In race 1 Troy crashed on lap 3 and again on lap 7, restarting in 13th, before consistently lapping five seconds quicker than his rivals to gain fifth place and 11 points. “The conditions got a lot worse as the race went on and I was very lucky to finish” declared Troy. “The bike could have had a broken lever after the first crash and then to get away with it two times in one race is pretty unbelievable. I must have got some gravel in there because the throttle wouldn’t operate properly. It’s my fault though for pushing too hard. In the end everyone was having trouble so I just put my head down and went for fifth. I didn’t want to crash for a third time because there was no way I could have picked the bike up again.

“I was pretty mad with myself after race 1 but my wife and my team guys sorted me out for the second race” he added. “These things happen occasionally, but I don’t want them to happen again and although I lost a handful of points to Colin, we’re back on track for the championship”. Then, referring to the gesture he made after taking the chequered flag, Troy added: “I was just so happy to have won, the gesture I made was just to release all the tension inside me. I’m sorry that it was interpreted in the wrong way”.

Ruben Xaus (Ducati Infostrada) was pleased with his second race result in which he ran with Bayliss and Edwards at the front before settling for third. “The conditions were terrible out there in the first race. I ran well but I got a lot of water in the visor of my helmet and couldn’t see anything” said Ruben. “In the first five laps everyone passed me on the back straight and I couldn’t see where to brake in the corners. I was going so slowly it was like a ride in the country! Before the second race, Troy gave me a bit of an omen – he touched me, and as everything he touches is gold, I’m here on the podium now! This time everything worked well. I tried to keep Troy just ahead of me, but it was difficult. It was a really long race and after Colin passed me, I settled for third. I wanted a lot of points and that’s good for the championship”.

After a difficult weekend, Ben Bostrom (Ducati L&M) was satisfied with his performance in the wet conditions, especially in race 1 in which he ran as high as sixth, before dropping down one place. “That wasn’t a bad race in the wet, I’m just a little bit disappointed because I couldn’t see very much on the track” commented Ben. “The front tyre was really good, it was the back one that was causing me a few problems. If I didn’t have people in front of me, I could see and my lap times dropped by two seconds. In the second race I got a bad start and I was too far back, then I was almost put onto the grass and lost touch with the lead group. I was riding as quick as I could go and my lap times were good. It’s getting more fun in the rain, the problem is when you’re behind everyone, you get hit by a lot of grime and can’t see anything at all.”