Held Racer Report: ZOEK RACING BRANDS HATCH INDY

ZOEK RACING BRANDS HATCH INDY

Sean Neary's bad luck continued at Brands Hatch when he crashed out of third place in the first of the two races in the TriOptions Ducati Cup championship but he made up for his mistake by recording a fourth place in the second encounter on Monday. Zoek Racing teammate Craig Currie took 11th in race one and ninth in the second 15 lap affair.

Qualifying for Neary went well and he qualified for a front row start as third fastest rider. As the first race got underway Neary got away well and got the hole shot into Paddock Hill Bend. But on lap three Rob Guiver demoted him to second place and two laps later Joe Collier went past leaving him down in third place. The pace was hot on the short Indy circuit and on the eighth lap Sean made a mistake and went down at Druids Hairpin his race over.

Held wearer Sean Neary

He said: "My nightmare start to season continues as I crashed out of third place. Sorry to my team and sponsors who don't deserve that. They are a brilliant team and great people. I can't get the bike setup how I want it at the moment. I've done enough testing so it's my own fault. Will start p2 tomorrow so will give it another go!"

On Easter Monday Neary started the second race once again from the front row and was third away but was soon pushed back to fourth as the riders headed towards Druids for the first time. Although he remained in close company to the top three he was unable to make a pass on them and as the race wore on the top four riders pulled well clear of the pursuing pack. He was embroiled in a close battle for position with Jonathan Railton and Phil Atkinson but finally had to settle for fourth place.

"After crashing in the first race I was always just going to bring it home safe this time. I didn't feel too confident as still not happy with the set up so didn’t really push it. At least I have picked up some points and we intend to go to Oulton on Thursday for a test to see if we can find out what the problem is."

Held wearer Craig Currie

Meanwhile Newark rider Craig Currie rode a steady race in the first encounter from a fourth row grid position to secure a good, safe 11th place. In the second race he again started from the fourth row and this time was circulating in 11th place over the first four laps before moving forward to 10th on lap five. He remained in 10th place throughout the final laps and was elevated to ninth when Taryn Skinner crashed out on the last lap.

Craig said: "I enjoyed that last race and am delighted to have picked up ninth place. I am now 10th in the championship on 21 points and am really happy with that. I am aiming for a top 10 end to the season this year so am on course so far."

The next round is close to home for Neary at Oulton Park, over the May Monday weekend of April 29/May 1.

pic credit Dave Yeomans


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