Held Racer Report: Wigley Racing, Oulton Park

Oulton Park Race Report

As the end of the season approaches, we revisited Oulton Park for round 10 of the British Superbike championship. The weekend commenced with some unfortunate luck as we hit the track for a very wet FP1, on the opening lap the steering damper bracket snapped causing Kurt to almost lose control of the Sorrymate.com Yamaha on a straight exceeding 100mph. He got the bike safely back round to the pit lane where the team worked franticly to create a quick fix, however, this only lead to one other completed lap meaning we began the event on the back foot having completed 2 out of a possible 15 laps.

FP2 began on a more positive pathway, by this point the circuit had dried up and Kurt wasted no time in putting down some strong lap times. He worked his way up into the top 10 and continued up to P7 by continuously beating his previous lap. Once again, the session abruptly came to a stop for the team as the bike lost all power and cut out exiting turn 1. Kurt was forced to retire from the session. Further investigations following the session lead to the discovery of a blown fuse which was a relief that it was something so simple but at the same time frustrating that it halved the session.

Saturday mornings qualifying session was the first full session of the weekend meaning we had a lot of work to get the bike set up closer to perfection in time for the race. With Oulton Park being on the opposite end of the scale to Silverstone in terms of the bumps, cambers and twisty sectors there was minimal information we could carry over for the new Mupo suspension. The session was tough to make vast improvements on lap times whilst sacrificing time on track to make adjustments to the setup, but this didn’t stop the team from securing a P10 finish in class putting us on row 4 in P11 for the race.

Race 1 on Saturday afternoon proved to be somewhat dramatical. Kurt had a strong start to the race as he broke away with the top 10 on the opening few laps, feeling positive he was ready to fight for a best finish but soon became aware that the brakes were fading and quickly. We have never experienced this issue previously and Kurt was coming ever closer to running off track or colliding with another rider entering corners. Fortunately, the race was red flagged because it began to rain allowing the team to change the pads and bleed the brake fluid through the system along with swap the wheels to wets in the desperate attempt to make the restart. Other than a few burns from the disks and pads it was a success and Kurt made his way onto the grid where he once again got a strong start and managed get to the front of the group he was in to take a P7 finish. In his bid to break away from the group when at the front, he put down the 6th fastest lap time of the race putting us on the second row of the grid for race 2. 

Moments before the second race it began to rain heavily which was a shame for us as we were hoping for a damp circuit as this is where we get our best results. The wet race soon began, unfortunately for Kurt a few close moments when finding the limit set him back on the opening couple of laps resulting in him being pushed back to P13. He spent the first half of the race trying to get into a rhythm and reduce the mistakes in a bid to not repeat last weekend’s Silverstone race. When Kurt finally settled down, he began closing the gap to the bike in front and at one stage was lapping a couple of seconds faster than those directly ahead as he made his way up to P11. With 4 laps remaining and the track drying out, he had a big push catch those in sight and obtained another 4 positions before the final lap completing the final race of the weekend with another 7th place finish. 


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Held Racer Report: Sean Neary, Oulton Park National Superstock 1000

SEAN NEARY OULTON PARK SUPERSTOCK

With no Ducati race at Sean Neary’s home circuit of Oulton Park the Lymm based rider decided to have a ride in the Pirelli National Superstock championship round at the Cheshire circuit to see how he would fare against the regular riders in the series.

Sean Neary, Oulton Park Superstock. Pic: Dave Yeomans

He said: “I am really excited to be doing a one off round in the Superstock 1000 this weekend at Oulton Park. Huge thanks to Evolution Waste and 2 Works for making it happen. Also thanks to Jenko and JB for getting the bike ready. After years on the Ducati it's going to be tough but I can't wait! The BMW pulls like a train so there will be plenty of accidental wheelies!”

It was a baptism of fire for Neary in the highly competitive championship but he held his own and completed his qualifying in 27th place for a start to the first of two 14 lap races  from a ninth row grid position.

As the lights went out Neary was 28th on the first lap but once he settled into his race he began to make up ground, moving through to 26th on lap two. He was elevated to 24th when two riders tangled on lap nine and finally passed Joe Morphett who he had been in close company with, on lap 11. Too far away to the rider ahead he was unable to make further progress but brought the BMW home safely in 23rd place.


Sean said: “It has been great fun so far on the BM in my first Superstock 1000 race. A terrible start saw me dead last but I worked my way back to 23rd and set a new personal best lap time around Oulton Park. There is still so much to learn and feel I like a novice again but I am enjoying the experience!”

Starting the second race once again from the ninth row Neary got a good start and gained places on the first lap. But it was all over for him on lap 2 when he crashed at Shell Oils, his race over.

Sean said: “Today was a disaster! Terrible start again and then crashed on lap two trying to get back through. The weather made it a really tough weekend as I needed as many laps as possible. Still a great experience though and thanks so much to Evolution Waste, Craig Currie, 2 Works, Charlie and Lisa Kerford.

“It was good while it lasted but now I have to turn my attention back to the Ducati championship where the final round takes place at the Cathedral of Speed, Assen in the Netherlands on October 1. Although the championship is already won there are still two races for me to try to win.”

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Held Racer Report: Zoek Racing, Ducati Tri-Options Cup, Silverstone

ZOEK RACING SILVERSTONE


The two Zoek Racing riders Sean Neary and Craig Currie were at Silverstone for the penultimate round of the Ducati Performance TriOptions Cup resulting in four good results for the team.

Neary from Lymm in Cheshire was running in the top four throughout free practice and qualifying and despite a crash in the dying seconds of qualifying he put the Zoek Racing on the front row in third position for the start of race one.

He said: “I am happy enough with third in a very wet qualifying session. I was unfortunate to crash on my last lap and although I am ok the bike is a bit poorly. I am so sorry for the lads who have a lot of work to do on the bike in preparation for the first race tomorrow but we should be good to go. Thanks to Maxton for helping get our wet settings sorted.”

As the lights went out for the start of the first race Neary got a good start and was first away but Joe Collier was quick to overtake him on lap two. But it was all in vain as the rain started and the race was red flagged. At the restart over five laps in wet conditions Neary slotted into third place but was demoted to fifth on lap two. He was briefly passed by David Ferns and Sam Middlemas but Ferns retired and Neary was able to overtake Middlemas on the penultimate lap to cross the finish line in fifth place to pick up 11 championship points.

He said: “It was not the best of finishes in fifth place. I started well chasing Joe but then the rain came and the race was stopped. In the wet restart we just couldn’t get the bike to do what we wanted so had to just salvage some points. Thanks to the Zoek Racing boys for all their hard work rebuilding the bike after my crash in qualifying.”

Starting the second race from the front row of the grid in second place, Neary got the hole shot into the first corner and led the race for the first two laps before being overtaken by new champion Joe Collier. Although he was matching Collier’s times for most of the race he couldn’t find a way past him and the pair pulled clear of the pursuing pack to cross the finish line some eight seconds ahead with Neary finishing in a fine second place to pick up 20 championship points to take his total to 161 and move up to fourth in the rider standings. The final round is at Assen on October 1,

He said: “I really tried for the win but wasn't to be. Still I am happy enough with P2. So grateful to the Zoek Racing Team who worked so hard after I crashed on Friday. I have a good bit of bruising but that serves me right for pushing in qualifying when I didn't need to; also thanks to all the sponsors and Craig Currie for helping to salvage the season.

Meanwhile Newark Racer Craig Currie was making a return to racing following his withdrawal from the last round at Thruxton with a recurring shoulder injury. Although still very sore Currie decided to complete qualifying and if he felt ok was to race. He qualified for a sixth row start to the first race and was running in 24th place when the race was red flagged for rain. At the restart the wet conditions suited Currie as the pace would not be so hot and he completed the five lap dash in a commendable 17th place.

Starting the second race from the eighth row Currie got an amazing start, moving through from 24th to 17th on the first lap. He then moved up the field as far as 13th before fading slightly to complete the race in 16th place, just outside a point scoring position. He is now in 11th place in the rider standings on 52 points with one round remaining at Assen on October 1,

pic credit Dave Yeomans

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