Oulton Park Report

Despite having two riders in the Top 10, it was a slightly disappointed ILR Kawasaki team that left Oulton Park after the latest round of the Pirelli National Superstock 1000 Championship.

On the face of things it was another solid team performance, in particular from Victor Cox, however the pace both he and his team-mate Filip Backlund displayed during qualifying had left the team with high hopes of at least one rider on the podium.

Both riders had been right on the pace, with Backlund taking control of Group A to top the group standings in Free Practice and both Qualifying sessions. Cox meanwhile was right in the mix in Group B, never finishing outside the top five.
The conclusion of qualifying would see both riders finish alongside each other at the head of the second row of the grid with just 0.034s separating them. Filip in 5th just 0.41s off pole with Victor 6th just 0.44s back respectively.

Any hopes Backlund had of a high placing in the race itself were dashed however as a bad start left him well down the field in 17th on the first lap. Cox had fared better and was taking up the challenge for the team as he completed the first lap in 6th place.
At Hislop's on the second lap Victor moved into 5th as Filip became tangled in a large group of riders which was frustrating his efforts to move up the field.

Victor was gamely holding on to 5th but was coming under increasing pressure from four riders behind, and on the next lap Hudson Kennaugh got past to demote him back to 6th. Backlund meanwhile was starting to make some headway as he moved into the points for the first time in the race.

At half race distance Cox was still battling away in 6th and Backlund's damage limitation exercise was gaining momentum to push him up to 11th, one second clear of Steve Brogan.
With two-thirds race distance complete, Victor was trying hard to get on terms with David Johnson in 5th with a slight gap back to Luke Quigley and Jimmy Storrar.
But with Quigley and Storrar closing up near the completion of the 11th lap, Cox attempted to pass Johnson and in doing so had to go wide and lost momentum. As they exited Old Hall to start the 12th lap he suddenly found himself back in 8th. Further down the field, Backlund was now into the top 10.
Victor managed to battle his way back to 6th by the end of the race as Filip had to settle for 10th.

Despite his disappointing result, Backlund remains 4th in the championship and has closed the gap on Joe Burns who was excluded from the race due to a failure to present his bike for the post-race inspection. Despite his strong ride, Cox has actually lost his 5th place in the championship to race winner Tristan Palmer and drops one place.
Victor Cox: 'Sixth place finish, not the podium I was hoping for but it wasn't far away. Looking forward to Cadwell Park now, onwards and upwards!'
Filip Backlund: 'From my fifth place grid position I had a terrible start and was 17th after the first lap. I started to make my way up the field and ended the race 10th... not the race day I thought we should have!'

Hamilton takes superb Ulster GP podium

Jamie Hamilton continued KMR Kawasaki's run of success at the Ulster Grand Prix on Saturday when he took a superb, and hard fought, second place in the Lightweight race, only missing out on victory by 0.048s. The 22-year old was also in excellent form in the Superbike class ending the day with a brilliant fifth place in the second Superbike race of the day, recording a personal best lap of the famous Dundrod course at 130.596mph.

Race day for the Ulster GP races dawned damp but the weather got better as the day wore on whilst the racing throughout was simply superb with the Lightweight race being, arguably, the race of the day. However, it seemed that Jamie's hopes were over when he slid off at Leathemstown on the opening lap but when the race was stopped on the third lap, a complete re-run took place and he was back on the grid albeit on a spare bike he'd never ridden before.

Cut to three laps, the race saw a stunning four-way battle take place between Jamie, Ivan Lintin, Derek McGee and Lee Johnston with places changing all the time as the quartet circulated never more than a couple of inches apart - and, more often than not, closer than that! On the final lap, Jamie was lying in second place on the 650cc ER6 Kawasaki but when he took the lead at Tournagrough, a debut victory was on the cards. However, he ran wide at the following hairpin and try as he might, he was unable to find a way past Lintin and had to settle for second place as they flashed across the finish line, barely a wheel's lenghth behind.

The two Superbike races also saw Jamie riding superbly and after taking a good ninth - only two seconds off sixth - in the feature race, he enjoyed an excellent four way dice with Dean Harrison, Cameron Donald and Lee Johnston in the second race later in the day. Again places changed hands with frequent regularity and although Johnston was able to edge away in the closing stages to take fourth, Jamie got the better of the other two to take fifth with his penultimate lap of 130.596mph seeing him join the select band of riders who have lapped the famous Dundrod course at more than 130mph.

The only disappointment on the day came in the two Supersport races where mechanical problems saw Jamie forced to retire on both occasions.

Speaking later, the Ballyclare rider said; "After the problems with the 600 and then sliding off in the Lightweight race, I was beginning to think it wasn't my day but someone was on my side today and I'm delighted with the podium on the 650 and my performances on the Superbike. The spare 650 was hastily prepared for the re-run Lightweight race and I'd never even sat on it before so to get second was unreal. I thought I may even be able to sneak the win when I grabbed the lead but a wee mistake at the hairpin cost me although I tried all the way until the line. It was so close the whole way through and a brilliant race to be part of."

"I couldn't get the 600 right all week but I was over the moon with my results on the Superbike. To finish fifth and lap at over 130mph is something special and I think I'm proving now I'm not just a Supertwin rider. My recent results at the Irish Nationals on the 600 and now here on the Superbike show that I'm improving all the time and edging ever close to the leading International riders. in all of the classes. The ZX-10R was flying and we got the results we wanted so a big thanks to everyone at KMR Kawasaki for believing in me and continuing to give me such fantastic support."

Isle of Man 500cc Classic TT Report

Ian Lougher's first ever race on a Royal Enfield and his last appearance on the Mountain course saw him come to within 16 seconds of a place on the podium as he rode to a fine 4th place in the Isle of Man 500cc Classic TT on Saturday.

On the Steve Linsdell prepared machine, Ian was the third quickest rider in the race with a fastest lap of 107.55mph fittingly on his last lap, and he also posted the fastest lap on a single cylinder bike and one of the quickest ever single cylinder laps around the TT course.

Despite limited practice time due to the weather and a decision to save the bike for race day, Lougher nevertheless soon settled into the race and by Ramsey on the first of four laps he was in 9th place, just under seven seconds behind Roy Richardson with whom he would do battle for most of the race, whilst in turn over five seconds ahead of Michael Dunlop.

At the end of the first lap Ian had moved into 8th, four seconds down on Alan Oversby with Richardson just over a second back, John McGuinness was a first lap retirement.

At Glen Helen on lap two Richardson had again moved ahead of Lougher and at the Bungalow Ian was in 7th, just under 10 seconds down on Richardson and four seconds behind William Dunlop who had pitted at the end of the opening lap and was now making his way back up the leaderboard, as Bruce Anstey and Cameron Donald became the latest retirements.

At the end of the lap, Paton mounted Olie Linsdell was dominating proceedings and soon a great battle developed between Dunlop on a Honda 4, Chris Palmer riding a Seeley Matchless and Norton mounted Jamie Coward. It looked set to go right down to the wire as only four seconds separated the trio at the Bungalow on lap three but then came news that Palmer had retired at Governor's Bridge.

Lougher meanwhile was riding a steady race whilst conserving the bike to make sure of a race finish, the TT legend was now a secure fifth but was still some eight seconds down on Richardson as they went on to their last lap.

There were now two main battles taking place, Dunlop and Coward for second and third and Richardson and Lougher for fourth. At Glen Helen, Dunlop had slipped into second as he and Coward consolidated their positions, Lougher meanwhile had got there almost a second quicker to narrow the gap slightly and by Ramsey Hairpin he had taken almost another three and a half seconds out of Richardson's advantage to close to within two seconds of the Blackpool man, and with his favourite and traditionally strong section of the course to come over the Mountain, Ian was looking good for fourth. This proved to be the case as Lougher had gone ahead by over two seconds at the Bungalow and at Cronk-ny-Mona the gap was over four seconds. With his quickest lap of the week, Ian brought the Royal Enfield safely home to take a great fourth, just over 15 seconds down on Coward with Richardson fifth.

So the end of an era as Ian Lougher completed his last competitive race around the Isle of Man TT circuit to bring the curtain down on a memorable and distinguished career over the famous course.

Massive thanks to Steve and Carole Linsdell and everyone at Team Flitwick Motorcycles, and congratulations to Olie Linsdell on his race win.

Cadwell Park Report

Victor Cox moved up to fourth place in the championship thanks to a determined ride to third in the ninth round of the Pirelli National Superstock 1000 Championship at Cadwell Park on Bank Holiday Monday. For his team-mate Filip Backlund however it was another disappointing weekend as he claimed the last championship point in 15th.

The two group system once again applied for qualifying and for the first time this season, both riders were paired in the same group. The first wet session saw Cox finish 12th with Backlund close behind in 14th. Drier conditions prevailed for the second session and again it was Cox who fared better, finishing second in the group thanks to a quick last lap as Backlund finished 11th, just over a second back. The combined figures however pushed Filip further back on the grid in 23rd with Victor still well placed on the second row.

In the race Cox was right in the mix from the off as he battled with the leaders for the first two laps, however he ran wide near the end of the third lap but did well to recover and re-join the race in 7th. Meanwhile as expected, Backlund was caught in traffic and finding it difficult to make any real headway on the narrow, twisty circuit.

At half race distance Victor was up to sixth and right with Lee Johnston, with series leader Adam Jenkinson a further second back as Filip finally found himself with some clear track. There was drama on the ninth lap. As the leaders went through Coppice towards Charlies, Simon Andrews made a harsh move to get ahead of early leader Tristan Palmer and the Ducati rider was forced wide across the grass and crashed out. Local rider Lee Jackson grabbed second place with Cox now noticeably closing on third place man Andrews, and that was the order as they went on to their tenth lap.

However Dan Hegarty crashed heavily at Park and needed medical attention which meant a red flag situation, and with the race at two thirds distance a result was declared.

Andrews was later excluded from the results as race officials deemed his move on Palmer to be an 'unfair manoeuvre causing an accident'. Victor in fourth was credited with third place ahead of Johnston with Jenkinson fifth. Filip meanwhile had gamely fought his way to 16th with the eighth fastest lap of the race, but he too gained a place at the expense of Andrews.

The result means that both Cox and Backlund have each been on the podium on two occasions so far this series and they are now fourth and fifth respectively in the standings with seven points separating the two.

Retiring Lougher wins again at Dundrod

Ian Lougher said farewell to competitive action on the world famous Dundrod circuit at the weekend, but not before the popular Welshman had re-written both the circuit and Ulster Grand Prix history books by taking a brilliant win in the Ultra-Lightweight class.

It was the 50th time Ian has graced the podium at Dundrod and the victory took his Ulster Grand Prix race win tally to 18, whilst he has tasted success on the world famous circuit on no less than 21 occasions, placing him second only to Joey Dunlop in both the respective all-time lists, an honour that is likely to stand for many years to come.

Ian's first outing of the day was in the first Supersport race on the W.A. Corless/Jackson Racing 600 and it was soon obvious to the many spectators around the circuit that he was clearly in the mood on his final appearance around the 7.4 mile fast flowing circuit as, from 14th on the fourth row of the grid, he swept past the Joey Dunlop Grandstand at the end of the opening lap in 4th place right behind the leading trio of Guy Martin, Bruce Anstey and Michael Dunlop and just ahead of Lee Johnston with a further gap back to sixth place man William Dunlop. With the fastest lap of the race so far at 3:44.263, Ian had closed right up on Dunlop and had opened a gap to Johnston as the leaders headed on to their third lap of six. Dunlop responded with a lap of 3:42.795 but Ian was very much still on his case with Johnston some 3 seconds back in fifth.

Dunlop was a retirement on the fourth lap as Lougher now moved up to third but on the fifth lap Johnston was back in the hunt for a rostrum place as he closed to just over two seconds and on the final lap Ian was forced wide at Tornagrough as Johnston went through to take third with Lougher just over a second back in fourth and in turn over a second clear of fifth place man William Dunlop.

Next, it was straight on to the ILR Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R for the Superstock race. With no practice taking place during the week, the race organisers decided to run a short practice session at the start of the day and Ian finished this session second quickest, although he did line up on the second row of the grid for the six lap race. The early morning rain had given way to drier conditions and a clear dry line was appearing round the track. There was drama on the start line as Lee Johnston and Rob Barber collided, with both riders fortunate to escape unharmed. It was Gary Johnson who led at the end of the opening lap by just 0.2s from Michael Dunlop with Bruce Anstey in third two seconds back closely followed by Ian and Dean Harrison. The front two were rapidly pulling away though and by the end of lap two, their gap over Lougher, who was now in third, was 5.6s. Ian in turn was in the midst of a 3 rider dice with Anstey and Harrison with just 0.6s covering the trio. By now the course was almost dry for the entire lap, just a few damp patches under the trees remaining, and Dunlop fought his way to the front on lap three with a 128mph+ lap.

The battle was raging for third though with Lougher and Harrison in particular exchanging places, at the end of the second lap it was Lougher, a lap later it was Harrison with Kiwi Anstey right in the mix. Just like last year's race, Ian was riding brilliantly on the Kawasaki but on the fifth lap his challenge for a rostrum place was effectively ended with he just went wide at the hairpin and in the end he settled for a fifth place finish.

The next race, the Ultra-Lightweight, was expected to witness a battle between Ian, on the Matt Jackson Racing 125 and Christian Elkin on a Moto 3 bike, and this indeed proved to be the case. The red flags soon came out due to an incident involving Peter McKillop who crashed out on the exit of Tornagrough, thankfully without injury. On the re-start, held over 3 laps, it was Ian who grabbed the lead and at the end of the opening lap he led Elkin by one second with these two already well clear. As the duo headed on to the last lap, it was still Ian by the smallest of margins and, in a frantic last lap which saw the lead exchange hands on three occasions, it was the experience of Lougher that came through as he led on the all-important run through the Flowbog and Quarries section to the finish line. With the crowd at the grandstand eagerly waiting, and the commentator's voice now in overdrive, it was Lougher who appeared first in the distance and despite a big effort from Elkin, Ian wasn't going to be denied and he held on by just 0.339s to score one of the most popular wins of the day.

Prevented from taking part in the next Superbike race, the second Supersport race saw Ian come from 14th on the grid to 8th at the end of the opening lap and sandwiched between Dean Harrison and Dan Cooper. As Harrison moved clear on the next lap, a thrilling three-way battle was now taking place for seventh between Cooper, Lougher and Ivan Lintin. The battle raged for the remainder of the race with Lintin taking seventh, Ian eighth and Cooper in ninth, with the duo having rapidly closed in on sixth place man Cameron Donald.

It proved to be the last race finish for Ian round Dundrod as in the following Superbike race, the last on the programme, he retired on the opening lap.

So as the dust settles on another Ulster Grand Prix, four top ten finishes including a race win has been a fitting end to Ian Lougher's Dundrod adventure.

Ian Lougher: ''I just missed out on a rostrum in the opening 600 race, and on the 125 Christian Elkin and I passed each other a few times on the last lap. He actually put his front wheel to my knee and I thought, 'you can't pass there'. It was nice to have a 125 win to finish my UGP career. Big thanks go to everyone who has supported me through the years, all my sponsors and the fans.''

Dunlop devastates opposition in Motorsport Merchandise F1 race

Michael Dunlop won the Motorsport Merchandise Formula 1 Classic TT race, breaking lap and race records for the Classic class. The Northern Ireland rider shattered his old Formula 1 record of 118.186mph, which he set in the 2010 Manx Grand Prix, on his way to victory using Maxton Suspension. In the concurrent Formula 2 Class Chris Palmer took his second win of the day using Maxton Suspension while in the Formula Classic Class Dean Harrison (also using Maxton Suspension), who achieved his first mountain course podium at this year's TT, topped the board for his maiden Mountain Course victory with a narrow victory in the Formula Classic Class.

Before the race, Clerk of the course Phil Taubman reported that roads were dry all around the course for the final race of the 2013 Classic TT presented by Bennetts.

James Hillier, as he did with this year's TT Races, had the honour of the number 1 draw on the CSC Racing Honda, with Steve Mercer on the Yamaha Classic Racing Team bike starting ten seconds behind with pre-race favourite Michael Dunlop on the Team Classic Suzuki third away.

As expected Michael Dunlop was first to Glen Helen, nine seconds ahead of Team Classic Suzuki Teammate and Maxton Suspended Conor Cummins with Gary Johnson on the Team Winfield Harris a couple of seconds further back on the Manx rider.

Dunlop was quickest on the opening lap, posting his record-breaking lap, leaving Cummins over thirty seconds behind with Gary Johnson holding third and Mercer and Manxman Ryan Kneen on the DMR Yamaha, with opening laps of 19:11.930 (117.913) and 19:12.45 (117.860) respectively, completed the top five.

Dunlop's second lap (18:22.531, 123.196) slowing down for the pits, saw him establish a lead of almost a minute from Cummins (18:44.258/120.815) with Mercer holding third a further thirty seconds back. With Gary Johnson dropping down the field, Ryan Kneen moved up to fourth and with Coward and Johnson retiring at Glen Helen and Crosby respectively, John Barton on the wemoto.com Kawasaki moved into the top five.

Dunlop kept his minute lead over Cummins on the third lap with Ryan Kneen moving into third place at Mercer's expense. Mercer's challenge for a podium spot came to an end when he slid off at Ramsey Hairpin but the Kent man was reported as okay.

Dunlop duly took the race win with 1:15.13.79/120.36mph) from Cummins (1:16.13/ 118.790 with fellow Manx rider Kneen, the 2008 MGP Newcomers A race winner, (1:17.19.158/117.015), taking the final podium position. Kneen cut it fine and actually ran out of fuel in the return lane and pushed his machine into the winners enclosure. Adrian Cox on the Top Gun Racing/RAF took the privateer honours.

Palmer wins Okells 350 Classic TT race

Maxton Suspended Rapid Castletown man Chris Palmer blew away the opposition in the Okells sponsored 350cc Classic TT race on Monday morning.

The race was delayed for half an hour due to misty conditions on the Mountain but once t got underway Palmer rapidly cleared off on the Ripley Land 350 Honda twin.

In what he confirmed may be one of his last Mountain Course appearances the former British Champion put on a silky-smooth display of skill to win by one minute and eight seconds from team mate Cameron Donald who was also using Maxton Suspension.

After a slow start the Australian TT star worked the Ripley Land AJS relentlessly up through the field, benefitting from the early exits of Alan Oversby and Chris Swallow.

Third place man Dan Cooper pushed Donald hard on the third lap, closing to within three seconds before deciding to conserve his Molnar Manx Norton for the final lap.

Nigel Moore took a well-earned fourth place and Alex Sinclair scored a popular privateer win and finishing eighth overall. In the 250cc class Jonathan Cutts made a strong showing in the final laps to win by over a minute from Peter Wakefield and Geoff Bates came home third on a Honda CB 250.

Palmer Wins F2 Classic Lightweight

Using Maxton suspension Chris Palmer on the Rob Brew Racing Yamaha was first away in the Formula 2 Class, fresh from his victory in the Okells 350cc race. James Cowton (also using Maxton suspension) on the Peter Berwick Yamaha was next with Roy Richardson on the FCL Racing/Martin Bullock Manxsport Yamaha third away from the line.

Palmer was fastest to the first checkpoint at Glen Helen establishing a three second lead from Phil McGurk on the Springcourt Motorcycles Yamaha with Cowton third a further second back. Palmer's completed his opening lap in 20:30.150/110.416 to lead Cowton (20:36.637) by six seconds at the end of the first lap. However, Cowton moved ahead of the Isle of Man based rider on the second lap with a 20:14.142/111.872mph lap, establishing a lead of just over two seconds with Palmer and McGurk completing the top three.

Palmer came back at the Yorkshire rider on the third lap, clocking 21:12.082/106.776 to lead him by twelve seconds with McGurk (21:50.767) retaining third and that remained the top three at the Grandstand with Palmer winning in 1:22.21.694/109.944, eleven seconds ahead of Cowton (1:22.32.656/109.701) with McGurk (1:23.45.022/108.121 finishing in third. Chris Moore (1:25.14.017/106.240) in fourth place on the Yamaha was the first privateer back.

TRIUMPHANT CLASSIC TT FOR MAXTON

This years Classic TT is the first year that the modern day TT riders have been asked to ride machinery at the Classic Manx Grand Prix. Previously riders such as Ryan Farquhar, Ian Lougher and Gary Johnson had ridden at the Classic Manx Grand Prix, but this year nearly all of the top riders attended the event.

Maxton Suspension were involved with many of the top TT riders and there classic machinery running Maxton T260 twinshocks and front forks fitted with GP20 fork cartridges. Riders using Maxton products this year were John McGuinness, Michael Dunlop, Conor Cummins, Cameron Donald, Dean Harrison, Gary Johnson, James Hillier, Ollie Linsdell, Ian Lougher, Dan Stewart and Dan Cooper.

As well as all the TT riders there is the usual competitive Classic Manx Grand Prix riders such as Chris Palmer, Roy Richardson, Alan Oversby, Ewan Hamilton and Pete Wakelfield,

During the week Maxton had lots of success winning 5 out or 6 races and finishing with lots of podiums behind the victories, the Maxton results are as follows :

CLASSIC SENIOR TT :

350 CLASSIC TT :

250 CLASSIC TT

FORMULA 1 CLASSIC TT :

FORMULA 2 CLASSIC TT :

FORMULA CLASSIC TT :