Craig Fitzpatrick ended his 2008 campaign in style with yet another victory in the final round of the British Supersport Cup at Brands Hatch. The newly crowned Supersport Cup Champion came in to the weekend free of the pressure of the title race and was able to enjoy himself as he claimed his 8th win in twelve rounds.
Friday’s free practice sessions saw Fitzpatrick place 13th and 9th overall, and fastest in the Cup, as he endeavoured to get his BLDS Yamaha R6 working it’s best around the short Brands Hatch Indy circuit.
On a damp track, Saturday morning’s first qualifying session was, in the main part, action free. With lap times at least 5 seconds slower than had previously been achieved in the dry, few riders ventured out for anything more than a check of the conditions. Fitzpatrick completed a mere seven laps and placed 16th overall.
In glorious sunshine, the second qualifying session was a complete contrast to the first. The short 1.2 mile circuit made for an exciting shoot out to determine the look of the grid. Fitzpatrick began well and was quickly up towards the top of the time sheets. Able to find himself some clear track, he put in a storming lap to jump himself up to second fastest overall. With only a third of the session remaining, Fitzpatrick was still fifth fastest, as he began his final assault. Latching onto the back of third fastest, Steve Plater, Fitzpatrick looked set to land himself on the front row for the first time since the first round back in April. Unfortunately, both riders’ chances of improving their respective times were scuppered as they encountered a cluster of slower riders. Fitzpatrick ended the session 9th overall and fastest in the Cup, but was left thinking of what could have been.
Fitzpatrick made a cautious start and had dropped to twelfth by the end of lap one of twenty-five. As Fitzpatrick fought to pass the rider in front of him, it allowed the group ahead to slip away, effectively blowing his chances of getting at top ten finish. As the race drew on, Fitzpatrick lead the charge, trying to reel in the pack of six who were fighting it out ahead of him. By the end of the race, he had pulled the gap back to under 0.4 seconds, but just ran out of laps to improve on his 11th position. All the time he was trying to bridge the gap to those in front, he was also holding off the second placed Cup runner, Dean Hipwell, as he took his third consecutive Cup victory and his 8th of the season.
The weekend marked the completion of a successful campaign for the Alfreton based rider. With eight wins and three-second places leading to winning the Supersport Cup title and three top ten finishes in the British Supersport Championship, the best being 6th place at Brands Hatch, resulting in a 13th place finish overall. Fitzpatrick can now begin to prepare for his 2009 campaign, in which he can expect to build on his successes.
