Press release:Leon Camier and James Ellison scored a win and a 2nd place apiece in Round 7 of the British Superbike Championship at Mallory Park today. Leon's 11th win of the season now puts him on 299.5 points. Currently lying in 2nd, James increased his total to 224 points.
At the start of a dramatic Race One, pole-sitter Leon was forced to take avoiding action at Charlies to prevent hitting a fallen rider and slipped down to 23rd. From 7th on the grid, James slotted into 9th. As Leon quickly made his way through the field, he and James swapped fastest laps. The fastest eventually being set by James on lap 10 with a time of 56.333. By lap 23, James was lying in 7th with Leon 4 seconds behind in 8th when an incident involving the top six riders brought out the red flag. With over two-thirds of the race distance complete, the result was declared with James 1st and Leon 2nd.
Heavy rain began to fall ahead of the second race. Off the line Leon initially went to 4th and James 5th but the pair fought hard to make up a place by the end of the first lap. Both Airwaves Yamaha riders enjoyed an exciting battle with Chris Walker and then Richard Cooper, and by lap 11 were lying 1st and 2nd. On lap 17 standing water on the track caused the second red flag of the day. With no sign of conditions improving, a decision was made not to restart the race and award half Championship points.
After securing his 11th win of the season,
Leon said:
"The first race was tough. I didn't get a particularly good start. I then decided to stick to the inside of the first corner to try and stop anyone from going through, but someone did anyway and it was just carnage. I had to cut across the grass but luckily got going again. It's quite difficult to overtake around Mallory Park but I tried to pick off as many people as possible. I could see I was catching the leading group but then the red flag came out. I feel really sorry for the guys that were involved but of course another one-two for Airwaves Yamaha is a great result for us.
"As I had no experience riding the Airwaves Yamaha in the wet, the plan was to make sure I bought some points home. I didn't think we could win. When we got out on track I found that the package the team had put together was awesome. I felt really comfortable and could build a gap."
On the day's races
James commented:
"We made some changes to the Airwaves Yamaha for the first race and it felt a lot easier to ride. But after I'd caught John Laverty, I used so much energy trying to pass him, I really started to tyre. I've been feeling unwell and struggling all weekend. My joints have been hurting and I've not been lasting well in the sessions because of fatigue. I was still really hoping to get on to the podium, and was waiting for a safe place to pass John when the red flag came out. It's a shame for the riders who were affected. Personally I was looking forward to chasing down the leading pack in the remaining laps.
"I was feeling really confident for the second race. Setting the fastest lap proved we have the pace. I just needed to make sure I did it consistently for 30 laps in Race Two. Of course the rain threw out all our original plans, but I absolutely loved every lap of it. I've not ridden the Airwaves Yamaha aggressively in the wet before so I didn't know what to expect. But it felt great and I really loved battling with Chris Walker. Once I passed him I concentrated on staying smooth and not making any mistakes. I thought I could have caught Leon so it was a shame the race was stopped. But it was definitely the right decision. I couldn't see a thing so the conditions were too dangerous to continue. I can't wait to get to Brands Hatch to see what we can do there!"
Race One Results:1. James Ellison - Airwaves Yamaha
2. Leon Camier - Airwaves Yamaha
Race Two Results:1. Leon Camier - Airwaves Yamaha
2. James Ellison - Airwaves Yamaha
Championship Standings:1. Leon Camier - Airwaves Yamaha 299.5 pts
2. James Ellison - Airwaves Yamaha 224 pts
