Jason O’Halloran scores 5-4 results at Cadwell Park
Josh Brookes battled set-up issues and struggled to card 12-7 results
Ben Currie scores two podium results in Supersport 600 – Arthur Sissis goes 10-7
Brayden Elliott and Sam Clarke both fail to finish in Superstock 1000
Images by Jon Jessop
James Ellison became the seventh different race winner in the 2017 MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship following two dramatic races at Cadwell Park. The McAMS Yamaha rider shared the victories with Leon Haslam in an incredible raceday which also saw Lee Jackson claim his first podium finish in the class.
The battle for the Showdown places intensified with six different riders representing four different manufacturers scoring podium finishes as the championship prepares for the Silverstone Showdown decider with nine riders still mathematically poised to claim a position in the top six.
2017 MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship – Cadwell Park – Race One
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In race one Haslam returned to the top step of the podium for the first time since Oulton Park in May as the JG Speedfit Kawasaki rider delivered an inch perfect performance to hold off a chasing freight train of eight riders.
As the race got underway Haslam hit the front of the pack as he jostled for position with pole sitter Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne for the initial advantage. The race was short lived for Honda Racing’s Dan Linfoot as he got caught up in the mid pack and consequently crashed out unhurt, he was subsequently sidelined from the second race.
Byrne was attacking however a spectacular moment on the exit of Mansfield saw the defending champion save a crash, but he was onto the grass and dropped back down the order and had to regroup.
Jake Dixon then hit the front of the field as the RAF Reserves Kawasaki rider lunged ahead on the fourth lap, but Haslam was attacking back as he bid to regain the position, meanwhile Byrne had sliced back through the pack into third place by the ninth lap.
A lap later and Haslam was back into the lead, despite Dixon piling on the pressure he managed to hold off the Knockhill double race winner to claim his fourth win of the season with Dixon and Byrne completing the podium.
Peter Hickman fought his way back into fourth place after he had also dropped down the order as he took evasive action when Byrne had his moment; he got the better of Honda Racing’s Jason O’Halloran and Jackson to claim fourth.
Michael Laverty had his best performance of the season so far in seventh, holding off Christian Iddon and Tommy Bridewell, who scored his best result of the year for Team WD-40 Kawasaki. Ellison rounded out the top ten.
2017 MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship – Cadwell Park – Race One Result
- Leon Haslam (JG Speedfit Kawasaki)
- Jake Dixon (RAF Reserves Kawasaki) +0.131s
- Shane Byrne (Be Wiser Ducati) +0.404s
- Peter Hickman (Smiths Racing BMW) +0.689s
- Jason O’Halloran (Honda Racing) +1.106s
- Lee Jackson (Smiths Racing BMW) +1.224s
- Michael Laverty (McAMS Yamaha) +4.247s
- Christian Iddon (Tyco BMW) +4.311s
- Tommy Bridewell (Team WD-40 Kawasaki) +4.502s
- James Ellison (McAMS Yamaha) +4.754s
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2017 MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship – Cadwell Park – Race Two
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In race two Jackson had started from pole position for the Smiths Racing BMW team for the first time and he had a lightening start off the line to lead on the opening lap from Dixon, Byrne and Hickman.
Ellison was holding strong in fifth, but he had a moment and was forced to run on through the chicane which dropped him back and he had to regain the ground.
By the fifth lap Dixon had fired himself into the lead with a move on the brakes into Park and then Jackson, Byrne and Hickman on the second of the Smiths Racing BMWs were in contention for the lead.
As Jackson smashed the lap record on the eighth lap, Ellison was vying to move up the order and he pulled a move on Hickman to move into fourth place.
Dixon was setting the pace at the front of the field but on the ninth lap the Knockhill double race winner slid off at Hall Bends, ending his chance of moving into the top six of the standings this weekend.
There was plenty more drama to come though as Byrne was then stalking Jackson for the lead; the Be Wiser Ducati rider made his move at Park, but just two laps later the defending champion was forced to retire with a technical problem.
Championship leader Byrne’s retirement from the race marked the first time that none of the six Showdown riders have been confirmed ahead of the final race of the Main Season.
However it wasn’t just Byrne that was halted in race two. On the same lap race one winner Haslam had gone for a move on Hickman into Park but a gearbox issue forced him to scrub off speed and ended up on the grass at over 90mph, resulting in him crashing out unhurt.
The leading trio was then Jackson leading Ellison and Hickman and with three laps to go the McAMS Yamaha rider made his move to take the advantage at the front of the field with the trio three wide going into Park on the 15th lap.
Ellison went on to take the chequered flag by 0.696s from Jackson with Hickman giving the Smiths Racing BMW team their first double podium finish.
James Ellison (McAMS Yamaha)
Lee Jackson (Smiths Racing BMW) +0.696s
Peter Hickman (Smiths Racing BMW) +2.237s
O’Halloran claimed fourth place for Honda Racing as he kept his chance of a Showdown place alive as he moves up to fourth in the overall standings ahead of Iddon on the leading Tyco BMW. Iddon was able to capitalise on Dixon’s non score to move to within eight points of Luke Mossey who holds sixth place in the standings ahead of the Silverstone triple-header.
Tommy Bridewell gave Team WD-40 their best result of the season in sixth place just ahead of Josh Brookes on the Anvil Hire TAG Yamaha, who will also arrive at Silverstone currently inside the top six in the standings. Laverty, Glenn Irwin and Sylvain Guintoli completed the top ten.
James Ellison
“It is not too late to fight back in the championship. We have had the pace all year, apart from Thruxton really so to get McAMS Yamaha their first win of the season and in the Superbike Championship is fantastic. We still want more wins this year and we still can, but this win is special and everyone will feel this one in the team. It was great to battle with Lee too and it was hard to make a move at the start of the race. I made my move and tried to control it and that was one of the best races we have had this year.”
Peter Hickman
“The first race was tough and although I didn’t make the best of starts, I was happy to sit in fifth but when Shakey almost crashed at Mansfield, I had to take to the grass as a result. I lost a load of places so coming from a long way back wasn’t easy but I was as fast as anyone and the Smiths BMW was working really well, so fourth was a good end result. In race two, Lee set a really strong pace at the beginning and I was in the mix so I was delighted to pick up another podium. The aim of the weekend was to get more Podium Points and strengthen my position for a Showdown place and I’ve done both so it’s been a great weekend. I’m really happy for Lee and the whole team have done a brilliant job once more so roll on the next round.”
Lee Jackson
“We found some good form last time out at Thruxton so to bring that to Cadwell Park and improve further still has been mega so it’s been fantastic to get my debut BSB podium. In the first race, I was only a second off the race win and definitely had the pace, which was shown with the fastest lap, so to start the second from pole gave me an even better chance. I got by James at the hairpin but thought maybe I’d shown my hand a bit early but we fought for the win all the way to the end so it’s a fantastic result for me. The first half of the season wasn’t the best and we had a few hiccups but hopefully we can maintain this form at the final four rounds so a huge thanks to the team for sticking by me and giving me a great bike.”
Jason O’Halloran
“Well race day at Cadwell Park, it’s been OK we finished fifth and fourth, so points wise it’s not the worse day we’ve had. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t disappointed, I love racing here and felt like we had decent pace. Race two I think our starting position really held us back and I got caught with some guys, I tried everything I could but I just couldn’t get by quickly. Once I had made the pass my lap times increased, but the front pack had already gone. The results from today, as I say are good points wise and I am now fourth in the Showdown, but I am disappointed not to be on the podium at my home race and also the teams. I am giving it everything at the moment, but it doesn’t seem to be enough. We’ve got to keep going, keep pushing and improving, and give it a good go at Silverstone!”
Josh Brookes
“We’ve had definitely no luck this weekend! We started out a little bit late on Friday morning, and it was a little bit of a rush to get out on the track. It feels like we’ve started off on the wrong foot. The first practice wasn’t that good and then the afternoon practice looked like an improvement, but it was false impressions because all weekend we’ve been slightly off the pace and both races were extremely difficult for me. If I knew exactly what the problem with the bike was, we would have fixed it. We went through all the different setting changes we could imagine, and I didn’t find the result that we were looking for. If you’re not getting the result you want, of course you’re not happy.”
Dan Linfoot
“I was quite happy after qualifying yesterday; we chipped away through practice and made progress throughout. So I was fairly content with the progress and was in the group for a strong race. I made a good start and caught onto the row in front but going into turn one, a rider on the inside of me sat the bike up and I was forced onto the grass, I crashed out and have chipped the knuckle on my index finger, so wasn’t able to take part in race two. I am disappointed, I was looking forward to the races today to improve my feeling here, Cadwell is always a track I have struggled with, but this weekend I was feeling good, so it’s a real shame to miss the races and also miss out on points to make a last minute challenge on the Showdown, which is now off for me. So now we move forward to Silverstone, try and keep improving with the Fireblade and get back to riding at my best again.”
Shane Byrne
“The first race was hard work but we made a change to the front end in morning warm-up which helped, although I almost crashed at Mansfield on the second lap. I somehow managed to save it with my elbow and it served as a little warning so I was happy to sneak a podium. All of the bikes were fairly equal so we tried to improve again for race two but coming out of the Gooseneck, the bike wouldn’t select a gear so I had to pull off. Obviously, it’s a massive shame and frustrating and it’s easy to be down and negative after giving away what I feel is a lot of points at the last two rounds but our time will come and we’ll see what we can do to improve for the final four rounds.”
Jake Dixon
“I’ve had really good pace all weekend and felt comfortable leading in the first race so although Leon came by just after half race distance, I just tucked in behind. I tried to have a go on the last lap but fair play to Leon, he’s one of the most experienced riders around here and hard to beat so he kept the door closed everywhere. I felt really good in the second race and felt like I had another gear to move up to if needed but I’d been experiencing chatter through Hall Bends regularly during the weekend and I think that was what led to the crash. It’s a real shame and has given me work to do at the next round but these things happen and the good thing is that, despite the crash, I’ve closed the gap to sixth place. The bike’s working well and I’m feeling good so we’ll bounce back stronger at Silverstone.”
2017 MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship – Cadwell Park – Race Two Result
- James Ellison (McAMS Yamaha)
- Lee Jackson (Smiths Racing BMW) +0.696s
- Peter Hickman (Smiths Racing BMW) +2.237s
- Jason O’Halloran (Honda Racing) +5.739s
- Christian Iddon (Tyco BMW) +6.010s
- Tommy Bridewell (Team WD-40 Kawasaki) +7.501s
- Josh Brookes (Anvil Hire TAG Yamaha) +7.670s
- Michael Laverty (McAMS Yamaha) +10.336s
- Glenn Irwin (Be Wiser Ducati) +10.367s
- Sylvain Guintoli (Bennetts Suzuki) +15.830s
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MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship standings after Cadwell Park
- Shane Byrne (Be Wiser Ducati) 219
- Leon Haslam (JG Speedfit Kawasaki) 209
- Peter Hickman (Smiths Racing BMW) 193
- Jason O’Halloran (Honda Racing) 178
- Josh Brookes (Anvil Hire TAG Yamaha) 167
- Luke Mossey (JG Speedfit Kawasaki) 161
Dickies British Supersport Championship
Keith Farmer took the opening Dickies British Supersport Championship win at Cadwell Park after long-time race leader Andrew Irwin crashed out at the final corner. Irwin had held an early race lead having taken the holeshot, with Farmer and Jack Kennedy in close contention on the MV Agusta. Farmer briefly made a move into the lead on lap four but Irwin retook him just one lap later. Having just moved up to second, disaster struck Kennedy on lap six when he was forced to retire with a technical problem leaving it a two way battle for the victory.
Holding just 0.2s of an advantage over Farmer, Irwin was looking confident to take his maiden Supersport victory but a mistake on lap nine saw him crash out of contention, leaving Farmer to cruise to his sixth win of the season and extend his Championship lead to 58 points. Second place eventually went the way of Victoria’s Ben Currie whilst David Allingham completed the podium in third.
Dickies British Supersport Championship, Cadwell Park, Sprint race
- Keith Farmer (Appleyard Macadam with Integro Yamaha)
- Ben Currie (Gearlink Kawasaki) +2.176s
- David Allingham (EHA Racing Yamaha) +4.808s
- Jamie Perrin (Slidecodor/Go Racing Developments Yamaha) +5.280s
- Eemeli Lahti (777RR HRP Suzuki) +11.314s
- Matt Truelove (Astro-TT Racing Yamaha) +11.893s
Feature Race
Keith Farmer made it two from two in the Dickies British Supersport Championship at Cadwell Park, claiming victory in an action-packed feature race. The Gearlink Kawasaki launched off the start to lead at the end of the opening lap however Farmer slipped through on lap two but as the pair were looking to pull away from David Allingham in third, a huge crash from Joe Francis saw the Safety Car deployed on lap four.
As the Safety Car was preparing to pull in at the end of lap seven, Irwin made a mistake through Hall Bends and crashed out of second and as the rest of the field took evasive action, Famer was able to resume the race with a healthy lead over the now second placed Allingham. Having found himself mid-pack on the opening laps, Jack Kennedy picked his way back through the field to claim second at the finish line, just 1.2s behind Farmer whilst Ben Currie claimed another podium in third.
Ben Currie
“It’s fantastic to be back on form at Cadwell Park, it has always been a track I’ve struggled to get to grips with in the past. I’ve been working really hard off the bike, to believe that I can run with the top guys and that hard work has paid off. It’s a huge credit to the Gearlink Kawasaki team as they’ve always stuck by me, believing in me and working really hard for me. A special thanks goes to my mechanic, Jack Keen, Ben Wilson for all his mentoring, Michael and Norma, my parents and also Kirsty for everything they all do for me. Back to working hard again now to get similar results or better at Silverstone! Thanks to all my personal sponsors who allow me to be here week in week out.”
Allingham eventually claimed fourth, with the Suzuki of Eemeli Lahti in fifth.
South Australia’s Arthur Sissis carded 10th and 7th place finishes across the two Supersport bouts.
Dickies British Supersport Championship, Cadwell Park, Feature race
- Keith Farmer (Appleyard Macadam with Integro Yamaha)
- Jack Kennedy (GAC Logistics/Tempus Magazine MV Agusta) +1.295
- Ben Currie (Gearlink Kawasaki) +2.093s
- David Allingham (EHA Racing Yamaha) +5.429s
- Eemeli Lahti (777RR HRP Suzuki) +10.838
- Tom Ward (Aero Legends/Go Racing Developments +13.427
Keith Farmer (Appleyard Macadam with Integro Yamaha)
Jack Kennedy (GAC Logistics/Tempus Magazine MV Agusta) +1.295
Ben Currie (Gearlink Kawasaki) +2.093s
Dickies British Supersport Championship standings after Cadwell Park, Feature race
- Keith Farmer (Appleyard Macadam with Integro Yamaha) 285
- Jack Kennedy (GAC Logistics/Tempus Magazine MV Agusta 222
- David Allingham (EHA Racing Yamaha) 201
- Andrew Irwin (Gearlink Kawasaki) 188
- Benjamin Currie (Gearlink Kawasaki) 183
- Taylor Mackenzie (McAMS Yamaha) 150
Superstock 1000
Morello Racing’s Danny Buchan picked up his ninth victory of the 2017 season, after getting the better of Chrissy Rouse and Richard Cooper in a titanic battle at Cadwell Park.
It was Cooper who grabbed the holehot, but Buchan soon forced his way past to take the lead. The safety car was then deployed for two laps, bunching the group back together. When the race got back underway, it was Cooper who regained the lead, and started to pull away from the battle between Rouse and Buchan.
Buchan soon became impatient and looked to get past the BMW man at every opportunity, as the battle quickly hotted up between the leading three.
Rouse then led on lap nine, but then Buchan grabbed it back a lap later. The Kawasaki rider started to pull away from the duo behind, and took the flag with a five second gap with Rouse just holding off the Bennetts Suzuki man for second place.
Danny Buchan
“I’ve had good pace all weekend but it was quite an interesting race and I knew the other riders would try to make it difficult at the start. They got ahead of me and I was back in third as it all got a bit chaotic with all sorts of moves going on! Once I got back to the front though, I got my head down and utilised the clear track to string together a few laps in the 1m28s bracket. It all worked out perfectly in the final laps and it’s obviously great to get another win so on we go to the next round at Silverstone.”
Neither of the Australian protagonists in the class managed to take the chequered flag. Brayden Elliott failed to complete a lap while Sam Clarke was looking good for a points finish before going out a lap before the end.
Sam Clarke
“My determination is still as strong as ever after this long and unreliable weekend, trying to tame the beast. Being one of the hardest tracks I’ve ever had to learn, Cadwell Park was a weekend of unreliable weather and pushing myself to the limit. After going with the leading pack for the first half of the race I crashed in the last corner, of the last lap losing the front of the bike while attempting to take another placing. Definitely not from lack of trying. I thank all my team and sponsors this weekend, especially Rob from Banhams WA who made it over for his 5th time to support me! All his continuous efforts do not go unnoticed by everyone.”
Tumut’s Brayden Elliott had a painful exit on the opening lap, flicked in the air off a major highside on cold tyres.
Brayden Elliott
“Thankfully apart from bruising and missing some skin I’m unhurt from the crash and will use the next three weeks to get back on track mentally and physically ahead of Silverstone. It’s been extremely tough gaining my confidence back after a few too many crashes throughout the season. You certainly need 100% self belief to be at the front in this championship and after being knocked down a few times it’s easy to get off track. I’m taking these next few weeks to work on myself personally, pin point a few issues and start feeling like myself on the bike again! Thank you to my family, friends, team and everyone for the continuous support during set backs and success. I have learnt from mistakes this season and been pushed to overcome many things I didn’t know I was capable of, I’ll come back stronger because of it.”
Pirelli National Superstock 1000 race (15 laps)
- Danny Buchan (Kawasaki)
- Richard Cooper (Suzuki)
- Mason Law (Kawasaki)
- Michael Rutter ( BMW)
- Josh Elliott (BMW)
- Adam Jenkinson (BMW)
Danny Buchan (Kawasaki)
Richard Cooper (Suzuki)
Mason Law (Kawasaki)
Championship standings (after nine rounds)
- Buchan 286pts
- Cooper 261
- Rutter 190
- Rouse 153.5
- Law 127
- Jenkinson 113.5
Superstock 600
Tom Neave has claimed his third Pirelli National Superstock 600 race victory from four races, beating his twin brother Tim by 3.8s. Tom grabbed the holeshot to lead at the end of the opening lap with Brad Jones running in close contention.
Setting an impressive pace at the front, the duo were able to pull away from the pursuing pack with Tom setting a new lap record on the third circulation however disaster struck for Jones on lap five when he crashed out of second place leaving Tom with a healthy three second lead.
Tim was able to hold off growing pressure over the closing laps from George Stanley to claim second. Championship leader Dan Stamper finished seventh.
