Rizla Suzuki’s Cal Crutchlow showed determination and sheer speed during a tough fifth round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Snetterton in Norfolk today. Cal did not allow high-speed crashes on Friday and Saturday hold him back and in the opening race, starting from 11th on the grid in warm sunshine, he took nearly three-quarters of a second from his best previous lap time as he fought his way to eighth.
In the second race Cal started from the back of the grid on his spare bike after his number one Rizla Suzuki developed an electrical fault during the sighting lap. Out of 30 starters, he worked his way up to 9th by the 16th lap, but just before a safety car incident he was forced to retire when fluid on his boot meant he couldn’t change gear.
Chris Walker finished with a pair of ninths on his Rizla Suzuki. Despite every effort, he never found a comfortable set-up on his GSX-R1000 to allow him to run with the leaders. Honda’s Ryuichi Kiyonari won both races.
Rizla Suzuki will be at Donington Park in Derbyshire next Saturday, May 26th, at BikeFestUK, where it will be testing on track throughout the day. The next round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship is at Mondello Park in the Republic of Ireland on Sunday, June 17th.
Cal:
“The opening race was good and my lap times competitive. I asked for a few changes I think would have helped for race two but never got a chance to try them as I had to start on my number two bike. I was then gutted after battling into the top 10 and having to retire and not scoring any points as a result.
“My heart says I want to be scoring in the top six and fighting for podium finishes. My head tells me that I am learning more every weekend. My skills for understanding, setting up and racing a Superbike are developing and that’s my main objective for now; the top six results will come soon, I am sure. Final word goes to my team technicians – you guys were brilliant this weekend, thanks for all the support, you are ace.”
Stalker:
“If there were rewards for effort then we would be on the top step of the podium. We tried our hearts out this weekend but no matter what we did, we couldn’t compete at the front.
“Our performance this weekend is both confusing and frustrating because we know we can fight for the podium after the Silverstone results. I’ll be talking with my technicians about a test plan for next weekend that will hopefully see us back at the sharp end of the races soon.”
Simon Buckmaster, Team Manager:
“It’s been a difficult weekend for Rizla Suzuki, there’s no hiding that. On the plus side Cal has again impressed with his determination, attitude and speed despite a couple of crashes and poor luck. He leaves here a wiser and more accomplished Superbike rider.
“Chris has struggled for the second race meeting in a row to extract the best performance from his Rizla Suzuki and that is something, along with a number of technical issues, that we will be analysing and addressing over the next couple of days.
“The entire team has worked very hard this weekend but knows there will be no respite. We are testing at Donington Park at BikeFestUK on Saturday and need to make it count so we can go to Mondello Park in Ireland optimistic we can achieve good results – the team needs more effort from the riders and technicians alike.
“One thing that has lifted our spirits is Chris Vermeulen’s MotoGP victory in Le Mans today - well done to our sister Rizla Suzuki team, we hope we can emulate your success soon.”
Race One Result:
1: Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) 24:00.140,
2: Jonathan Rea (Honda) +0.277,
3: Leon Haslam (Ducati) +8.209,
4: Tom Sykes (Honda) +12.981,
5: Leon Camier (Honda) +14.185,
6: Gregorio Lavilla (Ducati) +14.379,
7: Tommy Hill (Yamaha) +18.471,
8: Cal Crutchlow (Rizla Suzuki) +21.387,
9: Chris Walker (Rizla Suzuki) +28.255,
10: Tommy Bridewell (Suzuki) +28.552.
Race Two Result:
1: Kiyonari 26:56.071,
2: Rea +0.625,
3: Shane Byrne (Honda) +0.920,
4: Sykes +4.240,
5: Haslam +4.312,
6: Camier +5.650,
7: Hill +6.076,
8: Scott Smart (Kawasaki) +10.530,
9: Chris Walker (Rizla Suzuki) +10.720,
10: Ollie Bridewell (Suzuki) +13.874,
Dnf: Cal Crutchlow (Rizla Suzuki).
Championship Positions (after five of 13 rounds):
1: Kiyonari 190,
2: Lavilla 179,
3: Rea 149,
4: Haslam 131,
5: Camier 117, 6: Sykes 106,
7: Byrne 87,
8: Chris Walker (Rizla Suzuki) 76,
9: Hill 70,
10: Michael Rutter (Kawasaki) 50,
12: Cal Crutchlow (Rizla Suzuki) 43.
Related News
