Category: Crew On Two

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Josh Brookes Evaluates his TT Return

Image courtesy of Martyn Wilson, of Pitlane Photography

Having had two years away from the Island, Josh Brookes returned to Snaefell Mountain Course, achieving his best finish to date with 6th in both the Lightweight TT and the Senior TT, for Kawasaki and Norton respectively. Besides the results, the Australian sensation spoke to me about his experience whilst over on the Isle of Man, particularly with how he adapted to riding such a vast range of machinery. He also talks about how mental and physical strength can be pushed to the limit when track time is limited.

How would you sum up your Isle of Man TT experience?

It was a frustrating couple of weeks. The weather wasn’t very kind. I kept thinking that the top guys such as Hutchy and Dunlop wouldn’t be too bothered because they’ll use their experience and they’ll only need 6-8 laps. After that, they’re in their rhythm, they’re in the groove, they know the track and the bike is sweet. However, I think they were spending a lot of time trying to set their bikes up the way they wanted them so they probably wanted more laps too.

In any case, for me, I wasn’t really looking to make a lot of changes to the bike because I was happy with the way it was working. I just needed laps for myself and get calm within the circuit. Having two years away meant that it was very difficult to remember how deep you went into each corner at what speed to make it through, not necessarily which corner was up next. It’s very difficult to explain to people who haven’t ridden the bike or the circuit. Even if you have done either of them, it is still very hard to grasp exactly what it is that you lose. Lots of people think that you’ve forgotten the track so you go slower.

However, although you might know the corners coming up and the sequence, the problem is that you’re trying to remember from the last time. You may get into a corner at 150 km/h but when you arrive and brake a little bit too late, that’s because you thought you could get to a certain point that you were at last time. You have to ride slower and then build up to it; obviously, it’s a long way round and a lot of corners so it takes a long time to remember the whole circuit and the succession of approaches and exits. It’s a little bit like a new CD. You won’t know what song is coming up next but once you’ve listened to CD over and over again, you anticipate the song coming on and sing word for word when the song does come on.

As the week goes on and you get more practices, you know what’s next and feel relaxed and kind of prepared for what is coming next. Having so few laps in practice determined my success I think. Considering all that, I had a really good race and to come 6th in the Senior TT with the bike and the first time I’ve ridden it and after all the problems regarding the weather, it was a great finish. I’m pleased and proud with everything I’ve done.

It’s not just knowledge either, you do adjust too. Your body acclimatises to the experience. At the Sulby Straight, you know that on a Superbike, you can go flat out right to the end on any bike. However, it takes about eight laps before you dare do it. Even though you know it can be done, things are going passed your head at that speed and your self-preservation kicks in. Even if the bike isn’t much better and you’re not much better, it makes it easier to ride at that speed than what it did before.

Was returning to the TT harder than when you first went?

It was harder when I first went, for sure. Don’t get me wrong this year was still hard and I was surprised. It did give me a lot more respect about what I was able to achieve in the first year. The first year wasn’t actually a very good year either. The first day was wet. The second day, my teammate was killed. The third day was wet. We was quite late into the week getting any form of practice then as well, which emphasises even more the success of this year and of my debut year. Even then, I set my fastest lap during the race, which at the time was the newcomers lap record. I didn’t realise at the time what I had done. So, coming back this year was almost like being newcomer all over again. When I was building the feeling up again, I thought ‘wow’, because I must have been going through the same feelings I went through as a newcomer because it’s very difficult to learn. It wasn’t as hard as learning it for the first time but it wasn’t an awful lot different.

In the 2013 Superstock race, I pitted with a chain issue which forced me to retire. In the Senior TT, there was a fault with the electronics and I didn’t carry on. The only full race I got was after three days of practice and a condensed load of laps. I didn’t recognise it was such an achievement until now, having had two years off, where I can really appreciate that year because it was my first time. Coming back this year felt like I was re-living that same process. I felt completely at ease with my knowledge and feeling of the track by the Senior TT.

It must have been hard to adapt to so many different bikes around one of the most difficult circuits in the world?

No, not really. The Honda that I raced wasn’t too bad. I had rode the CBR 600cc bike to third in the World Supersport championship behind Andrew Pitt and Jonny Rea, with a win at Donington Park that year and because the bike is relatively similar to how it was then, it wasn’t too difficult. What realistically should’ve been three new models hasn’t worked out. I hopped on a bike that felt like my own.

Also, the difference between a Supersport, Superstock and Superbike, as varied as they are, isn’t too much. Therefore, it isn’t too hard to adapt. It feels different but it is something that riders have to be able to do. To be a good rider, you have to have a certain amount of adaptability. I found it more difficult with the lightweight. The speed, the weight and the gears were so different. It was also a bike that I’d never ridden before – I only had two laps to qualify it and then raced it. I think I rode the bike well. Again though, the start of the race was slow because I just needed more time with the bike. It’s the kind of bike where you need to use every single inch of road to really make it work. It’s not physically difficult to ride because the engine in the bike is lighter.

One thing many people don’t understand about motorcycle racing in general is weight. The weight of a 1000cc bike on scales may be the same as a 600cc, however, the gyroscopic weight is massively different. Therefore, as a rider you have to adapt and try and control that gyroscopic weight so then, a 600cc feels really easy to ride. However, the 650cc is on weight, heavier but the gyroscopic weight makes it easier to ride than a 600cc bike because it had a two cylinder crank, so it’s narrower and feels so much better to ride.

These elements of the bike make it feel easier to ride but you have to take more risks, because to make it work. It was a bit of a rock and a hard place really. As I was learning the bike and willing to push the limits with the track, I got quicker but unfortunately, you need to go from the first lap. As soon as you get the tap on the shoulder, the quick guys are off and that’s when experience, skills and track knowledge comes into play. I feel I’ve always been stereotyped as a risk taker but actually, I think that’s inaccurate. I feel more reserved and calculated than most other people; my riding style in earlier years may have promoted the idea from a spectator point of view as, “Wow! He’s on the edge!”, whereas I’d look at that and think that’s how that bike needed to be ridden at the time. A bit like Marc Marquez with the Honda. I feel like I only take risks when I’ve calculated them and I believe that it is that approach that keeps me safe on the roads.

Did the difficult weather make it more physically and mentally demanding?

The problem was that when I did get laps, it was all on one day. Instead of doing five laps, having a night to sleep it off and coming back the next day to talk about it and let it all sink in and digest the information before having another go, I was like “missed yesterday, missed the day before, missing tomorrow” and suddenly, I had 9 laps in one day. After that, my head was absolutely fried. I needed the laps, yes, but I didn’t dare do another one! I was physically fatigued, my mental ’data’ was completely maxed out. There’s no more room for information. Even if I did another lap, I wouldn’t have gained anything. This year, the TT was a fight against time.

Does skill alone win you a TT or do you need a lot of experience?

My riding skill is as good as everyone above me and my learning skills is pretty strong – being fastest newcomer in 2013 proves that. Riding different bikes means that I can also adapt and that has been a consistent trend throughout my career. At the end of the day, it does come down to experience. That’s what I needed more of.

 

Kiko Giles @MotoGPKiko

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Rossi Writes Records in Thrilling Dutch TT

 

Valentino Rossi took his first win of the 2017 MotoGP season after a thrilling Dutch TT at Assen. Pole-sitter Johann Zarco pitted to change to wet tyres after the rain began to fall, ending his hopes of a GP victory. A late surge from Cal Crutchlow and Andrea Dovizioso saw them go head to head with Marc Marquez, whilst Danilo Petrucci’s race win challenge was thwarted by Alex Rins on the final lap, after the Spaniard failed to get out of the Italian’s way whilst being lapped at turn 7.

The race started with Johann Zarco taking the hole-shot down into the first turn, with Marc Marquez and Valentino Rossi slotting in behind. Petrucci dropped to 4th whilst Alvaro Bautista careered down the outside, into 5th place. Championship leader Maverick Vinales was mired in 11th place, failing to make up ground off the line.

Having waited and weighed up the situation, Valentino took the lead with 15 laps to go, from Johann Zarco. The two would tangle at turn 4 however, with Rossi running wide, giving the French sensation half a chance to take the lead back. As Zarco went for the inside line, Rossi swooped around the outside, colliding with Johann, who was then under attack from Marquez and Petrucci.

Danilo got passed Marquez and Zarco, before catching up with Valentino. With 8 laps to go, the front four started to telescope together as the rain came, lubricating the circuit enough for the likes of Zarco, Rins, Hector Barbera and Jorge Lorenzo to come in to change.

Meanwhile, out front with just 5 to go, Petrucci took the lead on the inside on the run back towards the pits, leaving Rossi vulnerable to a Marquez and Dovizioso attack.

Petrucci and Rossi pulled away however and at the chicane one lap later, it was the Yamaha rider who got under Petrucci’s Pramac Ducati, which would be how it stayed until the end of the race.

Rossi took the win despite Petrucci closing right in on The Doctor rider through the final chicane. It was his 115th win and his 10th at the Assen track. Completing the podium was reigning champion Marc Marquez, who put a stunning pass on Britain’s Cal Crutchlow at Ramshoek, leaving the newly re-signed LCR Honda rider 4th, ahead of Andrea Dovizioso, who is now the championship leader after Maverick Vinales crashed out.

Rossi’s victory meant that he set another record in his career. The Italian now has the longest winning spell of any rider in the history of the Motorcycle Grand Prix World Championship. He also became the first rider in the history of the sport to take 10 victories at more than one European circuit – excluding the TT. It was his 224th podium and the victory also meant that Yamaha took their 16th premier class win at the circuit.

The next race in this sensational season comes from the Sachsenring, this coming weekend. the circuit has been a happy hunting ground for Honda in recent years and Marquez is yet to lose a race there since 2010. Rossi trails series leader Dovizioso by 7 points.

Kiko Giles @MotoGPKiko

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Reid Joins Tyco BMW in Superbike Deal

Image courtesy of Bournemouth Kawasaki 2016

 

Andy Reid has joined Tyco BMW following a test at Kirkistown on Monday.

Reid has been out of a ride in 2017, having won races in British Supersport for the previous two seasons, firstly with Keith Flint on the Team Traction Control Yamaha and then on Pete Extance’s Bournemouth Kawasaki.

The hard-charging tattoo artist from Belfast will make his debut in the British Superbike championship at the Snetterton 300 circuit this weekend, hopefully alongside his new teammate Christian Iddon, who is still recovering from a nasty arm injury sustained at Knockhill.

“I’m just delighted to have been give this opportunity by TAS Racing and Tyco BMW to finally join the British Superbike grid, said Andy, making his first British Superbike racing appearance of the year.

“I’m coming in as a rookie with a clean slate, so I’m coming with an open mind and ready to learn from an experienced team. They are a team I have always admired and yeah, I’m pretty excited if I’m honest.

“It will be a steep learning curve, but again I have confidence in my ability to learn, but I also know it’s not all about week one; this is a work in progress and I can’t wait to get started, explained the 23-year-old.

Reid was runner-up in the 2014 National Superstock 600 championship behind World Supersport rider, Kyle Ryde.

Kiko Giles @MotoGPKiko

 

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Alan Carter on the 1986 British Grand Prix and his Moving Personal Life

In 1983, Alan Carter of Halifax became the Motorcycle Grand Prix World Championship’s youngest ever winner, after a thrilling ride in the 1983 French 250cc Grand Prix – a weekend that will be remembered as a contrast to Carter’s emotions. In a time when the north of Britain had been seemingly forgotten about, there were big hopes. Sadly, Carter was never allowed to fulfil his massive potential and due to a number of reasons, never became the World Champion that he and us fans know he should’ve become. In an incredible interview held at Knockhill on Sunday evening where I spoke to Alan himself, he recalls the tragedy that rocked the family as well as the infamous 1986 British Grand Prix, which proved worth fighting for in more ways than one.

In 1986, I raced on a Cobas, built by Antonio Cobas. He was an incredible engineer but the biggest problem we had was that the team couldn’t speak english. I’d had the same team for the previous three seasons but when I went to Cobas in 1986, I ended up with a team full of Spaniards. Looking back on it now, it was funny and brilliant but obviously at the time it was stressful and annoying. They also liked a couple of bottles of Rioja during their Siesta times. That wasn’t very useful because when they came back, none of them could remember what they had tightened up and what they hadn’t, so I spent most the time on the floor after my bike seized up!

The problems started in Belgium. I was sat behind Sito Pons in 2nd, with Donny McLeod 3rd. I thought that I’ll just wait behind him and pass him on the last couple of laps and take the win. Unfortunately, my bike went onto one cylinder so my plan went out the window. I should’ve come out of the Belgian Grand Prix 1986 finishing at least 2nd, but I actually finished fifth, not too far off Dominique Sarron in 4th. I came away from there extremely pissed off.

What happened now was that I trained like crazy for Silverstone: I was going to win the British Grand Prix. We used to have Thursday practice which wasn’t timed and then Friday and Saturday practice which was timed. To us though, Thursday was timed, as we had someone doing it ourselves and then find out where we was. When I came back, I saw that I was top of the time-sheets. I was absolutely buzzing!

On the Friday, I went into the first turn – off the back of a 5th gear Woodcote back then – and the bike seized up and chucked me off. The crash bashed me up a bit and obviously knocked my confidence, even though I was a professional. I had a pretty poor qualifying but luck was on my side, because it absolutely threw it down on race day, by that point I thought a win was guaranteed.

After about five laps, I took the lead but the rev counter had stuck to about 7,000 RPM. We used these Tony Dawson rev counters which were good when they worked but in reality they were a bit hit and miss. So now, I’m racing a two stroke which has a very narrow power band and can only change gear through listening to the engine because my rev counter had become irrelevant. Because I was focused on the engine, it took the edge off my performance so me and Dominique Sarron swapped places a few times. On the final few laps, I started to catch Sarron again and people said that I probably wouldn’t beat him, although I thought I could. 2nd place at the time didn’t mean anything to me because I wanted to win so much.

I started to reel him in and closed down the gap, which was approximately 2 seconds. As I came out of Stowe corner, I knew that if I had a chance of winning, I needed to get a good run. When I arrived at Club corner, time was running out but I was still a believer. I got on the power a fraction early, the rear came round on me and I crashed out of 2nd place in the British Grand Prix. It was all my own fault and there’s no questions about that.

Amongst all of the panic and the pandemonium and confusion, I picked the bike up and the only damage to it was the clutch lever. I managed to wedge the clutch lever back – like you can – so I could rejoin. I only needed to use it once to start the bike because I still wanted to finish. Everything was going fine until this marshal came along. Obviously he was concerned because I was at the side of the track and he didn’t want me to be taken out by someone who might crash like I did. However, he came up to me and knocked my arm, which then knocked the clutch lever which made me f*****g livid! I went to throw a punch at him and completely lost the plot! I ran back to the bike and tried restarting it but I didn’t realise that I was trying in sixth gear, so it wouldn’t go anywhere. I ran 50m with it but I was absolutely exhausted. I was 45 minutes into a Grand Prix so I just put the bike down and collapsed at the side of the circuit and that was it. It was all over.

I finished 17th in the world championship that season. It was the same year that my brother, Kenny, killed himself and his wife. He was my manager, my best mate and my best friend. He was World Pairs Speedway Champion with Peter Collins in 1983, he was a double British Speedway Champion in 1984 and 1985, winning the 1984 championship with a broken leg. He was controversially excluded in 1982 from the Los Angeles event which ended the year. He clashed on track with eventual champion Bruce Penhall. It was the best racing I’ve ever seen.

All in all, I felt robbed at the time. I knew I could’ve and probably should’ve gone on to win world championships but it wasn’t to be. I was on a short list of four riders for a factory NSR Honda. The others were Dominique Sarron and Carlos Cardus – I can’t remember the other guy. It’s been hard for me though. My brother killing himself after he murdered his wife, my mum killed herself at 15 and I’ve buried my daughter. I urge anyone to read my book and see for themselves just how hard it’s been.

I think me and my brother were very poorly managed by my dad, who was like a cross between a gypsy and something out of a Guy Ritchie film. However, if it wasn’t for him I wouldn’t have ever raced. He was the best motorcycle coach there ever was; I raced for Kenny Roberts and he was shit compared to my dad. I wanted to let people know – through writing a book – why I never became a world champion. People need to read it to get the full insight but also because it will make them appreciate life a lot more and open their eyes.

You can buy the thrilling and compelling book from Amazon, here

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Misano WSBK: What We Learnt

World Superbikes soared back into life at Misano last weekend. With an attendance across the three days of 68,000, it would be fair to say that WSBK is slowly bringing fans back. The other Italian round saw attendance reach 75,000 across the three days and whilst it has a long way to go before the numbers of 10-15 years ago are met, we can only hope that this incline continues.

Marco Melandri was the rider who took Ducati to their first win at Misano since Carlos Checa in 2011. He became the first Italian rider to win on a Ducati at Misano since Frankie Chili, way back in 2004. Melandri proved to the doubters that despite being mired down in 4th in the standings, he can still, and will still, win races. Although teammate Chaz Davies didn’t start, there’s the well known phrase that starts like, “to finish first…”.

Michael van der Mark demonstrated that he has gelled with the Yamaha. Despite being caught by championship leader Jonathan Rea, his tyre delimitation cost him a podium at the very least. Keep your eyes on the Dutchman, who has found a bit of confidence with the Yamaha. Could he be the rider to take the manufacturer to their first win since Portimao 2011, with Marco Melandri.

Something else we learnt was that Jonny Rea is beatable. I can hear you all screaming at me saying, ‘well we know that’, but what I mean is, even when his main rival was out, he didn’t win. The two Italian rounds are the only circuits at which he has not won at this season, so Carluccio’s is definitely off the ‘date-night’ options for him.

We also learns that despite plans for a controlled ECU to make racing closer, Jordi Torres’ BMW was more than capable of sticking it to the leaders in the 2nd outing. The Spaniard led for part of the race and with just three laps to go, retired due to a technical problem. World Superbike fans can hope and pray that this wasn’t a flash in the pan and that actually, this could be a big turning point, where we see more than just Kawasaki and Ducati dominating. Yamaha are edging closer, BMW aren’t far behind and we’ve already seen MV Agusta and Aprilia make strides. Give Honda until next year to be competitive and we might have an almighty brawl at the top of the championship tree.

The final thing we learnt was that Misano would stay on the calendar until 2020. The circuit has been on the calendar ever since it’s introduction in 1994 and has seen some top notch races. 2001 race one with Troy Bayliss and Ben Bostrom going head to head and in 1998 when both Hondas went at it for a double victory.

Kiko Giles @MotoGPKiko

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Moto2 Assen: Dutch TT Preview

 

A dominant display at the Catalan GP for Alex Marquez is now well and truly in the past as the paddock descend to Dutch soil, the beloved Assen TT circuit plays host to the eighth round of the championship.

The championship standings heading into the Assen make for interesting reading, with Franco Morbidelli’s lead of seven points being the lowest margin from first to second at this stage of the season since the Moto2 machines were introduced to the championship in 2010.

A disappointing display for the Italian in Spain as he crossed the line in sixth place, finishing a surprising 14 seconds off the lead and 10 seconds from the podium. Franco managed to climb on the podium at Assen in 2016, you have to think that would be the minimum target for him this weekend.

The man in close company to the top spot and the only person to finish in the points at every round this season is intermediate class veteran Thomas Luthi. He came across the line third last time round to close the gap at the top as he keeps the pressure on. A non score round the TT circuit last year but can he keep his super consistent record going? You’d be a brave person to bet against him this weekend.

The younger of the Marquez brothers clawed himself back into title contention with his magnificent display at his home race. Confidence will be sky high on one side of the Marc VDS garage as the inter-team battle seems to be hotting up nicely. A disappointing eighth place this time last year simply wouldn’t be good enough this time around as the number 21 and 73 keep an eye on a certain MotoGP seat that might soon be available.

Other men to keep a close eye on are Miguel Olivera, who lies fourth in the championship and double podium man Mattia Pasini, who is in the form of his life after two stellar displays at Mugello and Catalunya.

The 2015 Moto3 runner up has been super impressive on the brand new Moto2 KTM machine this season and after season of ups and downs in 2016, Olivera is right on track to sealing a very solid world championship standing position come the end of the year. His 15th place finish last season won’t be acceptable this time around.

Pasini is on fire. That Mugello victory gave the Italian a new lease of life and it is great to see. His 19th at Assen in 2016 will be completely forgotten about and there’s no reason why he couldn’t replicate his 125cc win at this circuit in 2007.

Other riders to watch out for? Japanese hopeful Takaaki Nakagami picked up his first Moto2 career win here last year as he, Marquez, Morbidelli and Dominique Aegerter are the only riders currently on the grid to have stood on the Moto2 podium at this track.

Francesco Bagnaia penned a new deal to stay on with the Sky Racing VR46 Moto2 squad for 2018 earlier this week after his good start to the season, the Italian will be wanting to mix it with the top boys for the rest of the season.

Jorge Navarro earned his best finish of the season last time out, crossing the line seventh. He missed the Assen round last year with a leg injury so he’ll be looking to get a solid free practice under his belt as he readjusts himself into the famous Assen layout.

Taz Mackenzie finally gets to have a go on a track he’s raced on before, a positive start to the weekend for the youngster who will have put Barcelona’s crash firmly to the back of his mind. The reigning British Supersport champion keeps on getting stronger as he settles into life as a grand prix racer. Any Brits heading to Assen, make sure you get behind one of our country’s brightest motorcycle racing talents.

Assen always treats us to a phenomenal weekend and I’m sure this year won’t be any different. Don’t forget too, this year the race will be held to on Sunday, going against traditions (rightly or wrongly).

Elliott York @journoyork

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Extance: There Will Be Some Fireworks in the Garage

 

Pete Extance says ‘there will be some fireworks in the garage’ at the end of the year, as he anticipates a showdown between his riders Luke Mossey and Leon Haslam. In this exclusive interview, Pete talks about the rivalry between the two riders, whether or not he’d employ team orders and also who he sees taking his JGSpeedfit Bournemouth Kawasaki brand to the championship in 2017. This interview gives an insight into what might occur towards the end of the season and if what Pete says is anything to go by, then we are in for some hard, and possibly even controversial, racing at times! Team Owner Extance also discusses his future plans, his season so far and what off-track aspects contribute to running one of the biggest and well branded teams in the Superbike paddock.

How would you sum up your season so far?

It’s been phenomenally well to be honest with you. We couldn’t have had a better start to the year with five wins from six races. Then, we had a bit of a disaster situation, which was no fault of the team’s or Leon’s. That has sort of set us back a little bit. Leon moved to WSBK and did a great job for Pucetti and we moved to the NW200 and Isle of Man TT where James Hillier got podiums at both. It wasn’t our best TT but two fourth places and a second, with James and the team back safe is really important to us. We’ve come straight from the TT to Knockhill so it’s been a really long trip, I’ve been away for over three weeks now and I’m looking forward to getting back home. Having said that, we are sat here on a sunny Sunday afternoon in Scotland at Knockhill and Luke has had a 2nd and a 4th. Big congratulations to Jake Dixon. Luke now leads the series from his teammate Leon Haslam who is unfortunately at home, following a crash from FP1. Leon is strong and is back testing on the 27th of June; he’s got no lasting damage which is great firstly for him and also for the team. This will only fire him up even more, ready for Snetterton. He won’t want to remain number two for very long.

How does running a factory team compare to running the more satellite team you had last season?

In fairness, it’s more or less exactly the same. We get a great amount of assistance from Kawasaki. Everyone knows Leon has got a great connection with the factory; he’s got a different swingarm but Luke hasn’t, as he’s running the exact same as last year. How beneficial that will be when track temperature goes up later in the summer and tyre wear comes into it, we don’t know yet. It’s a great privilege for me as a Kawasaki dealer, who’s been racing a long time, to be the official team and get some general support. We don’t really get ‘Factory’ support, KRT in WSBK are the ‘Factory’ team, we are the officially backed BSB team.

Last year you ran Supersport with Andy Reid but not this year – why?

The contract with Kawasaki specifically states that we are only allowed to run two bikes in the British Superbike paddock and that we have to focus on winning the British Superbike title this year. It stated that we weren’t allowed to run in the Supersport or Superstock 1000s, with just the roads. We were allowed to run the TT with a bit of race testing.

How come Andy Reid and Filip Backlund have not featured in Bournemouth Kawasaki plans this year?

I felt Filip was at the point where he wasn’t going to ride and, as you documented, he had a lot of crashes last year and wasn’t really on the pace, so I had to look elsewhere. I had already signed Luke well before Kawasaki approached us to run the factory team. Luke was running with us whatever happened and then began the bunfight over the Assen weekend. The riders had heard that Mark (Smith Halvorsn) was leaving, ‘can I come with you, can I come with you’ was all I heard over the weekend! We kind of agreed already with a certain rider that we would sign them, however I then got a phone call at half seven on the Monday morning from Ross Burridge at Kawasaki and thought ‘what the hell going off at half seven in the morning?’ and he approached us to say, “can you run Leon for 2017” to which we agreed.

What goes on behind the scenes at Bournemouth Kawasaki with regards to hospitality etc?

We have a legion of fans. We have 120 guests per round. A mixture of JGSpeedfit and our other sponsors. The guests have enjoyed a lovely roast lunch and dessert, absolutely rammed in here every single week and we have rider talks all the time. We are looking to do some more Q&As with the kids like at Donington Park last season. We are doing a milk and cookies morning with the parents and kids and just trying to bring families in. We have a lovely big ‘selfie board’ – as I’m calling it – with a picture of Luke and Leon on the bike and the little minibike in the middle. It’s great to see families in the paddock and not just crowds of blokes and if the families go away with a Luke Mossey cap on and a flag that they’re waving then they’re happy. We don’t do posters anymore, we do lanyards because they have all the riders details on them and hopefully, it’s a bit more of a memento than a poster that you see half a mile down the road when we’re driving away from the circuit.

Given Leon’s successful wildcard, do you see WSBK as an option in the foreseeable future?

Not for Bournemouth Kawasaki. We have a lot to prove in this paddock yet and we have come a long, long way in the last seven or eight years. I think before we start running at World Superbikes, we need to be British Champions. If it is this year, then it’d be great to come back and defend the series. For the riders, I think I know where we are with one rider but not necessarily where we are with the other. Luke is very keen to stay with us and we are looking to get that signed early to get it tied up ASAP. However, on the other side of the garage, Leon is actually contracted to Kawasaki UK so we will leave that seat open right up until the 11th hour until we, he or Kawasaki need to make a decision so we don’t miss out on other riders. I genuinely can’t believe at Knockhill – and before you ask, I’m not telling you who they are – but we have had three top riders approach us following rumours speculating Leon’s return to WSBK. I find it amazing that we’re not halfway through the championship and already silly season has kicked in.

That said, you don’t need the added stress of what is already an enormous operation you have to oversee do you?

Not yet. I tend to do a little bit more with the hospitality side of things. I love getting the microphone and presenting and doing a bit of the television stuff. I don’t tend to do too much with the riders, Jack Valentine probably does a little bit more with the riders although for now, they manage themselves quite well. We’ve also got some full time technicians that look after the bike so in fairness, it’s not that much more stressful than previous years gone by. The only thing that is different is that this season, we are bigger and better and have some high expectations so we have to deliver, to get results back to our sponsors and our guests, maybe a little bit more than other teams do.

Would it be fair to say that this is the first time you have had both riders wanting to win the championship?

100%. We as a team haven’t been very well financially supported in the past and we’ve had to fund a lot of the Bournemouth Kawasaki into the team. What that has done is meant that we can have one reasonably good, top quality rider and we started with Chris Walker and Dan Linfoot and gone through that, but the 2nd rider has had to bring their own money to the table. Whilst that kept us on track it unfortunately means that you get a rider who isn’t going to win the championship or be in the showdown and help support a title challenge. Now, we are in a position with two fully paid, full time professionals and that makes a massive difference.

Did you expect Luke to be this strong?

Luke’s had a podium at every round; we felt he has really matured this year as a rider. I’m not sure that even in my wildest dreams that I would’ve put him as leading the BSB championship after four rounds of the championship. That’s great for Luke. This is not a negative for Luke but one thing that has been good for him is that we’ve gone four rounds without rain. Luke is the first to admit that whilst he is improving in the rain all the time, it’s harder for him to be pushing for 1st, 2nd or 3rd. A podium every round, no rain has helped and we’re heading towards mid-June and into July and we should be able to run through most of the season without rain. However, then we have the showdown in Autumn. If there was a stumbling block for Luke then it’d probably be the rain but lets hope it all stays dry.

Has Leon been surprised of Luke Mossey’s pace?

Erm, I think Leon knew Luke was fast. I think certainly that if he didn’t know about it before then he knew about it after testing in Cartagena, because there, he definitely knew about it! I think perhaps Leon is more surprised with how Luke has strung the results together and stuck to him in most races. His consistency has been absolutely exceptional. Leon won’t be worrying about that – his job for this year is to win the British Superbike Championship and if Luke runs him hard then fair play to Luke but if Luke wins, Leon will be extremely upset. I think he’ll be pleased for Luke but I think he will be very upset. As we all know, Leon has never won a British Superbike Championship and that’s what he desperately wants to do. If we asked Kawasaki at the start of the year what the result would be out of both the riders, after all the effort and finances they’ve put into Leon, they’d probably say it would swing more his way. However, it’s not over yet, we’re only four rounds in, lets get the boys in the showdown and let battle commence!

Is there going to be a rivalry between Luke and Leon?

I think there’s definitely going to be a rivalry! I think at the beginning of the season, Luke wasn’t happy with being called the number two rider by some people – it’s not something I have ever done myself. We have always called them on an equal. Leon has to be looking not only at Shane Byrne and the others but also his teammate. We will get to round nine pretty quickly now seeing as the races are pretty much every other weekend. For sure, I certainly think that both bikes will be in the showdown and that there will be fireworks in the garage.

Could it lead to an off-track fallout?

No, I don’t think so, if anything the two riders get on better than the two crews, so I think the riders are fine, we just have to try and keep a lid on the two crews. Expectations run high in the garage and the two lads are ultimate professionals. On track, they’ll probably look after each other until the last round of the championship if they’re battling for it and then it is open to any of them.

Would you use team orders as a tactic in the final round?

Wow, thats a very good question. It’s a question that actually, I can’t believe as a team owner that I may be asked. However, that may well be the situation. If there’s a situation where Leon can win the championship and we need Luke 2nd and Leon to win then I think we have to look to team orders. There’s a lot of investment and hard work and graft that goes into this and whilst any rider is not happy with team orders, at that point, it has to come. It’s not something that I’m overly happy about but I think I would get my butt kicked if Kawasaki said ‘why didn’t one of your riders yield?’

Which one of your two riders do you see team orders helping and hindering and who do you see as the rider taking your Bournemouth Kawasaki brand to the title in 2017?

Now that is a very difficult question – goodness me. That really is a tricky one. No one can write Luke Mossey off and no one can right Leon Haslam off. I really do think that bookmakers wise, between our team and Shakey, it will be your top three in some order. What route it goes, with two green ones first and second and a red one third or a red one first and the green ones behind we will wait and see. I know which way I’d prefer that, I’m just not sure with which green one! Luke’s only downfall may be that we get to Assen and Silverstone and we get a wet race but I love them both.

Image courtesy of Gareth Davies of Full Factory Photography. You can find them on Twitter and on Facebook. We would also like to thank Pete Extance for his time on what was a very busy Sunday at Knockhill.

Kiko Giles @MotoGPKiko

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Brookes and Guintoli to make Suzuka 8 Hour Bow for Yoshimura Suzuki

Josh Brookes will return to the Suzuka 8 Hour race at the end of July this season, riding a brand new Yoshimura Suzuki alongside Suzuki test rider Takuya Tsuda and fellow British Superbike returnee, Sylvain Guintoli. The star-studded line up comprises of riders who have all had world championship experience in the last two seasons.

Josh Brookes comes off the back of an incredibly successful Isle of Man TT, where he achieved a personal best of 6th place in the Senior TT, also becoming Norton’s fastest ever rider around the 37 mile Mountain Course. Brookes rides for the Anvil Hire Tag Racing Yamaha Team in the British Superbike championship, where he currently sits in 4th place. The BSB championship returns this weekend at Knockhill.

The Australian competed in the event last year, finishing 3rd with teammates Tsuda and Noriyuki Haga, who has been dropped for 2017. The event will highlight Brookes as one of the most versatile riders in racing, having successfully competed on a range of manufacturers already this year, such as Norton (TT) Supersport 600 (TT) and Yamaha Superbike (BSB).

Sylvain Guintoli is set to make his Suzuka 8 Hour debut alongside Brookes. Guintoli flew out to Malaysia to test the Endurance configuration for 3 days in January, in preparation for the event.

The Frenchman has had three races over in MotoGP, riding the Factory Suzuki in place of injured rookie Alex Rins. Having had a difficult start to his British Superbike season on the new Suzuki, he will be looking to gain confidence and gel with the bike over at the Suzuka 8 Hours, a race that Yoshimura Suzuki haven’t won since 2009 with Daisaku Sakai, Kazuki Tokudome and veteran, Nobuatsu Aoki.

Takuya Tsuda is Ecstar Suzuki’s test rider in MotoGP. The Japanese rider made his debut in MotoGP at Jerez earlier this year, finishing 17th.

“Suzuka is a bit like a love-hate relationship. When I’m there and I’m riding the bike and it’s really hot and I’m exhausted, I think to myself, ‘Why do I out myself through this?’ There’s so many years I haven’t ridden and I’ve been gutted I’m not there. If I was to stop going without winning it, I’d be giving up in effect and I’m really not like that! I don’t want to give up on the challenge. I had to beg to get my first ride, saying ‘pick me, pick me’. Even if I won I probably wouldn’t stop going! Because I’d want to do it again and try and better myself.

“I’m really looking forward to it. I’m scared to do it but I’m motivated to do it. I’ve set goals throughout my career and this is another one. To win this and already have a BSB title would be incredible, then I’d really want to win a TT! It’s good for me that I haven’t got everything I ever dreamed about wanting. If I had, then I’d be a bit like Casey Stoner. Retired and very boring. I’m sure he’s not that bothered but I’d be a bit of a lost soul without these kind of goals in my life”.

The Suzuka 8 Hour Race will take place on the 28th – 30th of July.

Kiko Giles @MotoGPKiko

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Josh Brookes’ Tribute to Alan Bonner

Every motorsport death is sad. Whatever the sport, you lose a member of the community and family. Sometimes however, series such as Indycar and events such as the Isle of Man TT have arguably more deaths than what most would consider normal and controversially, have been campaigned against to try and stop such events. I caught up with Josh Brookes, who lost a friend in Alan Bonner at the TT this year. The Australian superstar reminds us how the expected is always unexpected and how we should remember Alan. This is Josh Brookes’ tribute to Alan Bonner and how he as a rider and friend, overcome the situation carry on through TT week.

“Unfortunately, due to circumstances, Alan Bonner had died. The reason it affected me was because he did nothing wrong. There was oil on the track and he was just the rider who got to it at the wrong time at the wrong speed and the wrong place, and he wouldn’t have known anything about it. I asked myself, ‘why does it make a difference’ because – sorry to be blunt – but he is still dead. It doesn’t matter about the reasons that caused it because it is the same outcome at the end. It bothered me because he did nothing wrong. He was so innocent in the whole thing.

Alan was the tent next door to me. I knew Paul Owen, the ex TT rider and he was a mechanic for Alan. I was going into the awning to chat with Paul and Alan was there, so the banter started and there was plenty of good fun with jokes and just having a real good laugh. I got really friendly with him and he’d liked the fact that ‘Josh Brookes, BSB Champion’ was hanging out with him. Because of the position of my motorhome, we saw each other more or less everyday. He’d use my motorhome to warm his porridge up every morning, so when I found out what happened, it wasn’t that I’d just lost a competitor but it was more like I lost a mate.

If they said that he’d just have fallen or if we saw the line that he took and it was a mistake, then we could think, ‘at least he had control’. You’d think, ‘we are all out there doing the same thing and we took our life out of our own hands’. Most people don’t understand that because of the way they value life.

If you’d made a mistake yourself and you suffered yourself, you had control. You chose what it took to get there, you chose the line and it was your choice that led to the incident. However, when it’s nothing to do with any of that and you’re riding well within your capabilities and it’s an outside element, an outside factor that swept him away, it’s difficult to comprehend and accept and that really bothered me.

I have to say that I did have a feeling of realisation. It’s not that you don’t know – everyone knows it can happen to you – but you ignore it because you have to carry on. Just when I felt completely at ease with the bike, I had a situation that bothered me and took the wind out of me a little bit. It made the first lap of the race much more difficult, far more intense than it needed to be or would’ve been. I had my own thoughts in my own head and they was affecting how I was riding.

I got to the end of the first lap and it felt like I had got rid of that excess tension. I felt good on the bike, everything was going OK and then, I just carried on with my own destiny. Then, on the 2nd lap, Ian Hutchinson fell off and it was red flagged, so we all pulled over. At that point we knew Hutchy was OK – injured, but OK. We went back to the start, had a restart and as you know, we had a strong race.

This will sound disrespectful, but the other guys, I didn’t know. Don’t get me wrong, we all felt awful when Davy Lambert and Jochem van der Hoek died, but personally, it was better for me if I didn’t know them because it was easier for me to put it behind and focus. When you don’t know them, it’s easier to carry on because you didn’t lose anything personal to you, as sad as it was. Any TT rider will tell you that it is sad when anyone dies but there’s some weird affect it has on you when it’s personal. It’s not that their deaths weren’t as important, it’s just that we didn’t have a personal connection. The same as some riders wouldn’t have a personal connection like I did with Alan.

When it’s someone you was just speaking to and you have a laugh with and have fond conversations with that form a friendship, it’s harder. We spoke about racing a lot. He spoke about a crash he had at the Ulster Grand Prix and he was just one of the lads who was willing to take the risks.

I feel for the family that he’s left behind, because despite knowing the dangers, the crash that killed him wasn’t anything to do with him. Life isn’t worth living if you’re just competing. If the world was controlled where you couldn’t do anything dangerous, then I’d probably be on the verge of suicide anyway!

I take perspective from someone like Michael Schumacher, who lived his life in one of the most dangerous sports, to end up being seriously injured on a holiday. I may as well carry on doing what I’m doing because there’s other factors that can kill you too. It’s the same for Nicky Hayden – of all the times he could’ve been killed, it happens on a bicycle when you think you’ll be OK. The times when I think you’re going to be safe are when I’m driving the car or walking on a footpath but often, that’s when it can kill you. So, I look at it and think, ‘you can’t stop doing something because of the chances it might go wrong’.

It’s easy to say that we’re all adrenalin junkies and you do it for the feeling etc. Yes, there are elements of that but ultimately you wouldn’t do it all your life because eventually, you’d acclimatise and wouldn’t be bothered by it. Being competitive and riding a motorcycle pushes you to overlook what you’re willing to risk.

The point I’m getting at is it’s not the fact that Alan died. It’s the ‘how’ he was killed that bothers me. All the emotional concern or worry is the circumstances of how it happened. I spoke to Dean Harrison and you know when you need a chat with a lad to make sure that they’re thinking the same as you? Well, we didn’t go too deep into it but we spoke about how none of us are going to go any slower in the next race. We are all going to go out there and ride as hard or harder than the previous time. The English language doesn’t allow you to describe the emotion fully.

There’s other activities and sports such as mountain climbing and skiing where there a lot of deaths. Someone loses their father, son or partner but the next year, they’re doing it again because that’s exactly what the other person would’ve done. They would’ve been there on that next holiday. Alan would’ve been at the Ulster GP this year and warming his porridge up with me at the TT again next year”.

You can donate to Alan Bonner’s GoFundMe page here, helping the family with costs and all money raised over the target amount will go to a charity of Alan’s choice.

Picture courtesy of Josh Brookes’ Twitter, here

Kiko Giles @MotoGPKiko

 

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Mossey: I Never Doubted My Ability

 

On a surprisingly warm summers day in the Knockhill pit lane, I caught up with championship leader Luke Mossey, getting his thoughts on the season so far, having Leon Haslam as a teammate and his prospects for this year and beyond. Mossey went on to take a podium (2nd) in race one and 4th in race two but leads the championship by a huge 30 points over teammate Haslam, who was absent from Knockhill following a free practice accident.

How would you sum up your season so far?

I’ve had two strong years on the Superbike, including the rookie year. We’ve had some strong testing and we said to ourselves we are ready to win races. Not only did we do that but we got our first double as well. I couldn’t really ask for a better season so far up to this point.

Are you under pressure having Leon as your teammate or do you learn things?

We’ve learnt a few things but I never doubted my ability. We knew we had speed and the issues that we did experience have gone. Of course, having Leon in the team will up my game and it will need to if I am to match a man of his stature because he’s been around a long time and has a wealth of experience. We are ready to up our game further but so far, so good.

Would you consider being at an advantage in comparison to Leon, having had more time with this team?

No, not really. It is only my third year and I’ve been on a thousand for two and a half years, whereas Leon has been around for about 15 years so I wouldn’t say that’s an advantage at all. Having a third season with the team brings some nice continuity but Leon has got experience.


Can you focus more on racing without him being your teammate for this round and possibly the next?

I like Leon and I get on really well with him but at the end of the day he’s just another guy I need to beat. It doesn’t matter if he was here, he’d have been at the front. His absence doesn’t really effect me or my team that much really.


Is Leon your main title threat?

If I’m honest, it’s Leon and Shakey for sure. Shakey had a bit of bad start to the year at Donington Park but he’s always going to be there or there abouts for sure.

How is it working with Pete for a third season?

He’s like a second dad really. We get on really well and I feel privileged to stay for a third year really and hopefully we have another year or two maybe but we will wait and see. If the opportunities come along then we’ve got to look at the world stage. I’m 24 and just starting my Superbike career so we would like to go there in two or three years but for now our focus is primarily on BSB. The MotoGP thing is a bit of a dream. You’ll never get Movistar Yamaha and you’ll never get a Repsol Honda. It’s great to say you race in MotoGP but I wouldn’t go there to finish 15th on a satellite Ducati because it doesn’t mean anything to me. I would rather stay in Britain and win races.

Can you win the championship in 2017?

Yeh for sure. We’ve got the bike, we’ve got the team and if we don’t win it then it won’t be through lack of trying. I’ve put my heart and soul into it and it’s a very tough championship – one of the toughest in the world and the goal is always to be in the top three but we are going for the title this season.

Would you consider road racing, seeing as this team has road racing pedigree?

I have absolutely no intentions in doing road racing whatsoever. Unless they paid a million pounds for it but I think that’s the end of that! I scare myself enough on the short circuits so the TT is not really in my mind. I think it is amazing what those riders do but it really doesn’t appeal to me.

Image courtesy of Gareth Davies at Full Factory Photography, which you can follow on Twitter and Facebook.

Kiko Giles @MotoGPKiko

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