British Superbike - Oulton Park

Team Renegade Ducati

Oulton Park plays host to rounds seven and eight of the British Superbike Championship this Bank Holiday Monday and Team Renegade Ducati head for their home circuit confident of success after a disappointing weekend at Thruxton a fortnight ago.

For Michael Rutter, currently lying second in the Championship standings, Oulton Park ranks high on his list of favourite circuits. The 30-year-old West Midlander racked up a race win and a brace of podium finishes at the Cheshire circuit last season; a performance he is determined to improve upon this time around, as he sets about closing the gap on Championship leader, and former Renegade Ducati teammate, Shane Byrne.

"We're almost a quarter of the way through the season and there's no denying the fact that Shakey's had it all his own way so far," declared Rutter. "Hats off to him, he's riding really well at the moment, but I do think that we've been guilty of making things a little too easy for him. We made a big breakthrough with the factory bikes at Thruxton and I'm confident that this will allow us to compete on a level playing field this weekend. It's time Shakey learnt that this championship isn't over yet, and hopefully we'll be able to teach him that lesson this weekend at Oulton Park."

Sean Emmett knows that he needs to turn his season around at Oulton Park if he is to realise his ambition of challenging for this year's British Superbike Championship title. Cruel luck robbed the 33-year-old Renegade Ducati rider of a finish in the opening round at Silverstone, but Emmett will be looking to build on a second place at Snetterton and two strong finishes at Thruxton when the racing gets underway this Bank Holiday Monday.

"We've had some problems so far this season, but I think it's finally all going to come together this weekend," commented Emmett. "Oulton Park is a fantastic circuit, I really enjoy racing there and the fast flowing nature of the track really suits the Ducati. The inherent problem we've had with the factory 998F02 since the start of the season has now been sorted and it will definitely be the bike to be on this weekend. I just can't wait to get out there and start racking up some points."

An intermittent electrical fault exacerbated set-up problems for Nick Medd last time out at Thruxton, but after a full day of testing at Oulton Park last week, the 22-year-old Beverley rider is confident that his Ducati 998 Testastretta will work well around the 2.8-mile Cheshire circuit this weekend.

"We made some big improvements to the suspension set-up during the test we had at Oulton a week ago, and it was a big help having Michael on hand to offer advice about how to get the best from the Ducati," said Medd. "Oulton Park is definitely one of my favourite circuits, a real riders' track, and I'm really looking forward to racing there this weekend."

Team Renegade Ducati's sole Supersport contender, Leon Haslam, also fell foul of electrical gremlins at Thruxton, but the 19-year-old former GP rider heads for the next round of the hotly contested Supersport Championship at Oulton Park confident that, come race day, he'll be on the pace and battling for the race win.

"We've suffered with bad luck at the last two rounds, but we're heading for Oulton Park determined to make a return to the podium," declared Haslam. "Set-up is all important at Oulton and the fact that we made some progress in this area when we tested at the circuit last week should stand us in good stead this weekend. The top speed advantage the four-cylinder bikes enjoyed at places like Snetterton and Thruxton won't be so apparent around Oulton, so I'm confident that if we can get the bike dialled in fully during practice and qualifying, we'll be up there come race day. I'm really looking forward to the weekend ahead."

Triumph ValMoto

This Bank Holiday weekend Triumph ValMoto heads to Oulton Park for the fourth round of the British Supersport Championship. The picturesque Cheshire circuit is a favourite among motorcycle racing fans because it often proves to be the venue for some of the most spectacular two-wheeled battles of the year. Oulton also rates highly with the team’s riders Craig Jones and Jim Moodie.

This round has extra significance for Jones and the ValMoto team. The 18-year-old Junior Superstock Champion hails from nearby Northwich, while Jack Valentine’s race management company is based a little further afield in Middleton. Both parties are eager to impress on their home turf, however they are also realistic about tackling the challenges of the 2.69-mile circuit.

“I’m really looking forward to Oulton,” said Jones. “I’ve had good results there in the past [first and second places in last years Junior Superstock races] and am hoping that I can do well with Triumph ValMoto this time round. I don’t usually feel any extra pressure there, even though it is my home circuit, but obviously there will be quite a few people trackside on Monday who will want me to do well and I’d hate to disappoint them.

“We tested at Oulton recently to try and iron out a few little issues with the bikes. We’re not a million miles away from finding a solution but we’re still playing catch-up to some of the other teams, so I’m going to have to work pretty hard if I want to make an impression – all I need is a little bit of luck.”

Jim Moodie also recognises that Oulton is going to be a tough round for Triumph ValMoto but the eight times TT winner has never been one to shirk a challenge.

“I’ve spent the last three rounds chasing my tail, searching for the perfect set-up,” said the vastly experienced Scot. “Testing there has given me a couple of ideas that I’m going to try on Friday but I think the key for Oulton will be to settle on one that works well enough to do the job and just get out there and ride. During the last round at Thruxton I broke the existing lap record but we still came away with very little in terms of results. The goal posts have moved so dramatically this season in terms of lap times that any result this weekend will be good for such a new bike. That said, the Triumph ValMoto package is an excellent one and I’m going to make sure that we achieve the best result possible and if it rains we might even catch a few people off guard.”

Monstermob

Following on from a superb hat-trick of victories last time out at Thruxton, the MonsterMob Ducati pairing of Superbike star Shane Byrne and defending Supersport champion Stuart Easton head for round four of their respective championships at Oulton Park this Mayday Bank Holiday determined to repeat the feat.

26 year old Byrne extended his lead at the top of the series to 41 points with his first ever BSB double and sees no reason why that form cannot continue into the Ducati-friendly Cheshire circuit this weekend: “I’ve got the strongest package in the paddock at present and I’m aiming to repeat what I did at Thruxton. I’m surprised that I’ve had it relatively easy so far and hopefully we can continue our dominance but I know that it will get tougher as the season progresses. The team is good, the bike is fantastic and I’ve no worries whatsoever” said the laid back Londoner who jetted out to France for a week’s holiday after his Thruxton success.

Also planning on repeating his Thruxton dominance is 18 year old Easton who decimated the opposition with a start to finish Supersport win over Easter and the young Scot is still fired up following some remarks earlier in the season that cast aspersions on his ability to defend his title aboard the ageing 748 Ducati.

“I proved a point at Thruxton and made some people eat their words. Just because I’ve done that doesn’t mean I’ll be backing off at Oulton, it’s one of my favourite tracks and the Ducati will be awesome there. Anything less than a win and I’ll be extremely disappointed” said the Hawick ace who as a result, now lies second in the standings.

Team owner Paul Bird has the added pressure of Oulton Park being his and his sponsor MonsterMob’s local track but he’s confident his team can put on another great show for the dozens of guests: “We’re riding high at the moment and we need to ram home our advantage whilst we’re in the driving seat and I see no reason why we can’t do that again this weekend. I’ve never had a treble at Oulton so now would be as good a time as any” said the Penrith businessman.

Rizla Suzuki

Team Rizla Suzuki heads to Oulton Park and the fourth round of the British Superbike Championship revitalised and raring to race after recovering from some early season injuries to both riders.

Double British Superbike Champion John Reynolds suffered a broken left collarbone at the first round at Silverstone in March. He has gamely ridden through the pain barrier at rounds two and three scoring valuable points, but now, after a two week rest from the action, he is looking forward to racing without having to hold back because of his injury when he gets to Oulton Park. The Nottingham rider is convinced he can still challenge for the Championship and reckons Oulton Park is where his title bid begins.

Yukio Kagayama is fifth in the Championship race after a sensational start at Silverstone with second and fourth place finishes. Since then he has suffered some mixed luck. At Snetterton he crashed in qualifying and wasn't fully fit to race. Then at Thruxton, possibly the most difficult track on the calendar to learn, Yuki managed two ninth places. This result doesn't reflect the effort made as the attached picture clearly shows: Yuki is shown laying a 20-ft black line from the rear of his Rizla Suzuki GSX-R1000 whilst fending off the 2002 World Championship winning factory Honda SP2 ridden by Mark Heckles and the 2002 British Superbike Championship winning Ducati of John Crawford. This picture graphically shows the commitment needed to achieve two ninth place finishes as well as the strength in-depth of the BSB Championship, not to mention the raw talent of Rizla Suzuki's Kagayama.

Yuki is currently in Japan visiting his family and that of Daijiro Kato, the MotoGP racer who recently passed away. He will return to race at Oulton Park refreshed and determined to make his mark.

Superbike racing starts at Oulton Park at 1:15pm on Bank Holiday Monday May 5th.

John Reynolds: "I've been resting and visiting a physiotherapist since Thruxton and my collarbone is noticeably better every day. The strength is returning and I have had it examined and been told the good news that the bones are knitting together okay.

"I'll be back on the pace at Oulton Park this weekend, I'm looking forward to racing for the first time this season rather than just riding the bike with an injury. I will not be 100 per cent, that will take months, but I'll be a lot stronger than before and I will not be looking to my collarbone for excuses. I came close to winning a race on our second visit to Oulton last year and with the improvements to the Rizla Suzuki GSX-R1000, I hope I can get a good result on Monday."

Yukio Kagayama: "When I return to England I want to win races for myself and Daijiro Kato. Any good results I get will be dedicated to him.

"Returning to Japan has helped me to focus on what is important in life. Seeing my family again has been a great help and they are supporting me in Japan while I race in the UK. They want me to win races in Britain and have told me to get on with it. I have a great team and the bike has enormous potential and now I must ride harder to get good results. I am more determined than ever and all I want to do is win races. I have been to Oulton Park on a track day and I think it will be a good circuit for me."