him again on the straight. This is fantastic racing – if this is what these British SuperBike regulars get up to in their domestic championship the Brit’s are a lucky bunch indeed.

Haga had been watching the Hodgson/Walker action for the previous laps but with 7 laps to go he looked to be setting himself up for a move and started using the same crossed-up cornering lines favoured by Walker.

Lap 20 and Chili is 3.3 seconds in front and looks to be cruising for an easy win but the gap was down to 2.7 seconds the next time around. Bostrom 7^th, Slight 8^th.

3 laps to go and the gap is down to 2.1 seconds but Chili looks to just be taking no chances - he wants those points. He better not get too relaxed though as the Hodgson/Walker freight train is closing quickly with the gap down to 1.5 seconds with 2 laps to go. Down to 1.3 at the 1^st split, 1.2 at the 2^nd split, just under a second now with 1 lap to go.

Final lap – Hodgson has opened up a gap on Walker and is after Chili, 1^st split has the gap down to 6 tenths, Chili has a moment, Hodgson gets past, Chili misses a gear, Walker takes him as well. The British crowd goes crazy with their boys getting home 1^st and 2^nd. Chili will be spewing. Slight got Bostrom on the final lap to take 7^th. Cadalora a pathetic 17^th. That was a fantastic race and the enthusiastic crowd responded by invading the track, including a very white streaker.

Chili was picked up by the safety car and looks to maybe have hurt him-self during one of his out of the seat moments on the final lap.

	Quotes
Slight - "I'm very happy with 7th. I even got into a little bit of a battle with Ben Bostrom towards the end of the race, that was really good. It's been a tough weekend for me physically and I'm pleased to have come through it the way I have. It's been really good just being back at an event and seeing all the fans again. We're going to Monza now and I feel confident of finishing a lot higher there."		Edwards - "I was feeling good, like I could catch Chili, but the front wheel just tucked under. It did it the lap before but I managed to save it. At least I was really pushing hard and trying when I went down, I'm sure I could have caught Chili. I've had a cold all weekend and that hasn't helped me but at least I won a race today and, despite the crash, I'm walking and talking and ready to win at Monza next week."
Hodgson - "I'm totally speechless. I just can't believe it. I came out fighting today and I never gave in, not for a minute. I don't think I've ever ridden so well under so much pressure - Chris Walker and I made Haga look safe today! It makes my job a lot easier when the team around me is so good and I can't thank them enough. I'll remember this day for the rest of my life."		Bostrom - "It was a positive day for me because I now have a lot more confidence with the front end of the bike. Today I managed to get it through the curves easily and with good cornering speed, as well as getting the power down onto the ground. I am pleased with the result, now I've got to work hard to improve grip at the rear of the bike and then things will start to go better. I think I've made a major step forward in the search for the right feeling with the 996 Factory bike."
Troy Corser - "You could say that I'm a bit disappointed, but really I'm very disappointed. All weekend we've struggled to find a good set-up and although today was better it still wasn't good. We've had grip problems and we haven't been able to solve them here. Part of the problem is that we're still developing the bike and unfortunately we have to do a lot of work at the track during a race weekend. The Aprilia has the potential for sure - we just need more time to get it to where it should be all the time. In the first race grip problems prevented from pushing harder and eighth was all I could get. In race two I crashed going into Redgate after only two laps, but I don't know why. It was similar to the crash I had in practice and I didn't know what caused that one either. I hope we'll get some testing time soon and get the Aprilia the results it deserves."		Haga - “As I predicted, the start was crucial. If I had been on the outside for the first turn instead of the inside I think I could have been luckier. First race was tough and I was disappointed to loose the lead group. I saw Colin go out in the second and knew I had to finish high in the points to keep my advantage for Monza. Then my mad side told me try and get a podium so I went for Walker; but after a few crazy moments I realised it was better to stay in fourth rather than loose it all. My worries are for Monza where I hope we can be competitive on such a fast circuit.” Chili - "I am disappointed because I really wanted to get a win today. Home is home, but racing in England is just like racing at home for me. I had a lot of slides today and I couldn't always push as hard as I wanted to. After the first race I really believed I could win the second, but a problem two laps from the end ruined my dream. I had led the race for 24 out 25 laps, so I was very disappointed."